Swiss lens manufacturer Irix is expanding into the Japanese market

The infinity click-point of an Irix lens is adjustable for the user. It's even described in the manual how to do it.

Infinity was somewhere in the middle of the scale.
Adjusting focus according to the description was also rotating decentered group so it was quite bit annoying.
When you were looking at black square paper on white background (15 yards from the lens) one edge of the paper was smeared gray.

Adjusting infinity point has nothing to do with centering issues. I'm no defender of the lens, but maybe you try your luck and send it in for centering.

I'm not convinced that 15 yards away infinity starts...

They make nice lenses, but I personally don't like the misleading statements about the company, trying to leave people with the impression that the lenses are made in Switzerland and it's a bunch of Swiss precision optics nerds sitting around coming up with lots of new and innovative designs. If the Swiss portion is nothing more than an address to say they're Swiss, that's sort of deceptive.

what about apple etc then? it's same bs all manufactures use this days.
so, for me one true creative alternative company with good pruducts it's chinese laowa (aka venus optics), they don't brag with german or swiss name from start.

p.s. what i really think devide good or exclusive brand from others is (beside thier excellence in optical design etc) is their glass skills (manufacture, polishing etc) and devotion to shelf only products, which are really to standard of quality (acceptable decentrics etc). this i know was for ex. in in linhof products, where only best lenses were picked from their supplier (schneider i think). i think same goes for (or at least it was like that) to leica lens manufacture etc, you basically pay for more internal control, to get product which is on standard. in todays world, there's not so small chance to get a lemmon or just too much variation (even with pro optics), it's not really so much brand related. it should be adress loud and clear. dpreview, got cahones for it?

@Photo_AK Zeiss started as a German company with production in Germany and still has some production in Germany.

Irix, on the other hand, was founded by Polish Hubert Grzegorz Adamczyk who still lives in Poland to the best of my knowledge and it has been suggested by many that Switzerland was chosen as the location for a mailbox company for marketing reasons. I'd be happy to learn that there are Swiss designers but such information does not seem to be available.

@Photo_AK
>Zeiss is also a "German manufacturer"

Well, Zeiss is a German manufacturer that manufactures some or even most lenses outside. But there is no doubt that Zeiss is a real and existing company (with a history) and not a letterbox in Germany and zero staff at location. To me IRIX looks like a purely artificial OEM brand.

Doesn't mean I wouldn't have a close look at their lenses. I have a few Laowa and they are really value for money.

Official management is AFAIK not in Switzerland, but in Poland with a postal address and one representative in Switzerland who - you guessed it - represents maaaany companies.

It's simply plain ridiculous to compare something like this with Zeiss! Zeiss is huge company - their HQ are nearby here and I can confirm it's one of the largest employers in the area, with cine and photographic lenses probably being one of the smallest of their branches.

Honestly, I'm not on a crusade against "Irix", quite the contrary, I wish them to be successful and to eventually become the company they claim to be. But pleeeaaase - not by founding a letterbox enterprise to use the reputation of "Swiss" to sell something which is not related to Switzerland, .

You simply cannot have a Polish lens because it is always going to have polish marks on them.

Quite correct. Nothing against IRIX, they look like nice lenses, and the lenses are real. But calling it Swiss design etc. is as realistic as the neutrino coating. The Swiss part is a just a letter box, managed through a "company" that has lots of other letter boxes. If you go to the IRIX web site, their online store seems to have a real address in Poland. And the guys in Poland were to first ones to really pick up the ball for Samyang in Europe and get it rolling; they put Samyang on the map so to speak (the first lenses were sold under lots of names, when "Samyang" had no brand recognition yet).. I bought my Samyang 8mm fish-eye from Poland. Whether Samyang or someone else makes the IRIX lenses is another question that seems not really resolved.

@Photo_AK

Actually Zeiss Touit and Batis lenses are made in Japan but not by Cosina. Cosina are manufacturing the Otus, Milvus, Loxia and ZM lenses though.

