Advice on choosing 40 1.4 or 50 1.5 lens

[V0IGTLANDER]

Hi

I have narrawed down the lens i will be getting for the R3A. How does the CV 40 1.4 Nokton compare with the CV 50 1.5 ASP Nokton. Which is a better lens to get in terms of sharpness? What type of flash can i use on the R3A?

Appreciate if you can share with me your thoughts. Thanks very much.

 

[tedwhite]

I'm sure they are equally as sharp.

I would get the 40. 35mm and 40mm feel, to me, more naturally what I see with my eyes.

50mm has always felt a bit visually constricted, and I've always wished i could broaden the field of vision more. But this is just one man's opinion.

Ted

 

[aizan]

from what i've read, they seem to perform equally well.

you can use any kind of flash on the r3a, except flashbulbs, i think....

 

[kneedropper]

I have an R3a and had a 40/1.4 but swapped it to a 50/1.5 (and a 35/2.5) since I didn't like the bokeh of the 40mm. However as many here have stated, it seems each 40 has its own characteristics in this respect. Mine gave these results. The 40mm is very compact for its speed and the angle of view is a nice compromise between wide and "normal", but for me the 50 feels better to focus and forks better for portraits. And the bokeh is lovely.

But I do have to add that if I had intended to have just one lens, and if the bokeh had been ok, I would have chosen the 40. Or a R2a with the 35/1.7...

 

[former member]

It depends on what type of pictures that you take. If you take more indoor/group+outdoor/scenery, go for the 40. If you want fast existing light, tighter shots the 50 is better. The 40 gives more coverage.

50mm Summicron:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showgallery.php/cat/517

40mm Summicron
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showgallery.php/cat/749

 

[rich815]

The 50 is 80% heavier and quite a bit bigger. The 40 also focuses down closer (0.9 meter vs. 0.7 meter). They are both very nice. I love my 40 and have not found the bokeh to be a problem---most who do not like it I suspect are looking at image files that were highly downsampled and sharpened for putting on the web, which can give the bokeh a weird look. Image files I've only selectively sharpened for printing (leaving the background OOF areas alone) have much smoother bokeh than much I've seen on the internet from this lens. I find the 40 Nokton to have wonderful character:

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/5737/sort/1/cat/500/page/1

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/5490/sort/1/cat/500/page/1

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/9062/sort/1/cat/500/page/1


- Richard