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Schneider 90mm f/8 Super Angulon Test Review © 2005 KenRockwell.com back
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Introduction Very popular and great lens made the same today as the 1950s. It went out of production in 2003. Originally it was single coated. Later versions are marked "MC" for multicoating. Specifications Six elements in four groups 67 mm filter thread 100 degree field 215 mm image circle Performance Pretty much perfect. Sharp at all apertures, no distortion and no ghosts or flare. Of course it's next to impossible to compose or focus since it's so slow and you have to peer through the corners at large angles. Recommendations There are plenty of these out there second hand. If you want to start good and cheap go find an old, inexpensive single coated one for a couple of hundred dollars. The results will be identical to anything else made today. The ones from the 1950s were single coated; newer ones are marked "MC" for multicoated. I doubt coating makes any difference in anything except a subtle difference in color transmission since these have no ghosting or flare; feel free to shoot straight into the light. The other f/5.6 version made from the 1960s - 2003 covered 105 degrees and 235 mm image circle. Today's f/5.6 XL version is a completely different lens with even more coverage to 110 degrees and an image circle of 259 mm. Any of these is excellent; you don't need anything more than the oldest single coated f/8 version unless you want to pay more and have better visibility on the ground glass. I bought mine new in 1991 and it was later stolen. |