Help! I need a lens for my Contax.

[raid]

Since my "new" Contax IIIa is being repaired, and I will get back a fully functioning camera, I need a good tip which 35mm-50mm lens to buy, along with estimated cost. While I favor 50mm lenses, I am open to suggestions.

Is the Zeiss Jena Opton 50/1.5 a good choice or is the 50mm/2 a better choice?

Raid

[darkkavenger]

Hello Raid, I would definitely go for the 50/1.5 version. I own a pre-war 50/2 Sonnar, a great lens in all accounts, but I seldom use it because my 50/1.5 Jupiter-3 allows me to take photos in almost all light conditions.

It is no secret of course that I crave after a Zeiss Opton Sonnar 50/1.5 T.

And thanks to f2eyelevel for this important information about the late "Carl Zeiss" version. I was unaware of this and it will certainly help me when I'll be up for purchasing a 50/1.5 Sonnar.

[darkkavenger]

Originally Posted by Meleica

Take a look at my Contax lens page

http://members.aol.com/dcolucci/zc.htm


Dan

I think I visit your page too much everyday....

[Paul T.]

I think the trick is to buy a Helios-103 or a Jupiter 8 for now, and really take your time to buy a nice Zeiss Opton. They go for a wide range of prices, and it's really worth waiting until you find a seller you can trust.

I owned the Zeiss Opton 50/1.5 - a wonderful lens. But I was blown away by the quality of even the cheapo Jupiter 8M on my first Kiev - sharp and creamy, an absolutely classic look. The early 50s ones performed just as well, but I could never quite believe how well that cheapo 70s Russian performed. As Brian will attest with far more expertise than I, the Contax mount Jupiters seem more reliable/consistent than the LTM ones.

I've compensated myself for the sale of my Zeiss with an ealry Jupiter 3 that Max found... now that my CL is damaged, and my M3 is lost in the post, I'm slumming it with my Kiev II as my only working RF. And looking forward to it...

[darkkavenger]

Paul, I'm eager to see the results from this J3

[Pherdinand]

I have both a good jupiter 8 and a good zeiss opton sonnar 50/2, and while the build quality of the latter is definitely much better, optically there is NO difference between them. Not wide open and not stopped down.

[raid]

So a J-8 is the lens to get now, while I will keep my eyes open for a post-war Zeiss Opton T.

Thanks for the useful tips.

Raid

[micromontenegro]

The post war West German 1.5 Sonnar is one of the two good reasons I made the Contax my primary RF system. The other is the 21mm Biogon, but that's another story

[xayraa33]

get a Helios 103 Raid, nice lens at a super low price from the FSU.

later on add some Zeiss glass.

[shadowfox]

Raid, I got a Helios 103 along with my Kiev 4AM, you can see some of the results on this thread

Of course I was intrigued by this lens because I saw samples from others in this forum.

[Stephanie Brim]

Now that I have the Sonnar and it's working nicely, I'm not going to use my Helios 103. If you'd like it, Raid, let me know. It's a good lens and there's no reason it should just sit around.

[furcafe]

For 35mm lenses, the 35/2.5 W-Nikkor is a great lens (it's been discussed a few times in the Nikon RF part of this site) & probably the most affordable vintage lens. The Jupiter 35mm & the pre-WWII/post WWII Jena Biogons won't fit on your IIIa & the other 35mm lenses that will fit (CZJ 35/2.8 Biometar, Z-O/CZ 35/2.8 Biogon & 35/3.5 Planar, 35/1.8 w-Nikkor, tend to be expensive--for thes ame amounte of money, you could get the modern CV 35/2.5, which is almost certainly a fine lens (but I have no experience w/it).

For a 50mm lens, you can't go wrong w/the post-WWII Zeiss 50mm Sonnars. IME, the E. German lenses are just as nice optically as the W. German ones, but the build-quality isn't as nice (aluminum/alloy instead of chrome+ brass barrels). If you get desperate for a Sonnar, send me an email & I can sell you 1 of mine.

Another option is to get the CV Prominent-to-Contax RF adapter (Gandy may still have some) & use the Nokton from a Prominent (I think you have 1, but if not, they're pretty inexpensive).

