January 11, 2021

Another Russian covid-19: day 294 | US: GA | info | act

Today, I received a lens I’ve been waiting for: the Industar 61 2.8/55—a true Russian vintage lens. I first heard about it on the YouTubes, and decided to give it a go, since it was pretty inexpensive. I think I waited a bit long for it, but maybe it was worth it. It’s a lovely, black, compact rangefinder lens, and the elements seem to be in great condition for such an old lens. My M39-to-M adapter fit securely, and it mounted easily to the SL. Here are a couple of samples.

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  f/2.8; ISO 320; Rotolight camera right

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  f/4; ISO 640; Rotolight camera left

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  f/2.8; ISO 5000; lit by my monitor, camera right

The contrast seems to be a bit low—totally expected for a vintage M39 lens—and it’s easily adjusted. The black and white conversions are really lovely—the second image of the golden buddha is just great—stellar detail and a pleasing background give this a cool vintage vibe. The latter image is 5000 ISO, giving it a bit more grain. I did sharpen each image, but not too much.

I suppose I should show the color, too. This image is at 1 meter: the minimum focusing distance without a close-focus adapter. Still, the bokeh at f/2.8 is still very nice.

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  f/2.8, ISO 160; Rotolight camera left

The colors seem a bit muted straight out of the camera, but it could just be the shitty winter day. I boosted the contrast in post. I’ll give it a real test on the next sunny, assuming we have one.

I also received my Hexanon 1.8/40 lens today, but Fotodiox sent me the wrong adapter. Instead of a Konica AR to Leica M, I got a Leica R to Leica M. Their customer service was very nice, and Marti is sending me the correct adapter. The bad news is that I’ll have to wait a few days. The lens, too, might have a bit of fungus in it—it definitely has some dust. Still, it wasn’t expensive, so no worries. I’m looking forward to trying it.

Finally, I won an Olympus Zuiko 2.8/28 OM last night. This will complete this initial purchase of lenses. I have enough to play until I save for some pricier and nicer ones. OK, I might have one more surprise coming. Then, that’s it. I swear.

🤞🏼

Leica Camera and Lens Information

📷: Leica M8 (09/2022–) • Leica M (Typ 262) (01/2017–12/2020) • Leica SL (Typ 601) (12/2020–). Leica Lenses: Leica Summicron-M 2/50 (Typ IV) • Leica Summicron-M 2/35mm ASPH (Typ V). Other Lenses: Asahi Super-Takumar 1.4/50 8-Element • Asahi Super-Takumar 1.8/55 • Asahi Super-Takumar 2.5/135 • Canon 1.4/50 LTM Helios 44m-4 2/58 • Industar 61 2.8/55 • Jupiter-8 2/50 • Jupiter-9 2/85 • Konica Hexinon AR 1.8/40 • Meyer-Optik Görlitz Trioplan 2.8/100 • Olympus Zuiko 2.8/24 • Olympus Zuiko 2.8/28 • Olympus Zuiko 1.8/50 • Olympus Zuiko 2/85 • Vivitar 2.8/28 • Voigtländer Nokton Classic 1.4/40 MC • Voigtländer Ultron 1.8/21 • Voigtländer Ultron 2/28. Processed with Capture One Pro.