Please advise on a vintage 90-ish (leica mount)

[koraks]

All your sample images obtain a lot of their character from the film and developing choices

Well, shallow depth of field, is mostly what I see. I'd just take any old (preferably old, yes) lens and shoot it wide open.

I was talking really about tones rather than composition

How do you define 'tones'?

I have a feeling this is one of those choices that's informed by parameters that will forever continue to evade operationalization and remain in the fuzzy realm of vague terms that have no clearly defined meaning.
PS: I LIKE the car shots in the first post. Let that be said. They're pleasant.

 

[grain elevator]

The Jupiter-8 is a less expensive slower alternative at f/2 which is also very good.

I support this suggestion. I don't subscribe to the idea that any leans by itself gives a specific "look", and the bokeh is a bit different from the samples you posted, but it's a decent, affordable, and available lens, so try it before you go after anything more expensive and harder to find.

 

[GregY]

There are plenty of affordable ($75-125 USD) .... Elmar 90mm f4 LTM lenses on the market

 

[hankchinaski]

There are plenty of affordable ($75-125 USD) .... Elmar 90mm f4 LTM lenses on the market
View attachment 386603

Thanks!

 

[hankchinaski]

Well, the Volna the OP originally posted was also likely to have been coated. Mine is marked MC. They were made into the 90s. Even with coatings, these lenses are lower contrast unless stopped down twice. They also have a flaw in how their stop-down lever is designed that can let light into the optics through the side when it's used in the closer half of its focus range.

I haven't ever used a Jupiter-3, or the Sonnar 50mm f/1.5 it was copied from. Only a Jupiter-8 50mm f/2, and Jupiter-9 85mm f/2. It's not exactly the same beast as the Volna-3, but all have a "vintage" look.

It's a bit of a predicament when someone asks how to replicate a medium format lens on 35mm, part of me wants to encourage them to buy one of those medium format cameras, but I've been down that rabbit hole and it's not for everyone.

I have the Kiev 60 but I also want a 135 option.

 

[Axelwik]

There are plenty of affordable ($75-125 USD) .... Elmar 90mm f4 LTM lenses on the market
View attachment 386603

I have one of these for my iiif. Very small lens, and very sharp stopped down past around f6.3 or f9.