Glass Bodies a variant-level encyclopedia of vintage lenses and cameras by iwillpat

Planar T* 50mm f/1.4 (C/Y)

Carl Zeiss · Contax/Yashica · 1975

Also known as: Contax Planar 50mm f/1.4 · Contax Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm F1.4 · Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm F1.4 C/Y · Planar T* 50mm F1.4 MMJ · Planar T* 50mm F1.4 AEJ · Planar 1,4/50 T* · Planar 1.4/50 C/Y · Contax Zeiss 50mm 1.4 · CONTAX Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm F1.4 MM · CONTAX Planar T*50mm F1.4 AE · コンタックス プラナー 50mm F1.4 · コンタックス Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm F1.4 MMJ · プラナー T* 50mm F1.4 AEJ

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
AE (Japan, 1975–85) Contax/Yashica 1975–1985 — —
MM (Japan, 1985–2005) Contax/Yashica 1985–2005 — —
Gold-plated (Golden RTS set) Contax/Yashica — — —
  1. Construction (6 groups, 7 elements), 45° angle of view, 0.45 m closest focus, 275 g, 62.5 × 41 mm, 55 mm filter and the f/1.4–16 scale are Kyocera's figures from its product page for the MM lens (kyocera.co.jp, archived 2003, page copyright 2002). Japanese Wikipedia and apotelyt give the same construction, closest focus and filter size. Phillip Reeve weighed his AE copy at about 290 g, 15 g over Kyocera's figure for the MM lens; Japanese Wikipedia says early and late AE barrels differ in weight.
  2. Blade count: six, counted by Phillip Reeve and by Casual Photophile on their own copies; Kyocera's page does not give it.
  3. Price: ¥44,000 without case (ケース無) is Kyocera's list price for the MM lens as still sold in 2002–03, the only maker list price found; no 1975 launch price in yen, dollars or marks was found. Used prices around 2015 were $190–260 on eBay.com and €160–230 on eBay.de (Reeve).
  4. Dates: 1975 is the Contax RTS launch, with which the lens appeared (Japanese Wikipedia); the MM barrel dates from 1985 and the Contax 159 MM; 2005 is the end of Kyocera's Contax business rather than a published discontinuation date for this lens, which was still in Kyocera's 2002–03 list.
  5. Origin: made in Japan from the start, with no West German run of this lens documented (Japanese Wikipedia; Reeve's AE copy). Sellers' AEJ / MMJ shorthand (generation plus J for Japan) is therefore the only form in which this lens appears; AEG / MMG offered as a 50mm f/1.4 should be checked against the engraving.
  6. The gold-plated lens is recorded only by English Wikipedia; nothing about its number or date was found.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • Name ring reads Carl Zeiss Planar 1,4/50 T* with the serial; 'Lens made in Japan' on the barrel; 55 mm filter thread; C/Y bayonet with a mechanical aperture coupling and no electrical contacts
  • AE or MM: white 16 at the end of the aperture scale is AE, green 16 is MM; MM lenses also carry the extra coupling cam on the mount
  • Not to be confused with the Planar T* 50mm f/1.4 for the Contax N (autofocus, electrical contacts, no aperture ring on the body side), the Cosina-built ZF / ZE / ZK / ZS Planar T* 1,4/50 of 2006 on (ZF engraved, Nikon F, Canon EF, Pentax K or M42 mount), or the Yashica ML 50mm f/1.4 which shares the mount but not the name

AE (Japan, 1975–85):

  • Minimum-aperture numeral 16 in white on the aperture ring; no MM coupling cam, so the body offers only aperture-priority and manual exposure
  • 'Lens made in Japan' on the barrel; no West German AE run of this lens is documented
  • Six straight blades that open to a saw-tooth ('ninja-star') shape one or two stops down from full aperture

MM (Japan, 1985–2005):

  • Minimum-aperture numeral 16 in green; the extra MM cam at the rear lets the 159 MM, 167 MT, RX, ST, AX, Aria and RTS III set the aperture for program and shutter-priority modes
  • 'Lens made in Japan'; rounded-hexagon diaphragm opening in place of the AE's saw-tooth

