In praise of the Russar 20 mm

[Alberti]

The Russar 20 mm is a charming, old-fashioned lens that works very good even in the corners.
The formfactor is fantastic and allows me an unobtrusive style. I use a 21 mm viewfinder. It goes deep in the camera: it has a very small retrofocal distance - in the order of a cm from the sensor.

Please post your own Russar pictures and enter my magic circle 🙂



On the Leica digitals, I have a 18mm coding (WATE), but manual selectio of the 21 mm (Elmarit) gives slightly less purple fringe on a color camera. But it does not go away totally. On the Monochrome there is no purple fringe, just fall-off due to the mictroprisms.

 

[Alberti]

The Russar lens does not have a rangefinder coupling.
So I use a hyperfocal distance setting. Because the distance ring is so 'slow', this is easy.
At F8 I have 5 m with a sharp focus to 2.5 m
At F11 I have 4 m & it goes to 2 m

The 'circle picture' was taken with F9 and 3 m.

I use the Russar only on my MM; For color I have an Elmarit 21mm

 

[Alberti]

Russians are very nice on the street

Russians are very nice on the street

Russians are very nice on the street 😉


Pata Negra by Albert K., on Flickr

(also posted in the Street thread.)

 

[Alberti]

Stories by Albert K., on Flickr

What is or will be your experience? Show it!

 

[Alberti]

If I may shed a little light on the Russar 20 mm, this has a very exeptional form of the exit pupil. This reduces the need for a ND filter, as Marco Cavina has explained in depth:



As you see, the pupil remains the same form even wide off from the center. Marco Cavina technically says this is an exceptional lens in that it follows a different optical paradigm.

I was curious if the 15/16mm Hologon would follow this this 'rule' of Cos^3-Theta too, but I am afraid it is not, rereading Cavina's work; he would have mentioned it. IMHO, this makes this Russar lens more fit for digital unless you have the Hologon ND filter.

I think my old Russar 20mm copy - disregarding the fact that it is 19,7mm - is no match for the 16mm Hologon in coating and probably in sharpness, but it performs beyond expectation on the MM, with very clear details into the corners, a feat not easily met by other wide angles.
It gives a beautiful "WA-bokeh". And dark areas on my Monochrome-I can be reaised exceptionally.

Source: http://www.marcocavina.com/articoli_fotografici/Soviet_and_wide_lenses_on_Leica_M/00_p.htm

 

[Alberti]

Up on top


The pioneers

Up on the old vulcans of the Auvergne, France, where this group was discussing how to descend the mountain.

Russar/M-Monochrome

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I just couldn't pass very good and local price on Russar viewfinder. 🙂



I looked at "The pioneers" image large size and I can't say anything really bad. 🙂
Have you tried the cornerfix software for cleaning color cast? I can't find any examples, only one with Russar, but not on Leica camera.

 

[Alberti]

I just couldn't pass very good and local price on Russar viewfinder. 🙂



I looked at "The pioneers" image large size and I can't say anything really bad. 🙂
Have you tried the cornerfix software for cleaning color cast? I can't find any examples, only one with Russar, but not on Leica camera.

Hi Ko Fe, great find, I would like to see one too in my hands.
As regards color cast, I have a Mac and I should have a look again at Cornerfix (I used to have it on a Windoze machine) to fix also the vignetting (although I think it often has charm)