Any reason *not* to stick with a Jupiter 50?

[gflan]

I've been trying to buy a Hexanon 50 for some time now, and almost had one, but it couldn't get through French customs and was sent back to the seller.

Which leads me to the following question: what am I missing by not having a leica/konica/voigtlaender lens? I've been shooting the past 6 months with a cheap 50 dollar Jupiter-8 50, and have been very pleased with it.

However, I always feel like there is something incongrous using a 50 dollar lens with a 1300+ dollar M6. Will I really have a different experience moving up in glass?

 

[raid]

The J-8 is a great lens, even though it is inexpensive. A more expensive lens may not make your images better.

 

[Justin Low]

The Jupiter-8 probably holds the title of 'best-bang-for-buck-lens' among Leica-mount lenses.

I own a 1974 Jupiter-8 (a black one), that I picked up years ago for $20 or so. While it's a good performer for its price, the Hexanon is superior in flare resistance, contrast and sharpness.

I still keep the J-8 around though, mainly because it doesn't "cost" me much to keep it, and it's handy when I want a light-weight, relatively fast 50mm lens.

Consider the difference though as something that delivers 90 points, versus 95 points.

 

[jmkelly]

The question skates close to the recurrent "Philosophy" topic: "Do I Need More Than One Lens?" Your answer may be yes, or no - I would not presume to adivse you.

I don't have a J-8 but I have a few J-3's and like them very much. I also have a Hexanon 50/2 and it is better-built, renders better color, and as noted above it is more flare resistant. Though not so much as you might think - the Russian coatings were pretty good in their day.

 

[Roger Hicks]

If you're happy with it, no problem. 'Look' matters at least as much as objective quality, and some pics are better suited to an ancient Sonnar copy than to a new Summarit, say.

But even the best Jupiters are less contrasty and have lower resolution than modern lenses. It would be surprising if it were otherwise, with a 75-year-old design and 50-year-old coating technology. Many prefer the ergonomics of modern lenses, too; that's why my wife just bought a 50/2,5 Summarit.

Where are you? If you're not too far away (I'm about 100 km from Tours, 50 km from Poitiers) we could perhaps meet and you could try some newer glass.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Harry S.]

I quite like the results I get from my black late '70s one. Although Its a tedious lens to use, what with the aperture moving with the focus and no click stops. The DOF scale and markings are really great though IMO.

 

[mh2000]

as long as you are *really* happy with the J-8, then it probably is all you need... but if it seems "good enough" now, but you decide later that something else is "better" for your own photography you may regret that you didn't "upgrade" earlier. Maybe I have a soft one, but aside from being a beautiful piece of vintage equipment, I was never that impressed with my J-8... too flare prone, low contrast and not too sharp (even stopped down)... not that it isn't decent and somewhat charming, but just not a top quality image maker... on the other hand, my Industar-22 is quite good... as is my Colar-Skopar 50/2.5.

 

[spiderfrank]

I have a Jupiter-8 for my Kiev II, a Summitar and a new Nokton for my Bessa R: the Summitar is strange: sharp but not much contrasty, and very soft at full aperture, the Nokton is beautiful and more "modern", and the Jupiter is "strong and mucho"! ;-)
If I compare the three lens, I think the Jupiter-8 is better than the Summitar, and just only different from the Nokton, but equally good. I'm still learning to use my Nokton, so in a future I can have different opinions, but I don't think I'll change my appreciation for the old Jupiter

fFranco

 

[pfoto]

Here in this thread is the problem with FSU lenses. They are all over the place. If you are extremely lucky and get a good one the results can be sublime for the money. You can waste an awful lot of time and money on them though because of the sample variation. You won't find sample variation in the Konica Hexanon lenses. I use a J-8 on my MP and I don't think its incongruous.

 

[Vincenzo Maielli]

The optical and mechanical quality of the J8 (as all the FSU productions) are very variable from a lens to another lens. Moreover, the optical and mechanical quality, also when are at the maximum grade, are rather far than a Leitz Summitar 50/2. The J8, in return, is more cheap.
Ciao.
Vincenzo Maielli