Noctilux (any) vs. Canon f/1.2

[f16sunshine]

My Canon f1.2 is a "Franken-lens". The rear group pair of the original is hazed inside the cement. I took a mint rear group from a a heavily damaged lens and am amazed at the sharpness at f1.2 that I now get. Here is another IR shot...wide open again.

 

[Nokton48]

That's not a very good example of what the Canon is capable of wide-open. This is wide-open with a CLA'd copy shot on Kodak BW400CN:

Here's another on NPH 400:

And here's another on an R-D1:

That's very similar to what I am getting. If I didn't really like my Canon 50mm F1.2 I would sell it off. Little chance of that.

 

[Debusti Paolo]

Leica Tom your photo is simply GREAT

 

[Strangeluv]

For me this is a lens used mostly wide open. And for that, its sharp enough 🙂

 

[Pherdinand]

i have a banged-up front ring version of the canon, but the glass is nice clean.
It is an excellent lens. It is SOFT wide-open in the corners, very soft, but when i shoot it wide open i NEVER had a situation where the corners would be important...

Stopped down to f5.6-f11 it is sharp enough everywhere. I have 40x60-ish prints on acros 100 which are perfectly fine on the wall, even scanned with the epson v700 flatbed!

two images, one wide open and one around 5.6 on the same roll of acros 100

 

[Rogrund]

Canon 50/1.2 wide open

and stopped down (f8)

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Some quick tests with my "damaged glass and Hacked" Canon 50/1.2. Their is some discoloration in the balsam in the group behind the aperture.

These are at F1.2, on the M8. Hot Mirror filter used.

Tight Crop.

F1.2

Tight crop:

Also- on the M8 using the 1.25x eyepiece magnifier is a good idea. I should have, but left it off.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Went out this morning with the 1.25x magnifier on the M8, and took some more shots on this bright, sunny Labor Day.

The focus is spot-on where I wanted it, on the stalk.

Canon 50/1.2 on the M8, wide-open:

100% crop:

Stopped down to F4:

100% crop, you can see color aliasing creeping in:

Wish I had Kevin's or Tom's perfect glass 50/1.2 for this test. Again, mine has discoloration in the rear element. But- I think the performance is remarkable for a 1956 super-speed lens. My first Canon 50/1.2 came on a Canon V-T, and was an early one. More anecdotal evidence that the later ones are less likely to have damaged glass.

 

[Pherdinand]

well, that looks sharp more than enough to me! Excellent test subject, as long as you can focus it where you want it 🙂

 

[Steve Karr]

Hey Everyone,
Thanks so much for the input. Seem the Leica Lens guys missed out on the image uploads I am glad for the great info.

And Brian thanks for the Real World images, that's what's it's all about anyway.

Steve

 

[jimcon11]

dunno about the noctilux but here's more fuel for the canon fire, taken on a recent trip to a Franciscan shrine

both of these at f/1.2:

and these at f/1.4:

Quite a bit of flare from that window.. but I wasn't using the hood. I am pretty excited to try this lens out in the a night setting 🙂