Such a fun lens
The Helios 44-2 is such a cool lens. It is known for a swirly bokeh effect when you are able to get the subject at just the right distance.
You can see the swirly bokeh a bit in this image. But trying to get a clear shot with this lens can be a bit tricky. It is a fully manual lens, so focusing can be hard when trying to take pictures of animals that do not like to sit in one place for very long. I was actually surprised that this photo of Titus came out as clear as it did because he can be tricky to get in focus even with automatic lenses.
One of the things that I like about this lens is the colors that it can get. It is weird to think that a lens can change how colors are interpreted within a camera, but some of the higher quality glass can really change how your images look in terms of color.
Dusty was near impossible to get a photo of with this lens because he does not like to stand still and is always trying to play. The Helios 44-2 is a 58mm equivalent with an aperture that can open up to f/2, which makes it a pretty fast lens for a very cheap price.
You can find them on Ebay for about $60 or so and then the adapter for your lens mount is usually an additional $10 or so. It is way sharper than the "nifty 50" 50mm 1.8 from Canon and a lot better quality. It does take some time getting used to though, but once you get used to it, you can take some pretty awesome photos with it and get some cool effects.
I haven't put this lens on my camera in at least a year, but I am going to have to use it a lot more. It is fun experimenting with these older lenses.