Summar
- Thread starter brusby
- Start date
- Latest activity Latest activity:
- Replies 69
- Views 6K
brusby
Well-known
Erik van Straten
Veteran
Very nice shots, Brusby, great work. I love the Summar too!
It is difficult to clean a Summar because the glass is very soft. I have some coated and some "bare".
Erik.
It is difficult to clean a Summar because the glass is very soft. I have some coated and some "bare".
Erik.
brusby
Well-known
Thanks Erik. It was a real mess from very heavy fogging, but I was super careful with it. You're fortunate to have a nice coated copy. I am surprised at how well the uncoated one performs.
raydm6
Yay! Cameras! 🙈🙉🙊┌( ಠ_ಠ)┘ [◉"]
Yes, very nice! The colors are wonderful and the B&W shots have a "period" vibe to them Thanks for posting those.
brusby
Well-known
Thank you raydm6!
The colors surprised me, coming from an uncoated prewar lens. And I agree, it does have a nice look for b&w.
Overall, I think I prefer the Elmar f3.5 by a small margin, particularly for landscapes. But if I needed the extra speed, shallower depth of field or were doing portraits, this would be a nice option.
The colors surprised me, coming from an uncoated prewar lens. And I agree, it does have a nice look for b&w.
Overall, I think I prefer the Elmar f3.5 by a small margin, particularly for landscapes. But if I needed the extra speed, shallower depth of field or were doing portraits, this would be a nice option.
jsrockit
Moderator
and which body are you using it on? Looks really good.
brusby
Well-known
All were on M240. Thank you!!!
K14
Well-known
The digital shots are nice but does nothing for me, too sharp. A Summar shoots best on a film barnack hands down and a nooky for the close-ups! Soft is how I like it with this lens and I wouldn't have it either way. The flare is the trademark.
Show me some soft digital Summar pics and I'm in. ;-)
Show me some soft digital Summar pics and I'm in. ;-)
hap
Well-known
How did you clean the lens? Performing very nicely. I have a coated one that seems very clear.
astrosecret
Recovering rollei snob
looks amazing in BW
brusby
Well-known
That's cool, but entirely a matter of personal taste and preference. I like some soft images too, but this was not an aesthetic statement. Rather it's just showing the results of an informal test I undertook to see how the lens is capable of functioning when cleaned and restored to original condition to the best of my ability and processed the way I might do with any more modern lens.
Soft, low contrast images are mostly what I see attributed to this lens and I wouldn't argue with anyone who prefers that. The reason I did this was to determine exactly what are the inherent characteristics of the lens when working properly and free of after acquired "defects" like haze, dust, separation and scratches. And to see if this lens is only capable of soft, low contrast images with flare.
I now think I know the answer and I'm happy to see you and others use the lens in any way that suits your creative fancy.
brusby
Well-known
Thanks hap, I was very careful no to put any unnecessary pressure or friction on the surface of the glass. So, I tried to let mild solvents do most of the work. I used a bit of distilled water and some alcohols. I wanted different polarity solvents, thinking there might be both organic deposits -- from the whale oil lubricant used in the helicoid, off gassing -- and inorganic deposits.
But mainly I would just barely let anything solid touch the surface. And I wouldn't rub it. Mostly would take the end of a cotton swab, pull the fibers away from the stick and use just the very ends to apply and remove the solvents from the glass. Don't rush.
Gentle air pressure from a blower would help to remove the moisture from the glass before it left drying marks. Sometimes I'd use the end of a lintless cloth to gently dab up fluids.
The key I kept in mind was to do nothing to abrade the original surface.
brusby
Well-known
Thank you astrosecret! It's a lovely lens and capable of a very wide range of personalities from very soft to almost modern day sharpness.
astrosecret
Recovering rollei snob
inspiring me to own one !
K14
Well-known
I understand and I'm glad to hear your results are successful from the cleaning. Just for others my Summar was colour coated after the war and now has deteriorated somewhat. For that it has been quite magical and gives a dreamy effect because of it, so for those that have the after war coating you might want to consider that before cleaning.
Gary aka K14
brusby
Well-known
Care to share some examples? I'd love to see the magic.
If mine had been magical I wouldn't have touched it, but it was just a fuzzy mess, not really any different than other fogged lenses from that era.
If mine had been magical I wouldn't have touched it, but it was just a fuzzy mess, not really any different than other fogged lenses from that era.
Similar threads
