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

Canon 35mm f/2.8

Canon · LTM · 1951 · Six-element, Summaron-like, 6e/4g

Also known as: Canon 35mm f/2.8 · Serenar 35mm f/2.8 · Canon 35mm f2.8 · Serenar 35mm f2.8 · Canon 35/2.8 · Serenar 3.5cm f/2.8

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
Serenar 35mm f/2.8 (I), chrome LTM 1951–1956 — 15,416 in 1951–56 (Frank Mechelhoff)
Canon 35mm f/2.8 (II), black and silver LTM 1957–1962 — No figure published
  1. Canon's own thread before 1951 was 39 mm at 24 threads per inch (1.058 mm pitch), against Leica's 26 tpi — close enough that the lenses interchange in practice, and the difference is why an early Serenar can feel tight on a Leica. The Serenar 50mm f/1.8 of late 1951 was the first Canon lens cut to the Leica pitch (Leica Copies Japan).
  2. Serenar became Canon Lens in December 1952, accessory lenses following in January 1953 (Leica Copies Japan). A lens engraved Serenar is therefore earlier than 1953; the same glass in a Canon-engraved barrel is not a different lens, and this catalog keeps both on one page as variants.
How to tell them apart (expand)

Serenar 35mm f/2.8 (I), chrome:

  • Marketed October 1951, ¥21,000 · 165 g · 34 mm filter · stops to f/22
  • Chrome brass with infinity lock; 34 mm filter; 165 g
  • 15,416 made 1951–56 (Mechelhoff)

Canon 35mm f/2.8 (II), black and silver:

  • Marketed January 1957, ¥19,500 · 125 g · 40 mm filter · stops to f/22
  • Black and satin-chrome alloy; 40 mm filter; 125 g; marked in feet

Specifications

Formula
Six-element, Summaron-like, 6e/4g
Construction
6 elements / 4 groups
Aperture range
f/2.8–f/22
Min. focus
1 m
Weight
165 g
Filter
34 mm (Serenar 35mm f/2.8 (I), chrome) · 40 mm (Canon 35mm f/2.8 (II), black and silver)
Years manufactured
1951
Country
Japan
Original price
¥21,000 (October 1951, Canon Camera Museum; no price index for that year, so not restated in today's money)

What reviewers say

History

Canon’s everyday 35mm for a decade: a six-element lens on the Summaron pattern, marketed as a Serenar in October 1951 at ¥21,000, 15,416 of the chrome version made by 1956 (Mechelhoff), then a lighter black-and-silver Canon version from January 1957 to 1962. It replaced the f/3.2 within months of that lens appearing.

Mechelhoff calls it “not a bad lens compared to the well-reputed successor 2.0/35,” with a “good old-fashioned feel, less contrasty” and very good resolution. Filmosaur, who bought a chrome one to replace a Jupiter-12, found “a heavy little jewel of a lens” — high resolution, low contrast, and none of the Jupiter’s internal reflections.

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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 Canon 35mm f/2.8? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $200 across 4 fixed-price listings on 2026-10-19 (middle half $170–$250). Tracked since 2026-09-09, 9 days: down 34% from $300.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-10-19$200$170–$2504
2026-10-18$200$170–$2504
2026-10-17$200$170–$2504
2026-10-16$230$200–$2505
2026-10-15$230$200–$2306
2026-09-21$240$190–$2403
2026-09-18$290$200–$2903
2026-09-11$300$240–$3308
2026-09-09$300$240–$3308

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

Listings updated 2026-10-19. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.

Related: Canon 28mm f/3.5 · Canon 35mm f/1.8 · Canon 35mm f/2 · Serenar 35mm f/3.2

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.