Russian Lenses for M9

[Beyder28]

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I have heard a lot of good things about the Russian Jupiter Lenses. I am Russian myself and actually never shot with a Russian camera or lens and am intrigued by these lenses. Does anyone have any experience with any other Russian lenses that they would recommend to use on an M9?

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[luigi bertolotti]

I discarded my Zorky4K RF system more than 20 years ago... ... but I remember well that had two Jupiter lenses that were really good performers : a 50 f2 (Jupiter 8 - Zeiss Sonnar copy) and a 135 f 4,5 (Jupiter 11 - Zeiss Tessar copy) . bot have std. Leica RF coupling and can be mounted on a M camera with the usual adapters : all Russian lenses have the fame of a vague Quality Control and one can have bad surprises (even in correct focusing - RF coupling) ... but good items are, generally speaking, good performers too, and can be found for cheap.

[250swb]

I have a Jupiter 8 and a Jupiter 12 that both work OK on my M9. They have there own character, and are pretty sharp at f5.6 - f8.

 

 

Steve

[a.noctilux]

As a challenge, I have used some russian Jupiter lens.

 

-my first is Jupiter 9 (f:2/85mm) that have focus errors and when "bracketting focus" is possible, the pictures are very nice with good sharpness and boke

-I use a J3 (f:1.5/50mm) that have no focus problem and is like a blending of Summarit 5cm LTM (that I use also) and more modern lens

 

Arnaud

[Beyder28]

I discarded my Zorky4K RF system more than 20 years ago... ... but I remember well that had two Jupiter lenses that were really good performers : a 50 f2 (Jupiter 8 - Zeiss Sonnar copy) and a 135 f 4,5 (Jupiter 11 - Zeiss Tessar copy) . bot have std. Leica RF coupling and can be mounted on a M camera with the usual adapters : all Russian lenses have the fame of a vague Quality Control and one can have bad surprises (even in correct focusing - RF coupling) ... but good items are, generally speaking, good performers too, and can be found for cheap.

 

I actually just bought a near mint Jupiter 11 and am expecting to have it delivered soon. Hope I don't have to send it out to get shimmed for the M9.

[Guest Ron (Netherlands)]

The Jupiter 8 is a very good performer. But don't rule out the Industar L/D 61, which is tack sharp because of its Lanthanum or Rare Earth glass: http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Industar_61.

 

 

 

You can't go wrong here since these lenses are all priced very very low. You can acquire a very good sample of a Jupiter 8 or Industar 61 (or Industar 26m) for about USD 30 or even less ;-)

[Ronan]

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I tried to grab one of those last week locally.

 

They go for around $150, the Zorki/Fed 1 around $300.

 

[Dan Bachmann]

I've had good luck with an Industar 22. I think I paid £25 for it. The modern Leica lenses handle better and give a better result, but I wanted a collapsing lens for a Leica III and got lucky.

 

This comparison was taken on an M9. On the left is the Industar, on the right is the Summilux pre-asph. Actually, looking at these small on the screen, the Industar actually looks better. In print, there's less detail/control.

 

Here's some more images taken with it, but on film http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=94884421@N00&q=industar

[pete hogan]

Jupiter-8, 50mm f/2, is a very nice lens. Try to find an export version from KMZ 1961-68. Model PT3070 with Latin/English markings.

[Ecar]

I regularly use the J-3, J-8 and J-9 - as well as the I-22, I-61 L/D and the Helios-103 (with LTM to M or Contax to M adapters, as required).

They are fun to use, each with its own character, and can achieve interesting results, as long as you are prepared to spend some time finding a good sample and giving them a CLA.