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New Schneider PC lenses?

tjv

Active member
Hi all,
Just read on Photorumors.com that Schneider are releasing three new PC lenses for 35mm systems. a 28mm, 50mm and 90mm.
Link here: What else is new? | Photo Rumors
Can anyone confirm that these are in fact new lens designs, not just re-announced old formulas? I'm keen on a 24 or 28mm PC for my D800E when it arrives and always appreciate choice!
Thanks,
TJV
 

tjv

Active member
Man, I wish they'd update it! 28mm would be perfect for me. I have no experience with the Nikon 24mm PC-E but colleagues suggest it's nothing special either, if only slightly better than the Schneider.

What I'd really like to see is some controlled D800/E tests with the 24mm PC-E on neutral, full rise / fall, plus tilt movements. Having just today purchased $500USD worth of 4x5" film and having $2000USD worth of processing to do in the fridge, I'd sure like to hurry up my transition to digital but need to be convinced the full Nikon system will give me the IQ I'm used to at modest print sizes (24x27.5").

Don't start me on MF tech cam's. I'm just not that good a friend with the bank!
 
I've been testing a copy of the Schneider on a couple of cameras, and will do real tests on the d800 when it arrives. My impressions so far are that it extraordinarily sharp unshifted, and then loses performance quite steadily with shifting. It seems much sharper than the Nikkor when centered. The Nikkor is probably better with a lot of shift. I'm guessing that the Schneider will perform very well on the d800 with 5mm or so of shift, or more if you've got sky or similar in the upper corners. This is adequate for my purposes, but I can see it being a drag for serious architectural use.

Optically it's a first generation 28mm digitar, with a floating element added for close focussing (I don't know that would be a priority with this lens). This is not a state of the art design, but at the time was the only retrofocus 28mm lens with enough coverage that Schneider had. When Leica commissioned the lens, perhaps they didn't pay enough for an all-new formula.
 

jlancasterd

Active member
Is it the same as the Leica R shift? Thanks for the feedback.
Yes - the Leica R-shift is made by Schneider and is exactly the same optically and mechanically as the Nikon-mount version. I had one back in the '90s and found it to be rather clunky to use.
 
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