Soviet 50mm lens testing

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02Pilot

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At the risk of being judged guilty of shameless self-promotion, I have started posting a slightly unscientific but nonetheless (I think) interesting comparison of four Soviet 50mm lenses - FED 50/3.5, Industar-50 50/3.5, Industar-26 52/2.8, and Jupiter-8 50/2 - to my blog. Part One just went up today, and several more will follow soon.

Direct links:

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V
 
Very nice -- try these at f8 too. Not a bad one in the bunch, I would say. Thanks for doing this; looking forward to more. Oh, and can you post pictures of the lenses too? I'm not so familiar with what these (other than the J-8) look like.
 
KoNickon said:
Very nice -- try these at f8 too. Not a bad one in the bunch, I would say. Thanks for doing this; looking forward to more. Oh, and can you post pictures of the lenses too? I'm not so familiar with what these (other than the J-8) look like.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I thought about posting photos of the lenses, but simply haven't gotten around to taking a group photo. I'll see what I can do. The test photos are already shot; they were taken at a variety of apertures.
 
I appreciate your showing what a FED 50 f/3.5 will do. I just obtained one as a sort of "body cap" for a Bessa R that I bought. The seller didn't have any body caps, so he threw a FED lens on the camera. I've been shooting with this rig for the past few weeks, but since I have only just sent the film off, I still don't know what I'll be getting. At least I know now to expect swirly bokeh.
 
Robert Lai said:
I appreciate your showing what a FED 50 f/3.5 will do. I just obtained one as a sort of "body cap" for a Bessa R that I bought. The seller didn't have any body caps, so he threw a FED lens on the camera. I've been shooting with this rig for the past few weeks, but since I have only just sent the film off, I still don't know what I'll be getting. At least I know now to expect swirly bokeh.
Click to expand...

It's a little swirly, but not crazy. The lens definitely has a classic (read: old) look to it. I shot a couple rolls with it over the weekend, the results of which reinforced this; I'm rather pleased by this, as if I'm going to have several lenses in a given focal length, I'd prefer them to produce distinctly different looks.
 
Thanks for doing it! My deep respect for doing it with FED-2.
I have almost all of them, excluding I-50 which I sold with refub by myself Zorki. Hope to get I-22.
Each of those are very different lenses. This is why I'm keeping them.

FED 50 3.5


Sunflower. by Ko.Fe., on Flickr


I26M


MushrOoM by Ko.Fe., on Flickr
 
I really like the I-26M, and will probably feel the same about the I-22 I just overhauled when I get the Zorki back together. Later on, I plan on getting the Jupiter 8, for that classic Sonnar experience.

PF
 
Interesting comparison ! I have an Industar 61/LD (quite yellow already, saves the filter ...) and the Industar 50 (50/3.5), which needed some work (cleaning and re-lubing of the helicoil). Indeed very different lenses. However, my favorite is the Industar 24 of my Moskva 5 folder.
 
I would like to see how the I-61 L/D compares, given its reputation for sharpness; perhaps I'll pick one up at some point. As an LTM user, the Helios-103 torments me. I understand it can be hacked into an LTM mount, but that's a project for another time. I'd really love a Jupiter-3, but I just can't justify the price they are getting these days.

It would also be interesting to see what a FED 50, and I-22, and an I-50 (all in similar condition) would do side-by-side; I've discovered that a collapsible lens is a real plus for those time when you might want to carry the camera in a pocket.

I've been happy with the I-26M, though I prefer the look of the Jupiter-8 in most situations. As you will see in later shots, the I-26M overexposes somewhat (to a degree that surprised me) compared with the other lenses in the group. I'm not sure what accounts for this, but it is produces notably brighter images at the same settings.
 
02Pilot said:
At the risk of being judged guilty of shameless self-promotion, I have started posting a slightly unscientific but nonetheless (I think) interesting comparison of four Soviet 50mm lenses - FED 50/3.5, Industar-50 50/3.5, Industar-26 52/2.8, and Jupiter-8 50/2 - to my blog. Part One just went up today, and several more will follow soon. The direct link to the post is here: http://filmosaur.wordpress.com/2013/10/22/soviet-50mm-lenses-compared-part-i/
Click to expand...

BTW I should add that you have a fine set of lenses that I would be proud to shoot. I need to rotate mine more.
 
I gave away my black 61 Л/Д then I sold Bessa L. Nobody wants them on e-bay even for $15 or less, it seems. 26M has much more character, IMO.
But here is one interesting version of I-61, non L/D with ten or so blades, black and silver, if I'm not mistaken.
 
gb hill said:
BTW I should add that you have a fine set of lenses that I would be proud to shoot. I need to rotate mine more.
Click to expand...

That idea - that all of my lenses should see use on at least a semi-regular basis - was no small part of my motivation to conduct this little test. I found I was defaulting to the Jupiter-8 over the I-26M when I had only those two. Then I picked up the collapsibles from another RFF member and suddenly realized that I had just multiplied my problem of not using some lenses enough. Having greater knowledge of what to expect from each should (in theory, at least) allow me to tailor the lens to the task.
 
Nice write up.
I'm somewhat new to FSU cameras and lenses. Last February I bought a late model FED 3b with the original I-61 L/D and so this is my only m39 lens.
So far, I've been very impressed with the lens. Here's a recent shot from it.

9p6r.jpg



I've been very interested in finding a nice Jupiter-8, so I've been doing a bit of research on them.
I'm currently lusting over a nice early Zorki 4/J-8 combo 🙂
 
I read those comparison posts on the collapsibles. Agreed that Soviet lenses are not likely to match Leitz or other high quality lenses for performance, but then I'm also not likely to buy an Elmar for the $35 I spent on my FED 50. Knowing my own limitations as a photographer, I'm better off spending less; at least that way I can (disingenuously) blame the lens. 😉

Just for kicks, and to keep folks interested until I post the next part of the comparison later today, here's a few shots - one each with the FED 50, the I-26M, and the J-8. Can you identify which lens took which photo?

25Jul2013-4-04_Modified_zpsa8219416.jpg


18Mar11-17_zpsccdccf7c.jpg


21Oct2013-1-04_Modified_zpsefcd432c.jpg
 
goamules said:
Some Soviet lenses are good and a lot of fun when cheap. I like the Industar 61 for sharpness, and the J-3 and J-8 for tone. Collapsibles are another matter.

Here is a comparison between the Elmar 50/3.5, and the Soviet clone versions:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=113110
And a later test this year:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=130386

My Elmar won hands down.
Click to expand...

FED 50 3.5 is known to be not the sharpest, low contrast, made for b/w old soviet film kind of lens.
Elmar should won for the price of five-ten times higher.
But.
I'm not old lens color pictures on digital tests fan. To me it is irrelevant, comparing to b/w film pictures, where Elmar wins almost nothing, comparing to I-22, 55. IMO.

FED 50 3.5. f16, 1/100, ISO100, a.k.a. Sunny 16.


Untitled by Ko.Fe., on Flickr
 
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