Chinon's 200mm f/3.3 — a fast-for-its-length Japanese M42 medium telephoto prime.
The Chinon 200mm f/3.3 is a Japanese telephoto prime made in M42 mount by Chinon, a maker of M42 SLRs and lenses. The relatively bright f/3.3 aperture at 200mm marked it out among vintage telephotos, and it was a medium-long reach lens in the Chinon screw-mount range.
This is a manual-focus M42 screw-mount lens with a 200mm focal length and a maximum aperture of f/3.3. Focus and aperture are set by hand on the barrel, with an automatic diaphragm. It is an all-metal telephoto of moderate size for its reach. Detailed element figures are not asserted here beyond the verified focal length and aperture.
At 200mm the lens gives useful telephoto reach for sports, wildlife, distant landscape detail and tight portraits, and the comparatively bright f/3.3 aperture allows higher shutter speeds than slower long lenses. It renders cleanly stopped down and suits deliberate long-lens work where the reach and compression are wanted.
Used copies are affordable and less common than the standard primes. Inspect the longer barrel for internal haze and fungus, confirm the aperture blades are clean and oil-free, and check the focus helicoid over its travel. Verify the M42 mount before purchase. An M42 adapter allows telephoto use on mirrorless with a support.