ZM Sonnar vs. Jupiter-3

[foto_fool]

Here's a couple of ZM Sonnar C pics at f1.5, shot with my R-D1.

I just recently received an LTM Zeiss Jena Sonnar from that auction site, which is probably a J-3 at heart if you know what I mean. Will post some comparison shots soon. My very preliminary test shots showed me that my new Zeiss and old "Zeiss" perform similarly on the R-D1 wide open, with the edge for sharpness and flare resistance going to the new lens - no surprise.

- John

 

[vrgard]

In case it helps anyone, here is a link to a page showing the various lens manufacturer's logos: http://www.commiecameras.com/sov/index.htm

As for hoods, I bought a very nice 40.5mm wide angle hood for my J3 on ebay from seller "heavystar" although I don't see any listed at the moment.

-Randy

 

[Nando]

BTW, I use a hood on mine. It's the big metal one from Fedka. It blocks the vf a little bit on the M's and I'm thinking of getting a vented one but I must admit that I never had any problems with flare with that big hood. It looks to be close to the same size as the Zeiss hood for original 50/1.5 Sonnar and that's why I decided to get it. Here's a link to it:

http://www.fedka.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=40&products_id=429

 

[kshapero]

Ok... There's nothing new though. I've been primarily using my Summitar the last two months. Please find it in your hearts to forgive me. In regards to the J3, I can't thank Brian enough for turning it into real gem.


f1.5


f2.8


f1.5 (very low light)


f1.5 (very low light - handheld at 1/8th or 1/16th - pure luck)


f8


f1.5

Ok, so which lens is winning? J3 or ZM? 😀

Some great shots. really.

 

[Nando]

Thanks Akiva. I really like your shot of the little girl. Really good examples.

Truth be known, if I were to get a 50 Sonnar now, I'd probably opt for the ZM. I got the J3 because at the time I was still very new to RF's and wanted to be frugal. Now, I'm a full-blown gasaholic. Still, I'm going to hang on to this J3 as long as I can because I absolutely love it. In terms of bang for the buck, a well-adjusted J3 is really hard to beat. My investment was only a hair over $120 including the work Brian Sweeney did on the lens and the $30 to ship it from Russia. However, I think that nicer J3's have gone up in price considerably since I bought mine.

 

[payasam]

Kakinchan, look on http://www.fedka.com for the rectangular push-on one. I bought mine elsewhere and use it with the J-3 and the Industar I-61 L/D.

 

[varjag]

the Belomo made J-3 has the symbol that looks like a squashed baseball or three lens elements.
they are usually silver and made from the mid 1950s to the mid 1960s.

BelOMO never manufactured Jupiter-3 or any other rangefinder lens. The factory didn't even exist in the 1950s-1960s. Its logo is often confused with ZOMZ (Zagorsk factory).

But to the topic, good J-3 can be charming:

What ZM C-Sonnar (or most other modern lens) will have over it though, is flare resistance. Jupiters readily flare with powerful light sources in or near the frame.

 

[Krosya]

now here´s the idea: Let´s compare those old Jupiters-3 lenses with the modern ZM Sonnar´s! I´d be very interested to see the diference in image quality from those lenses since they are of equal optical contruction.

you should post photos where you think the quality of the glass can be seen (even if only on the web)

also Zeiss Jena Sonnars are very welcome here off course 🙂

I start with my Jupiter-3 from 1951 (sorry if you allready know the images)
The Jupiter´s focus is spot on at 1.5 and I didn´t notice any focus shift until now (it should be there, shouldn´t it?)

I like the smooth tones and OOF rendition here! f1.5

stoped down it´s really sharp too! (sorry for the bigger pic but it shows the detail better) f8

OOF rendition again f2.0

flarte is there but it´s ok in most situations...also I like the front OOF 🙂 f1.5

I like the tones and smoothness here again. f1.5

fantastic tones IMHO (f1.5)

up close is also impressing (around f2.8)

Very impressive - with this J-3 I wouldn't worry about Sonnar-c at all. Too bad that not all of the J-3s perform to this level. But with many russian lenses - if it's good, it can be very very good.

 

[lubitel]

Good thread and amazing quality of some photos. I didnt know there were different manufacturers of J-3, just found out that mine is a valdai. I wish I had some quality scans. May be in the near future, a dedicated film scanner is on the way. 🙂

 

[xayraa33]

BelOMO never manufactured Jupiter-3 or any other rangefinder lens. The factory didn't even exist in the 1950s-1960s. Its logo is often confused with ZOMZ (Zagorsk factory).

But to the topic, good J-3 can be charming:

What ZM C-Sonnar (or most other modern lens) will have over it though, is flare resistance. Jupiters readily flare with powerful light sources in or near the frame.

this web site shows a Belomo J-3 from the 1950s.

http://translate.google.com/transla...lt&prev=/search?q=jupiter+3+belomo&hl=en&sa=G

 

[varjag]

Xayraa, assuming you mean the leftmost in 2nd row: it is an early ZOMZ J-3. This logo was used up to 1962. It is easily confused with BelOMO, but that one has two elements in stylized lens, while early ZOMZ has three.

EDIT: if you can understand a bit of Russian, this KMZ page has the most comprehensive list of logos to my knowledge.

 

[xayraa33]

So Zomz used two different symbols.

 

[varjag]

Apparently. It was surprisingly common (for rigid Soviet enterprises) to alter logos. KMZ alone did it 3 times if I recall correctly.

 

[Samsam]

i have the feeling that old Zeiss 50mm sonnar ( the contax one ) has got a more swirly bokeh than the new one currently manufactured by Carl Zeiss. Do you guys feel the same ?

 

[oscroft]

Ooh, I gotta get me a J-3

 

[varjag]

Alan, yeah a good J-3 will have all imaging potential you need:

 

[thafred]

Wow Fernando, your pics are very impressing!! thanks for sharing!

great photos too, verjag! I loke the third the most! stunning good flare supression!

thank you for sharing the ZM shots John!! finaly another ZM Sonnar owners sharing pics 🙂

What´s up with the rest? I thought the ZM Sonnar was pretty common and more than two people have them?! PLeeeeaaase share your pictures!!! 😀

 

[drjoke]

ZM Sonnar 50MM

I am sorry this is a repost. Someone told me to repost here.

From my Flickr Gallery

http://flickr.com/photos/drjoke/

 

[thafred]

wohoo thanks! 🙂

 

[drjoke]

More bokeh from ZM Sonnar 50mm. I refuse to put anything else on my camera now.

These images are from my Flickr gallery

http://flickr.com/photos/drjoke/