Your favourite piece of glass

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Morca007

Matt
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What is your absolute favourite lens?
Any mount, and era, any system, just one that you really agree with.

Mine is my 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor-S in F-mount. I use it on either my FG or my N80 (I know, non-AI lens on a modern body, but it seems to work fine.).

The look it gives me is just fantastic, it can be sharp as a tack and contrasty, or soft and neutral, depending on the aperture and lighting. It may be big and heavy, and I may not be able to use my internal meter, but there's just something about it...

Taken with this lens: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=66339
 
Good question. I have yet to decide which of my rangefinders/lenses stand out from the rest, though I suspect either the Iskra, the ltm VC 3.5 28mm and the Jupiter 9 will lead the pack.

On the slr side, I was always enamored with the Canon fd 1.2 85L and I regret selling it (and the rest of my Canon kit) when I bought a Hasselblad system.

As far as Hasselblad, all the lenses were magic, but the 250mm was super nice, or maybe it was just that I really liked the subjects I shot with it. Sold that system as well and if I'm ever in a position to buy again, will do so.

I'm shooting this week with several rangefinders/tlrs and I may have a more definitive answer latter.

Does anyone else here have a favorite?

Eli
 
Oooh, the fd 85 1.2 is one of the few slr lenses that I really salivate over, I've seen some very nice work done with it by Chris Weeks.
 
Right now it's a lowly Fed 50mm F3.5 collapsible that I picked up from a dealer in the FSU for about $30 (shipped with some other odds and ends). I simply cannot believe how good this lens is for the money and I am not, in general, a fan of FSU camera equipment.

Today I used it to check a Canon IIF for light leaks with ISO 200 color print film from the 99 cent store processed at the corner drug store and scanned on a Minolta Dimage Scan Dual IV. The topic is Sun washed, upscale villas in nearby San Marino, California -- no big art show, just a camera test, but the lens did well for a vintage 4 element collapsible that cost so little.

fedlens.jpg


smno14.jpg


smno0.jpg


smno9.jpg


smno12.jpg
 
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Morca007 said:
What is your absolute favourite lens?
Any mount, and era, any system, just one that you really agree with.

Mine is my 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor-S in F-mount. I use it on either my FG or my N80 (I know, non-AI lens on a modern body, but it seems to work fine.).

The look it gives me is just fantastic, it can be sharp as a tack and contrasty, or soft and neutral, depending on the aperture and lighting. It may be big and heavy, and I may not be able to use my internal meter, but there's just something about it...

I agree entirely! - I use mine on my Fuji S3, as well as my old Nikormats,- briliant!! :) - but have you tried the 105mm - f2.5? - Magic!! :D

Cheers, Dave
Click to expand...
 
I assume you mean lenses one owns.
Mine might be the Rolleiflex 2.8 Xenotar. Only - slight - drawback is that it does not have modern coatings. Still, it is a glorious lens:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aglimpseoftheworld/329237062/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aglimpseoftheworld/144608494/

Probably my current favorite is a recently acquired Zeiss Biogon 25mm 2.0. Awesome color rendition, fearsomely sharp:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aglimpseoftheworld/1599493985/
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2212/1616418348_d9f14a6805_b.jpg
 
Only one? You mean we can really only choose one lens? That's hard. Well, assuming we're restricted to RF lenses, I'd have to choose my CV 28/3.5. Oh, and my Elmar 50/2.8 (current model). Damn, that's two. Are you really sure we have to choose only one? :D
 
Hi David,

Right now it's a lowly Fed 50mm F3.5 collapsible that I picked up from a dealer in the FSU for about $30
Click to expand...
I've got one of those, and they're surprisingly good (as are all of the FSU Tessar clones - I have a rigid I-50 that I'm particularly fond of).

(Btw, did you notice that you appear to have horizontal scratches across all of those photos?)
 
I haven't too many lenses, but I love my Carl Zeiss T* Planar 1,7/50 since the first time I saw her (yes, "it" is a "she"!). I think that is called "love at first glance". :eek: :eek:
 
I would have to say my 50mm DR Summicron: it's built very solidly, is an innovative design with it's close-focusing capability, and the results from it are consistently beautiful.
 
oscroft said:
Hi David,


I've got one of those, and they're surprisingly good (as are all of the FSU Tessar clones - I have a rigid I-50 that I'm particularly fond of).

(Btw, did you notice that you appear to have horizontal scratches across all of those photos?)
Click to expand...

Yes, I think the scratches came from the drug store's machine sadly -- only costs $2 a roll to process so I'm not complaining too much and this was a test. I can photo shop them out, but I was in a rush.
 
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