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Archive 2014 · best 35mm RF on the A7?

  
 
taemo
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I have a Nokton 35mm f/1.4 MC right now and for the most part I'm very happy with it but I would like a sharp and distortion free RF 35mm lens as I find it the ideal focal length for travel.

Here's what I would like:
-small, light, compact
-f/1.4 or f/2
-ideally sharp wide open
-inexpensive (around $1000)
-will work on both A7 and M6

some of the lenses I have in mind
-35mm Summicron IV (150% my budget but I've always wanted one for the M6 and A7)
-ZM Biogon 35mm f/2
-Canon 35mm f/2 LTM

I wouldn't mind going with 40mm Summicron-C either or even Nokton 40mm 1.4 if they are great



May 06, 2014 at 10:32 AM
millsart
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I've got the 40/1.4 SC and think it pairs quite nicely with the Sony 35/2.8 FE, which IMO, really beats all the other legacy options out there.

Its super small and light, has AF, doesn't require an adapter, is quite sharp even wide open, and has nice across the frame sharpness and the Zeiss look/color. Pairs really nice to the, "classic" rendering of the Nokton.

Something like a ZM 35 sort of works, but its a lot of money to pay for something that still is going to show some color shift etc.

SLR glass really didn't wow me either as lenses like the Canon FD 35/2 needed to be stopped down so there wasn't much speed advantage and with adapters they were kind of getting bulky.

35 FE just ended up making the most sense for the A7, and you can get it for about $600ish these days.

Your just not going to really find a RF 35 that works great on the A7, short of something like the VC 35/1.2, but then its pretty massive, and again still needs to be stopped down.

Use your Nokton on your M6 when your shooting it and enjoy its character, and if you want/need speed, throw it on the A7. When you want a more modern look, toss on the 35 FE

2 small, affordable lenses that both excel at a given style just usually work better than trying to make one lens fill multiple rolls



May 06, 2014 at 10:47 AM
sebboh
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


the 35 cron version IV and canon 35/2 ltm both behave about the same on the a7 as they do on film. neither of them draws like a modern lens though and i certainly wouldn't call them sharp over most of frame wide open though they are pretty sharp in the center. they're a bit glowy at large aperture too (same goes for the 40 cron and cv 40/1.4).

the zm 35/2 is sharper and contrastier in the center at large aperture, but has corner smearing on the a7 (and ugly bokeh on any camera imho).

for myself, i have the 40 cron which i like very much, but it's only sharp in the center at f/2, has funky bokeh wide open, and some field curvature. if i were going to be spending $1500 on one i'd choose the 35 lux pre-asph or 8 element 35 cron version 1 over the version IV cron (which i feel is overpriced due to being erroneously named the bokeh king).




May 06, 2014 at 11:20 AM
millsart
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


sebboh wrote:
for myself, i have the 40 cron which i like very much, but it's only sharp in the center at f/2, has funky bokeh wide open, and some field curvature. if i were going to be spending $1500 on one i'd choose the 35 lux pre-asph or 8 element 35 cron version 1 over the version IV cron (which i feel is overpriced due to being erroneously named the bokeh king).




I never got why that lens got that "crown" either. I was honestly a bit disappointed with it on my M9, at least for the huge premium I paid to get it back then.

My "bokeh" taste may be different than the majority though, as I honestly find the lowly Rokinon/Samyang lenses to have what I find to be a very pleasing bokeh. I don't so much go for "character" rather I just want creamy smoothness which it seems many people find boring.

I like boring



May 06, 2014 at 11:23 AM
douglasf13
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


millsart wrote:
I never got why that lens got that "crown" either. I was honestly a bit disappointed with it on my M9, at least for the huge premium I paid to get it back then.

My "bokeh" taste may be different than the majority though, as I honestly find the lowly Rokinon/Samyang lenses to have what I find to be a very pleasing bokeh. I don't so much go for "character" rather I just want creamy smoothness which it seems many people find boring.

