Konica M Hexanon 50mm F1.2

[Rouslan]

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Hi,

 

This is my first post on this forum, but I have been lurking for a while.

 

I just purchased a Konica M Hexanon 50mm F1.2 lens for my M8 and took several shots to test its sharpness. I've read about and have seen really sharp pictures from other users (both here and elsewhere on the Web) and that, apart from it being a fast lens, has informed my decision to buy this lens. I'm finding the photos not as sharp as I expected. Furthermore, my Canon EOS lenses look sharper than that. I'm attaching a 100% crop of a photo I took with this lens. Can anyone familiar with this lens shed some light. The seller claimed that it did not need adjustment for Leica M8 as it was a late serial number batch.

 

Thanks,

 

Tim

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[Shootist]

You neec to test that lens to see if it is front or back focusing.

Also you post this shot but don't say what aperture was used and the shutter speed.

 

I suspect this lens or your camera is not focusing correctly.

[Rouslan]

Thanks Shootist. The shutter speed was 1/3003 and the aperture was not recorded in the exif. How does one adjust the lens so that it doesn't front and back focus?

 

Tim

 

You neec to test that lens to see if it is front or back focusing.

Also you post this shot but don't say what aperture was used and the shutter speed.

 

I suspect this lens or your camera is not focusing correctly.

[Shootist]

Thanks Shootist. The shutter speed was 1/3003 and the aperture was not recorded in the exif. How does one adjust the lens so that it doesn't front and back focus?

 

Tim

First you need to find out IF the lens is front or back focusing.

To do that some use a ruler at a 45° angle to the camera/lens. Focus on a number on the the ruler and take a shot. Look at the image and see if the REAL focus point is in front of or in back of the number you focused on.

Or you can set up a row of objects, like batteries, and set the camera so it is at a angle to the objects. Focus on the middle object and take a shot. The object you focused on should be the one that has the best clarity. If it isn't then determine which object is more in focus. Either method will tell you whether the camera/lens is front or back focusing.

There is no way for the normal user to adjust the lens. So you would need to send it to a qualified repair person/company to be adjusted.

If you have other lenses then check them also. Could be the camera is out of spec. That would need to be adjusted also.

[Rouslan]

Yes. This lens definitely back focuses considerably. I tested other lenses, i.e., Summicron 28mm and it's fine. Does anyone know where to adjust the Konica M Hexanon lens for use with M8?

 

All info is greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks again.

[andit]

Hi Tim,

 

Sorry to hear about your trouble with your Hexanon 50mm lens. You can not adjust the lens by yourself. You are going to have to send it into a service centre. There are a couple of independent service centers around that will adjust focusing issues. I doubt if Leica will adjust the lens for you.

 

One word of caution, DO NOT use the allen key trick described here on the forum to adjust the M8 for the lens. You will loose the sharpness on your other lenses. Maybe someone reading this here on the net could advise you on a service center that will do the job for you.

 

Kind Regards

Andreas

[Rouslan]

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The situation is tricky. The seller of the lens says that it might be the M8 body as well and to do the test it's important to use another lens with F1.2 aperture, since at higher F stops the problem may not manifest itself. Unfortunately, I do not have another F1.2 lens to perform this test.

 

Thanks for your suggestion.

[Shootist]

The situation is tricky. The seller of the lens says that it might be the M8 body as well and to do the test it's important to use another lens with F1.2 aperture, since at higher F stops the problem may not manifest itself. Unfortunately, I do not have another F1.2 lens to perform this test.

 

Thanks for your suggestion.

 

That is just total Bull droppings. But I would use another 50mm or longer lens to check the camera. The DOF on a 28mm lens is much larger then the DOF on a 50mm.

 

 

 

Just how much does it backfocus.

[farnz]

Tim,

 

I would expect that either Don Goldberg (WI) or Sherry Krauter (NY) would do the adjustment for you and both come very highly recommended.

 

Pete.

[Rouslan]

Shootist, to answer your question, I'm attaching a rough shot to give you an idea. It is by no means a scientifically calibrated test, but you can see the back focus very easily.

 

farnz, thanks for the links.

 

I'm really struggling with a decision of either keeping the lens and adjusting it to have it work with my Leica M8 or returning it for a refund and maybe adding some money and getting a Summilux 50mm. The thing is Hexanon is really big and heavy.

