*** Zenitar 85/1.4***

[Iain G Foulds]

... Considering a Zenitar 85/1.4 for my Nikon D40. Has anyone had any experience with this lens?

... Coming to prefer the Zeiss/Helios rendering over the more modern lenses. The Zenitar seems a good balance.

 

[sirkhann]

Haven't tried the Zenitar myself, but had them side by side with the new Helios 85/1.5 and I can say that the Helios is massive (too big to carry always with you), and they render differently. The Helios shows some swirl on full-frame bodies, wide open, but the effect will be vastly reduced on crop body, and when stopping down, so it's not worth considering in this case.

The Zenitar seems compact, although feels as a heavy lens for the size. I friend of mine, who shoots Fuji, was considering this one, and he also had the Viltrox 85/1.8, which is not available for Nikon (otherwise it would have been a good alternative).

Another lenses to consider for F mount:

• Rokinon/Samyang 85/1.4 AE UMC , which produces very smooth bokeh, although it never goes crazy sharp - great for portraits. Looks like a cheap version of Nikkor AF 85/1.4D. There is a second, more expensive, weather sealed verion that I haven't tried
• Nikkor 85/1.8 Pre-Ai, if you have it Ai converted. The lens does not have a CPU and will probably drive you nuts on cheaper Nikon bodies, but has that Retro look that I like a lot!
• Nikkor 85/1.8G - a nice do-everything lens with AF, although it may look boring
• Dulens APO 85/2, promising a good balance between sharpness, compactness, and bokeh, but may be pricey.

What are your priorities for the "look" that you after? Perhaps Zeiss Planar 1.4/85mm can give you the desired retro look, if you are able to find it second-hand.

 

[Iain G Foulds]

... Sirkhann: I have the Zenitar being delivered tomorrow. I’ll post some images and thoughts soon.

 

[sirkhann]

I'm definitely interested to see some pics! Thanks a lot! Do you have any other 85's currently, or a friend who has any 85 you can test side by side with?

 

[sirkhann]

... Sirkhann: I have the Zenitar being delivered tomorrow. I’ll post some images and thoughts soon.

 

[ramra]

Have been on the search for great & small legacy 85-90mm lens (of course modern 85 Sony/Sigma/Samyang/even Tokina-VIltrox AF would be great BUT large, so),
in order of likeability ( I use TechArt LA-EA7 "TAP" so can autofocus all lenses on my A7R II):

1. Dulens 85 2 APO (I hope, will get it next week, will post some pictures and comments then)
2. Zeiss 85 2.8 QBM; tiny (like 50 mm), very respectable sharpness and contrast
3. Voigtländer LTM 90 3.5 APO; tiny, jewel, very sharp (but slow)
4. Minolta MD 85 2; sharp, pretty small
5. Olympus OM 85 2 (newest version); sharp but aberrations (veiling) at f2, after that sharp, smallest after Voigtländer 90 3.5
6. Samyang MF 85 1,4; large vs others (OK it's 1.4) but not greatly sharp, OK only
x. always wanted to buy and test Pancolar 80 1.8 (M42 or Practicar bayonet mount), but overpriced so never did, now Dulens will be it

will return ...

 

[ramra]

Oh, and SMC Pentax A* 85 1.4 (K mount) would probably be sharpest and still OK in size, but soo expensive - I would go for new Sigma 85 1.4 DG DN instead

 

[ramra]

Got Dulens 85 f2 APO lens. Greatest "legacy" MF 85-80-100-105 lens I have ever had !

Great at f2 and perfect from f2.4 or so, incredibly the small Zeiss 85 2.8 is nearly as good from f4 on (like most telefotos). Small enough although bigger (5,8 cm long, 350 grams) than Minolta MD 85/2 (5,35 cm, 285 grams or Oly OM 2/85 at 4,7 cm and 230 grams, not to mention Zeiss 85 (but 2,8) with 5,2 cm and 195 grams)

Very smooth and precise focus, stiff enough (no clicks) aperture ring

samples


Dulens 85 APO f2




Dulens 85 APO f2

 

[sirkhann]

Ok, that's nice!

I can see some slight astigmatism in the corners, but other than that, it does look good. Perhaps it will be great for video and portraits.

Do you have the MD 85/2 too? How do they compare, optically?

 

[ramra]

Ok, that's nice!

I can see some slight astigmatism in the corners, but other than that, it does look good. Perhaps it will be great for video and portraits.

Do you have the MD 85/2 too? How do they compare, optically?

Sold my MD 85 2, but This Dulens is better at f2 (quite a bit),
from 2.8-4 onwards less difference. Another thing I noted is that the light collection of Dulens is 1/3-1/2 top higher than many legacy lenses (like Zeiss 85 2.8).

Most legacy lenses I have tested (many, nice hobby !) need to be stopped down 1 stop (maybe not so much on 24MP FF, but certainly on 42MP FF) to be really sharp. Dulens not.

btw the character of Dulens is very close to Zeiss 85 2.8 legacy - i.e. very very nice, not modern clinical.