Please tell me all about Nikon S-mount rangefinder lenses...

[Biggles]

I particularly enjoy printing from extremely crisp, almost crunchy black & white negatives. My interests are primarily street and candid snapshot portraiture. Would I be happy with old Nikon rangefinder glass?

(Note: I have never printed a picture taken with any Nikon, so I'm totally at sea here.)

 

[Biggles]

I'd definitely want to start with a crisp fifty. Nice to know which one to look for. Thank you, sir.

 

[Sawdust]

I'm trying to make up my mind! Have an S2 that's been on my shelf for a lot of years -- gotta lighten my photo load. It's a nice one... I'll let you know if it's available. Lots of other goodies to go too but not quite ready to list everything.
Mamiya 6, S, S2, 3 Niccas, OM4, etc.

Dusty

 

[Biggles]

"Have an S2 that's been on my shelf for a lot of years -- gotta lighten my photo load. It's a nice one... I'll let you know if it's available. "

Please do. Feel free to e-mail me through the board.

 

[wlewisiii]

Dusty,

Is that a folding Mamiya 6? (Twitch) I need another 6x6 folder like the proverbial hole in the head, but if you want to part with that one I have to find the pennies... 🙁 It's on my short list right after the Super Ikonta in my .sig

William

 

[Sawdust]

No, this is the one I just bought from Fillipe... it's a good one and one of my all-time favorite cameras, but my 85 year old eyes have told me I've gotta go auto everything :bang:, so all my RF stuff and mosts of my Nikons too (F, F!tn, F2AS, F4 etc... just have to inventory, figure prices, etc.

Dusty

 

[FrankS]

I'd kinda like a Nicca, Dusty.

 

[wlewisiii]

Ah, Only a small bit lower on the list (and much less likely anytime soon due to the cost...). Well, the nice thing is that if you sell it here it will get a good home. Pity I can't afford a Nikon S either... 🙁

William

 

[furcafe]

Per Brian's post, yes you can get crispy, crunchy sharp B&W negatives w/Nikon RF glass, which is pretty much equivalent in optical quality to the Zeiss, Leitz, etc. lenses from the same period. Heck, IME @ least, you can easily get crispy, crunchy sharp B&W negatives from pre-WWII uncoated lenses, provided you take basic precautions to minimize flare (which also applies to coated lenses).

 

[Biggles]

Thank you for taking the trouble to post all those visual aids, Mr. Sweeney.

...you can easily get crispy, crunchy sharp B&W negatives from pre-WWII uncoated lenses, provided you take basic precautions to minimize flare (which also applies to coated lenses)...

And provided it's good pre-war glass. I've had some modern coated SLR stuff that was very hard to print from, and my first negatives from my first really decent lens (for the same body) were a complete shock- so easy to print. Reminds me of the old saw, "didn't know the man drank 'till I saw him sober." I hadn't known what to expect from a lens.

I guess I was asking more about the style and uniformity of optical quality across the Nikon rangefinder lens line. Looks like it's pretty good. Thank you both for your input.