Rare Cine-Nikkor lenses on Nikon 1

eurocameraman

For video work, i am using my GH series (from 1 to 4) without any hesitation as it delivers what I am looking for. For Photography work, I am using a Nikon D800 to please my clients, as they often print big from the pictures I had done for their website at first. They need high resolution and they always prefer the photographer they hired, handling a big camera. In many people mind, bigger is still more professional. For my personal photography enjoyment, I fall in love with a camera which had never been considered as exciting by usual reviewer: Nikon1 V1. I bought it new for 200 USD or so in 2013. My interest in this camera started after trying a collection of old C-mount lenses with some of them designed for 16mm film camera. Most of those lenses were too tight to cover the M43 sensor (huge vignetting going on) , but they perfectly match with the CX format of the Nikon1. For those who don't know: FX = 2 x M43, FX = 2.7 x CX (in term of cropping factor) Nikon1 V1 sensor (10 millions pixels Alpina) delivers "film like" colors, contrast, noise and sharpness. I know what I am speaking about as I started my career in professional Photography back to 1986.

You can go and visit my webpage blog post and my flickr album to have an idea of the result of combining a Nikon1 V1 camera with this set of lenses:

Cine-Nikkor 6.5mm f1.8
Cine-Nikkor 13mm f1.8
Cine-Nikkor 50mm f1.8
Angenieux 25mm f0.95
Tamron 25mm f1.6
Manual Focus and Manual Exposure (confirmed by Histogram after test shots)

I am planning to shoot a vintage looking short film with this camera soon or later to take benefit of my set of lenses.

http://www.francperet.com/2014/10/01/nikon1-v1-and-cine-lenses/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/francperet/

Vitaliy_Kiselev

Existing topic for camera is http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/1000/nikon-new-mirrorless-cameras-v1-and-j1#Item_80 , use it.

eurocameraman

Thanks Vitaly I am just worrying that nobody is going to go back to check a topic started in 2011 and concerning a camera which had never been popular. If you confirm it is better I post it in this thread, I will copy past the subject to the link you mentioned Thanks to advise Franc

eurocameraman

Also, more interesting here concern the rare C-mount Cine Nikkor lenses set than the Nikon1 V1 itself

matt_gh2

Interesting look - I'd love to see a short film shot with these lenses on this camera. Thanks for posting.

eurocameraman

@matt_gh2 . Thanks for your comment. Actually, for any system, lenses are the most important part. The Cine-Nikkor lenese match perfectly the Nikon1 to deliver a certain vintage (organic) look, so I am going to use it for a project. For my usual job, I am a big fan of the GH series because of the existence of Voigtlander and Nikon lenses line up I can adpat to the camera. For filmmaking, I rarely use the Lumix lenses as they are too clinical. I am using them for photography only. See here the close up portrait shot on a GH1 with a Nikon 50mm f1.2 AIS (frame grab from on of my short film. "Revol'verte" (posted on Vimeo) and the Yunnan kid shot with the gh3 and Olympus 45mm f1.8.

matt_gh2

Yep - I'm a big believer in what I call "secret sauce" , which is combination of camera, camera settings, any camera hack setting, lens, and cinematography/lighting. There's a million combinations...but when you find your "secret sauce" for a particular project it feels like you've struck gold.

I like the frame grab of the guy from GH1/Nikon lens...can't place where ive seen that look/texture...maybe some 60s film...but it reminds me of something.

Rock on!

eurocameraman

@matt_gh2 It is true that for photographies, I like an overall combination; the color rendition, the texture of the image and even the "orgaic" noise of the Nikon1 compare to the Panasonic GH series. Nikon1 jpg are already great, and working on raw file, I just mimic the original treatment of the Nikon1, the main difference being the information I get back in both highlight and shadows. In video, I have to give it a try, as there is possibilities to upload a tailor made profile into the Nikon1 and I tried one called "flat". In GH series, I still prefer the image treatment for colors of the GH1 vs GH2/3/4 whatever set I tried on the last three. The portrait was done with the GH1 and I really enjoy this rendering.

joethepro

@eurocameraman Keep in mind that if/when you post in an old topic, it bumps it to the top of the topics list on the home page. It will be seen. :)

eurocameraman

@ joethepro Thanks for the explanation. I am not posting a lot here (5 posts in a couple of years) and I am not used to it yet. As my subject is more about those rare lenses and their combination with the Nikon1, I am not sure it will suit the V1 and J1 discussion. How can I move this discussion to the one mentioned by Vitaliy? Am I going to erase the different post/ discussion here? Thanks

majoraxis

The D.O. Industries Navitron 42mm f 1.2 is a nice lens on the Nikon 1. It has great contrast and very smooth / long throw on the focus ring. Also as more of an effect lens that works well on either the Nikon 1 (or GH1) is the Monital 25f 0.95. It was some type of remote control lens that I took the aperture out and have to focus by screwing it in and out - not great for moving subjects. The picture of the Nikon 1 is taken with Monital (Sopelem)/GH 1 and vice versa. The picture of the Sontec EX250 is taken with the Monital/GH1

eurocameraman

@majoraxis Thanks for sharing. Interesting lenses I didn't know. Do you have lively shot with it? People or landscape?

