The Orion -15's Maximum aperture is only F6...a bit slower than my Noctilux..It is rangefinder coupled...It is super light weight at only about 61 grams....It is common in LTM and super rare in the Kiev mount (Russian clone of contaz RF)..I have not shot enough different types of photos with this lens to really understand it well....Maybe others have tried this foreign lens Kelly

-- Kelly Flanigan (zorki3c@netscape.net), May 31, 2002

Answers

no experience, I did shoot (and still have) the very small and lightweight Russian 21/5.6. In a side to side/sam esubject ocmarison, I have shot through the 21 2.8 Leica (pre-asph), the Nikon 28 2.8 (adapted to M), and the Russian 21. Neither of the first two are very pocketable, and the order of quality was L > N >= Russian (no surprises)-- except the simpler design 21 did have more vignetting than the others at its wide open 5.6. But, the quality was not dramatically different, and it was the one of the 3 I kept, a good lens with some good photos. It is an older, simpler design (and, for those whose interest piqued, it protrudes far enough back into the body as not to be safely useable on the Voig series of bodies, and M metering is off by 1/3-2/3 stop.)

I would guess your older 28 woudl be similar -- not a match for the Leica, but it does make your 28 setup more pocketable than any others, and you may get photos you would not otherwsie get (I would like the newest 28 Summircon, however).

-- l smith (lacsm@bellsouth.net), June 01, 2002.

Dante; thanks for the input on the Kobalux 28 ; here are some links for others to learn more about it:

Kobalux 28/3.5 Leica Screw Mount; Stephen Gandy's Link

Kobalux M-Series 28mm f/3.5 Smaller, quicker, sharper (Kobalux marketers statement!)

-- Kelly Flanigan (zorki3c@netscape.net), June 01, 2002.

Hi Dante; Re""Foreign?" I don't know where you are from, but the United States has not made any LTM lenses since about 1946, and Ireland has never made any."

The term Foreign Optics is a old term used in the engineering optical and photo industry..It is used to mean the usage of a lens or optical assessory that is not made by the maker of the optical device such as a microscope, telescope,filter,telephoto adapter, sextant, movie camera, film projector, theodolite etc...it is term used mostly in the Optical Industry; which I have worked for in the past at times...I have book shelves full of Kodak booklets, Optical textbooks, glass catalogs etc.....I have 2 Professional engineering registrations....I am used to using terminolgy that Lay people do not understand.....The usage of the term "Foreign Optics" is an old, old Optical industry term...; maybe today all the wimpy polically correct Lay crowd is upset with it...so be it......I have been on a few projects that the PC crowd screwed up because they relabeled all the engineering drawings inner and outer for male and female parts......these screwups cost alot of money...End of rant.. @FIN !

When "foreign" optics are used they may or may not work as well as the makers optics..

Sometimes they are even better; but the device maker cannot admit this!

I witnessed Nikon F 35mm lenses being dissasembled and placed in Panavison lens mounts when I worked in the San Fernando Valley...This is a good natch since they produce few lense for lease....; and they can cherry pick the lenses...

I own several editions of the Nikon Nikkormant handbook..

In the last edition I own ; copyright 1974; Joseph D Cooper has on page 4-15 and 4-16 seven paragraphs called:

USE of "Foreign" Optics The first sentence starts "Independently manufactured lenses are available for use with Nikon and Nikkormat camera bodies as well as for use as front lens attachments."

-- Kelly Flanigan (zorki3c@netscape.net), June 01, 2002.

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-- Kelly Flanigan (zorki3c@netscape.net), June 01, 2002.

RE logest association with leica, my 111c/111f body was bought by mein Singapore in 1953 and has been truly marvellous. Re THE ORION F6 28MM, this was based on an old zeiss design and is of symetrical 4 glass construction .It has been tested in this country-the U.K.andwas rated as equal optically to all but the very best S.L.R.lenses,in practise there was very little difference between it and my 3rd type elmarit M28mm lens.Incidentally it is said that the first 2numbers of the serial no.is the year of manufacture on Russian lenses.

-- Rodney Williams (willicwm@bushinternet.com), June 02, 2002.