I like boring


It's because Mike Johnston, who is primarily responsible for popularizing the term bokeh in the western world, crowned the 35/2 IV as the "bokeh king" based on its performance somewhere in the f4-8 range. People often forget that and assume he was talking about wide open, where the Summicron's bokeh is pretty busy.



May 06, 2014 at 11:35 AM
sebboh
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


what doug said. most people think large aperture and large amount of bokeh when they here "bokeh king", but mike johnston says he'd never even shot the lens wider than f/4 when he crowned it bokeh king so there's a lot of disappointed people.

the 35 lux pre-asph has much better bokeh at f/2 than the cron version IV fwiw.




May 06, 2014 at 11:57 AM
taemo
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


thanks all for the comments.
I've thought about the Sony FE 35mm but I like zone focusing more and don't like having to rely on a motor to focus for me.
does the lens allow you to MF though?
I tried looking for a 8 element 35 cron version 1 M2 but it seems hard to find and still commanding a high price for its age, so either III or IV will work for me.
Might try play with a 40cron and 35 biogon and see first how they perform before making a decision.
Other than that though, for the most part I've been really happy with the 35 nokton 1.4



May 06, 2014 at 11:58 AM
FlyPenFly
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I've had my eye on the Voigtlander 35mm F1.2 II Aspherical, looks to be technically excellent but of course somewhat larger.


May 06, 2014 at 12:01 PM
douglasf13
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


After trying several 35s, the 35 Summicron ASPH ended up being the best compromise to me on the M9, but it is expensive, and I'm not sure how it behaves on the A7.


May 06, 2014 at 12:03 PM
Tariq Gibran
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


taemo wrote:
-inexpensive (around $1000)






May 06, 2014 at 12:09 PM
uhoh7
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


FlyPenFly wrote:
I've had my eye on the Voigtlander 35mm F1.2 II Aspherical, looks to be technically excellent but of course somewhat larger.

V1 better yet

Besides the FLE, thats the only RF 35 that really works well on the sonys.

At 35 i mostly use my m9, but if I used the a7 a lot I would certainly have a copy of the native 35

Edited on May 06, 2014 at 12:39 PM · View previous versions



May 06, 2014 at 12:38 PM
dbehrens
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I have the CV 40mm f/1.4 Nokton MC. Its small, light and sharp. I have no problem recommending this lens for the A7r. Having said that its not a 35mm and so I'm not sure how you would frame it on a M6?
Dave



May 06, 2014 at 12:38 PM
freaklikeme
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


millsart wrote:
I never got why that lens got that "crown" either.


My guess is people who had upgraded to the Cron ASPH wanted to sell their version IV's for a premium price and couldn't find a hook until they got to the close-to-mid-range bokeh at f/4 (where all of the Mandler-designed Summicrons start hitting peak performance) and so the Bokeh King legend was born.

To the OP...

The Canon LTMs (35/2 and 35/1.5) are good lenses, or, at least, very good copies of the German lenses upon which their designs are based. They're center sharp and get there across the frame stopped down, but they're tonally flat with fairly low contrast. I was never happy with the colors from either but loved the ease of B&W conversion. The Nikon 35/1.8 is in the same category, except that it's even more rare and commands a higher price, particularly if you're lucky enough to find an M39 version.

With the older Leicas, you get great color but the story about sharpness remains the same- stop down if you want the best performance across the frame. I love my pre-A Lux 35, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking for modern lens performance. If you don't love the draw, flaws and all, then it's certainly not worth the premium they still command in the marketplace. The Cron-C 40 (or Rokkor-M 40) gives most of what people love about the pre-A Leicas at prices that are far easier on the budget.

If it's a more modern draw you're after, check out the CV 35/1.2 vII. I'm not big on CV lenses, so I've haven't shot it on the a7, but others here swear by it, so I'm sure it's worth a look. Otherwise, I'd say forget the RFs and pick up a Z* Distagon 35/2. Igor's Camera Exchange has a ZF for $575 that's just begging to be paired with someone's a7(r). Unfortunately, that wouldn't be very useful for your M6.

