Nikon portrait lens on Leica

[telenous]

I 've been thinking about a Nikon portrait lens -either the 85mm or the 105mm- in LTM for my Leica. I have shot some with my Elmarit which is a lovely lens and gives sharp results stopped down and quite impressionistic ones when wider than f5.6. No need of ourse to extol the many virtues of the old Elmarit. I wish it were f2 though. There's always the Summicron of course but somehow I can't shake the desire for an old Nippon Kogaku. So, here's my question to Nikon devotees: what would be a fair price for a good condition Nikon 85mm in LTM? For that matter what would be fair to ask for the 50mm f1.4? You don't get them very often here in Europe, so I guess I am asking for US prices. On a more subjective note: I 've also heard that photos taken with these older Nikon lenses display on occasion a harsher bokeh. What's you opinion on that? I 've read all the relevant threads here in RFF and I 've seen some photo samples with the 85mm and they are all excellent. I am really tempted. The only thing I am sorry about is that the Elmarit will have to go.

 

[NIKON KIU]

Hello there to UK,
The 8.5cm Nikkor is one the best in class, it rivals the modern day Leicas such as the 90mm f2
The prices are reasonable on the Chrome lenses, about $200 to $300, however the black version commands much more, from $700 to $1000 depending on the condition. Also, the black barreled lens is harder to find in LTM.
Regards,
Kiu

 

[telenous]

Hello Kiu and Roland,

Thanks very much for your very replies. It does seem that EU prices are a tad heftier than US. I am primarily thinking of taking the plunge for the Nikon 85. Something tells me that this is not going to be the end of the story... Anyway I 'll keep my eyes open for a chrome one, no need for a black one, esp. as there is a premium for it.

Kind regards
Alkis

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The Bokeh on the 85/2 is smooth; the Bokeh on the 10.5cm F2.5 is also very smooth.

Nikkor 8.5cm/2 in LTM on my Canon 7:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=20448


Lots of Nikkor examples in this thread, mostly with S-Mount version. The LTM's are identical formulas. The LTM 10.5cm F2.5 lens has a tripod mount.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7636

The Bokeh on the 5cm/1.4 is harsh.

5cm/1,4 wide-open on the Canon 7
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=3072&cat=3204

10.5cm/2.5 on the Leica M3, using the inner portion of the 90mm framelines as "100%" viewing.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=485&cat=3204

 

[telenous]

Lovely photo Brian, thanks. I 've seen all the other ones in the thread, as well as some other in flickr. This is a wonderful lens and quite different from the Elmarit. Wide open the Elmarit seems to paint the picture with a thick brush, if that makes any sense. From what I 've seen the Nikon gives a more naturalistic rendition.

 

[telenous]

I just saw the other two pictures from the 50mm and the 105mm. I see what you mean by harsh bokeh in the 50mm. I take it from what you said that the 105mm brings up the 90mm brightline.

 

[Todd.Hanz]

Kiu, Brian,
I saw a chrome 50/1.4 SC in LTM today, they wanted 595.00 (ouch)! So i looked it up and found a sample on Dante Stella's site: http://www.dantestella.com/technical/nikoleic.html , looks pretty good to me.

Is the cost of this lens justified? If I could get the same rendition he did I'd say yes, but if it's not consistently that nice wide open then for 600 I could get an early summilux. What do you thimk

 

[VinceC]

Nikkors are very consistent. Possibly had the most consistent quality control of any lens from the 1950s. That was one of the things that impressed the early users. There's a story of Life magazine photographers going to the factory and pulling random lenses from the inventory and finding that they were all of consistent quality.

 

[VinceC]

Here are some pictures I took last week with the 85mm (first two) and the 105 (second two) ... during a performance, wide open for the most part and in the 1/30th 1/15th shutter-speed range. (The shot with the dancer in blue was 125 at f/2.8).

 

[raid]

I love the Nikon 135mm/3.5 for portraits. It is a wonderful lens.

 

[VinceC]

Raid is right about the 135 Nikkor for portraits.

 

[VinceC]

Compared to the 85 f/2 Nikkor.

 

[telenous]

Same here - splendid photos, thanks for posting them Vince.

I think I 'll chase after the 85. The quality of the 105 and the 135 photos is impressive too.

Regards

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The 8.5cm F2 is the lens that put Nikon on the map. It's performance is outstanding.

Prices on Nikkors are all over the place. The LTM lenses are on the increase, the S-Mount prices seam to have decreased.

That $600 for a 5cm/1.4 is steep, but prices are way higher since Dante Stella did his write-up and RFF came about.

Prices for Nikon S-Mount have come back to Earth.

$600 will buy you a Nikon S2 with the 5cm F1.4 lens on it.

I use my 10.5cm F2.5 with the 90mm M-Mount adapter to bring up the "closest" framelines. The M3 frame covers ~90% of a 90mm lens. So I just pretend its a 100% finder for the 10.5cm lens.

 

[VinceC]

Thanks for the comments. Stage peformances are usually pretty easy because you get to steal their well-crafted dramatic lighting.

 

[NIKON KIU]

Kiu, Brian,
I saw a chrome 50/1.4 SC in LTM today, they wanted 595.00 (ouch)! So i looked ....

Very steep indeed as Brian mentioned. This is a high production optic, probably 90,000 units produced with many in screw mount. Don't forget that Nicca and Tower brands of the era had NIKKORS.
I think one should excersize patience and wait for one around $200-$300.
I like to mention a little secret, most re-sellers have to buy their items from the same sources we do, hence their premium prices.
How about this one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Nippon-Kogaku-c...602034039QQcategoryZ30063QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

For $400 to $600...you can buy the 5cm f2 LTM(more availability) and a 5cm f1.4 in Nikon S mount and change the mounts...may be I shouldn't say stuff like this( forgive me Nikon gods).
Kiu

 

[furcafe]

Nice shots. The performers look like they're from Uzbekistan or neighboring 'stans in Central Asia.

Here are some pictures I took last week with the 85mm (first two) and the 105 (second two) ... during a performance, wide open for the most part and in the 1/30th 1/15th shutter-speed range. (The shot with the dancer in blue was 125 at f/2.8).

 

[furcafe]

These are LTM lenses, not M mount, so you have to attach a 90mm LTM-M adapter to bring up the 90mm framelines.

I take it from what you said that the 105mm brings up the 90mm brightline.

 

[VinceC]

Well, there is no helix on the Nikon-mount version. The helix is on the camera. The lens is just a rigid optical assembly. So it wouldn't be a huge project to mount it on a new helix.

 

[telenous]

I finally made it, got one Nikon 85mm (hooray!). I was sparring for one while this thread was active and the price got really skyhigh. Just goes to show how much RFF influences prices perhaps. But the one I finally bought is within the price bracket suggested earlier by Kiu. So thanks to everyone here for sound advice on prices and everything.

I am now really eager to get my hands on the lens, I am sure the photos will be brilliant, I am just a little worried about how limiting is the size of the lens in terms of portability.

I also wanted to ask if anyone knows what sort of caps I can use - apparently the lens comes without any.

Regards