CVickery wrote:
It's difficult to know what's best for someone else but I've settled on the Conurus converted Contax N 50/1.4 (tried the EF 50/1.4, 50/1.8 I and II, 50/1.2L,and a variety of MF 50's)
Ditto... I was going to say the exact same thing except I also did the Sigma 50 1.4. Love my N 50. The close second or even tied for first is the Sigma if you can get an accurate copy.
mMontag wrote:
Some of the 55/1.2 Asph also have thorium glass - I had one and have viewed several internet responses stating the same - the yellow can be cleared by long duration UV light exposure through the glass.
Thanks for the info. Mine is dated from 1977~1978 and it doesn't exhibit any yellow tone. Interestingly, the lens coating do have golden cast.
Just bought a Leica Summilux 50mm 1.4 from 1982 for a reasonable price ... I guess.
I hope this was the right decision ... the Canon FD looks like a lot of work to convert and I don´t have time now for playing around with it...
So I have to wait for the lens and the adapter. Don’t know which one to take, but I think I go for the Leitax with chip.
Just bought a Leica Summilux 50mm 1.4 from 1982 for a reasonable price ... I guess.
I hope this was the right decision ... the Canon FD looks like a lot of work to convert and I don´t have time now for playing around with it...
So I have to wait for the lens and the adapter. Don’t know which one to take, but I think I go for the Leitax with chip.
Thanks for helping me out
florian
The Canon FD 55/1.2 Asph is more than a lot of work - you'll also need to shave 2mm+ off a Canon FF mirror and rebuild from scratch the aperture mechanics on that lens - I had one and backed out of the conversion on that lens after doing three other FD's - it is one of the hardest FD's to convert.
Good luck with the Summilux - I had a Summicron for a while, very close to the Lux rendering - very nice lens! Hope you like it.
I've also tested a large number of 50s, and the Pentax-A 50 f1.4 is the one that still in my bag. It's just a great all around performer. Haven't tested the Leicas though.
As you can tell, there are a lot of different opinions. This is true mostly because there's not one best 50mm. Each have different strengths, weaknesses, and character. Most of them are fairly inexpensive so my advise is to pick 2 and keep the one you like the most and then just keep buying others one at a time until you find what suits you best.
If you get hooked on alt lenses you will have a dozen of 50mm lenses in no time. Just make sure you do not overpay for your first ones. Buy and try and sell on until you find what is good enough for you! "good enough" is important, otherwise you end up craving for the expensive summilux or even start considering ordering custom built standard, say 48mm, lens from Zeiss or Leica! The last idea intrigues me - someone rich could try that. I think they would be happy to build the best they can - an impractical, heavy and expensive lens - an instant legend. How much do you think it could cost?
EF 50 1.8 II..........(taken yesterday @ f/2 on a 5D)....(there are a lot of good 50's out there and even the ultra cheapies really aren't all that bad)...
For artsy shots, I like the Rokkor 58/1.2. Although it is good across the board, I don't find it great. For non-artsy, I like both the Leica R 50/2 summicron and the Contax 50/1.7 and 50/1.4...though they differ substantially in rendering near wide open.
I am moving to the Bay area and have to downsize my photo gear (along with about half of our furniture). My 50 cron and a nice Leica film body are both currently in the B&S section. I have loved both, but when your square footage drops by a factor of three, so does your camera gear...at least according to my wife. :-)
hah, i just went through this myself, though it was mostly larger items then lenses that needed to go to fit in our SF aparment. good luck with the move.
The last idea intrigues me - someone rich could try that. I think they would be happy to build the best they can - an impractical, heavy and expensive lens - an instant legend. How much do you think it could cost?
.....(taken yesterday @ f/2 on a 5D)....(there are a lot of good 50's out there and even the ultra cheapies really aren't all that bad)...