Canon query

[spylaw4]

Just out of interest, someome may know something aboiut this camera.
Yesterday in the Sunday flea market in Buenos Aires I saw in a (closed) shop unit what seemed to be a rangefinder Canon camera with the most gigantic lens. I though the 2.0 on the D2 was big but this .... it was a 50/0.95 a vast slab of glass. The place also had some Leica lenses but I could not see what ones they were except that they looked old. Any info on this?
I also saw another stall with one of my old cameras from way back when - a Praktika IV!
And I bumped into anothe D2 user!

[andybarton]

The Canon 0.95 has an specialist mount, but other Canon rangefinder lenses use the Leica thread. I think that it might be possible to retrofit an M mount on the 0.95, but I suspect that the cost would be prohibitive.

They stopped making them in the 60s, I believe.

[bill]

Hm. Sorry to contradict, but I don't think it is an M-mount. IIRC the Nikon rangefinder bodies used a Contax rangefinder mount, and the Canon lenses were L39 (although I am happy to be corrected). This particular camera sounds like a Canon 7 with the aforementioned .95 "Dream" lens. The lens was a "vanity" model, from Canon, at the time when speed was the big battleground in the market.

Regards,

Bill

[andybarton]

Bill

The joys of google and editing to avoid making a berk of oneself

[bill]

Originally Posted by andybarton

Bill

The joys of google and editing to avoid making a berk of oneself

LOL! And there was me thinking you had used your TARDIS...

Regards,

Bill

[treeplanter]

Originally Posted by andybarton

The Canon 0.95 has an specialist mount, but other Canon rangefinder lenses use the Leica thread. I think that it might be possible to retrofit an M mount on the 0.95, but I suspect that the cost would be prohibitive.

There are a few camera techinicians in the U.S. that I know of that will convert the Canon 50/0.95 so it can mount, and focus, on a Leica M. It cost about $300.00 USD to have this done last I checked.

Actually this conversion has been done since the 1960s. Occasionally an M-modified 50/0.95 will pop up on eBay. Going price seems to be about $800.00 - $1000.00 USD.

Jim Bielecki

[kodaktrix]

Brian,
have a look at this reportage done with the Canon 0.95/50:

Stranger on Planet Drag

The lens was done in some kind of breech lock mount for the Canon 7 rangefinders, but versions with LTM mount and TV-camera mount were also done.

I had the Canon 1.2/50 in use for some years, and use the 1.4/50 for about 10 years now on a Canon P, a M6TTL and aM2. The 1,4/50 is said to be one of the finest lenses ever built for Canon rangefinders, which I find is correct. The 1.2/50 is much sharper as the 0.95/50 but much less than the 1.4/50. I did a direct comparison of the 1.4/50 and the latest 2/50 Summicron. At F2 they were equal in sharpness and contrast, but the Canon was better with intense light sources. They were rendered in perfect shape, whereas the Summicron added stars to it.

Regards

Oliver

[spylaw4]

Thanks for all the info on this guys. Interesting! When I return to buenos Aires in a few weeks I will go have a look at the camera if the shop is open and find out how much! Not that I am really seeking to buy it!

[stunsworth]

Hi Brian, you can see some images posted with this lens wide open here...

Leica and Rangefinders Forum: Canon 50mm/0.95 @ 0.95=

Looks pretty soft wide open.

[andybarton]

Steve

That's softer than my old Summaron, which is saying something. (Different ball game all together of course, but I wonder if those examples are typical of the lens)

[stunsworth]

Andy, the answer is I don't know. I know the lens had a reputation for softness wide open, but what does that mean? How soft is soft? I've never used the lens so I'm not in a position to judge whether the results Raid obtained are typical. They do seem softer than what I would expect with my Nocti, but then again there's a large difference in price.

Don't forget that the offer to try the ASPH Summicron is still open!