jaapv Posted May 20, 2008 Share #1  Posted May 20, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) As I have to shoot a wedding in July I needed faster glass in the medium focal length.Today I got my Nokton 35/1.2. Stephen Gandy (Cameraquest) provided extraordinary fast service: Ordered Thursday evening, it arrived on Tuesday morning. Intelligently labelled too: Despite a largish box it slipped through customs unnoticed First impressions: BIG! But not heavy. Well made, although the finish is less sophisticated than Leica. Smooth focussing, good, long throw. Aperture ring, smooth clicks. Focus spot-on. Viewfinder intrusion suprisingly little, considering the size. Small minus points: Lens release button less accessible for fat fingers, Optional vented hood relatively expensive, but not needed. First test shots: The fingerprint looks a lot like older, lower contrast Leica lenses.i.e. sharp with good 3D effect, which means good microcontrast despite sligtly lower overall contrast. I attach a bokeh test shot, late afternoon light, wide open. All in all, very pleased and great value for money Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/53611-fat-boy-is-here/?do=findComment&comment=563765'>More sharing options...
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NickEgg Posted May 20, 2008 Share #2 Â Posted May 20, 2008 Congratulations on your purchase and great photo by-the-way! Â Cheers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikFive Posted May 20, 2008 Share #3 Â Posted May 20, 2008 Thats the most bang for the buck you can get. Love that lens. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecar Posted May 20, 2008 Share #4 Â Posted May 20, 2008 Couldn't agree more - although I got the black one One quick question: did you end up coding it? If so, did you try different options (eg, Lux vs Cron)? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted May 20, 2008 Author Share #5 Â Posted May 20, 2008 Only got it today. I will use the D-coder and mill the indentations. I think I will use pre-asph Summilux 35 to start with. I ordered a 486 filter from Michael Huppert today, together with some other filters, so he will ship next week anyway. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick De Marco Posted May 20, 2008 Share #6 Â Posted May 20, 2008 I now have about 14 lenses for my leica, or something ridiculous like that - a few of them Summicrons, Elmarits and some Zeiss. But the Nockton 35mm f1.2 is one of my favourite of all of these. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
morffin Posted May 21, 2008 Share #7 Â Posted May 21, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) This is my fav. lens. It is Leica-like @ 5.6 Sharp wide open too. Â Amazing lens! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
zlatkob Posted May 21, 2008 Share #8 Â Posted May 21, 2008 The bokeh looks great! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Tyler Posted May 21, 2008 Share #9 Â Posted May 21, 2008 My favorite lens ever. Any camera system. Magic. It's almost always at f/2 for weddings, where it gives me some of the best images of my career. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwelland Posted May 21, 2008 Share #10 Â Posted May 21, 2008 I've got the black version of this lens and have used it extensively on both the M8 and film. Wide open there's a drop off in contrast obviously but it has a very pleasing bokeh in my view. The centre sharpness is truly excellent wide open. Â Btw, CV's quality assurance is also MUCH better than Leica's since my copy focusses perfectly from day one yet my Noctilux acted like a pebble straight from the box by comparison (now at DAG ...). I added a Leica goodies STEER to the lens to assist with the focussing and lack of a tab - this really helps with handling although make the lens pretty ugly to look at. I leave the hood on and use an Optec Lens Hat instead of a lens cap too. Â You get used to he tapered body and access to the lens release - it's more of a problem with a case on the camera but you get familiar with it. It certainly isn't a lightweight lens though and I prefer the 35 'cron for most walk about work. If you want that f/1.2 though it can't be beaten for the money! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venkman Posted May 21, 2008 Share #11 Â Posted May 21, 2008 Like that lens very much and it is certainly a bargain, but I find it a bit too soft wide open. Just a tick. Â And Jaap, I agree - it's one huge brick, but it is amazingly not as heavy as it looks. Â Dirk Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
