Photos from W-Nikkor 2.8cm f/3.5

[VinceC]

The poor little 28/3.5 W-Nikkor might be one of the most overlooked lenses of all the Nikon rangefinder lenses. Gandy doesn't give it an entry on the Cameraquest site. No mention on the Nikon "Thousand and One Nights" history page, except in passing, when the designers say they wanted the SLR version to be an improvement over the flaws of the RF version. Pacific Rim photo does a write-up on almost every lens, but the 28/3.5 gets one of the shortest entries.http://www.pacificrimcamera.com/pp/nikon/28f35.htm

Yet, this is one of my favorite lenses. I've been using one for more than 15 years now, and it's the lens most often mounted on my camera, the lens that has taken some of my favorite photos. Partly, I like the 28mm vantage point on an RF camera. But part of it is the great sharpness of this lens, combined with its flare resistance, smooth tones, minimum distortion and medium contrast. It does vignette at wider apertures, and its contrast and tone give it a definite 1950s texture. It's also so small and flat that it really makes a compact package. The optics themselves are incredibly tiny, with a wide-open aperture barely as big around as a pencil.

Here are a couple of examples.

 

[michaelging]

Vince, that certainly is a sharp lens with good contrast. I suspect that maybe it's speed is what kept more people from buying it. I have been looking at your photos for years, many of your children, I think any camera in your hands could take a quality photo. I remember hearing a story that Isaac Stern was walking with a friend and they stopped at a pawn shop that had a violin in the window. Isaac tuned the instrument and played a small piece of a violin concerto, a person listening offered a $1000 for something that was marked $50,thinking that the quality was in the instrument and not in the user. I hope people do not think that they will play their camera as well as you do, just by owning it. On the other hand there is a difference between a Strad and Conn violin.

 

[NIKON KIU]

It sure is inspiring...

Kiu

 

[BillBingham2]

I have to admit, I find my CV25 about the same, a perfect carry lens. I was never happy with the 28 on SLRs, though I really like the 28/2.8 AIs that I have now.

I think that people over rate speed for wide lenses (28 and below), I know I thought that way for many years. 3.5 is a great mix of speed vs size. You go up to 2.8 or faster and you have a large chunk of glass sticking out the front. Almost impossible to pocket or carry under a jacket.

Yours seem sharp and renders colors wonderfully. It's a perfect match for one of your SPs (built in finder)!

How does it compare with your CV 25/4?

Thanks for sharing.

B2 (;->

 

[VinceC]

michaelging,
Thanks for the kind thoughts. Certainly I'm fortunate enough to be able to combine two of my life's joys ... my family and my vintage cameras.

 

[VinceC]

B2,
The 25/4 is crisper with more saturated colors and contrast. Vignetting on the 25/4 isn't an issue. So the Nikkor 28mm has slightly softer contrast and sketchier corners. Overall size and weight-wise, they're about the same. The optics on the CV lens are much larger. I sometimes carry both. I like the 28 because it doesn't need a separate finder. I like the 25 when I need to go even wider (I've always found 21mm to be a bit too wide for my shooting style).

EDIT: The CV lens also is a better match for the quality of my Millenneum 50/1.4. So the CV is a better choice if I want the pictures to all have a similar look and feel.

 

[BillBingham2]

Interesting, on my 21/2.8 for my M6 gets the least use of any of my lenses. I love the CV 15 for the felling it gives, but the 21 does not seem enough one way and not enough another. If it were not for the impending digial revolution (read, I know it's well underway, but I'm not ready to go, yet) I would offer her up for a new home.

The CV 28/35 finder seems to be a great little option for those who do not have an SP yet.

Thanks for the comparison, great info.

B2 (;->

 

[ZivcoPhoto]

Vince

You convinced me to buy one last year so I got a chrome version. It is the one just prior to the black version as the F stop numbers are applied in the same way...different from most chrome 28's. I too really like this lens and it stays on one of my S2's...my 35mm F1.8 lives on the other S2.

I like the 28 so much that I bought a 28mm F2.8 Elmarit for my Leica...wonderful perspective with a 28mm. Yet I bought one new in 1968 for the F and I never used it hardly at all with that camera. I still have it....in like new condition....sitting on a shelf.

 

[VinceC]

There were 10,000 W-Nikkor 2.8cm/3.5 lenses made, in both Nikon and LTM mount. By the standards of the Nikon lenses in the 1950s, it was a good seller.

 

[VinceC]

Fred the Nikon HS Webmaster is correct about the 35/1.8 being the lens to own. On the other hand, the 28/3.5 typically costs half the price, or less, in user condition.

 

[ZivcoPhoto]

Here are a few shots taken with my 28mm Nikkor - W on my "new" Nikon RF

 

[migtex]

Vince-San,
From your wisdom what should be? The CV 25 or the CV 28... I have the CV 21 and the J12.. in my perspective the 28 should be the rational choice, still your wisdom is most welcome.

 

[VinceC]

If I were rational, I wouldn't own both a 25 and 28.

If you like using the 21, then I think the 28 is a better fit. I got my 25 because I wanted something wider than 28, but have always felt 21 is too wide for my shooting style.

It's a very personal choice, in the end.

 

[migtex]

Thank you gentlms for kind support. 28 will be then!
Mr. Matsuiya-San here I go!! Oooops got to talk the CFO first...

 

[NIKON KIU]

Thank you gentlms for kind support. 28 will be then!
Mr. Matsuiya-San here I go!! Oooops got to talk the CFO first...

CV??

How about the W-Nikkor??

Example:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Nikon-2-8cm-f3-...ryZ30039QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Kiu

 

[back alley]

Thank you gentlms for kind support. 28 will be then!
Mr. Matsuiya-San here I go!! Oooops got to talk the CFO first...

my cv 28 for the s2 should be here this week sometime.
i went with the bigger metal 28 finder instead of the 28/35 mini finder to get that 'vintage' look.

 

[VinceC]

>>The age old question... 28 - 25 - 35?<<

For me, minimum focusing distances are a factor. In SLR, I never use the 35mm lens, preferring either a 28/2.8 or 24/2.8.

But the RF lenses wider than 35 are slower than f/2.8, and they all have a minimum focus distance of 3 feet/0.9 meter.

I tend to use either a 28/3.5 (without separate finder) or 25/4 (with finder) as my regular wide angle. I use the 35/1.8 in two specific instances ... when I need to get in close, and when I need speed for low-light or high shutter-speed shooting.

 

[VinceC]

Zivco,
Thanks for posting. I knew there had to be another W-Nikkor 2.8cm getting some use somewhere.

 

[migtex]

Ok! I'm waiting for that 3.5.... 🙄 if not.. the CV 28 will go! Many tks Kiu-San!😉

 

[wes loder]

Some 2.8cm f3.5 Nikkor images plus others

Some 2.8cm f3.5 Nikkor images plus others

I have a few images taken with the RF 28mm Nikkor on my photography webpage. It has always been a favorite lens of mine due to its compactness, sharpness and angle of view. Enjoy. WES LODER

http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/w/mwl2/photography.htm