Pekka Buttler, 08/2025
Mitake Optical was a Japanese optics manufacturer that during the 1970s made a name for itself (among those in the know) by designing and manufacturing lenses that were sold through various rebranders (companies that buy in bulk and stick their own brand on the gear).
As Mitake Optical seems to have gone out of business (or been gobbled up) long before the internet, there are very few sources available.
Lenses
During its active period, Mitake Optical seems to have designed and manufactured at least the following prime lenses1
• 24 mm f/2.5
• 28 mm f/2 [walk-around]
• 28 mm f/2.8
• 35 mm f/1.8 [review] [gallery]
• 35 mm f/2.8
• 35 mm f/3.5
• 135 mm f/1.8 [data sheet]
• 135 mm f/2.8
• 200 mm f/3.5
• 300 mm f/5
Of these, the 24/2.5, 28/2, 35/1.8 and 135/1.8 (bolded above) are Mitake designs with a 100 % certainty as all these have been found with a text similar to “Formula 5 by Mitake” on the lens name ring. At this stage Mitake seems to have starting to try to make a name for themselves, maybe in the hope of being able to develop their own brand. This would fit perfectly with why these co-branding efforts are reserved to Mitake’s most ambitious designs.
The remaining listed prime lenses share so many design characteristics as well as a general design language with the certified Mitake lenses, that they can be judged to be Mitake designs with a very high degree of certainty.
How about Mitake Zoom lenses? Here the situation is a bit tricky. First, there are two designs that state that they are Mitake lenses – and this without any co-branding efforts. Not surprisingly, both are Tele zooms, namely:
• Mitake 75-150 mm f/3.9
• Mitake 80-200 mm f/4.5
Of these, it is possible to verify that the 75-200/3.9 design also found some reuse among the usual suspects2, but with 80–200/4.5 being as bog-standard in terms of mainline specifications for a 70s tele zoom, I have not yet found that design having been reused by a rebrander
Both these lenses sport the same stylised logo (below)
Besides these two zooms, there is another zoom lenses that is – at times – attributed to Mitake, namely a rather ambitious (for its age) 40–85 mm f/3.5 design.
Because these lenses do share some design language with certified Mitake lenses, I think these sellers might be on to something, but I’m not endorsing this speculation (as I’ve not yet laid my hands on sample).
The usual suspects – under which brands were Mitake lenses sold?
The list is rather long, and I must start by saying that a company (take the German distributor Porst as an example) having rebranded some Mitake lenses (I have both a 35/1.8 and 135/1.8 Mitake branded as a Porst) does in no way indicate that their other lenses also would be Mitake lenses.
That said, Mitake lenses make an appearance at least under the following brands (alphabetical):
• Accura
• Albinar
• Eyemik
• Formula 5
• Kenlock
• Photax
• Porst
• Promura
• Quantaray
• Spiratone
• Weltblick
Mitake lens mounts
Mitake-made lenses were available on a wide spectrum of lens mounts. While a majority of Mitake lenses were for the M42 mount, also the Canon FD, Konica AR, Minolta SR, Nikon F and Olympus OM mounts are well represented.
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