leo04x Posted February 11, 2009 Share #1 Posted February 11, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) hello at all . I write for the first time in this forum . I'm enthusiast for the 50-60 leica lenses .do anyone knows hektor 125 an summarex 85 ? which is better for the portrait ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 11, 2009 Posted February 11, 2009 Hi leo04x, Take a look here hektor 125. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Philippe D. Posted February 11, 2009 Share #2 Posted February 11, 2009 Hi and welcome. do anyone knows hektor 125 an summarex 85 ? which is better for the portrait ?Just a precision, the Hektor 125mm f/2,5 need a Visoflex to be used. The Summarex 85mm is a nice lens. Both quite expensive, should also come with hood. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted February 11, 2009 Share #3 Posted February 11, 2009 I know them well... have both... : they are indeed of the same breed - portrait lens with good aperture - even if they came from very different origins: Summarex was the "civil" outcome of a design made for military, Hektor has its root in a similar slide projector lens. Apart the obvious difference in focal lengths, my impression (based on my items) is that the Summarex is really a gem, in the sense that with diaphragm set at "normal" values like 4-5,6 it becomes of exceptional sharpness, more than the Elmar 90 3 elements which, for me, is the reference for lenses of that era. Things are someway different for the Hektor, which remains a medium/sharpness lens in the whole range, and, well visible in color, with a contrast that is a step lower than Summarex. Well, I admit that if I regularly use my Summarex, my Hektor stands mainly as a collectible... also for it needs Visoflex... not easy that one likes to go out with a 125+Visoflex when you can get a very good lens like the Tele Elmar 135, directly mounted an RF coupled... My idea is that Hektor, of course for a lover of this special kind of aged lens, can be a fine choice for "studio work"... portraits or still life in interiors... (tripod when needed),the Summarex is heavy indeed, but is a lens one can go out with and enjoy a lot. If you look for a Summarex, of course check with attention the glass conditions... it has a big front element, with a coating that can be delicate (it was probably the first coated Leitz lens... technology was at its start); also the focus movement deserves attention: having a heavy lens group, the smoothness of focus course can have suffered age (Leitz used a special lubricant for the helicoid, and can be that it too has suffered). Final consideration on Summarex use: there was a specific Leitz viewfinder for 85 mm (identical to two brothers for 90 and 135), but it is rare and costly, and the multifocal VIOOH has also the 85 setting... but when I use it (always on M cameras) I prefer to mount with the LTM adapter for 90 and use the 90 mm VF frame, of course much more simple. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc_braconi Posted February 11, 2009 Share #4 Posted February 11, 2009 Just to illustrate Luigi post : Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted February 11, 2009 Share #5 Posted February 11, 2009 ... I had forgotten that Hektor lens unit was removable... does it focus to infinity when on the Bellows 2 ? By logic... I'd say yes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc_braconi Posted February 11, 2009 Share #6 Posted February 11, 2009 ... I had forgotten that Hektor lens unit was removable... does it focus to infinity when on the Bellows 2 ? By logic... I'd say yes. Absolutely, need the special ring adapter for this. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theodor Heinrichsohn Posted February 13, 2009 Share #7 Posted February 13, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Absolutely, need the special ring adapter for this. Perfect pictures of excellent condition items as usual. I greatly enjoy your equipment photos. I have a black Summarex with perfect glass and good mechanical condition and an excellent condition 125 Hektor. The latter with a Visoflex has given me some lovely b&w portraits. I find it to be sharp but not cuttingly so, which is desirable for me. I recall a b&w portrait of a young lady in a very old Leica Photographie which was taken, if my memory is correct, by a Swedish amateur. The photo has remained in my memory because of the tonal range as well as the lovely subject. I have made some good general portraits with the Summarex at max aperture. I particularly recall some very accurate and lovely slides of my daughter (Kodachrome 25) in our garden in Japan. There was a blooming wild azalea in the picture and the delicate light violet colour of the flowers was reproduced excellently. I really must try these lenses out with the M8. Teddy Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc_braconi Posted February 13, 2009 Share #8 Posted February 13, 2009 I particularly recall some very accurate and lovely slides of my daughter (Kodachrome 25) in our garden in Japan. There was a blooming wild azalea in the picture and the delicate light violet colour of the flowers was reproduced excellently. I really must try these lenses out with the M8. Teddy I am really missing the Kodachrome 25 ( These old lenses where first computed for this film ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
leo04x Posted February 26, 2009 Author Share #9 Posted February 26, 2009 thank you for your opinions Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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