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Lens Test, Nikkor 135mm f/1.8 AIS

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
So, I bought a new lens today, an old, new lens, the 135mm f/1.8 that I have been waiting for. Normally, I don't test lenses, I just start using them, hoping for the best. But in this case, the seller wanted me to try it out properly before I made up my mind.

Unfortunately, I have neither a backyard nor a dog, a cat or a neighbour with an interesting antenna on the roof. So, I had to take a walk downtown and take a couple of snapshot of people I saw on the street instead. I know that this is not the correct testing procedure according to you-know-which-forum, and I didn't even bring a tripod, but that's what you get when you deal with amateurs.

What was important for me to check, was sharpness, colours, contrast and bokeh. That would be the photo of the lady with the vegetables and flowers, which is without post processing except USM 80%/radius 0.4 on the crop. I also wanted to see the ability to isolate a subject from the background when the main subject is a few meters away, which is the photo of the couple. I've enhanced contrast and colours slightly on that one.

All photos with Fuji S5 at 6MP, converted from RAW.



The crop isn't 100%, probably around 80% of full size.





Conclusion:
I have a Nikkor 85mm f/1.8. I thought that was a portrait lens. Wrong :lecture: This is a portrait lens. Focusing between 1 and 2.5 meters is a piece of cake, even wide open. From there and up to 5 meters is ok if I concentrate. Anything beyond 5 meters is tricky since 90% of the focus throw was spent on the first 5 meters, but with a better focusing screen, that will hopefully improve.

Do I like this lens? I love this lens. Look at the photos. The portrait was taken within minutes of mounting the lens on the camera, in the big, dark shadow behind a shopping mall without flash.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
My fingers are faster than my brain. The lens is obviously not a 135mm. Nikon never made a 135mm f/1.8, it's the 105mm f/1.8. Too late to edit the headline etc. Sorry about the confusion :(

Here are at least the photos with the correct names (I think):





 
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ddk

Guest
Horrible, horrible, horrible, Jorgen! I was really looking forward to some exciting brick walls :mad:!

What a fantastic capture, I love the orchid girl, you must have more shots of her, please post. The lens looks great, enjoy it!
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Horrible, horrible, horrible, Jorgen! I was really looking forward to some exciting brick walls :mad:!

What a fantastic capture, I love the orchid girl, you must have more shots of her, please post. The lens looks great, enjoy it!
Unfortunately David, she just stopped for a couple of seconds in front of the press at some vegetable and flower event outside Central World Plaza. I had to fight my way through all the local photographers to get one sharp photo. I should have asked for her phone number of course, but I'm getting old and slow :(
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Ah... here's one more that is almost in focus. Actually, it's focused on the far eye, but you don't see that in this small format :)

 
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ddk

Guest
As you know well, there's more to an image than perfect focus, this doesn't bother me one bit.

Sometimes when I look at some of older bw 35mm film images I find many with iffy focus and I see plenty more posted on the net by some great photographers. This whole concept of perfect focus is a by product of the digital age and pixel peeping, otherwise it was something reserved mostly for studio work and not street images of fast moving subjects.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Here's a 100% crop of the eye that is more or less in focus. This is 100% from the 12MP jpeg straight out of the camera, no sharpening added, but brightness and exposure increased (the photo was around 2/3 stop underexposed).

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
As you know well, there's more to an image than perfect focus, this doesn't bother me one bit.

Sometimes when I look at some of older bw 35mm film images I find many with iffy focus and I see plenty more posted on the net by some great photographers. This whole concept of perfect focus is a by product of the digital age and pixel peeping, otherwise it was something reserved mostly for studio work and not street images of fast moving subjects.
I agree with you. The funny part is, that when I converted to digital 4 years ago, I struggled with the autofocus. Now, it's the other way around.
 
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ddk

Guest
These are great images Jorgen, really as good as they get; must have been some show. Funny thing is I never quite got the hang of AF and the only one that I use on a regular basis is the 14/2.8, only because I haven't found the mf equivalent.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
These are great images Jorgen, really as good as they get; must have been some show. Funny thing is I never quite got the hang of AF and the only one that I use on a regular basis is the 14/2.8, only because I haven't found the mf equivalent.
Between the first and the last shot, there was 1 minute and 58 seconds, and that included two male models that I didn't shoot, and I only noticed what was happening as the first model was on her way in, while I was fumbling with the lens cap :LOL: I was really only walking past, on my way into the mall to buy a filter for the lens, which i subsequently forgot :(
 
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ddk

Guest
You seem to be in the right place at the right time, quite often!
 

wayne_s

New member
Jorgen,

Nice combination of smooth bokeh, good contrast, and sharpness which reminds me of my converted Sony-Zeiss 135 1.8.
Orchid girl is gorgeous and you captured her very well.
Wish I had a girl like that just appear out of nowhere when I am going out to take some initial shots with my new portrait lens! ;)
I have found the only way I can consistently nail the focus on the correct eye with such narrow DOF is to use liveview which I can do pretty fast now.
This lens looks a little more forgiving when not perfectly focused than the ZA 135 1.8.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Oh... it's almost one in the morning. Better call it a day then. I started at four this morning, but have been sleeping in taxis in between :)

Tomorrow, I'm going to the "wrong" place, Pattaya, for the weekly dinner with my father :)
 

Jonathon Delacour

Subscriber Member
Jorgen, congratulations -- great that you were able to not only find a copy of a lens you'd been waiting for but also get such impressive results on its first outing. Hopefully you'll post further samples from what appears to be a marvelous lens.
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Nice work Jorgen. The lens looks like a great find. I have had a similar reaction to my new 135mm f/2 DC -- the focal length just makes for a fantastic portrait lens. Though I do notice that you mostly use APS sensors, while I use a full frame. I tend to prefer shorter lengths, but this seems to work really well for me. And you were using an 85 before, which was more like a 135 on film...hmmm.
 
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