I search and found some shot I had done with the GH1 and the Angenieux 25mm f0.95, frame grab from my short films and a musician picture shots.

cantsin

It should be said that the V1 is severely limited in its support of mechanically adapted lenses. They only work with the camera in M mode, and there will be no exposure metering, no focusing aids and also no burst mode shooting.

eurocameraman

@ cantsin. Exactly. I mention this (big) limitation in my field review here http://www.francperet.com/2014/10/01/nikon1-v1-and-cine-lenses and for 2 months, I shot with the Nikon1 guessing the exposure and getting confirmation after the shot by checking the histogram to know if I were right or wrong. One tip I am teaching to my students is this. If you can see blue sky over your head and you are shooting someone under sunlight, the exposure value is matching (@ISO100 - f8 - 1/250s) or (@ISO100 - f5.6 - 1/500s) or any other combination of same EV14). This is true in average situation. In Australia Outback (no air pollution and lots of reflection from the sand), Alps, Himalaya, Tibet or Xinjiang (high altitude, closer to the source of light) this value can be double (EV15) or even more. In average situation, like in French Burgundy, I prest my camera to that EV14 value under a blue sky. If my subject is under shadow, I know the EV is dropping at least 2 stops so I will reduce my speed (@ISO100, f5.6, 1/125s) or open up my aperture (@ISO100 f2.8 1/500s) to compensate. Quick decision without taking my eye out of the viewfinder. The Aperture ring is on the lens, the shutter speed is changed by a button next to my thumb. Very handy. Moving inside a house with windows and white wall, the EV will be around 8 to 16 times slower (3 or 4 stops)... This is approximation but it helps to get close to the truth in few steps. Most of the time, I got it right at first shot. Variation will depends on reflection around (white wall or trees) the subject. Of course, during an overcast day, I have to do more test and try as i am hving no reference anymore. Step by step, knowing my envitronment, I was good to guess the exposure and I didn't struggle much. I was used to manual focus when I started my photography career back in 1986, so this didn't bother me much since the viewfinder is sharp enough to hit the focus right even using the f0.95 lens. This is the subject of my original post; I was so seduced by the result (color, mood, character...) I got with the combination of the Nikon1 and my old lenses, that I left my GH4 and the Lumix lens at home, despite the lack of any assistance from the Nikon1. Of course, I would be very happy to get a firmware update or a hack to get the Nikon1 able to work on semi-auto Aperture priority with a dumb adapter. That would make it even more enjoyable to use.

eurocameraman

I had an interesting exchange by email related to that post and I want to share it with personal-view community here to inform more people of his finidng.

Thanks to Nameless for this great addition related to this amazing set of Cine-Nikkor lenses. I invited Nameless to join the post to bring more of his own insight and passion for this set. Check this out http://akiroom.com/redbook-e/kenkyukai09/kenkyukai200904.html

eurocameraman

Here are some more information sent by Nameless.

Nameless

@eurocameraman I saw your post on the cine-nikkor lenses and i absolutely loved it:

http://www.francperet.com/2014/10/01/nikon1-v1-and-cine-lenses

I have been trying to get information on these lenses and nobody knows anything due to their rarity. The 6.5mm is like an urban legend or myth that nobody has heard of or seen especially with its rectilinear performance.

These lenses are truly one of a kind. Here is a PDF document showing the 6.5mm and some details:

eurocameraman

@Nameless Thanks again for contacting me after seeing this post to share so many precious information related to those rare lenses. Great stuff!

mattc

@nameless @eurocameraman I wonder to what extent the 6.5 cine nikkor influenced the development of "the Holy Grail," the Nikon 13mm f/5.6 AI-s, as the 6.5's rectilinear performance is indeed impressive. Or was it vice versa?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikkor_13mm_f/5.6

And despite what the filmmaker here claims, I'll bet on it being the lost lens from Fallen Angels to boot. Have even heard tales of a PL-mount version, spotted in Japan no less, years ago. Others were c-mount, still others Arri-S.

Alas, the filmmaker did not like my disagreeing observations on his youtube channel and deleted my comment immediately after it posted. But it is attached here, for consideration.

A beautiful and rare unicorn, even if for Super16.

Cine Nikkor museum exhibit:

https://richardhaw.com/2021/09/10/report-nikon-museum-cine-nikkor/

https://redbook-jp.com/kenkyukai-e/20/21/10d.html

https://redbook-jp.com/kenkyukai-e/20/21/10e.html

13mm prototype at the museum here:

https://redbook-jp.com/kenkyukai-e/2018/201810a.html

jack

Interested

Nameless

@mattc sorry for such a delayed response. First time I've been here in years.

The cine-nikkor set are indeed beautiful lenses and the 6.5mm is a true one off. I remember having a conversation about the influence on its full frame counterparts as you mentioned but to no avail.

I also watched that YouTube video and also thought the same regarding the references specifically citing a 6.5mm. It's not something you would say especially if it was only achieved through the use of an adapter. Great points you made here.

Do you have any yourself? Get in touch man

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