 

Thanks again for everyone's input.

 

Tim

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[wizard]

Tom,

 

even the portions of the above test shot that are in focus do not seem very sharp to me, and contrast is also low. A Summilux 50 asph will do much better at full aperture. Get rid of the lens would be my impulse.

 

Andy

[microview]

Just bought one this week and find it a very capable lens, in many ways comparable with my pre-asph 50mm Summilux. Interestingly, the original instruction sheet with the lens suggests f5.6+ for optimum resolution and what is obvious is that the K-H is relatively soft in the corners at wider apertures. On the M9 it is hardly discreet (!) and focusing is extremely critical at the wider apertures.

Attached are tripod mounted M9 with focus on the string at 900mm (Summilux) and 950mm (K-H) – just greater than minimum focus distances; each at f1.8, camera looking at the plane of the wall at 45 degrees. [K-H left; LS right]

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[mmradman]

There is nothing wrong with your Konica lens, it only have slightly different flange distance from Leica M, enough to be unsharp at f1.2. It would improve stopped down but that is not the point with the fast lens.

 

Lens mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[microview]

Rouslan: you might find this of interest M8 and RD1s kitties shots (Noctilux and Hexanon): Olympus SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review there's a tip about using the lens on M8/9 camera.

[epand56]

I'm really struggling with a decision of either keeping the lens and adjusting it to have it work with my Leica M8 or returning it for a refund and maybe adding some money and getting a Summilux 50mm. The thing is Hexanon is really big and heavy.

 

Tim that's exactly what I did. I was very satisfied with my Hexanon 1.2, but after adjusting in Solms my M8's RF that was vertically misaligned it was no more working properly. In the meantime I had bought a Summilux 50/1.4 Asph. and so I've sold the Hexanon.

Actually, the Lux is less bulkier than the Hexanon and far more sharp, so, if you can, my advice is to return the Hex and get the Lux. You will not be disappointed with it.

[sbelyaev]

Konica 50/1.2 is a very good lens. It is slightly soft wide opened, but becomes really sharp (particularly in the center), when stopped down to 2-2.8. For practical purposes it is as sharp as Noctilux is.

It has greater contrast and flare resistance than Nokton 50/1.1.

 

I'd say that it is Noctilux for 1/3 or the price.

 

This lens has extremely shallow DOF, therefore even minimal movement of the camera/photographer's head could bring the object out of focus. Even tiny misalignment of the rangefinder may create an impression of malfunctioning of the lens.

 

I used to have 3 Hexanon 50/1.2 (two left). One had an early #, two - late. ALL of them behaved exactly the same way.

 

This lens is definitely not any worse that Summilux pre-asph is. Summilux asph is much sharper on the periphery, particularly wide opened, but it is twice as expensive and has unpleasant/abrupt (to me) transition from the zone of extreme sharpness to out of focus.

 

The sample of image that you posted may have minimal back focus, but I'm not sure whether that is the property of your lens or M8 body.

 

Close the lens to 2-2.8 and give it another try.

[Anasebi]

In my experience I find it like all other Konica M lenses; good, but not worth half what collectors have driven it up to. My uncles 50 1.2 I found inferior in build quality, same contrast, slightly warmer color and a touch better flare and is much softer wide open than the 50 1.1 nokton...all an all an inferior lens. The focus was spot on the with RF on his example.

[Washington]

This whole fast lens obsession wide open on a rangefinder reminds me of the horsepower

race for bragging rights. Totally unnecessary and fraught with problems from the get-go.

Taint worth it. But,the Konica is a very good lens

[Xmas]

This whole fast lens obsession wide open on a rangefinder reminds me of the horsepower

race for bragging rights. Totally unnecessary and fraught with problems from the get-go.

Taint worth it. But,the Konica is a very good lens

Hi

There is nothing wrong with a M mount 5cm f/3.5 Elmar.

Noel

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[contaxgary]

I purchased my M-Hex 50mm f/1.2 and found it necessary to send it to Don for adjustment. I sent both the lens and my M3 to Don for calibration. The lens now performs well, but the size keeps me from using it with any regularity. I own three M-Hex lenses and two of them required adjustment for use with my Leica bodies. My 50mm f/2.0 may require adjustment, but I just haven't used the lens much in that I shoot mostly with my 35mm Biogon C.