M240 with Nokton 50 f1.5

[Manuel Patino]

I borrowed this CV 50 f1.5 from a friend and shot a few images to see how it compares to the Leica 50mm ASPH f1.4

These are pretty much straight OOC exported to jpg with LR5. I did lower the exposure a bit in the shot with the tennis ball.

The bokeh is definitely not as pleasing as the lux and not as sharp either. But for about a 1/5 of the Summilux price, it's not too bad a lens....

 

[taemo]

interesting, thanks for sharing some shots although they seem really low res or heavily compressed?

will also be shooting a M240 + Nokton 50 1.5 ASPH soon, have a 50mm cron collapsible too but I think I'll use the Nokton for a more modern/contrasty look.

when I compared the Nokton to the ZM Planar, to me they looked very similar so I'm happy with mine for now

 

[Godfrey]

The Nokton 50/1.5 ASPH (LTM) performs very similarly to a mid-1980s generation 'Lux 50, not the last two generations. It's quite a good lens in its own right, even if it's not the equal of a current 'Lux 50.

G

 

[Manuel Patino]

interesting, thanks for sharing some shots although they seem really low res or heavily compressed?

will also be shooting a M240 + Nokton 50 1.5 ASPH soon, have a 50mm cron collapsible too but I think I'll use the Nokton for a more modern/contrasty look.

when I compared the Nokton to the ZM Planar, to me they looked very similar so I'm happy with mine for now

Yes, unfortunately it's not easy to upload full res images so they are resized and compressed. I will shoot a bit more with it and see about maybe keeping it although I already have the 50mm Lux ASPH... I had the Planar 50 and I think I shot the Sonnar as well, the Planar is much more like the Lux. This lens is pretty cool, but definitely not a replacement for the Lux..

The Nokton 50/1.5 ASPH (LTM) performs very similarly to a mid-1980s generation 'Lux 50, not the last two generations. It's quite a good lens in its own right, even if it's not the equal of a current 'Lux 50.

G

It's definitely an interesting lens and pretty decent, but I agree with you that it is not nearly in the same league as the Lux. However, it is a joy to use. Lighter than my silver Lux and the focusing ring is very nice, I find it easier to use than the focusing tab of the Lux...

 

[rscheffler]

I have both, along with a few other rangefinder 50s. I find the Nokton is the closest to the Lux ASPH, though of course is also different. I found it's slightly sharper in the center, when wide open, but also will purple fringe relatively easily, whereas the Lux doesn't. The Lux ASPH has better across-frame performance. It takes the Nokton some time to bring up the outer 1/3 of the frame. Bokeh-wise, it's slightly busier in the background. My preference lately has been 50 Lux ASPH for pretty much everything or a Zeiss-Opton Sonnar for dreamy character.

 

[bobby_novatron]

I think the Nokton 50/1.5 ASPH is a great lens for the price. I tried both the Nokton and the Lux 50/1.4 ASPH (latest version) ... the performance of both lenses is superb, but the Nokton is not the equal of the Leica. I'd say (subjectively) it's about 95% as good.

In my experience it has issues with purple fringing across high-contrast areas and the across-frame performance is not as good as the Leica. If you look closely at the sample pic I posted below, you can see the purple fringing along the chrome areas on the car. Yes, I know you can remove this in post-processing, but I felt the effect was minor so I didn't bother.

Despite its quirks, the Nokton is a great lens and I'd have no problem recommending it. It is super-sharp in the center, even wide open, and has wonderful color rendition.

Here's a sample from this summer, shot around F2 I think. Leica M 240, native JPEG (no processing).