The M-Hex 50mm f2.0 on R3a

reala_fan

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I recently bought the M-Hexanon 50mm f2.0 for use on my Bessa R3a.

At first, I was thinking my M-Rokkor 40mm f2.0 was "just as sharp" as the M-Hex 50mm. But after careful evaluation, I have changed my mind. I can see the M-Hexanon is the sharper optic.

I think I was suffering from "Sticker Shock" as I paid almost $500.00 for the Hexanon and I thought that was an awful lot to pay for a 50mm lens.

I have also compared the M-Hex 50mm to my SLR Hexanon 50mm f1.4 and the difference is really interesting. The M-Hex is sharper edge to edge. The SLR version is comparable to the M-Hex only in the central region of the image.

The M-Hex records the tiniest/slightest differences in contrast, and that makes the image seem to appear almost 3D. SLR version seems to miss these tiny contrast differences altogther, image looks flatter, has less depth.

I also like the 50mm framelines in the R3a 1:1 finder much better than the 40mm framelines. I struggled to see the 40mm lines clearly (and I do not wear glasses when shooting).

With the 40mm framelines, I found myself moving my eye around to see the lines and it was not condusive to fast composition/shooting.

Opposite is true with the 50mm framelines in the R3a...it's very nice, very easy to see and works great for street/quick shooting.

The M-Hex is a definite "keeper".

Cheers!!
 
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I'm a big fan of the Hexanon. It seems very well built and the glass is fantastic. The price of them has gone up in the last few years so they're no longer the steal they used to be. That said, they're still significantly less than the latest Summicron.
 
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