Gold-plated (Golden RTS set):

  • Gold-plated barrel, supplied as the standard lens of the limited gold-finished RTS

Specifications

Formula
Planar double-Gauss, 7 elements in 6 groups; 45° angle of view
Construction
7 elements / 6 groups
Aperture range
f/1.4–f/16
Diaphragm blades
6
Min. focus
0.45 m
Dimensions
62.5 × 41 mm
Weight
275 g
Filter
55 mm
Years manufactured
1975–2005
Country
Japan
Coating
Zeiss T* multicoating
Original price
¥44,000 without case, Kyocera's list price for the MM lens still on sale in 2002–03; no 1975 launch price was found (today ¥50,000)

What reviewers say

Optical Ratings

Aggregated from the reviews above — follow the links for the full picture.

Chromatic aberration
no lateral
Spherical aberration
glow at f/1.4
Vignetting
2.2 stops open
Flare & ghosting
strong for era
Distortion
noticeable barrel

History

The Planar T* 50mm f/1.4 was the standard lens of the Contax RTS when Yashica and Carl Zeiss launched the camera in 1975, and it stayed in Kyocera’s catalogue until the Contax business closed in 2005. It is a double-Gauss Planar of seven elements in six groups covering 45°, focusing to 0.45 m, with a 55 mm filter thread; Kyocera’s own page gives 275 g and 62.5 × 41 mm for the final MM version. Japanese Wikipedia records that Camera Mainichi called it the best standard lens of its time, and that it was made in Japan from the beginning: unlike many C/Y lenses this one has no West German run, so it is met only as AEJ or MMJ.

Two barrels carry the same glass. The AE lens of 1975–85 has its f/16 numeral in white and couples only for aperture-priority and manual exposure; its six straight blades open to a saw-tooth shape at f/2 and f/2.8. The MM lens of 1985 on, introduced with the Contax 159 MM, has the numeral in green, an extra cam that lets the later bodies set the aperture themselves in program and shutter-priority modes, and a rounded-hexagon diaphragm opening. Japanese Wikipedia also notes a weight difference between early and late AE barrels that comes from their construction rather than the optics. A gold-plated lens was supplied with the limited gold RTS body; nothing more about it was found. The only maker list price found is Kyocera’s ¥44,000 without case for the MM lens in 2002–03.

Reviewers describe the same character from both ends of the lens’s life. At f/1.4 there is spherical glow and low contrast, soft corners and, on Phillip Reeve’s Sony A7, about 2.2 stops of vignetting and noticeable barrel distortion; the centre is sharp by f/2 and most of the frame excellent by f/4, with no lateral colour and flare resistance that both reviewers rate well above its contemporaries. The six-blade iris draws hard hexagons in out-of-focus highlights once stopped down, and Casual Photophile finds the bokeh edgy at ordinary distances though smooth close up. Both reviewers praise the build: a metal barrel with rubber-covered focus and aperture rings, a weighted focus throw and an aperture ring Reeve calls one of the nicest he has used. Reeve’s price around 2015 was $190–260 on eBay.com, with the MM version usually a little dearer than the AE.

Expand Collapse

This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Example photos

Sample photo wanted — shot with a Planar T* 50mm f/1.4 (C/Y)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $300 across 86 fixed-price listings on 2026-11-02 (middle half $250–$370). Tracked since 2026-11-01, 2 days: unchanged from $300.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-11-02$300$250–$37086
2026-11-01$300$250–$37085

Asking prices from the listings scanned, not sales; junk-flagged rows and auction lots excluded; other currencies are not converted.

Show 206 more listings

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Listings updated 2026-11-02. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.

Related: Planar T* 50mm f/1.7 (C/Y) · Planar T* 55mm f/1.2 '100 Jahre Planar' (C/Y) · Makro-Planar T* 60mm f/2.8 (C/Y)

Sources (6)

Every page here is assembled from public sources, and the gaps are real ones. If you own this lens, know a serial number I'm missing, or can see where I have it wrong, tell me — corrections, serials and sample photos are all worth having.