Bessa Normal Lens

[Dez]

I recently bought a Bessa R body, and have been looking around for a screwmount Ultron lens. These appear to be very scarce, and expensive when they do appear. Collapsible lenses hit things, and my Canon 50mm f1/4 lens is just too big.

In the meantime, I have found what appears to be a very good, and amazingly cheap substitute. This is the Russian (sorry, Ukrainian, really) Industar-61 D fifty-something mm f2.8 lens. As well as being dirt cheap, it provides really sharp results. Of all the FSU lenses, this is the only one that has both clickstops and an aperture ring that turns in the right direction for the arrows in the Bessa's light meter. Have some others on the list had experience with this combination? It seems appropriate; if you can have a Voigtlander made in japan, surely you can have a Tessar made in Ukraine.

I am a total newbie to RFF, so forgive me if this is very old news, and the Industar is the commonest lens to grace the front of Bessa R's.

Cheers,
Dez

 

[Al Kaplan]

They're supposed to be decent lenses. If it seems sharp enough then use it and enjoy!

 

[brachal]

This is a common configuration. The I61 is very sharp, but the build quality is usually pretty bad. The older silver and black models are usually better made than the all black I61-LD models. I much prefer my Jupiter-8 and Jupiter-3.

 

[bigdog]

Stick with your Canon 50mm 1.4

Stick with your Canon 50mm 1.4

I have both lenses. The all black I61-LD I have is razor sharp but I can confirm the build quality is poor. The focus ring, although wobbly, is very stiff when turning/focusing. It has a click stop aperture ring which I don't mind and it works fine. I think I paid $20 tops for a brand new copy so it is hard to complain, especially after seeing the results from this lens.

I finally got fed up with my FED (small dark viewfinder but built like a tank and handles well) and soft Jupiter 8 and purchased the Bessa R2a with an Ultron 35mm 1.7 and the Canon 50mm 1.4 I am very happy with the camera and both lenses are fantastic!

This thread may prompt me to take the black I61-LD out for a little variety. I just bought 50 rolls of Kodak 100UC I need to test.

 

[MaxElmar]

Chrome Canon 50/1.8 feels and looks great on a chrome Bessa-R.

 

[nzeeman]

industar 61 is a great lens - only thing that you can miss with it is speed. but as for sharpness - it is great all up to f2.8 .
i liked it so much that i even converted one for my kiev. 🙂

 

[nome_alice]

yeah the industar is a good performing lens but i struggle with the ergonomics. the 50/2 jupiter-8 is just a bit more money and much nicer to use. the contrast isn't as hard also, which can be a good thing.

 

[Peter_Jones]

I have used the I-61 (black & silver) and the results look pretty sharp, with higher contrast than Jupiters, but lower contrast than modern lenses. I find I use it more for colour to give more saturation where needed. Handling-wise I prefer the J8 but both are good lenses to use (once cleaned/re-lubed).

 

[Roberto]

I61-LD is a fantastic lens, that gives much more contrast and sharpness than the J-8. I love mine..

 

[le vrai rdu]

I have an industar 22, collapsible lens

I can mount it and collapse it on my bessa, it is stopped by the shape of the chamber before hitting the shutter, no problem

 

[chris00nj]

When I first started I got a Bessa R and was comteplating a FSU lens. However, I didn't initially realize how many other lenses there are.

I think some of the old Canon and Nikon lenses are the best bang for the buck. The Canon 50/1.8 is a great deal. I remember initially not wanting to spend more that $100, but in reality if you can spare $200, there are a lot more possibilities.

Adorama has a 50/1.8 for $99. Both Adorama and keh.com underrate their lenses. I got a E- lens from Adorama that an eBay seller would have called mint.
Minolta Rokkor 50/2, which is a copy of the Zeiss Sonnar. Jiri_e is a well known honest seller. Of course, this auction could go higher.
Another great lens that you can find for under $200 is the Nikkor 50/2 (another copy/improvement of the 50/2 Zeiss Sonnar). Adorama has a Nikkor 50/2 for $164. If I were you, I'd pick this lens.

 

[Ronald M]

50 2.0 Heliar or 50 2.5 ??? CV lens. The 2.5 is a small well made lens. I believe you need a screw/M adapter,

 

[le vrai rdu]

bessa R is a screw mount body, so no 50 f2 heliar 😉

 

[former member]

My Bessa R2 usually has a J-3 on it.

The I61L/D is VERY Sharp, but the mechanics of the mount just do not do it justice. I've been converting them for Contax and Nikon, using collapsible mounts from CZJ Sonnars after converting those to LTM. The J-8 Mount is much better made. The J-3 mount allows for more adjustments so that you can get the RF Cam, Distance Scale, and actual focus to all line up.