What's a Nice 65mm Lens?

[Leigh]

I too have the Nikkor SW 65/4 and have been pleased with it. Nice bright image for focusing, and excellent optics.

- Leigh

[Per Madsen]

I can also recommend the Nikkor 65mm 4.0.

Bright image on the groundglass and very sharp.

[KyledeC]

Wow, that Nikkor is pretty popular. What does that typically sell for used? Thanks again for all responses, I'm taking everyones opinion into consideration.

[EdSawyer]

I have the nikkor also. Great lens. Used prices are most often in the $500-700 range on Ebay.

[KyledeC]

Okay, so I'm debating between the the Nikkor 65mm f4 and the Sinaron-W MC 65mm f4.5.

Between the two, which one do you guys recommend?

Thanks again for all your help!

[John Conway]

I have an older 65/8 super angulon and I just picked up a Nikon 65 f/4 SW. The Schneider is a fine classic lens, but I have found it difficult to use in low light. The Nikon is fantastic in terms of image quality and the large 4.0 is a pleasure on the ground glass. And if you become a wide angle junky like me, the 65 is only the beginning. I had 47 that I sold and have missed it ever since. Soon I will get another 47 SA as well as a 38 XL. The 58 SA is a consideration as well. But yeah, the Nikon 65 is a real gem.

[dave_whatever]

I've used two 65mm lenses:

Super Angulon 65mm f/8 with a crap shen-hao ground glass = nigh on impossible to use in anything but bright conditions. Bearing in mind I live in the UK, and bright conditions just don't happen. Center filters for this are quite rare.

Nikkor 65mm f/4 with ebony GG + ebony Wide-angle fresnel = an absolute pleasure to use, dig out your sunglasses for using under the darkcloth. Center filters - the common Schneider IIIb or heliopan/rodenstock equivalent is all you need.

I would say given even the fast 65mm lenses, unlike fast 90mm lenses, aren't physically that big, its worth going for a fast lens. But having said that, a good ground glass setup for WA lenses makes a world of difference and should be factored into the overall equation. I suspect a 65/8 with a good wideangle fresnel could be easier to use than a fast 65 on a crap glass.

[rdenney]

Okay, so I'm debating between the the Nikkor 65mm f4 and the Sinaron-W MC 65mm f4.5.

Between the two, which one do you guys recommend?

Thanks again for all your help!

The Sinaron W is a rebadged Rodenstock Grandagon. Which label has no effect on the quality, which is excellent. All the biogon-derived lenses at this focal length are excellent.

I have a Super Angulon 65/5.6 for which I paid much less than the price I have seen for any f/4.5 Grandagon or Nikkor-SW. The reason is that these have been on the market longer. Mine is a 70's-era single-coated version, and it is excellent. It needs a center filter is you use it for 4x5--all lenses of this focal length will.

Rick "who accepts a touch of Schneideritis and gets great deals therefore" Denney

[Cor]

T

I have a Super Angulon 65/5.6 f.... It needs a center filter is you use it for 4x5--all lenses of this focal length will.

Rick "who accepts a touch of Schneideritis and gets great deals therefore" Denney

I too have a 65/5.6 SA but it might be my ignorance but I have never had the need for a center filter, I shoot only B&W only though..

Best,

Cor

[rdenney]

I too have a 65/5.6 SA but it might be my ignorance but I have never had the need for a center filter, I shoot only B&W only though..

Black and white is the least demanding in terms of fall-off, because its dynamic range is wide and can be made to be extremely wide. Also, many photos, particularly in black and white, look better when darkened in the corners and edges.

For transparency film, however, the opposite is true. If the corners fall off a couple of stops, they might fall right into the unrecoverable shadows. I can usually correct the falloff of the 65 when using it with the 6x12 format, but it requires a lot of effort in Photoshop. And it affects the contrast when I make the correction, too, if I keep the blacks black in the corners. For 4x5, it's critical with transparency film, in my view, if the scene needs anything resembling even illumination and contrast across the frame.

So, it's worth giving it a try. You can always get the center filter later. I bought a Schneider Center Filter 3 a couple of years after buying the lens. Used, of course. But I still paid nearly as much for it as I had paid for the lens.

I found a center filter for the original 65/8 Super Angulon at one of the online stores for a hundred bucks. I snapped that one up--I still have a 65/8 intended for a project camera. It also works on the old 47/5.6, though it reduces coverage slightly.

Rick "noting that very short lenses in large format are not like pressing the Easy Button" Denney