[darkkavenger]

Raid, a 50/2 pre-war Sonnar has its charms too

[raid]

Patrick: Do you have an "extra" lens to spare?

Raid

[raid]

Originally Posted by Brian Sweeney

Stephanie: shoot a few with the Helios before making the decision to give up your only one.

And it sounds like a Menopta has escaped becoming an optics experiment. It worked quite well on the COntax IIIa without modification. Like changing the rear group shim. And filing down the retaining pin for a Nikon.

Brian: Stephanie is so kind to be willing to sell me her Helios, but you informed me that the Menopta and the Helios are similar ... unless I misunderstood you.

Raid

[raid]

What is killing me is the fact that I sold for $225 a beautiful Contax IIa with an Opton 50/1.5 a few years ago. I did not want to be "side tracked" from Leica.

Raid

[raid]

Thank you Brian. Thank you Stephanie for the offer.

Raid

[raid]

Originally Posted by xayraa33

get a Helios 103 Raid, nice lens at a super low price from the FSU.

later on add some Zeiss glass.

I am getting a Menopta, which is like the Helios.

Raid

[outfitter]

I have J-3s and J-8s love them and use them all the time. Nevertheless I have never seen a Soviet copy that equaled the f2/50mm or f1.5/50mm Sonnar - this of course is entirely my own opinion.. Even among the real Sonnars there are good and better examples - best to try the lens if you can. The f1.5/50mm tends to be the more desirable for a few reasons but I have at least one f2/50mm Sonnar that is extraordinary.

I'm not quite certain there is a useful distinction between the Opton and the late CZ f1.5/50mm Sonnar. True there is that separation problem but Henry Scherer often can fix that - I bought one with separation for about $50 and even though Henry couldn't do a perfect job (and charged me only $25 as a result) the lens is outstanding. Opton lenses have their share of problems as the factory workers were not particularly skilled or experienced in the early days (chipped or decentered elements are not unknown) and there were a number of design changes to the internal construction to solve deficiencies in holding the elements in place and/or the disassembly of the lens.

If you add to the cost an overhaul by Henry (he frequently can be persuaded to do lens work in a few weeks rather than years), Ken Ruth or Dan Goldberg (DAG) you will have a cleaned, centered, lubes and properly collimated lens - only then can you appreciate the full potential of the classic lenses.

Aside from the 21mm Biogon which I have a long standing love affair with (partially romanticism but hell that's part of the fun of classic cameras) the post-war West German 35mm Biogon is a real winner - noticeably better than the pre-war and the CZJ postwar coated version of the prewar (and that was a great lens as is the J-12) In fact I would buy a J-12 to hold me until I could get the West German lens. BTW I had dissappointing results with both a white early J-12 and the late black one until someone told me to use the white one on early Kievs and the black ones on later - whether true or not it worked very well for me and both lenses are really quite good.

The Helios is a double gauss formula which is basiclly a copy of the CZJ Biotar; a good modernish lens somewhat susceptible to flair - great value for the money but without the special visual character of the Sonnar. If you like the Sonnar go for it, if you prefer a Summicron the Helios may be for you. At the price of the Helios you can afford to use both.

Michael

[JoeFriday]

I have to agree that the Sonnar 50/1.5 can be a magical lens that will rival anything Leica have produced.. mine was superb until Henry Scherer overhauled it.. now it's stellar.. so nice that I was compelled to buy a Contax-to-M mount adapter so I can use it on both platforms

[raid]

Originally Posted by outfitter

I have J-3s and J-8s love them and use them all the time. Nevertheless I have never seen a Soviet copy that equaled the f2/50mm or f1.5/50mm Sonnar - this of course is entirely my own opinion.. Even among the real Sonnars there are good and better examples - best to try the lens if you can. The f1.5/50mm tends to be the more desirable for a few reasons but I have at least one f2/50mm Sonnar that is extraordinary.

I'm not quite certain there is a useful distinction between the Opton and the late CZ f1.5/50mm Sonnar. True there is that separation problem but Henry Scherer often can fix that - I bought one with separation for about $50 and even though Henry couldn't do a perfect job (and charged me only $25 as a result) the lens is outstanding. Opton lenses have their share of problems as the factory workers were not particularly skilled or experienced in the early days (chipped or decentered elements are not unknown) and there were a number of design changes to the internal construction to solve deficiencies in holding the elements in place and/or the disassembly of the lens.

