Photo of M6 + CV Nokton 1.5 and 'Cron 50mm

[fredus]

Hi there,

 

It seems like I can't make up my mind between these 2 lenses. I like

low light and the additional stop of the Nokton could be a good

thing. But I've read that the Nokton is quite heavy and obstrutive.

When I look at the spec, I don't see a huge different with the Cron.

Weight is the same, diameter is a little bit larger on the Nokton

which is also a little bit longer ... I don't realize how big this

lens is compare to the 'Cron. I want small lens. I went to the

rangefinder world to have small gear ...

 

So could someone be kind and show me a M6 with a CV Nokton 1.5 ?

 

Thanks for your help !

 

Fred

[m_.]

I don't think you can see that settled difference in size with a photo but may be someone has the set and will be able to show you. I don't.

 

If all's possible, get the 'cron. It is one stop slower but is a much better lens, so I heard.

[davidv1]

How 'bout with an M4-P?<div></div>

[stephen_w.]

David,

 

How did you black out the engravings, a Sharpie?

 

;*)

[davidv1]

I used Everclear, a.k.a. 190 proof grain alcohol, which is also a great lens & filter cleaner. I wouldn't drink it, though. The paint was coming off the engravings, so I helped it along. It looks better this way.

[jay_.]

Wow, really clever blacking out the markings. Now those grade-school-dropout crack-addict street thugs won't suspect that it's a Leica, and all those unwary candid street photo subjects won't recognize it's a camera at all.

[jay_.]

Kind of like nobody recognizes that Robin is really Dick Grayson because of that little black eyemask.

[davidv1]

Uh, no Jay, like I said, the paint was coming off the engravings.

[fredus]

Yes this is all fine and dandy but ... about the ... And ... Oh well ... :-)

 

Thanks for the pic of the M4 !

 

Fred

[kevin m.]

"If all's possible, get the 'cron. It is one stop slower but is a much better lens, so I heard."

<p>

Now <i>that</i> is the kind of advice you just can't get anywhere but the internet! '<i>I've never used this lens, but I recommend you buy one!</i> Hoo hoo!

<p>

Fred, the only small, fast lens out there is the Jupiter 3. It's no bigger than the Summicron and takes 40.5mm filters. (Pair it up with a Hexanon 50 for less than the cost of a Summi and they could share filters!) Sharp as the proverbial tack at f4.0 and smaller, but f1.4 is a bit, um, impressionistic.

[jeff_rivera5]

Clark Kents disguise was the best, just glasses! Everyone must have been blind. I really liked one of the lines from the Superman Movies where Lois (Margot Kidder) says "Gotta hand it to yah, your disguise was almost perfect"!

[davidv1]

Oh yeah, Fred, sorry. The Nokton seems to weigh about the same as a recent black Summicron. Don't have a scale, but they seem about the same in my hand. As for finder intrusion, the edge of the hood starts a little past the corner of the 75 frameline, and grows to maybe halfway between the corner of the 50 frameline and the focussing patch as you reach near focus.

 

Hope that helps.

[jay_.]

<<Uh, no Jay, like I said, the paint was coming off the engravings.>>

 

Riiiiight. Say, did you hear about the latest high-tech development? It's called "white paint".

[jeff_rivera5]

As far as the lens goes, if you're not going to get the 'cron or 'lux, get an old Canon 1.8 for around $75 or a 1.4 for around $125, add a LTM adaptor for another $50 and save the rest. Yeah, the CV lenses are nice, but there are cheaper options.

[john_morris4]

Fred,

 

The lens hood that comes with the Nokton is quite wide (so that it shows up in the 50mm finder frame), and too short to be much use as as shade. I put an empty 52mm filter ring on mine -- it's not as deep, but it also doesn't flair out, so it provides almost as much shade as the insufficent shade from the normal hood. And it doesn't block the corner of the M frame.

 

I bother to keep the filter ring on mine mostly because I want that little extra bit of metal between the glass and other stuff (like a lens cap). For a cap, I use a plain 52mm snap-in.

 

The Nokton is not particularly heavy, it feels nice, and it's great to use wide open. Especially for $300.

 

One thing that it has over the Summicron is that at f/2, there's no vignetting (darkening of the corners), and out-of-focus highlights are circular across the whole frame. When a cron (or most any lens, for that matter) is wide open, the out-of-focus highlights get less round away from the center of the frame.

 

I may sell my Nokton, though. I just bought a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 in LTM from a fellow forum reader, and it's truly tiny. It's even smaller than the little black Canon 50 f/1.8. If it looks as good as the Nokton for the kind of pictures I want a fast 50 for (mostly people, mostly pretty close), then I may just pass the Nokton on to someone else....

[john_layton]

everclear and OJ (or sometimes kool-aid) - now those were the

days!

[davidv1]

Nice to see the old Jay back. Just in time for the holidays, too.

[fredus]

John,

 

So you're saying that the only thing that's in the way of the VF is the hood ? If I remove the hood, I'm fine ?

 

Fred

[kevin m.]

"I may sell my Nokton, though. I just bought a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4...If it looks as good as the Nokton for the kind of pictures I want a fast 50 for (mostly people, mostly pretty close), then I may just pass the Nokton on to someone else...."

 

No, you'll be keeping the Nokton. The Nikkor 50 is no better wide open than the Jupiter 3. It's only advantage is that it's more likely to couple accurately with the Leica rangefinder cam.

[fredus]

Does the Jupiter 3 works ok with a Leica ?? I've heard that they're prone to problem.

 

Please don't give me alternative. I already have a difficult choosing my all around lens :-)

 

Fred

[john_morris4]

"If I remove the hood, I'm fine ?"

 

Mostly. I can't remember exactly, and my M3 is in the shop, so I can't check. The Nokton without hood cuts into the corner of the frame a little on the Bessa R, but the M finder is a little farther from the lens.

 

Someone who has both an M and a Nokton on hand might offer to check for you. It's really not a problem, though.

 

The Nokton is big compared to other RF 50 f/1.4 lenses, but it's still smaller than a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 SLR lens.

[davidv1]

Fred,

 

Without the hood, but with a UV filter, the Nokton intrudes just to the corner of the 75mm frameline at the closest focus. At infinity it's much less.

 

Regards, David

[ed_balko3]

Repeating what a lot of others have said earlier, Jupiter-3's are probably the greatest quality crapshoot among the Russian optics. Avoid them, the odds are against you getting one that will focus properly.

 

If you need something less expensive than the Nokton or Leitz optics, the Japanese LTM lenses with an adaptor are a much less risky choice.

[fredus]

Anyone with wide open pictures taken with the Nokton ?

 

Fred

[m_.]

Kevin wrote: <<Now that is the kind of advice you just can't get anywhere but the internet! 'I've never used this lens, but I recommend you buy one! Hoo hoo!>>

 

Now, that's another kind of internet arrogance we see all the time - assuming that everyone else is dumb but your opinion is the greatest. Kevin, I am sort of feel sorry for you.

 

As a matter of fact, I have used both and owned both at one time - thank you. I kept 'cron and sold my CV Nokton. Have done quite a bit of research and also compared the results from both lenses before I sold the CV lens. So yes, Kevin, just that you know not only you have used both lenses (assuming so but I doubt it, otherwise you would not recomment that crappy Jupiter 3).