Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 (G690)
Fuji Photo Film · Fuji G690 · 1968
Also known as: Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 · Fujinon SWS 65mm F8 · Fujinon SW S 65mm F8 · Fuji Fujinon SW S 65/8 · Fujinon 65mm f/8 G690 · Fujica 65mm f/8 · フジノン SWS 65mm F8 · フジノン SW S 65mm F8 · フジノン 65mm F8 · フジカ G690 65mm F8
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 (1968–73) | Fuji G690 | 1968–1973 | — | — |
- Elements and groups (6/4), 600 g and the 0.56× finder are camera-wiki's lens table; Japanese Wikipedia's product list gives 4群6枚, 1m closest focus, φ72mm and September 1968. No source gives the minimum aperture, length or diameter.
- The 1973 end date assumes the lens left the catalogue when the 65mm f/5.6 and the GL690 arrived (November 1973 or January 1974); no discontinuation was published.
- Whether the 65mm f/5.6 of 1974 is a redesign or the same glass is disputed by camera-wiki itself; Fuji's literature gives six elements here and eight there, which is why the two are separate families.
- No list price was found in any source.
How to tell them apart
- Engraved SWS (sellers write SW S) where the 1974 lens reads SW; f/8 maximum aperture on the scale
- 72mm filter thread and screw-in hood; Seiko No. 0 shutter with B and 1–1/500 on the lens; scales in metres and feet with infinity at the anticlockwise end (camera-wiki)
- Fits every G-mount body, G690 to GM670, and needs its shoe finder on all of them since the body has no 65mm frame
- Not the large-format Fujinon SW 65mm f/8 in a Copal shutter, which has no bayonet and no rangefinder cam
Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 (1968–73):
- Ribbed metal focusing ring of the 1968 generation, never the rubber insert of 1974 (camera-wiki)
- Silver finish on lenses sold with the G690 of 1968 (Lallement: 'chrome finish only'); black on those sold with the G690BL from October 1969 (camera-wiki)
- Supplied with a projected-brightline shoe finder of 0.56× (camera-wiki; Japanese Wikipedia: 外付ファインダーが付属する)
- Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 (1968–73): The only version: Fuji replaced it in 1974 with the 65mm f/5.6 rather than re-barrelling it (camera-wiki; Lallement). With the 100mm it was one of the two lenses of the system that sold well.
Specifications
- Construction
- 6 elements / 4 groups
- Aperture range
- f/8
- Shutter
- Seiko No. 0 leaf shutter in the lens, B, 1–1/500 s; M and X sync
- Min. focus
- 1 m
- Weight
- 600 g
- Filter
- 72 mm
- Years manufactured
- 1968–1973
- Country
- Japan
What reviewers say
No reviews aggregated yet — this family is still in the research queue. Written one? We'd love to index it.
History
The SWS 65mm f/8 was the wide-angle of the Fujica G690’s launch set of September 1968, beside the 100mm standard, the 150mm and the 180mm (Lallement; Japanese Wikipedia). It is a six-element lens in four groups, focusing to 1m, weighing 600 g, with the 72mm filter thread and Seiko No. 0 shutter of the line, and it came with a projected-brightline shoe finder of 0.56× because the body’s finder has frames only for 100mm and 150mm. On 6×9 it gives roughly the view of a 28mm on 35mm film. The first lenses were chrome-finished to match the silver trim of the G690; those sold with the all-black G690BL from October 1969 were black (camera-wiki; Lallement).
It was one of only two lenses in the system that sold in any number, the other being the 100mm (camera-wiki, citing people close to the development), and it was not re-barrelled in 1974 like the 100, 150 and 180 but replaced outright by a 65mm f/5.6 with the new rubber-gripped barrel. Whether that lens is a different optical design or the same glass with a wider stop is a question camera-wiki raises without settling; Fuji’s literature gives six elements for this lens and eight for the f/5.6, so the two are treated as separate designs here. Owners on the photography forums rate the f/8 highly, but no written review of it was found, and the one review of the f/5.6, by Simon Foale, says nothing about the older lens.
Because the mount never changed, the f/8 fits the GL690 and GM670 as well as the G690 and G690BL, and its shoe finder is drawn for 6×9. The large-format Fujinon SW 65mm f/8 that Fuji sold in a Copal shutter is a different lens and is often listed under the same words; this one has the breech-lock bayonet, a rangefinder cam and SWS in its engraving.
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 Fujinon SWS 65mm f/8 (G690)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).
Live listings
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Listings updated 2026-11-02. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.