Could you live with a ZM and a Nokton 50/1.1?

kshapero

South Florida Man
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Traveling in New England with my Nikon F and CV 40/2 only and having a great time. Already planning my next trip (Big Sur in CA). Thinking of the ZI and a Nokton 50/1.1 as my one lens kit. Love some input on this proposed kit.
 
I had a Nokton 1.1 for a bit, ever really got to grips with it, and for me it transforms a normally compact RF into something a bit too big. Nothing against the optical characteristics of it, but it's just too big for me.
 
From my point of view, the Nokton 1.1 is a 1.1 aperture only lens due to the focus shift. I'd rather use an f2.0 lens as a walk around - there are many available, most of them good enough, and all better than the Nokton.
 
A little perspective (I call this one "Fat Man and Little Boy"). :p

A0007306.jpg
Or fat boy and long boy
 
Could you live with a ZM and a Nokton 50/1.1?

Only if it paid half the rent and didn't snore...

But seriously, heck yes. Seems like a very nice combo and look forward to your results. A .85 M7 with 1.25x mag on it would be better though for my focusing efforts.
 
Nokton

Nokton

I've sold the Nokton 1.1 purely based on the focus shift and focus shift only. I didn't mind the weight, but I hated the focus shift.
 
I can think of at least 10 M bodies and 50mm lenses I would much rather shoot with than the ones you have mentioned...
 
I've sold the Nokton 1.1 purely based on the focus shift and focus shift only. I didn't mind the weight, but I hated the focus shift.

The Nokton 1.1 was my first lens when I was getting my feet wet on the Leica M4-P. Many of my shots came back out of focus.

It sent me down the wrong path, believing that focusing with a rangefinder was difficult and it took several months before I got my hands onto an M8 to make the connection that bad focus was due to the lens, not myself.

I sold the 1.1 as I need lenses to perform as I expect them to when properly focused via the rangefinder. The focus shift, especially up close, is quite significant.
 
Hey, Akiva, if you stop by the bay area on your way to Big Sur, let us know. A beer would be fun.

Regarding your question, any 50 or 35 would be fine (and I've done that on trips), but the ZI might be limiting :) And the 1.1 seems a bit too big to travel with .... I'd rather have a smaller kit that I know I can "emergency" fix.

Roland.
 
I took a short break recently to see a friend I haven't seen for 20 years. The Nokton had just arrived, and I had no idea about this focus shift stuff. I took just the Nokton and my MP.

Usually, I like to shoot close to minimum focus, which is 0.7m for most lenses, so I find that one aspect a bit limiting on the Nokton. I live around f2 to f4, and would only go lower if I absolutely had to.

My shots came out fine, and I had no idea about the focus shift until reading this thread. I'm not about to beetle off and test it either!

So, for me, I took the Nokton as my only lens to an important occasion, and it came up trumps.
 
Thinking of the ZI and a Nokton 50/1.1 as my one lens kit. Love some input on this proposed kit.
This is often my one lens kit :cool:. Focus shift is much less of an issue on film. Grab a 8x ND filter if you want to shoot wider apertures in daylight. Personally I'd also bring a wide angle for Big Sur, or maybe just one fast 35.

I don't really see why people complain about the Nokton's size and weight given its speed. It weighs about the same as a 75/2 and is shorter. Yes it's a fatter lens than the short teles, but this makes no practical difference when carrying it.
 
The ZM is about 140g lighter than a Leica M7 - so there is a weight saving form starters. The Nokton is, give or take, the same weight as the old Leica 50mm f1.2, and 1/4 of a stop faster:)
 
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I personally couldn't use the 50/1.1 as my only lens, as I would find it too heavy and bulky for general carry. I would much prefer the 35/1.4 Nokton as a one lens solution with the Ikon. For quite a while I carried the Ikon and 35/1.4 as my sole film solution, and it was light and unobtrusive. I've tried doing this with the 35/1.2 Nokton, which is of similar size to the 50/1.1, and I couldn't do it.
 
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