Several Batis lenses are based on an optical formula patented by Tamron, therefore Tamron could be the manufacturer of the Batis lenses but without certainty.

As for the Touit lenses their manufacturer is unknown, even though the fact that they are the only Zeiss lenses available in Fujifilm X mount might give a clue (remember, Fujifilm are also manufacturing the Hasselblad HC and HCD lenses).

Japan makes better photographic products anyway, so for me it's a plus, not that I'd pay the premium for those products with the blue branding, I mean I'm into gear but I'm no idiot.

Yes, Zeiss get their lenses made by Cosina in Japan, and they are open about it! Cosina even has it on their homepage and it is clearly marked in the lens.

They are designed in Germany.

@Calss A, pseudo-scientific claims aren't a new thing. Have a look at your washing powder for an example.

@On the Road Again, why is this Korean lens company lying about being Swiss? Why is lying not an issue for you? Do you think that when people lie about small things they don't lie about big ones? "Fake news"... Strange world, really.

It appears to be a Polish company re-styling Korean products to become "Swiss". Sad. Especially because Polish engineering is nothing to be ashamed of. Our company has a subsidiary in Poland and their quality is second to none.

@GiovanniB
I agree that hiding the real Polish or South Korean roots is implicitly suggesting that these nations don't quite have the same ring as "Switzerland" when it comes to precision products.

Instead of illicitly claiming Swiss origin, the company would have done better to raise the profile for Poland/South Korea.

I applaud Hubert Grzegorz Adamczyk for putting Samyang on the European map (as many of their lenses are excellent) and for apparently supporting LensTip.com through Foto-tip. It would just be preferable to not mislead about company origins. Having said that, it is articles like this one that lead with "Swiss lens manufacturer..." that put the spotlight on the topic. Why not just start with "Irix..."?

I also don't buy Volkswagen products because the management are shameful low life's.

Yes, deceptive marketing statements are a serious issue. Don't support liars.

Yeah, especially if their "HQ" might be just large enough to accommodate a few envelopes ... ;-)

If more people bothered to read the previously posted comments, the bit about "Swiss manufacturing" would become a bit clearer.

The company behind the Irix lenses, TH Swiss AG, is Swiss but the lenses are manufactured in South Korea.

This is their Swiss address :
TH Swiss AG, c/o Launchoffice gmbh rathhousestrasse 14 Baar
from what I understand its a business mailing address, not much more than a private mail box.

next address, Mars

Actually, Sony's E mount specifications are among the more open you can find, several lens manufacturers have access to it, including Sigma:

"Note: This product is developed, manufactured and sold based on the specifications of E-mount which was disclosed by Sony Corporation under the license agreement with Sony Corporation." from
https://www.sigmaphoto.com/article/art-primes-for-sony-e-mount-announcement

Yet it's not free and you have wait to get approval from Sony. I talked to IRIX directly at Photo Plus Expo 2018

They have an 11, a 15 and a 150 macro. I struggle mightily to see why you'd need AF on the first two (and the third too, considering that it's macro-oriented) and it's even more puzzling considering that you're talking Sony, meaning you can use the EVF to 100% and focus that way.

I'm also puzzled as to why Sony should make their mount available to anyone. Of all the companies I can come up with, they're by far the ones with the most open mount for third parties to develop AF on. Canikon, Fuji & co. certainly are doing no such thing. Fanboyism much around these parts?

"...disclosed by Sony Corporation under the license agreement with Sony Corporation..."

If you have to license it then it is NOT open

@Mr Bolton, the Micro four thirds standard is only available to member companies, just like the L mount specification. Not too different from agreeing with Sony, although both M43 and L alliance allows members to produce both lenses and cameras, where Sony reserves exclusive rights to develop cameras.

Guys, I'm not talking about giving a license to irix, that's already a thing, lots of third parties have it. I want them to sell entire af assemblies (pcb, electronics and motor) to smaller third parties who can't afford to develop it. They could charge quite a lot for it even.

Next move is a coating of quarks, to give your photos colour and charm

Subtle, John :-)