My Favourite Photo sites – Product Reviews

When I am contemplating buying a lens, one of the first things I do is read up about it to see if it is worth buying.  Is it sharp?  Does the AF work well?  Is there lots of light fall off?  If you can buy a lens, its likely someone has written a review about it, so here’s my pick of the sites that I refer to when looking to evaluate lens and camera performance.

-        Photozone – The go to guide for lens test performance.  The site has very scientific lens test analysis and no BS – it is what it is.  If you want to know how good a lens is before you buy, read their test results first.  The author is also not at all afraid to call out a manufacturer on production defects either.

-         SLR gear – Another scientific site that is well written with strong analysis.  Worth checking as a counter point to Photozone

-        SLR Lens Review – This site is interesting as it give critical and scientific analysis to some unusual lenses.  It’s worth reading just for the early Leica lens test results.

-        Steve Huff –  A very interesting website by an enthusiast whose writing and reviews is far more “touchy feely” than the scientific reviews by other websites.  However, Steve doesn’t claim to be much more, so the reader enjoys his writing and very obvious enthusiasm.  You get the feeling the guy can’t believe his luck that camera companies are sending him all this cool gear to try out.  The blog focuses on Leica and mirror-less cameras, and as much on camera and lens usability as image quality.  A great counter point to the scientific results of some other lens test sites.  

Special mention – Ken Rockwell.  The guy comes across as very arrogant in the way he writes, and you strongly suspect his writings have external influence from his sponsors.  The guy loves jargon and delights in telling others about how good his technique is.   Bizarrely, he focuses almost as much time on measuring California’s radiation levels (as a result of the tsunami  that destroyed Japan’s Dai Ichi nuclear reactor) as he does writing about photo equipment.  However there is good classic camera information on this site particularly for Leica and Nikon.  I use it for the serial number list to date the manufacture and origin of Leica lenses. 

Sony NEX3 with Voigtlander 35mm Nokton

Rockwell Nokton Review

I recently read a review by Ken Rockwell on the Voigtlander 35mm f1.4 Nokton that I often use with the NEX.  His review was quite negative, but when a new Leica 35mm f1.4 Summilux ASPH is literally 10 times the price to buy new, maybe he is missing the point.  I am sure the Summilux is a sharper lens, but for this money, so it damn well should be.

I have noted in a recent review that colour and sharpness of the Nokton significantly improves as it is stopped down, and I am sure wide open the Summilux will be better.  However, as I have shown with other fast wide angles, this is a common issue.

Using Leica M mount lenses has well and truly gone beyond the high end, very wealthy Leica M photog; which I think is all that he cares about.  Many people use them with EVILs, like me, which also are 1/10^th the price of an M9.

For under $500 used or $700 new, there is no smaller, sharper 35mm f1.4 lens out there.  For any small 35mm lens by Leica, you would need at least $1200 more for the marginally better 35mm f2.5 Summarit; and for other 3^rd party brands you’d need an extra $700 for a Carl Zeiss 35mm f2.  A Leica 35mm f2 pre-ASPH Summicron, still goes for $2000+ used for a 25 year old lens.  Any of these lenses are at least 1 stop slower than the Nokton.

In Mr Rockwell’s defence (and to whom his blog seems to be aimed at) I noticed how picky Leica owners can be when I sold my Leica 90mm f2 Summicron.  Sure my lens wasn’t perfect but it was amazing what Leica owners would pick at.  The tiny mark here or there became a very big deal.  The true Leica Man wants it all.

Sony NEX-3, Voigtlander 35mm f1.4 Nokton

Footnote:  Steve Huff's article on the Voigtlander 35mm f1.4 Nokton is, in contrast, VERY positive; even when shooting on an M9.  He believes that the Nokton's 'flaws' are actually positives as they render the photograph in a much more classical way, like older Leica lenses.  Huff believes that this is a lens with 'Leica magic' (suggesting there's some characteristics that are like a $10K Leica Noctilux!); and for the price point, an unbeatable combination.  My point precisely.