135mm RF lenses - used a lot?

[brachal]

I have the Jupiter-11 and use it fairly often. Usually at music festivals or for wildlife shots in the swamp. The 11 is only f/4, but it's a good performer and usually very cheap. Also small enough that it isn't an issue to have it in my bag.

[deepwhite]

My Elmarit M 90mm f2.8 becomes an 135mm on the R-D1s, and to my surprise I found I love it more this way. It's totally personal. Me loving 135mm more than 90mm.

[caperunner]

Tried my nikon f3.5 on the S3 and very happy with the results. As a few have said previously this lens wants and deserves more work - the outcome is very satifactory.

[VinceC]

This thread inspired me to shoot some 135mm pictures a couple of weekends ago. Nikon SP and Nikkor 135/3.5. Nothing special but I like the way it isolates subjects. It also lets you get in tighter on a subject than any other RF lens.

[ferider]

When doing landscapes, 135 is great for isolating details. Like this:



Also, it is the only RF lens that shows the moon large enough for me. If you have seen AA's photo of moon and half dome (overlaying two 250mm and 80mm 6x6 photos), you know what I mean. I took this for my wife since it shows our house:



Both taken with Elmarit 135/2.8. Cheers,

Roland.

[VinceC]

Great shots, Roland.
The second shot also shows the 135mm's other strong suit -- it's the only RF lens that really shows telephoto compression and flattening.

[grainhound]

This thread now has me wanting to get something to post with my Nikkor 135. I saw Bjørn Røslett's website recently, and he says this about the lens:
“A short telephoto design harking back to the late 1940's, the 135 mm can be expected to show its age and certainly is a little long in the teeth. The image is quite soft with the lens set wide open, and sometimes strong blue-yellow fringing is seen. By stopping down to f/8, the image sharpens up remarkably and the fringing is virtually gone. Colour saturation is much lower than by today's standards, so the final impression is of a well-rounded almost 3-D image with a slightly pastel-like look to it. Quite attractive in fact, if you find the appropriate subject to fit the image characteristics of the 135 mm lens.”
I've shot a few frames wide open, and they look sharp to me, though I haven't made any 11x14s from them. Bokeh alone is enough reason to keep the lens, but what do others make of Bjørn's assessment of its wide open performance?

[VinceC]

I don't really agree with his assessent of wide-open performance. Maybe his focus wasn't accurate. That's the biggest challenge with this lens, particularly if you're using it with a camera that doesn't have a 1:1 lifesize finder. Most of my 135mm pictures are taken wide open or f/4 and it's extremely sharp. This is also a pretty undemanding optical formula, so almost all reviews of 135mm lenses remark on their sharpness.

[ferider]

100% agree with Vince.

Best shot on a long EBL RF though, like an M3 or Nikon.

In general, it is very hard to find a bad classic 135mm lens, pick Canon, Leica, Nikkor, they are all good in my experience, relatively high resolution corner to corner and nice OOF; but accurate RF calibration is a must.

Roland.

[grainhound]

Thanks, Vince. You've said what I'd read before I bought the lens (especially from Dante Stella), and what I've thought after buying it. Certainly, focusing requires care; my last shots with it, at dusk with an M3, were focused on the wrong flower. I really did take some flower shots... I wanted to see its sharpness and bokeh, and may actually post something like that. At least I learned something about handling the lens for when I get a chance to photograph someone interesting in a pub. Merciful's shot with the insane ISO comes to mind.

Guy

[Bingley]

I have the compact MD Rokkor 135 for my Minolta SLR, but don't have a 135mm lens for rf, prefering instead the little (and excellent) Canon 100/3.5. Frankly, I've never warmed to the 135 focal length, although I have to say from the photos in this thread that I should give it another try. There's some very nice work posted here.

[Sonnar2]

My favorite 135mm is the 135/2.8 Sonnar (4 elements) for the Rolleiflex SL350 camera.
This is a reasonable short and lightweight lens, for the speed.
135mm is a great focal length but I prefer SLRs for it. Focussing is much much easier.
100mm is the longest where I use RF. My Canon RF 135 lenses don't see much daylight.

[Spider67]

I used the 135 for taking pics at concerts readings never for portraits.
A Kiev + 135 is my special combo for readings etc.

Yes the 35+50+135 combo was the classic set.......and many people (myself included)actually knew what to do with them. The 135 for grabbing some pisc of people but until recently the 35 was quite a mystery for me.....

[noimmunity]

I have a Komura 135/2.8 that is getting CLA'd... It is an ernostar design, so actually very compact and light.

Haven't found anything much on the web, but it seems the SLR versions of these lenses were well regarded. Has anybody tried the Komura 135s? (they also made a 135/3.5 in LTM). I expect performance close to the Konica Hexanon 90/2.8, which is also an ernostar design...

[ferider]

I have often wondered about that one, Jon. The Komura teles (105/2, 105/2.8, 135/2.8) are supposed to behave similarly to Nikkors of that period. Do post some photos when you get it, please. Also, what is the minimum focus distance ?

Best,

Roland.

[noimmunity]

I'll do that, Roland, when I eventually get it back.
As for minimum distance, I think it was 1 meter, but since I don't have the lens in front of me I can't check. My 135/2.8 came with a nice parallax adjustable 1:1 brightline VF.

The Komura 105/2 has often intrigued me quite a bit, but it is pricey (and rare) for a relatively unknown optic.

[JasonC]

Komura 135/2.8 foucs down to 5' or around 1.5m.

Jason.

[lkgroup]

I got a Komura 135mm F/3.5 LTM a few months ago for $60. Very nice lens, solid easy to use well made. It really makes nice pictures. I'm more of 35mm, 50mm user so I'm not sure if I am going to keep it even though it is high quality. I might sell it. Offers?


I carry is in my bag and have found uses for it but I also have a 90mm.

Leo
In Washington State

[noimmunity]

Hi, Leo, if you have scans of some photos taken with the 135/3.5, I wonder if you wouldn't mind sharing them, either in this thread or in a new dedicated to Komura teles ? I'm using double-x, too, and the 135 I have would see use most often for portraits at conferences where the extra reach is a big plus, so I'm very eager to see what it can do. Thanks, Jon.

[lkgroup]

Jon,

Just read your note, I am away from home for a few more days shooting and when I get home I will try and put up a couple of scans

Leo