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Recommendations fast 35mm lens?
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 26, 2019 8:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
padam wrote:

Konica AR 35/2


I recently bought one of these. Very sharp and great colors. But very hard to find in decent condition and for reasonable price. As well as other Konica fast primes.


PostPosted: Sat Apr 27, 2019 2:57 am    Post subject: /Users/richard/Desktop/CactusFlowers_DSC_1760sm.jpeg Reply with quote
If you can stretch your budget a bit higher, I highly recommend the Carl Zeiss 35/2 Distagon. I got mine for under $400, and it's easily my favorite fast 35. It's excellent close up and distant, has superb color saturation and contrast, and is beautifully built with perfect focus mechanism and feel.

Here's close up of a blooming cactus.




And a pic of desert dandelions, stopped down for depth of field. The distant mountains are rendered very sharp.



PostPosted: Sat Apr 27, 2019 9:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
There's a voigtlander 35 1.4 on sale for 540€ , not cheap budget , but there aren't many options so fast around, in Sony mount


PostPosted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 8:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Well, since it hasn't been mentioned yet, I thought I should -- the Nikon 35mm f/1.4. This lens, back in the day, used to be very pricey, but it seems that it has dropped down to "reasonable" in terms of prices now. I just had a look on eBay and I found several listings ranging from $250 to $300. In its day it was considered "the" fast 35mm. I dunno how it fares against more modern fast 35s, but I'll wager it still hangs in there reasonably well.

I owned a pre-AI model that had been AI'd by Nikon back when I was a camera dealer almost 30 years ago. I got to use it only briefly before I sold it, but it sure was fun to use while I had it.


PostPosted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 10:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
cooltouch wrote:
Well, since it hasn't been mentioned yet, I thought I should -- the Nikon 35mm f/1.4. This lens, back in the day, used to be very pricey, ... In its day it was considered "the" fast 35mm. I dunno how it fares against more modern fast 35s, but I'll wager it still hangs in there reasonably well.

I owned a pre-AI model that had been AI'd by Nikon back when I was a camera dealer almost 30 years ago. I got to use it only briefly before I sold it, but it sure was fun to use while I had it.


I have the Nikkor AiS 1.4/35mm (slightly improved optics compared to the the earlier pre-Ai), and i've been using it recently during a trip to Rome. The lens clearly is a "character lens", which means it is very soft wide open (even in the center), and has a lot of "smearing" towards the edges. This can be used to get nice images of candlelight scenery, and for "soft" portraits. If one needs good corner-to-corner resolution, f8 or f11 is recommended. Lateral CAs are quite pronounced, but can be easily removed by software. The lens clearly has the "1960s" glow, and lots of aberrations wide open. Depending on your work, you may like this - or not!

Some fast vintage lenses such as the Minolta MC-X 1.8/35mm or the Carl Zeiss CY Distagon 1.4/35mm have a distinctively more balanced correction, and modern 1.4/35mm lenses (starting with the Sigma) are completely different - very sharp, even in the corners, even at f1.4.

Stephan


PostPosted: Sat May 04, 2019 1:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
The Canon LTM 35/1.8 is well-behaved, small, light, and well-built. Not as sharp as a modern lens wide open, of course. About my favorite LTM lens. Good chance of getting one in your budget.


PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2019 12:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Here's the little overview i did some years ago:



100% crops from the corners of the Sony A7II (24MP FF).

Maybe it's useful for a first impression.

Stephan.

EDIT: click on the image to view it at 100%!!


PostPosted: Fri May 10, 2019 9:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
CV 35/1.4 in M-mount? works on Sony.

It's soft and has a lot of CA at f/1.4 so I would consider it an f/1.8 or f/2 with an "emergency" f/1.4 mode.

Got mine used for $330.


PostPosted: Sat May 11, 2019 8:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Thanks Stephan,
Looks to me the Minoltas 35mm 1.8 are among the best performers... despite a bit of CA at list for this limited test. A bit surprising as some consider the MD 35mm 1.8 as a limited performer.... Maybe sample variation?


PostPosted: Sat May 11, 2019 6:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Antoine wrote:
Thanks Stephan,
Looks to me the Minoltas 35mm 1.8 are among the best performers... despite a bit of CA at list for this limited test.

When it comes to "sharpness", not only in the center but also on the borders and in the corners, the two 1.8/35mm lenses certainly are the best fast lenses tested here (of course many 2.8/35mm vintage lenses are better performers). That said, for some purposes one might prefer the strong "smearing" of a 1.4/35mm Nikkor or a 2/35mm Hexanon...


Antoine wrote:
A bit surprising as some consider the MD 35mm 1.8 as a limited performer.... Maybe sample variation?

I have tested two MC (MC-I and MC-II) and two MD 1.8/35mm (MD-II and MD-III). Their performance is very similar.

On other occasions, i have tested a series of several Minolta zooms (e. g. seven samples of the AF 4-4.5/28-135mm and eleven samples of the Minolta MD 3.5/35-70mm). Due to their complicated mechanical construction, these zooms certainly are more susceptible to sample variation than the corresponding primes - nevertheless the results were astonishingly uniform.

There are "lemons", though. Among my >250 Minolta lenses, there was a abysmal MC-II 2.8/135 mm (really bad corners even at f11, maybe a reversed back element), and an obviously weak MD 4.5/75-200mm.

Stephan
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