Kern Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (and Macro-Switar f/1.8)

Kern · Alpa · 1951 · Apochromat, 7 elements in 5 groups

Also known as: Kern Switar 50mm f/1.8 · Kern Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 · Macro-Switar 1.8/50 · Switar 1:1.8 f=50mm · Kern Aarau Switar 50/1.8 · Kern-Macro-Switar AR 50mm f1.8

Variants & identification

Variant	Mount	Years	Serial ranges	Production
Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (1951–56)	Alpa	1951–1956	—	1,526 (lens-db.com, as quoted by search before the site died)
Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (1958–68)	Alpa	1958–1968	—	Unpublished

The f/1.9 Macro-Switar of 1968 is a different optical design — eight elements in five groups (Tahusa) against seven in five — and is its own page. The f/1.8 Switar and Macro-Switar share the design and differ in helical and scale, so they are variants here.
The 1,526 figure is lens-db.com's, quoted second-hand: that site is dead. Its successor, The Lens DB, supplies construction, weights, filters and close focus but no production count.

How to tell them apart (expand)

Kern Aarau engraved on a chrome barrel; SWITAR or MACRO-SWITAR with AR for the automatic diaphragm
Visifocus: rings of yellow dots on the Macro-Switar that show the depth of field for the set aperture
A focusing helical of nearly three turns from infinity to closest — the reviewers' common complaint

Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (1951–56): The first Alpa standard lens from Kern of Aarau: a seven-element apochromat, colour-corrected for three wavelengths, with an automatic diaphragm — the AR — worked through Alpa's external coupling arm. 170 g, 42 mm filter, nine blades, focus to 0.5 m (The Lens DB, which dates it 1952; the makers' literature says 1951). Pignons' catalogue copy: 'remarkable contrast even at full aperture and relatively little loss of light at the edges'.
Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (1958–68): Announced September 1958: the same optical design with a longer helical that focuses to 0.28 m, and the Visifocus depth-of-field indicator — yellow dots that appear on the scale as the aperture closes. 280 g against the Switar's 170, 52 mm filter against 42 (The Lens DB). Golden-yellow coating. Replaced in 1968 by the f/1.9.

Specifications

Formula: Apochromat, 7 elements in 5 groups
Construction: 7 elements / 5 groups
Aperture range: f/1.8–f/22
Min. focus: 0.28 m
Weight: 170 g
Years manufactured: 1951–1968
Country: Switzerland
Coating: Single-coated, golden yellow

What reviewers say

Tom Grill (About Photography), the 50mm Kern Macro-Switar (blog) — Hand-crafted precision the size of a Leica M lens, exceptionally sharp — "original sharpness remains unaffected" — but low in contrast and muted in colour from the coatings of its day, and nearly three full turns of the ring from infinity to 11 inches.

History

Pignons made no lenses, and for its standard lens it turned to Kern of Aarau, a maker of surveying instruments and cine lenses for Bolex. The Switar 50mm f/1.8 of 1951 is a seven-element apochromat — corrected for three colours, which no other 50mm of its day claimed — with an automatic diaphragm worked through Alpa’s external coupling arm. Kern built 1,526 of them by 1956. In September 1958 it became the Macro-Switar: the same glass in a longer helical that focuses to about 28 centimetres, with the Visifocus system, rings of yellow dots that appear on the depth-of-field scale as the aperture closes. A macro as the standard lens on a camera was unusual then and is rare now. Kern replaced it in 1968 with an f/1.9 redesign, which has its own page.

Mike Eckman found it as sharp and colour-true as the best German and Japanese glass; Tom Grill, shooting an original in 2013, found the sharpness intact and the colours muted by the coatings of its era, and a focusing throw of nearly three turns. Prices follow the reputation.

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 Kern Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR (and Macro-Switar f/1.8)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $1,300 across 19 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $990–$1,700). Tracked since 2026-09-06, 2 days: unchanged from $1,300.

