Couple of samples: Triotar and Sonnar (not much useful)

enzodm · Joined: 11 Sep 2010 Posts: 350 Location: Italy

This week end I was slightly bored and tried to compare some lens. Here a couple of shots from Triotar 135/4 and Sonnar 135/3.5 both taken at f/5.6. It is a 100% crop (slightly resized), not from the center but rather on edge. Both have the same amount of unsharp mask applied in pp, and nothing else.
Being a beginner, if someone has a suggestion on what to shoot to maximize differences between the two (e.g., in bokeh), I would be glad to try.

Orio · Expire: 2012-12-04

I would say that the Triotar (I guess image #1 due to lower contrast) did fare really well against the Sonnar.
In any case both are excellent lenses, so a hard choice.
My suggestion with regards to compare the lenses is always the same, not limit yourself to short or medium distance sharpness and bokeh tests - do use the lenses in a variety of situations instead, as if you were using them normally and not for a test. Try backlight situations (with and without hood), check for both flares and iris ghosts, try to verify if they show chromatic aberrations, try how they do with regards to distortion of geometrical lines, check if they shift focus when stopping down, try them at all focusing distances, check not only the background bokeh but also the foreground bokeh, verify if they are colour-consistent between wide open and stopped down (some lenses do slightly colour-cast wide open due to interaction between parassite rays and tinted lens coating).
Lenses are usually used to take normal photos, so that is also how they should be tested: in everyday situations.

Here's a review I made of the Voitglaender Septon:
http://forum.mflenses.com/voigtlaender-septon-2-50-for-bessamatic-review-t33501,highlight,%2Bsepton.html
It's by no means a complete exploration of the possiblities of the lens, but at least is shows at work the philosophy that I described above.

enzodm · Joined: 11 Sep 2010 Posts: 350 Location: Italy

I liked you Septon review, in fact is much more useful that way. I'm collecting since not much time and even my dSLR has less than two years, so I'm in the learning phase.
I find myself taking often pictures of details, so that I often stay on short distances.
Anyway, some month ago I did a walk on mountains with the Sonnar, and took a picture I like very much for sharpness (this is a crop from an about three times larger picture):