Re: [Leica] Canon 1.5 Bokeh

[Dante Stella <dante@umich.edu>]

Mark:

	You're right, it is a broad brush.  I have used these things from
a wide period (late 50s to late 70s) and it is my impression that they got
worse as time went on.  I had the same impression with the 85/2.  I never
had a chrome one that was a dog, but I had quite a few black ones that
were.  The Jupiters are not bad in concept, and not terrible in build in
general, but with regard to the 50/1.5, it is no Opton Sonnar optically.

	When you descend from the Sonnar Olympus to the imitators, things
get interesting at f/1.5 (or 1.4 with the Nikkor):
- -- the Canon is optimized for contrast
- -- the Nikkor is optimized for resolution
- -- the Jupiter may be one or the other, but generally not in the same
class in either department.

In terms of optimum aperture (how crisp across the frame), by my
observation:
- -- The Canon at f/8 (starts to be good at f/4)
- -- The Nikkor at f/4 (blazing at f/2)
- -- The Jupiter at f/5.6 (good at f/2.8)

The Opton Sonnar has a touch more contrast than the Nikkor, but the same
overall feel.

I ultimately elected the Nikkor over the Canon and Jupiter
because at f/1.5 you are typically in low-light situations with room
lighting.  You don't need a super-contrast lens to handle that - since the
brightness range is already out of control.  That is why, yes, a Canon 1.2
lens is not super-contrasty.  In the real world, you don't need the boost.
So there, the ability to handle fine detail becomes more important than
being hot.  But that's just my view.

Dante

On Fri, 18 May 2001, Marc James Small wrote:

> At 08:44 AM 5/18/2001 -0500, Dante A. Stella wrote:
> >Good point about the curvature.  The Canon is a Sonnar copy, but better
> >executed than the Soviet copy (and without benefit of the Zeiss tooling!)
> >
>
> That's a pretty broad brush to use to describe a lens which was in
> production for 45 years.  In general, yes, the mounts on Nikon and Canon
> LTM lenses are far better made than those on the Soviet/Post-Soviet lenses.
>  But there is generally not much to choose between the glass, SPS QC being
> its customary concern.  However, the late Jupiter production has better
> mounts than the earlier lenses and most of these lenses are multi-coated.
>
> Marc
>
> msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
> Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!
>