Seldom mentioned...but good lens!

[outfitter]

I've had a few over the years. Like most lenses this old, some are ok and some are very good. My current one is almost, but not quite, as good as my Leica 50 2.0 collapsible Summicron. It's sharp, but can't resolve like the Leica. But then it only cost 30 bucks! Like all things Soviet, you generally have to buy several to get a really good one.

You raise an interesting point, all lenses regardless of the brand have good examples and bad examples in the sense that there are differences that would lead one to choose on over the other. The FSU lenses are complicated by poor assembly QC and cheap mounts that are prone to wear etc. On the other hand the FSU optics are proven designs capable of fine performance.

 

[tenderobject]

hi guys... which do you think is better. j-8 50's version or the i-61 LD? thanks

 

[MartinP]

The J-8 is a Sonnar design and the Industars are Tessars. In theory the Industar might be sharper at f5,6 and the Jupiter more characterful(?!) wide open, but the things are so old by now that it would really depend on the individual lenses. Any assembly/reassembly glitches, mount wobbles etc. will likely have a more noticeable effect, and how does one define 'better' anyway ?!

Like someone else has in their sig, "the correct answer to almost all photographic questions is 'It depends...' "

 

[photobizzz]

I too had one at a point, black with painted on scale and f-stop numbers. Nice optics, but poor mechanics. I ended up selling it due to the sloppy focusing helical. The old J8 I have now is just the opposite, feels like a Canon 50 to me when I focus it, except it has no click stops...

 

[shootodog]

i agree. the industar 52/2,8 is a very capable but underrated lens

 

[tenderobject]

The J-8 is a Sonnar design and the Industars are Tessars. In theory the Industar might be sharper at f5,6 and the Jupiter more characterful(?!) wide open, but the things are so old by now that it would really depend on the individual lenses. Any assembly/reassembly glitches, mount wobbles etc. will likely have a more noticeable effect, and how does one define 'better' anyway ?!

Like someone else has in their sig, "the correct answer to almost all photographic questions is 'It depends...' "

ah yeah, you are right.. i should've posted "which lens do you prefer". i have j-8 50's never had a chance to shoot i-61 LD. sonnars have this character i like as well as tessars. haven't bought any russian lens for quite sometime now. maybe i should try i-61 LD since i have j-8 in contax mount.

by the way, i saw black j-8 which looks much better than the old one. are these j-8 improved version from the 50's j-8?

thanks!

 

[moretto]

And now something different: Industars vs Sony kit, mounted on Alpha, in macro because the leica mount cannot go into normal focus range. Industars at f8, manual focus, no stabilization, hand held. Same rules to Sony lens, to be fair. As the camera has no focusing split-screen, is a bit hard to manual focus. Even harder with f3.5 kit than with the f2.8 Industars. OK, color is better on Sony lens (it is richer, better...matter of taste), sharpness..take a look.

 

[sqjaw]

I have the Industar 26m 50mm F-2.8 and It did a good job for me on this door shot: See my post New toy for fotos:

 

[picker77]

Ind 61 L/D can do color, too!

Ind 61 L/D can do color, too!

Leica M2, I-61 L/D, Ektar 100:

 

[Bill58]

If you get a hand-picked/ CLA'd one from Yuri @ Fedka, you'll have NO problems. You pay a little more, but you don't waste your $$ and get a lemon or a trashed one. Mine is superb.

Bill

 

[brachal]

ah yeah, you are right.. i should've posted "which lens do you prefer". i have j-8 50's never had a chance to shoot i-61 LD. sonnars have this character i like as well as tessars. haven't bought any russian lens for quite sometime now. maybe i should try i-61 LD since i have j-8 in contax mount.

by the way, i saw black j-8 which looks much better than the old one. are these j-8 improved version from the 50's j-8?

thanks!

The black lens is basically the same. Coatings are improved, and there may have been a minor tweak to the formula, but nothing drastic. The biggest advantage is that the black J-8s are only 20 or 30 years old instead of 45 or 50. The entire front of the black J-8 rotates when you focus. That can take some getting used to, but isn't a problem once you're familiar with the lens. I have a black J-8 from the 80's and a final production J-8-1 from the 90's. The 80's lens is better made/assembled. Optically they are pretty close.