The Nikkor-Q 200mm f/4!

[richardHaw]

Rick, the carp image is superb!  It reminds me of some popular Chinese/Japanese paintings, especially with your signature in Chinese letters.

My Nikkor-Q C also inevitably shows some LoCA in addition to CA.  But both can be largely removed by the lens correction controls in ACR, which makes the image appear cleaner and slightly sharper without being harsh.  The corrected image still look organic and carry some "roundness".  At f5.6-8.0, the lens seems to be the sharpest.

haha reminds me of 魚た. japan actually took that to the next level. in ancient china it was used as documentation specially for executions (faces and hand of prisoners) but here in japan it was turned into an art form

i am really liking this lens. everytime i shoot with the 70-200VR2 i am amazed by how clear and sharp it is but i also missed the organic looking pictures that old lenses give. CA is very high on sakura, might be because of the D7200's sensor. too demanding

[Akira]

Rick I didn't know about 拓本 (ink impression) for the record of death-row prisoners.   

D7200 sensor should be very demanding, but in fact Niikor-Q C 200/4.0 worked surprisingly well on the even denser 20MP m4/3 sensor of Panasonic GX8. Of course, the sensor only uses the central "sweet spot".  The image was trimmed only slightly.  I think I removed CA and LoCA in ACR.

[Akira]

The same combo.  The image is the entire m4/3 frame.

[richardHaw]

Wow the sakura looks good

[Akira]

Wow the sakura looks good

Actually, that is 白梅 (white Japanese apricot).   

[richardHaw]

very nice blur

i find the focus throw to be too long on this lens

[Akira]

very nice blur

i find the focus throw to be too long on this lens

Yes, I like the bokeh.

The focus throw may be too long for snap-shooting like your posted images, but it is very comfortable for the still images including landscapes or for the precise focusing using the live view.

[richardHaw]

Yes, I like the bokeh.

The focus throw may be too long for snap-shooting like your posted images, but it is very comfortable for the still images including landscapes or for the precise focusing using the live view.

yes i agree. very hard for 生足

[Matthew Currie]

I wasn't planning on getting one of these, but just stopped by my local repair/used camera gear dealer and he had a sale on the bargain shelf lenses, $5 each or two for $8.  They had a very old 20 CM F4Q, and a pretty decent looking 50/1.4S with a hood on it  -  one I already have but it's getting very shabby after 45 years of use, so I got them.   Last thing I need, but could not resist any Nikkor glass for four bucks.  Now I'll have to see how they work.

[richardHaw]

thats a great deal!!!

if you plan to overhaul it, you can check out the guide that i made:

https://richardhaw.com/2016/03/07/repair-auto-nikkor-q-200mm-f4/

this lens is actually pretty good for it's price and vintage, you will be surprised

[Bjørn Rørslett]

The old 200/4 Q can be used for UV photography as well.

[Matthew Currie]

thats a great deal!!!

if you plan to overhaul it, you can check out the guide that i made:

https://richardhaw.com/2016/03/07/repair-auto-nikkor-q-200mm-f4/

this lens is actually pretty good for it's price and vintage, you will be surprised

I might not be all that surprised.  There seems to be something in those old Nikkors that is hard to pin down except that the pictures they make look good.  I'm running out of good reasons to get more lenses, especially in this length, but a bit of informal testing suggests it's pretty nice.   

This is the older model than the one you show, and although it's a bit beat up in appearance the glass is quite good and clean.  It was missing a couple of little screws, one in the focusing collar and one under, but when I got those all tight, it seems to be pretty decent except for somewhat stiff focusing, so I am figuring probably to leave it alone. 

[Akira]

The old 200/4 Q can be used for UV photography as well.

Yes, I remember your test image with "紫外" letters written by your son with the sunscreen cream. 

[richardHaw]

I might not be all that surprised.  There seems to be something in those old Nikkors that is hard to pin down except that the pictures they make look good.  I'm running out of good reasons to get more lenses, especially in this length, but a bit of informal testing suggests it's pretty nice.   

This is the older model than the one you show, and although it's a bit beat up in appearance the glass is quite good and clean.  It was missing a couple of little screws, one in the focusing collar and one under, but when I got those all tight, it seems to be pretty decent except for somewhat stiff focusing, so I am figuring probably to leave it alone.

those (-) screws can be very hard to find.
i am currently re-stocking on screws specially the ones for the bayonet since friends keep on asking for these...

it should roughly be the same as what i have, maybe a little bit of variation here and there. the tight focusing might be due to old grease and alloy filings. if you are cool with that then leave it alone. if you are someone like me who has the itch to open up seemingly good conditioned lenses then i would clean that

[Matthew Currie]

I've taken apart a few old cameras and lenses and saved the screws, and fortunately found some that fit

Mine is the original type with no screws in the bayonet.  The focusing ring is in one piece and held on by three screws.  A tiny setscrew was missing from the ring beneath that, causing the whole assembly to be a bit loose.  Replacing that, and the one missing from the focusing right, and tightening everything up, seems to have helped.  Otherwise it seemed pretty similar to yours.

There are some screws in the base plate of a Minolta X700 that are the right size for a Nikon bayonet, if you don't mind that they have a cross head.