New Classic Collection Nickel 50/3.5 and 50/2 Heliars

[Calzone]

Originally Posted by jsrockit

Cal,

I was going to ask to try your 3.5 and 2.0 soon... the CVs. I'm familiar with the Rigid.

I'm not sure if this Sunday is a good day, but hopefully soon. John

For B&W I love both these lenses. Let me know if I should bring them Sunday. Not sure if we will have high contrast summer lighting. Well I believe you will find the 50/3.5 to be eye popping as far as performance. The negatives really stand out because of the detail.

BTW both Nickel Heliars are modified Tessars.

Cal

[jsrockit]

Yes Cal... if you have the space in your bag, please bring them both. Thanks.

[Calzone]

Originally Posted by jsrockit

Yes Cal... if you have the space in your bag, please bring them both. Thanks.

I'll bring them Sunday.

Cal

[kshapero]

Is that an infinity lock on the 50/2? or just a focus tab?

[Calzone]

Originally Posted by kshapero

Is that an infinity lock on the 50/2? or just a focus tab?

Infinity lock.

Cal

[Tom A]

Heliar 50mm f3.5. This was with my last roll of Agfapan 250, Agfa's version of the kodak XX movie stock. Developed in PCK for 7 min. I shot almost 10 000 ft of this film over several years. It was given to me by the local Agfa rep as it was cheaper to give it away than having it shipped east for silver recovery!
The kid had found a great mud-puddle and his mother told him in no uncertain words "A shower before you get into the car!".

[Tom A]

Daytona, Florida. Heliar 50f3.5 on a Bessa T. Acros 100 in Xtol 1:3 for 17 min. The petite 50f3.5 is one of the best 50's you can find - and it looks good too, particularly in the Nickel finish.
This was f3.5 and 1/15.

[Tom A]

Nickel version of the Heliar 50mm f2.0. Somewhere there are a whole bunch of car-owners going" What the heck happened to my license plate?"
Kodak XX in Vestal's divided D76.

[Tom A]

Nickel Heliar 50mm f2.0. Tokyo's Disney World. Neopan 400, HC 110 1:60, 12.5 min.

[raid]

Thanks for the posted images, Tom.
I have the older style non-Nickel Heliar 50/3.5 and 50/2.

[Tom A]

Raid, I really like the Heliars - and so I should as I have 5 or 6 of them!!! The 50f3.5 is amazing - but we have been a bit spoiled with "speed' in our lenses. There is a "roundness" to the 50f3.5 images that I have never found in other lenses. The 50f2 is smoother than the Summicron's in its rendering - not razor sharp at f2 - but more pleasing - at least in bl/w.

[Alnitak]

Originally Posted by Tom A

Nickel version of the Heliar 50mm f2.0. Somewhere there are a whole bunch of car-owners going" What the heck happened to my license plate?"
Kodak XX in Vestal's divided D76.

Great shot. I love this lens--very sharp, and great retro look and feel.

Jeff

[philosomatographer]

Originally Posted by Tom A

Daytona, Florida. Heliar 50f3.5 on a Bessa T. Acros 100 in Xtol 1:3 for 17 min. The petite 50f3.5 is one of the best 50's you can find - and it looks good too, particularly in the Nickel finish.
This was f3.5 and 1/15.

Tom, this image illustrates exactly what I love about the Heliar 50/3.5 - lovely!

Since f/3.5 is so slow already, I almost always shoot at at that aperture (unless I really want deep DOF), and it's fabulous. Since this lens is almost diffraction-limited, f/3.5 also provides almost peak performance

[kshapero]

Originally Posted by Tom A

Raid, I really like the Heliars - and so I should as I have 5 or 6 of them!!! The 50f3.5 is amazing - but we have been a bit spoiled with "speed' in our lenses. There is a "roundness" to the 50f3.5 images that I have never found in other lenses. The 50f2 is smoother than the Summicron's in its rendering - not razor sharp at f2 - but more pleasing - at least in bl/w.

