Nikon S-mount lens review question

[alberte]

Does somebody know if Bjørn Rørslett completed the Nikon Rangefinder S-Mount lens reviews of his http://www.naturfotograf.com/lens_nikonRF.html site and documented the results somewhere?

Albert
Nikon S-mount user.

[Birna Rørslett]

Well, you might ask *me* .....

I have the following Nikkors in S-mount,

2.8cm f/3.5, 3.5cm f/1.8, 3.5cm f/2.5, 3.5cm f/3.5, 5cm f/1,1,5cm f/1.4 (various versions), 50mm f/1.4 'Olympic', 5cm f/2, 8.5cm f/2 (various samples), 10.5cm f/2.5, 13.5cm f/3.5, Bellows 13.5cm f/4, Nikkor-Q 25cm f/4, 35cm f/4.5 Nikkor-T

The 105mm f/4 Nikkor-T is identical to the S-mount version, only the bezel has been changed to F mount.

From the Cosina-Voigtländer range,

21mm f/4 Skopar, 25mm f/4 Skopar, 50mm f/1.5 Nokton, 85mm f/3.5 APO-Lanthar.

[Snoogly]

My almost namesake has reviewed and repaired several.

https://richardhaw.com/lens-repair-articles/

[Frank Fremerey]

The artist formerly known as "Nærfotograf"

Well, you might ask *me* .....

I have the following Nikkors in S-mount,

2.8cm f/3.5, 3.5cm f/1.8, 3.5cm f/2.5, 3.5cm f/3.5, 5cm f/1,1,5cm f/1.4 (various versions), 50mm f/1.4 'Olympic', 5cm f/2, 8.5cm f/2 (various samples), 10.5cm f/2.5, 13.5cm f/3.5, Bellows 13.5cm f/4, Nikkor-Q 25cm f/4, 35cm f/4.5 Nikkor-T

The 105mm f/4 Nikkor-T is identical to the S-mount version, only the bezel has been changed to F mount.

From the Cosina-Voigtländer range,

21mm f/4 Skopar, 25mm f/4 Skopar, 50mm f/1.5 Nokton, 85mm f/3.5 APO-Lanthar.

[alberte]

Well, you might ask *me* .....

I have the following Nikkors in S-mount,

2.8cm f/3.5, 3.5cm f/1.8, 3.5cm f/2.5, 3.5cm f/3.5, 5cm f/1,1,5cm f/1.4 (various versions), 50mm f/1.4 'Olympic', 5cm f/2, 8.5cm f/2 (various samples), 10.5cm f/2.5, 13.5cm f/3.5, Bellows 13.5cm f/4, Nikkor-Q 25cm f/4, 35cm f/4.5 Nikkor-T

Did you tested or have a opinion of the Nikon S-Mount 50mm f/1.1 internal or external lens? Is the lens price worth the brighter aperture f/1.1 - f/1.4 w.r.t. Nikon 50mm f/1.4 ?

[Birna Rørslett]

The 5cm f/1.1 version to consider is the last one, with external mount.

It is a very special lens and whether you love it or regret having purchased it depends on what it should be used for. Do not think of it as just "fast", but "special". Meaning there are lots of optical drawbacks such as vignetting and corners not as sharp as the centre. The lens is heavy. The front glass is quite soft, thus copies with cleaning marks are common (in fairness also applies to 5cm f/1.4). The aperture ring can cause issues according to Richard Haws. I'm using my 5cm f/1.1 usually wide open though. It flares easily. Chromatic aberrations are common.

On the plus side is a unique 'look' and rendition and surprising centre sharpness. It is wonderful for b/w including IR photography.

A few b/w at f/1.1. two first with my IR-converted Nikon Z5, the last with a  monochrome-modified Sony NEX-5N.

[Birna Rørslett]

The 50mm f/1.4 'Olympic'  or its 2005 incarnation released with the 2005 Nikon S3 is optically better, but also less fun to use.

The tiny 5cm f/1.4 lenses of the '50s like the 50mm need a focusing adapter.

[Birna Rørslett]

When the Nikkor-N 5cm f/1.1 is stopped down, its rendition changes. Below are f/1.1 and f/11 versions of the same scene (with Z5).

[Birna Rørslett]

The 5cm f/1.1 Nikkor-N is, undeniably, a beauty in disguise on any camera. It dwarfs the standard 5cm f/1.4 Nikkor. A pity its asking price is so high.

[alberte]

The 5cm f/1.1 Nikkor-N is, undeniably, a beauty in disguise on any camera. It dwarfs the standard 5cm f/1.4 Nikkor. A pity its asking price is so high.

Thank you very much for this extensive amount of information.

Albert

[Erik Lund]

I can see that the rendition is very similar to MS Optical 50mm f/1.1 in Leica M mount

https://nikongear.net/revival/index.php?topic=2922.msg40123#msg40123