By day

Date	Median	Middle half	Listings
2026-09-11	$1,300	$990–$1,700	19
2026-09-06	$1,300	$990–$1,700	18

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

Rare [Vintage MINT] KERN-SWITAR 50mm f/1.8 AR Lens for ALPA Mount From JAPAN — $699.99 · eBay
50MM 50/1.8 KERN-MACRO-SWITAR AR IN ALPA MOUNT, WITH CAPS (HAZE)/227607 — $750.00 · eBay
Kern-Switar 50mm 1.8 AR Alpa Lens — $899.99 · eBay
Kern-Macro Switar Lends 1 1.8/50 AR Made in Switzerland ALPA — $949.99 · eBay
ALPA Kern-Switar 50mm F/1.8 AR Lens #65496 E5 — $990.00 · eBay
Kern-Macro Switar AR 50mm f/1.8 Lens for Alpa - Please Read — $999.00 · eBay
Kern Macro Switar 50mm f1.8 AR Prime Lens for Alpa Cameras [EXC-] — $1,095.00 · Victory Camera
Kern Macro Switar 1.8/50mm AR Lens remounted Canon EOS — $1,153.00 · eBay
Kern Macro Switar 50mm f1.8 AR Prime Lens for Alpa Cameras [EXC-] — $1,259.95 · eBay
ALPA REFLEX MOD.6 35mm FILM CAMERA WITH KERN-SWITAR 50mm F/1.8 AR LENS — $1,295.00 · eBay
ALPA AUTO Kern Macro Switar 50mm F1.8 AR PRIME LENS MADE in SWITZERLAND GENUINE — $1,299.99 · eBay
Kern-Macro Switar Lends 1 1.8/50 AR #933046 Made in Switzerland ALPA — $1,300.00 · eBay
ALPA Kern-Switar 50mm F/1.8 AR Lens Used 93% Optical Damage Included Cap — $1,504.10 · eBay
ALPA Kern Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 AR Lens Alpa Mount Macro from Japan E0520 — $1,680.07 · eBay
ALPA Kern Macro-Switar 50mm F/1.8 AR #50 — $2,010.00 · eBay
ALPA Kern Macro Switar 50mm F1.8 AR Lens 1085589 From Japan Read Scratch — $2,565.64 · eBay
Alpa Reflex 9d (Black) w/ Kern-Macro-Switar AR 50mm f/1.8 Lens + Manual — $2,999.99 · eBay
Alpa Reflex 9D w/ 50mm F/1.8 AR Kern-Macro-Switar all BLACK w/ Box - Rare ! — $3,073.00 · eBay
Ex+ Alpa Kern Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 1.9 AR Lens — $3,130.00 · eBay
Kern-Switar f/1.8 50mm AR Alpa Mount. Excellent Condition. Swiss Made — €570.00 · eBay

Show 16 more listings

Seltenes [Vintage NEUWERTIG] KERN-SWITAR 50mm f/1.8 AR Objektiv für ALPA-Bajo... — €623.33 · eBay
ALPA Kern Macro Switar 50mm f1.8 AR prime lens can be adapted on leica M 1,8 c1a — €700.00 · eBay
Alpa Mod.5 with 1.8/50mm Kern Switar AR — €799.00 · Arsenal Photo
[Vintage NEUWERTIG mit Haube] KERN-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR ALPA Mount... — €1,002.49 · eBay
Alpa Reflex Mod.6c camera w. Kern-Switar 1.8/50mm AR — €1,499.00 · Arsenal Photo
ALPA Kern Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 AR Makroobjektiv Alpa Mount Manuell Japan E0520 — €1,549.07 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR sehr selten — €2,500.00 · eBay
Alpa 10D Chrome Avec Kern-Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 Ar Très Rare — €2,650.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom Mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR Sehr Selten — €2,650.00 · eBay
,,10D Chrome With Kern-Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 Ar Very Rare — €2,671.72 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom Mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR Sehr Selten — €2,685.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrome Avec Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50Mm F1.8 AR Très Rare — €2,685.00 · eBay
Alpa Kern Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 AR Prime Lens, Alpa Reflex Mount.e5 — £249.99 · eBay
Rare [Vintage MINT] KERN-SWITAR 50mm f/1.8 AR Lens for ALPA Mount From JAPAN — £533.56 · eBay
ALPA Kern-Switar 50mm F/1.8 AR Lens Used 93% Optical Damage Included Cap — £1,112.88 · eBay
Alpa Kern Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 AR Lens Alpa Mount macro from Japan E0520 — £1,331.90 · eBay

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Listings updated 2026-09-11. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.