Great shots, now I'm hungry for the Heliar 50/3.5.

[kshapero]

Oh boy Gandy has the Heliar 50/3.5, tempted.

[Archiver]

I just picked up a secondhand nickel f3.5 from Camera Exchange in Melbourne. It was one of a pair, with the f2. Paul was telling me that he was wondering how come no one had bought them as the price was good. I hemmed and hawed but it came down to the f3.5, as I already have a Summicron and I liked the idea of a collapsing lens. When I saw the test images I was shooting in the LCD I was immediately in love.

The aperture ring is not as firm as on other lenses, but the focusing is beautifully damped and the workmanship is super. It collapses safely into my M9 (thank god) but I'll probably leave it extended most of the time.

Funnily, the person who had owned them had been on the phone to Paul as I walked in the door, talking about something unrelated. It turned out that he had bought them from Paul before, then sold them back to him after he got something else. Soon after that, a new f3.5 and f2 came in to the shop!

I have toys galore at the moment and I'm feeling rather spoiled. Must stop buying gear for a while and get out and use it!

[Doug]

Archiver, I hope you'll enjoy your "new" lenses and get good use of them!
Here's the nickel Heliar 50mm f/3.5 on an adapter coded as an Elmar-M, shot on an M9. At least the photo shows a bit of bokeh, both near-side and far. Exposure was 1/45 at f/5.6

[Benjamin Marks]

I did a quickie comparison between the 3.5 Heliar and a bunch of other 50s. The Heliar and the Leica 50 Asph were the sharpest and had the best control of flare. But to be fair, most clean lenses will do pretty well by f:3.5. The trick is that the Heliar seems pretty close to maximum resolution wide open, which is impressive.

This is a 100% center crop of the 50 Asph of a coffee cup sitting on a window ledge. Note the effect of the sun hitting the edge of the cup.



Same cup, but with the Heliar, wide open:




Here's the full image, from the Summilux.



All pix on the Olympus E-P2 and a tripod. I think the Summilux has a liiiiitle more resolution/contrast (and of course it is open 2.5 stops wider). Still pretty impressive for a small batch specialty lens from C/V. Bravo Mr. K!

[Doug]

Interesting comparison, Benjamin! They look similar, except that I might be seeing some red-green CA with the 'lux, around the far lip of the cup where there's a very high contrast edge... Is that line a bit greenish looking? No sign of that with the Heliar... And a bit more purple fringing with the Summilux, both on the cup handle and the windowsill highlight.

[f16sunshine]

Nice timing to see this thread resurrected. I have a nickel f2/50mm heliar on the way

[Johann Espiritu]

Recently got my 50/2, and really enjoying it! WOrkmanship is top-notch. This is one of the most beautiful looking lenses I've ever seen as well.

Some samples:


Marga by The Johann Espiritu™, on Flickr


- by The Johann Espiritu™, on Flickr

[Doug]

Black collapsible M-mount 50mm f/2 Heliar

Dental assistant wearing lead apron...
Z-I, 2/50mm Heliar, Kodak 100UC

[Archiver]

Wow. I took the collapsible nickel f3.5 out for a spin today, and I am really impressed. No focusing errors, which means that anything out of focus is all my fault! It's very sharp at f3.5 and has a wonderful character that I find really pleasing. It is moderate in contrast and has a very 'organic' feeling. I don't know how how else to describe it.

Not sure how it compares with the ZM Sonnar or Summicron at f3.5, but as it stands I am very pleased with my purchase! I also love the vintage look, the novelty of a collapsible lens, and the smaller footprint when it is collapsed. I will do some tests with other lenses as time goes by.

There's nothing I can show from today as it is all family and friends who would kill me if I posted their photos on the internet!

[kshapero]

Originally Posted by kshapero

Oh boy Gandy has the Heliar 50/3.5, tempted.

Took me awhile to raise the $$$ but here is my new addition: Heliar 50/3.5 extended.

[jsrockit]

Great lens, enjoy. I currently use the 50mm f/2 but think about owning the 3.5 again some day.