Bronica and Nikkor 50mm lens question

George356 · Mar 12, 2023

I have 2 Bronicas, an S2A and an EC, both sharing the same lens mount.

With those cameras I have a pair of 50mm lenses:-

a Nikkor H 50mm f2.8
a Nikkor O 50mm f3.5

My question is, which of these 2 lenses is considered to be the better?

Hassasin · Mar 12, 2023

You have them backwards: H is 3.5, O is 2.8.

General consensus is 2.8 being newer and better. The follow up to O 2.8 was 2.8 OC with better coatings, but not likely to have much effect outside of color shooting, and that is debatable, as both still old news in coating technology anyway.

I have the OC, so can't really speak for the H, but it seems logical when people claim substantially more prone to flare in the H.

neilt3 · Mar 12, 2023

If you have both lenses , you would be the one in the best position to tell us which is better !
One roll if film , same camera body , same targets , both shots alternating lenses .
Please show us your results .

George356 · Mar 12, 2023

It's a test I intend to run, I just wondered if someone had beaten me to it/

Hassasin · Mar 12, 2023

George356 said:
It's a test I intend to run, I just wondered if someone had beaten me to it/

I'm pretty sure there is lots of photos on Flickr taken with all these lenses. Don't have time to look it up, but did own search before settling on the OC 2.8.

George356 · Mar 12, 2023

Hassasin said:
You have them backwards: H is 3.5, O is 2.8.

General consensus is 2.8 being newer and better. The follow up to O 2.8 was 2.8 OC with better coatings, but not likely to have much effect outside of color shooting, and that is debatable, as both still old news in coating technology anyway.

I have the OC, so can't really speak for the H, but it seems logical when people claim substantially more prone to flare in the H.

Yes, of course you're right, I mixed them up , I even have them written down correctly in my lens book!!

Hassasin · Mar 12, 2023

George356 said:
It's a test I intend to run, I just wondered if someone had beaten me to it/

On second thought, wouldn't you be the best judge which is better for you?

In the end for me it's not just images, but handling, overall size etc that matter. Of course handling wise, both fit into same helical unit and they may not feel all that different. But still quite a different shape. Dedicated hoods for each are also quite different in size.

George356 · Mar 12, 2023

Of course you are right, and a good copy of a poor lens is better than a poor copy of a good lens.

I don't have the dedicated hoods for these lenses so will have to improvise, probably with a Cokin square hood or similar, unless I can find dedicated hoods cheaply.

Hassasin · Mar 12, 2023

George356 said:
Of course you are right, and a good copy of a poor lens is better than a poor copy of a good lens.

I don't have the dedicated hoods for these lenses so will have to improvise, probably with a Cokin square hood or similar, unless I can find dedicated hoods cheaply.

The only way to get them cheaply, a relative term, is to set your search and wait. They go as low 20, but 40-50 is probably a good score. Not many are around, but they are high quality hoods, and feel like they ... belong ... on a good old lens.

neilt3 · Mar 12, 2023

George356 said:
Of course you are right, and a good copy of a poor lens is better than a poor copy of a good lens.

I don't have the dedicated hoods for these lenses so will have to improvise, probably with a Cokin square hood or similar, unless I can find dedicated hoods cheaply.

If the filter thread doesn't rotate when focussed , I use these hoods for wide-angle lenses ; https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/192967916449

ags2mikon · Mar 13, 2023

The nikkor H 5cm or 50mm H is a scaled up nikkor 2.8cm 3.5 for the Nikon F. I have printed negatives from the 5cm Nikkor H at 16x20 and I was quite happy with the results. I also have the Nikkor O-C 50mm f2.8. It seems a little bit better than the H in the corners. At f8 they both are very crisp and have great color far better than the Komura 50mm. The Komura 50mm was a disappointment.

George356 · Mar 13, 2023

neilt3 said:
If the filter thread doesn't rotate when focussed , I use these hoods for wide-angle lenses ; https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/192967916449

Thank you, good to know

George356 · Mar 13, 2023

ags2mikon said:
The nikkor H 5cm or 50mm H is a scaled up nikkor 2.8cm 3.5 for the Nikon F. I have printed negatives from the 5cm Nikkor H at 16x20 and I was quite happy with the results. I also have the Nikkor O-C 50mm f2.8. It seems a little bit better than the H in the corners. At f8 they both are very crisp and have great color far better than the Komura 50mm. The Komura 50mm was a disappointment.

Thanks for the input

ThomasW · Apr 1, 2023

For the Nikkor H 50mm f3.5, ABSOLUTELY use a lens hood, preferably the one that was designed for it, but there are any number of reasonable subsititutes. From experience, I know that this lens is prone to flare. Zenza Bronica and Nikon were both aware of it, hence the matching hood. Of course, if you have the more recent lenses, preferably the OC, great, even though the coating technology of the time is not as good as it is for current lenses.

Bronica and Nikkor 50mm lens question

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