If you add to the cost an overhaul by Henry (he frequently can be persuaded to do lens work in a few weeks rather than years), Ken Ruth or Dan Goldberg (DAG) you will have a cleaned, centered, lubes and properly collimated lens - only then can you appreciate the full potential of the classic lenses.

Aside from the 21mm Biogon which I have a long standing love affair with (partially romanticism but hell that's part of the fun of classic cameras) the post-war West German 35mm Biogon is a real winner - noticeably better than the pre-war and the CZJ postwar coated version of the prewar (and that was a great lens as is the J-12) In fact I would buy a J-12 to hold me until I could get the West German lens. BTW I had dissappointing results with both a white early J-12 and the late black one until someone told me to use the white one on early Kievs and the black ones on later - whether true or not it worked very well for me and both lenses are really quite good.

The Helios is a double gauss formula which is basiclly a copy of the CZJ Biotar; a good modernish lens somewhat susceptible to flair - great value for the money but without the special visual character of the Sonnar. If you like the Sonnar go for it, if you prefer a Summicron the Helios may be for you. At the price of the Helios you can afford to use both.

Michael

Hello Michael,

I have a Zeiss Lena Sonnar 5cm/2 in LTM, which is a rare lens if it is genuine. I sent it to DAG twice to get it in perfect shape. Instead of spending a lot of money on a Zeiss Sonnar in LTM I should have bought then a Contax camera and then buy a Zeiss Sonnar in Contax mount.

I fully agree with you that having a vintage lens CLA's/shimmed/repaired is very important to get something special out of the lens. Don Goldberg (or DAG) was the only person who was willing to take apart my vintage Zeiss 50/2lens. Other places [quite known here] found it too costly to do the repair. It needed afterwards some shimming that I did not ask for the first time, and DAG did the work for free. He also once saved my Canon 50/1.2. It gave everything in the image as OOF. He discovered an internal element that had moved. Now I have a stellar Canon 50/1.2 lens.



I will start with the Menopta to see what I can capture with it. All my lens testing files give me plenty of data to use for comparisons for the Menopta. If I like what I see, I will take photos for a while until I find a very clean Zeiss lens [50/2 or 50/1.5]. I have many lenses so that I really do not "need" the best lens in every camera mount that I own.

Cheers,

Raid

[raid]

Originally Posted by JoeFriday

I have to agree that the Sonnar 50/1.5 can be a magical lens that will rival anything Leica have produced.. mine was superb until Henry Scherer overhauled it.. now it's stellar.. so nice that I was compelled to buy a Contax-to-M mount adapter so I can use it on both platforms

Brett: You give me ... GAS! Now where is my GAS-X! [my wife reminds me ...]

Raid

[raid]

Originally Posted by f2eyelevel

Raid, check your PMs box, which completes what outfitter said above about the 50/2 Sonnar.

f2eyelevel: I goty our pm. Thanks a lot.

Raid

[FrankS]

I've got a "thing" about 50mm lenses. For my II and IIa Contax cameras, I've got (besides the 35f2.8 and 85f2):
1. carl zeiss jena f1.5 uncoated
2. ziess opton f1.5
3. carl zeiss jena f2 collapsible
4. carl zeiss jena f2 (aluminum barrel)
5. J8m
6. Helios 103
Some day I'll have the time and impetus to compare them.

[raid]

Originally Posted by Brian Sweeney

On a side note: I bought some very late optics (1984, 1985) modules for the J-3. These are black modules, meaning they are for the LTM lenses. The Kiev mount lenses were always in chrome. The original spec sheets were included for the modules, and the given focal length was 52.5mm. That explains the focus error when using a J-3 on a Leica camera. I'm sure actual focal length varied, and some were closer to the Leica 51.6mm. But the target focal length was the Contax standard.

Brian,

I know that I ask too much from you, but could you [one day ....] put together a very sharp J-3 for me in Contax mount?

Raid