Just my opinion. Hope it helps.



May 06, 2014 at 12:44 PM
sebboh
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


douglasf13 wrote:
After trying several 35s, the 35 Summicron ASPH ended up being the best compromise to me on the M9, but it is expensive, and I'm not sure how it behaves on the A7.


terrible smearing on the a7.

i actually think the canon 35/2 ltm is a pretty good value, very good till the extreme corners by f/8, though not as good as the 40 cron.




May 06, 2014 at 12:47 PM
sebboh
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


uhoh7 wrote:
Besides the FLE, thats the only RF 35 that really works well on the sonys.


actually and surprisingly, all the pre-asph leica 35mm lenses seem to perform just as well on the a7 as they do on the m9. of course people shooting the a7 tend to complain more about the "leica glow" than leica camera shooters do, but that has nothing to do with the lenses not performing as they should...




May 06, 2014 at 12:52 PM
xbarcelo
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I like the Contax G 35/2 (I guess I'm lonely in my position), but if you like zone focusing… well, it's not the best lens. However, it's compact, it doesn't smear, it's fairly sharp (although not as much as the 45 or the 90) and it draws nicely (it's gentler than the other two). On the down side, it's got a problematic adapter.


May 06, 2014 at 02:08 PM
douglasf13
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


xbarcelo wrote:
I like the Contax G 35/2 (I guess I'm lonely in my position), but if you like zone focusing… well, it's not the best lens. However, it's compact, it doesn't smear, it's fairly sharp (although not as much as the 45 or the 90) and it draws nicely (it's gentler than the other two). On the down side, it's got a problematic adapter.


FWIW, the Contax G 35/2 is a near identical copy of the 35 Summicron IV. Their lens diagrams and MTFs are very similar, and I found their performance to be about on par, outside of maybe some coatings differences.




May 06, 2014 at 02:46 PM
ulrikft2
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I just use the CV 35/1.2, happy with it!


May 06, 2014 at 02:55 PM
uscmatt99
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


I have a few 35-40mm lenses I use or have used on the A7.

CV 35/1.2- This one is the best RF lens. Great in the center wide open, at the outer 1/3 of the frame by f/2.8, across the frame at f/5.6. No significant cast.

ZM 35/2.8- I so wanted this one to be awesome! Excellent in the center, but lots of smear and magenta at the edges and corners as you approach infinity, not bad for close-ups.

CV 40/2 SLII- With adapter, very similar in size to the 35/1.2 but lighter, and focuses closer. This is a really good across the frame performer and handles nicely on the A7.

ZF.2 35/1.4- My favorite overall rendering of 35mm range lenses I've used. Beautiful wide-open rendering other than purple fringe at high contrast edges, razor sharp from f/5.6 onwards. Fun to play with it's field curvature on the A7 as it's SOOO much easier to get an off-center subject in focus as opposed to using it on a DSLR. But on mine I have to stop it down to f/8 or f/11 to get the extreme corners sharp/focused for landscape stuff. Oh yeah, it's also a pig of a lens and costs more than you want to spend



May 06, 2014 at 02:56 PM
Jonas B
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · best 35mm RF on the A7?


FlyPenFly wrote:

I've had my eye on the Voigtlander 35mm F1.2 II Aspherical, looks to be technically excellent but of course somewhat larger.

uhoh7 wrote:

V1 better yet
Besides the FLE, thats the only RF 35 that really works well on the sonys.
At 35 i mostly use my m9, but if I used the a7 a lot I would certainly have a copy of the native 35


Having owned the CV35/1.2, both the original and then the second version, I have to jump in here and say it really doesn't matter which one you get. Version 2 focuses closer but the lens doesn't perform that good close-up... just get a good copy at a fair price. There you are, a third opinion...



May 06, 2014 at 03:12 PM
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