Zeiss Ikon Returns!

[lensworker]

It will be interesting to see how the lenses stack up against Leica glass; I looked at the website, and the camera is a thing of beauty! They are priced less than Leica, so maybe this system will be a more affordable option that will make RF acessible to more photographers.

 

[captainwookie]

I remember my dad telling me that his first camera was a Zeiss Ikon, which he traded in later for a Pentax Spotmatic. Looking at prices that Zeiss Ikons go for on eBay compared to Pentax Spotmatics, that was a mistake.

He also use to talk about how Nikon came from Zeiss Ikon during WWII in some type of Axis technology exchange, any truth to that story?

 

[rjr]

"He also use to talk about how Nikon came from Zeiss Ikon during WWII in some type of Axis technology exchange, any truth to that story?"

I don´t know in this regard, I just know that many japanese camera companies incl. Nikon gained from the dispropriation and publication of german patents -incl. Zeiss- after WW2 through the allieds - secret or proprietary lens formulas, camera construction details, production methods went public by that and they were free to use them.

 

[lee]

I have heard that a lot of AP and UPI photogs in the combat areas of the world used Nikon enlarging lenses on Leicas and that is one of the ways Nikon gained a marketing edge. Any truth to that?

lee\c

 

[garryl]

well I've heard that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny have formed an corporate conglomerate to corner the holiday market and easing out both that turkey guy and those pesky leprechauns. 8)

 

[clay]

I have heard that a lot of AP and UPI photogs in the combat areas of the world used Nikon enlarging lenses on Leicas and that is one of the ways Nikon gained a marketing edge. Any truth to that?

lee\c

A couple of Time/Life photographers shot the Korean conflicts with Leica screw mount bodies and Nikon lenses(not the enlarging lenses, but real camera lenses). In particular, the 50/1.4 is still a fantastic lens with an M adapter.

Interesting article about them here:

http://www.dantestella.com/technical/nikoleic.html#5014

 

[vazquez]

I have heard that a lot of AP and UPI photogs in the combat areas of the world used Nikon enlarging lenses on Leicas and that is one of the ways Nikon gained a marketing edge. Any truth to that?

lee\c

In his book "This is war", David Douglas Duncan tells the whole history in the last page of the book under the title 'Photo Data'. He and other photographers used Nikkors in their Leica and Contax cameras (some used Nikon cameras as backup bodies too). The Nikkor lenses used by him to cover the combat in the front in 1950 were the Nikkor 50mm f/1.5 and, later, the 50mm f/1.4, he used, also the 85mm f/2 and the 135mm f/3.5. According to Duncan, they found these ones to be supperior to Zeiss and Leica equivalent ones. All the pictures were shot with these lenses and Super XX and are printed in 9x12 or 12x17 inches (20x30 or 30x40 cm) in the book.

 

[Roger Krueger]

What is it with CZ and their "tradition" of having great long-rangefinder-base-length bodies but not providing the fast lenses that such a rangefinder begs for? At least this you can apparently use fast Leica glass on.

It's hard to tell by looking--does the long rangefinder mean this is also going to carry on the designed-by-Yakuza where-the-#%&-do-I-put-these-extra-fingers tradition?

 

[kwmullet]

I have heard that a lot of AP and UPI photogs in the combat areas of the world used Nikon enlarging lenses on Leicas and that is one of the ways Nikon gained a marketing edge. Any truth to that?

lee\c

I'm boggled. For some reason, that sounds WAY cool to me. I'd be tempted to get a screw-mount Leica body just 'cause I've got three enlarger lenses I could use... uh... what about RF coupling? When you do this, do you sacrifice your RF to zone focusing?

Signed,

Scratching his head in Denton.

-KwM-

 

[Jeremy]

I'm boggled. For some reason, that sounds WAY cool to me. I'd be tempted to get a screw-mount Leica body just 'cause I've got three enlarger lenses I could use... uh... what about RF coupling? When you do this, do you sacrifice your RF to zone focusing?

Signed,

Scratching his head in Denton.

-KwM-

Kevin,
Lee misread this somewhere. The lenses the press photogs used were actually rangefinder-coupled screw mount Nikon lenses and not enlarger lenses. I wish!