[Leica] Jupiter 85 - Pt 2 [was Flare + Jupiter]

[Guy Bennett <gbennett@lainet.com>]

To all those following this mythological thread, I submit the following report.

Yesterday afternoon I got back proofs of the first rolls shot with the
fabled Jupiter 9, and offer the following first subjective impressions...

- - It is indeed soft and lacks contrast wide open.

The indoor, low light shots made at f/2 look a bit flat, and would
definitely need some punching up when time comes to print them. I shot two
rolls, the first using Neopan 1600 (with which I inevitably get high
contrast) and the second using Agfapan 400. Some of the low light shots
with the Fuji showed better contrast than the Agfapan (a balance I was
hoping to strike: low contrast lens/high contrast film), which may be one
way to overcome the "flat look."

- - The Summarit performs better wide open.

As I mentioned in pt. 1, I alternated lenses for a few shots, using the
Jupiter first, then reshooting with the Summarit at the same aperture (f/2)
and then wide open (f/1.5). The Summarit gave better contrast and a sharper
image wide open than did the Jupiter (and the Summarit tends to be both
soft and low contrast wide open and in low light), though admittedly the
Jupiter shots may have suffered from camera shake.

- - Stopped down, the Jupiter performs well.

I got *no* flare in my outdoor shots though it was a bright sunny day and I
was not using a lens hood. (I should add that I did not shoot into the sun
nor did I have a UV filter on the lens - this is the LUG, after all.)
I'll keep trying, though. I'm sure with a little practice, I'll achieve the
flare for which this lens is famous.

- - The bokeh (for those who believe in such things) is quite nice and
smooth, not a creamy bokeh like with the Summarit, but pleasant enough.

- - Here's a slight problem that I encountered and I wonder if anyone else
has experienced this:

I'm using the lens on a IIIf. I find that with this body - which is already
difficult to focus in low light - I think I'm seeing a bit of the lens'
focusing ring in the RF, perhaps due to the fact that the Jupiter is a
fairly big lens and that it protrudes slightly into the RF window. (I've
noticed that the C/V Nokton is also quite big on a SM body, and wonder if
perhaps the same effect occurs with that combo.) In low light, this makes
focusing even more difficult as it distracts from the split image. Has
anyone else have this happen?

All in all, I'm satisfied with the lens, and look forward to printing some
of the above images to see how they hold up when enlarged.

Guy