I did not know that. I got my 58/1.2 Rokkor (with camera) for $100. I doubt that Nikkor is 27 times better...
Exactly, sir. Exactly!
Even if the Rokkor costs someone $500, the Nikkor isn't over 5x better.
In fact, during normal usage the Rokkor is likely the better option, from the tests I've seen. The Noct's strength is in the lack of coma wide open with point light sources, as the seller has sort of mentioned. If you don't need "perfect" street lamps, the Rokkor is easily the right choice. YMMV, of course.
I had heard of these lenses but had no idea as to their value. Wow indeed.
Here is a tidbit that I have never uttered on a public forum: when I first started in photography I owned a system built around the FE2 body. It was all stolen. I then got into Pentax which I enjoyed much more than the Nikon. During my newspaper days I have used a lot of company gear: all Nikon. F3's, F4's, D1, D2, D2h etc, etc. During that time I built my Canon system. I just never felt comfortable with Nikon. Not really a fan. I was one of the staff shooters who campaigned for the company to switch to the Canon digital system. In the end we had both which was a peace maker.
I do use five Nikon strobes, SB-800's and SB 80-DX's, and really prefer them as remote flash units even though I am using Canon cameras and lenses. I use the Canon ST-E to fire the Nikon strobes. I have six or so Canon strobes but they do not see as much use as the Nikon speedlights.
I do know that Nikon is offering great stuff now and even loyal Canon users have switched. But for many years of using Nikon cameras and lenses I always felt the system was overrated...
I would be scared to have that much money into a small lens. I have purchased two 400/2.8 lenses over the years and using them does give you some anguish.
Years ago, while covering the US Open tennis tournament in New York I watched a guy drop his 400/2.8 to the ground. That crunching sound, the shocked look on his face, and the way he walked away while carrying his severely damaged kit was a sad spectacle I will never forget.
There is a BIG difference between the Nikon 1.2 and the Nikon 1.2 Noct. The Noct is a different beast with hand ground aspherical glass and CA correction which the regular 1.2 does not have. You can but a regular 1.2 brand new fro B&H for less than 700.00 but finding a good used Noct will set you back a few grand. The image results are quite stunning coming out of the Noct.
Even if the Rokkor costs someone $500, the Nikkor isn't over 5x better.
In fact, during normal usage the Rokkor is likely the better option, from the tests I've seen. The Noct's strength is in the lack of coma wide open with point light sources, as the seller has sort of mentioned. If you don't need "perfect" street lamps, the Rokkor is easily the right choice. YMMV, of course.
I got one of these for about 1200 euros earlier this year, It is absolutely not worth that much more than the Rokkor, it is quite similar in all respects, but it does not require me to mod my 5D2 mirror, and that was the reason I got one of these. And at the price point I got mine, a resale will always be a no-loss issue.
That's one of the things i love about any quality lenses: I can almost ALWAYS sell them for the same or more than i paid.
eBay is the most ridiculous beast.. It never fails to amuse and plain bewilder me that people will bid MORE for a used lens than the same lens can be bought for NEW...
it happens allll the time too
Doesn't bother me, I always put a lot of effort into my ebay listings to catch those zealous individuals
Although, they do make it hard to get good bargains off the 'bay..
Pricing on the Noct-Nikkor comes down to two things. Limited Supply and High Demand.
There's not many made (less than 10,000) and it's in a modern mount which means that there's a lot more demand for the Noct-Nikkor than for the Rokkor which needs to be converted and doesn't offer the level of mount compatibility the Noct does even after conversion.
Remember, AI/AI-S on Nikon shooters outnumber the rest of the 'Alt' community by a massive margin. Lots of people shooting high-end Nikon kit who would otherwise never touch an alt lens have an Ai or AI-S lens or two in their bag to handle particular circumstances that available AF kit doesn't.
ulrikft2 wrote:
I love my rokkor, but I'm considering the noct for the closer focus and the ability to do infinity easily. We'll see..
Isn't your Rokkor a Nikon mount? Did you get to infinity focus? I stopped sanding the spacer as it was getting wafer thin, and I was near 20ft or so, but the mirror of my D700 hit the rear of the lens a little past 20ft.
