Lenses so good you have to buy a body for them?

Well the only time I ever really did this was recently... I wanted to try the Helios 44-M. The only M42 mount camera I have/had was a Pentacon FM with see-through shutter curtains. I'd been watching

a Zenith 11 w/ lens in the second-hand shop for the last year. I got a portable DVD player for X-Mas last year that I really had no need for.... so I deceided I'd offer it for sale and if he offered less than 50,00€, I'd offer to exchange for the Zenith w/lens. Well he only wanted to offer 30,00 so I proposed

the swap. He was interested, only the Zenith had a problem .. the film advance, if not carefully double stroked, tripped the shutter. I was considering settling for it.. ie just for the lens. But I remembered he

had a Pentax SP500 body for a little more than he was asking for the Zenith w/lens. I proposed

the Pentax with the Helios... he though this over (not long) and said Ok. While I tested the SP500. He wrote me a receipt for the exchange and realizing the Zenith was probably worthless gave me that body too! So in a roundabout way ..just for a lens.. I did get a body too!

<p>A classic 50 mm : the kern makro switar (for alpa) 1,9/50 (the last version, the first was the 1,8/50).<br>

Another lens, the skopagon 2/40 for voigtlander's bessamatics/ultramatics.<br>

And the last, for me, the Leica elmaron M 2,8/35 (with eyes for use with the M3)</p>

 

<p>From what I've heard and seen samples from, the Bronica RF645's 65mm lens is absolutely stunning... not really a classic but it's no longer made! Other than that, I honestly absolutely love the 80mm f/2.8 for the Mamiya TLR's. Every time I see images from that lens I'm impressed with the clarity and beautiful OOF areas.</p>

<p>My all time great lens until it and the equipment were stolen was the Voightlander 50mm F1.5 Nokton for the Prominent leaf shutter rangefinder camera. I had two lenses like this and two bodies and 35mm,100mm and 150mm lenses also- all were stolen in Washington DC in 1968. Have never replaced it. Now I note that you can buy neat adapters for this lens to use on Leica SM etc. Shows how valued they are. I got almost 3d popout images with that lens (and I have owned Leicas with Summilux etc. and never equalled it.<br>

Another superb lens is the 50mm Mamiya Press which I own-unparalled in MF. Also had a Schneider Xenon 50mm f1.9 in Exakta Mount that was awesome and an Isco 24mm WA for same that had beautiful contrast.<br>

So many beauties, so little time!</p>

 

<p>the arsat zodiak 30mm fish eyefor p6/kiev.<br>

If for no other reasontna that the only other 6x6 alternative costs you about ten times that price.<br>

Word to the wise: once you're there you are lost as you ended on that slippery slope to the CZJ Sonnar and the hartblei rotators.</p>

<p>In the distance I can all ready hear the siren of the asylum ambulance ;-)<br>

<em>they're coming to take me away haha, hihi,haha</em></p>

<p>;</p>

<p>The 180mm Sonnar f/2.8 was mentioned. I bought it for the camera (Pentacon 6TL), but it is flat out one of the sharpest, nicest lenses I have ever used. The center part of it when mounted on a Canon EOS body is just unbelievably good. The only fly in the ointment is that I (and many others) have had problems keeping the aperture mechanism working.</p>

<p>The 300/2.8 Topcor R lens I got to use all of once and got some great action shots. Friend offered to sell it to me, but even though he was dumping his Topcon stuff I still couldn't afford it. A year later I could've. Ah well.</p>

<p>the only reason i still have my SRT202 is to use the 58mm f/1.4 Rokkor</p>

<p>I did not buy a camera to suit the lens, but, I had the lens mount changed to suit one of the cameras that I already owned.<br>

The lens is an Olympus 24mm f3.5 Shift. The camera is a Nikon FM2N. Modification was carried out by S K Grimes.<br>

The reason for this is that Nikon did not make a manual focus, manual aperture shift lens of that focal length.<br>

The Nikkor 24mm f2.8 Tilt Shift has an electronic aperture that only works with certain Nikon cameras.<br>

I came to the opinion that the Nikkor 28mm f3.5 Shift lens is not wide enough for narrow laneway type architecture photographs. This was discovered by using a 20mm f3.5 lens with a TC-14A teleconverter attached (equivalent of a 28mm lens), to determine the Field of View before proceeding to acquire a wide angle shift lens.<br>

The conversion was a lot cheaper than a used F5/F6/D700/D3/D3x.</p>

<p>The 250mm f5.6 Reflex Rokkor: I bought this for my Minolta XD-7 and when I went over to digital I ensured that my dSLR would be one that could mount it. (I went with the Olympus E-410.)<br>

Like Brian Grossman I still treasure my 58/1.4 Rokkor and use this on the Oly digital too.</p>

<p>Hi Larry H,I have a Tamron SP90mm f2.5 c/w SP extender for my various Pentax bodies.You mentioned the Katz eye focusing screen,could you point me to where I may obtain one of these?.tks Chris shaw.</p>

<p>Chris:<br>

http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/</p>

<p>For me these Nikkors would include the 35mm f 2.0, 50mm f2.0, and the 105mm f 2.5.</p>

<p>Lynn </p>

<p>My mention goes to the Zeiss 120mm ApoMakroPlanar on the Contax 645, which many have confessed to buying for this lens alone...maybe it's not a classic manual camera, but can be used as one, and the crying shame for photographers that its makers orphaned it at such a tender age would deem it a classic before its years.<br>

Zeiss' response to an enquiry was that it outperforms both their fabulous 100 and 120mm lenses for 6x6 and at any distance the mtf curves corroborate this. Plus you have 1:1 at the twist of a wrist. What versatile performance! I am still holding on to mine because of a few shots that have a look of realism I've not seen with anything else I've used.</p>

<p>The Canon FD Chrome nosed 35mm f2 Thorium lens is a killer.</p>

<p>As this one hasn't been mentioned yet: I'm keeping a couple of Contax RF bodies alive just to be able to use my Biogon 4.5/21. And I love all of my Contarex lenses, which are the only reason for me to own two C'rex bodies.</p>

<p>Hasselblad F 110/2<br>

Pentax 645 35-55 AF<br>

Mamiya 7 43/4.5<br>

...</p>

<p>Konica Hexanon 50mm f/1.4<br>

Contax Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8<br>

Contax Zeiss Planar 45mm f/2<br>

Pentax Super Takumar 50mm f/1.4<br>

Minox Complan 15mm f/3.5<br>

Leica Elmar M 50mm f/2.8<br>

:-)</p>

<p>Let me ring in with yet another vote for the Vivitar 90mm f2.5 Series 1 Macro lens. Just a spectacular hunk of glass, and the smoothest focusing mechanism I have ever experienced.</p>

<p>So far the best lenses I've ever used are the Leica R 50 Summicron, Leica R 90 Summicron, Voigtlander 105 Heliar, Agfa Isolette 75 Apotar and Solinar, and the Rolleiflex Schneider Xenotar 80 2.8. If I ever get the money for a Summilux I may add to this, but these would keep me busy for several lifetimes. If I had to pick the best I would probably go w/ the Heliar, but the difference between it and the R 50 Summicron is very small. In fact, I probably should remove the Agfa lenses from this list. They are very, very good but don't have that jaw dropping effect like the others.</p>