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Carl Zeiss Planar 1.8/50 Rollei SL (1972)
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 6:31 pm    Post subject: Carl Zeiss Planar 1.8/50 Rollei SL (1972) Reply with quote
After some years of chase I have been able to find a West Germany made copy of the Planar 1.8/50 for Rollei Bayonet.
The lens is not rare (10,000 the copies made by Zeiss in West Germany) but somehow it always escaped me.
I already have a Singapore version of the lens, I wasn't really pushed to buy this other copy for the anti-Singapore snobbery
but because this is a very early version of the lens. It was made in 1972 and features the old-style all-metal barrel
of Zeiss Rollei lenses - as opposed to the more recent rubber grip type of barrel.
It does not even have the multi-coating writing HFT in spite of the fact that it is quite obviously multi-coated
so it is my guess that Zeiss made this lens before having taken the decision of labeling their multicoated T* lenses with the HFT tag
for consistency with the Rollei lenses produced elsewhere (in Braunschweig or in Singapore).
With this copy, I have a version of the lens that I am 100% sure was created under direct supervision of Erhard Glatzel at Zeiss factory,
and therefore certainly faithful to the original design and glass components, and a credible comparison term for the more recent productions of this lens which I have, namely
the Singapore rubber grip Rollei SL version, and the Voigtlaender M42 version, whose samples I have presented in this thread.

Here's some samples of this German 1.8/50 Planar, I will not leave you waiting and I anticipate that I can't see any quality difference with the lenses made in Singapore.
All the three copies that I have of this lens seem of the same excellent optical quality to me.

The lens first:

#1


#2


And now the samples:

#3


#4 - 100% crop of #3


#5 - 100% crop of #3



#6



#7



#8



#9



#10


#11 - 100% crop of #10



#12



#13



#14 - close distance distortion test
At close distance (usually the most critical for distortion) the Planar 1.8/50 offers a really remarkable performance, worth that of a dedicated macro lens,
with only a slightest barrel distortion barely noticeable:



#15



#16


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Just another fine example of a quality lens. I believe that anyone would be hard pressed to find a poor copy of this lens no matter where it was made.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
mmelvis wrote:
Just another fine example of a quality lens. I believe that anyone would be hard pressed to find a poor copy of this lens no matter where it was made.


Agreed. And the best thing is that they are still relatively cheap. Usually you can find them for some 50 Euros less (on average) than the Contax 1.7/50,
which is not as good overall in my opinion, at least in the 5x 6x 7x serial numbers version (8x version is much tougher to beat)

This 1.8/50 Planar has less CA and much less distortion than the 1.7/50 Contax.
And, it focuses 15 cm closer, which is an important and useful difference.
The 1.8 has a little more residual spherical aberration wide open than the Contax 1.7, but a far better bokeh at all apertures, and I think that it's a favorable change. At least, it is for me.

Last edited by Orio on Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:32 am; edited 1 time in total


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Color orgy ! Another fine series! I love them all!


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Attila wrote:
Color orgy ! Another fine series! I love them all!


Thanks! Colours are all "natural", that is, they are as they came from in-camera "Standard" setting.

EDIT: Sharpness also is as it came from camera. And photos have not been resharpened after resize.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
i really like the way it tenders color, just pops right out. i find this a very interesting comparison to your recent voigtlander ultron (?) post. if i recall that lens was also a rollei/zeiss derivative? i find tis lens much more to my liking, much more pop and splendid color and sharpness.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 2:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
rbelyell wrote:
i really like the way it tenders color, just pops right out. i find this a very interesting comparison to your recent voigtlander ultron (?) post. if i recall that lens was also a rollei/zeiss derivative?


More than that: it is the very same lens, only disguised under a different name.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 2:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
then i am crazy to see such a difference?! i felt the ultron was very flat by comparison--maybe as i get older i should no longer trust my eyes!


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
In the use, it feels exactly the same. When I have time I'll take a few comparative pictures.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Fantastic colours Shocked....this lens looks like for sure a great performer ...can this lens also be compared to the pancolar 1.8/50mm?


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
pich900 wrote:
Fantastic colours Shocked....this lens looks like for sure a great performer ...can this lens also be compared to the pancolar 1.8/50mm?


The Pancolar is a different lens, made in East Germany, I doubt it has anything in common with this lens aside from the fact of being a double Gauss design (like 99 % of standard lenses made after WWII) Wink


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 4:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
lovely 3D effect. i've thought of getting the voightlander or zeiss version in f-mount for my nikons ...


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Outstanding samples. The yellowish leaves on the last pictures (#10 on) are so well taken, Attila has catched the point: color orgy Wink
Fully agree. I keep my Contax 1.7 one but will look for one of those.
Thanks for sharing.

Regards
Jes.


PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
The chair for me #15...and I can't explain why it is my favourite Rolling Eyes


PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 11:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Jesito wrote:
Outstanding samples. The yellowish leaves on the last pictures (#10 on) are so well taken, Attila has catched the point: color orgy Wink
Fully agree. I keep my Contax 1.7 one but will look for one of those.
Thanks for sharing.

Regards
Jes.

+1 !

How lucky you are to still have autumn weather, colours and nature !
You enhance their beauty with this lens, Orio !!!
Congrats. Very Happy


PostPosted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
.... if only it didn't hit the 5DII's mirror past 10 meters Crying or Very sad


PostPosted: Sat Dec 31, 2011 3:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Made this photo in 2007. I feel an inner urge to post it:

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