usccharles Posted May 21, 2008 Share #12  Posted May 21, 2008 nice lens jaapv,  i've been pondering whether or not to get this lens for some time and got a question for you.  how does dof/bokeh compare to the 35 lux? i currently own both 50/1 nocti and a 35/1.4 lux but i only use the nocti with my MP because i prefer the 50mm full-frame frame lines better with the nocti than the 1.3x crop on the M8. M8 just doesn't do proper justice to nocti's bokeh when it is cropped, IMO. i'm considering the the voigt 35/1.2 as a 50mm 'full-fram' substitute for the nocti on the M8, but i already have the 35 lux and i'm curious if the 0.2 difference in aperture makes a significant difference in dof/bokeh or is it my GAS just talking again?  thanks and nice lens~  charles  p.s. where did you get the black leica emblem?? i want one! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gravastar Posted May 21, 2008 Share #13 Â Posted May 21, 2008 Like that lens very much and it is certainly a bargain, but I find it a bit too soft wide open. Just a tick. Â And Jaap, I agree - it's one huge brick, but it is amazingly not as heavy as it looks. Â Dirk I think there must be some detectable variation between samples. For my sins I have a black and silver version. The black one is very very sharp at full aperture whereas the silver one not so sharp. With bracketing there still isn't a position where it's as sharp, so it's not a focusing error. In spite of this the performance is still good. The difference is only noticeable on subjects with very fine detail where the black lens will show moire and the silver will not. Â This was one of the first non leica lenses I bought and I have been very pleased with it. The black was an early version where I had to modify the rear shroud to be able to use the lens at infinity on the M8. Â Bob. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted May 21, 2008 Author Share #14 Â Posted May 21, 2008 Charles, I do not have the 35 Summilux, so I cannot say anything with authority;) I would guess, from what I see on the Internet, that the Nokton is closer to the Noctilux than to the Summilux35 asph. Older Summiluxes - I do not know. I pair it with the Summicron 35 asph, which gives me a set of very distinct lenses in the focal length. I got the logo from Don Goldberg - I don't know if he has any left. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwilliamsphotography Posted May 21, 2008 Share #15 Â Posted May 21, 2008 I had that lens for some time. What I found interesting was that on a M7 it bench test metered exactly the same a the 35/1.4 ASPH with both lenses wide open. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venkman Posted May 21, 2008 Share #16 Â Posted May 21, 2008 I think there must be some detectable variation between samples. For my sins I have a black and silver version. The black one is very very sharp at full aperture whereas the silver one not so sharp. Â Bob, Â just to feed your theory - I got a silver one. Â Dirk Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
leitz_not_leica Posted May 21, 2008 Share #17 Â Posted May 21, 2008 "What I found interesting was that on a M7 it bench test metered exactly the same a the 35/1.4 ASPH with both lenses wide open." Â That's why I sold mine...no real benefit for its size and weight. BTW, it's also the reason I sold my Noct...only ~1/2 faster than my 'lux, and only in the center. Both lenses had swirly bokeh, sometimes. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted May 21, 2008 Author Share #18 Â Posted May 21, 2008 hmm. I would call a 2500$ price difference quite a benefit:rolleyes: . Not to mention 900$ vs. 9000$ for the Noctilux... For that money I am quite willing to forego a possible small quality difference, a bit more space in my camerabag and of course, a heap of status. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted May 21, 2008 Author Share #19  Posted May 21, 2008 A resolution subject, shot at f 5.6. Full view and 100% crop, sorry, but for this website I had to reduce the Jpeg quality to 4, as jpeg has trouble compressing this kind of subject. The lens seems to have an excellent resolution.  . Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/53611-fat-boy-is-here/?do=findComment&comment=564632'>More sharing options...
usccharles Posted May 22, 2008 Share #20 Â Posted May 22, 2008 hi jaapv, Â can you post some shots at f/1.2? i want to see some bokeh~ Â thank you~! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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