Lens: Nikon 135 mm f/4 bellows
Vintage: around 1968
Lens Mount: Attaches directly to the Nikon BR-1 ring. The BR-1 ring has an F-mount. Otherwise,
there is a M39 thread on the rear of the lens (this is what I use).
there is a M39 thread on the rear of the lens (this is what I use).
Needed Adapters: Nikon BR-1 ring or M39 to camera-specific adapter.
Preferred Mounting: Normal.
Filter Thread: 43 mm.
Controls: This lens has an aperture control and an aperture preset ring.
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Resolution vs Aperture:
The sharpest aperture is f/5.6, better than
average for a lens of this focal length.
The most resolving aperture is also f/5.6.
This means that f/5.6 is a good aperture to shoot
at for sharpness and resolution, although you
may want to shoot images at f/8 given the corner
sharpness of this lens (see the next sections)
The sharpest aperture is f/5.6, better than
average for a lens of this focal length.
The most resolving aperture is also f/5.6.
This means that f/5.6 is a good aperture to shoot
at for sharpness and resolution, although you
may want to shoot images at f/8 given the corner
sharpness of this lens (see the next sections)
Corner Sharpness vs Aperture:
the corner sharpness of the lens is OK at the
sharpest aperture of f/5.6 although you will likely
be able to see a little fuzziness on the periphery
at this aperture.
The corner sharpness improves significantly at
f/8 and above. If you want sharper corners you
can shoot images at f/8 although you will pay a
small price in sharpness and resolution.
(Testing done at 0.80:1 magnification.)
the corner sharpness of the lens is OK at the
sharpest aperture of f/5.6 although you will likely
be able to see a little fuzziness on the periphery
at this aperture.
The corner sharpness improves significantly at
f/8 and above. If you want sharper corners you
can shoot images at f/8 although you will pay a
small price in sharpness and resolution.
(Testing done at 0.80:1 magnification.)
Sharpness and Resolution vs Magnification:
This lens shows surprisingly high sharpness and
resolution across the macro range. The numbers
are better than most 105 and 135 bellows lenses
and enlarging lenses that I have so far tested.
The MTF50 (sharpness) stays above 1000 lp/ph
across its useful macro range on my equipment.
The MTF10 (resolution) stays very near the limit
of the D200 detector across this range.
Adding to the good sharpness and resolution
number is the large working distance - can be too
much for large coins and medals.
The corner sharpness stays around 50% across
the macro range at f/5.6. This could be improved
by stopping the lens down a notch to f/8.
This lens shows surprisingly high sharpness and
resolution across the macro range. The numbers
are better than most 105 and 135 bellows lenses
and enlarging lenses that I have so far tested.
The MTF50 (sharpness) stays above 1000 lp/ph
across its useful macro range on my equipment.
The MTF10 (resolution) stays very near the limit
of the D200 detector across this range.
Adding to the good sharpness and resolution
number is the large working distance - can be too
much for large coins and medals.
The corner sharpness stays around 50% across
the macro range at f/5.6. This could be improved
by stopping the lens down a notch to f/8.
Street Price: About $100 - $150 in good used condition, significantly more with a BR-1 ring.
Chromatic Aberration: This lens show minimal color fringing in the center
(about 0.25 pixel) and minimal on the periphery (0.10 - 0.20 pixels). Anything
below 1.0 pixel is good.
(about 0.25 pixel) and minimal on the periphery (0.10 - 0.20 pixels). Anything
below 1.0 pixel is good.
Image Contrast: Image contrast is good across the magnification range.
Flare: No significant flare is evident during lens testing
Conclusion:
This is an fairly easy to find bellows lens that is quite old, but performs better than I expected for a
lens of its focal length. The numbers are better than most 100-135 mm bellows and enlarging
lenses that I have come across so far.
This lens has very good sharpness and resolution across the macro magnification range and
performs at its best at f/5.6. This resolution also comes with a large working distance. There is very
little chromatic aberration and no visible distortion. Corner sharpness is the only real downfall of
this lens and it isn't so bad at f/5.6. The corner sharpness improves significantly at f/8 although you
will pay a small price in resolution and sharpness when shooting at f/8.
Because of the large working distance, this lens works best with normal size coins - unless you
have a very tall copystand. If you need to shoot large medals, you will probably want a shorter focal
length lens.
All-in-all, there's not a lot to dislike about this lens. It should be a good general lens for imaging
coins on a bellows. If you want to get to 1:1 you will need more than 190 mm of extension (limit of
the Nikon PB-4 that I use). A 25mm extension tube should do the trick. That will allow you to image
almost any coin at full-screen.
This is an fairly easy to find bellows lens that is quite old, but performs better than I expected for a
lens of its focal length. The numbers are better than most 100-135 mm bellows and enlarging
lenses that I have come across so far.
This lens has very good sharpness and resolution across the macro magnification range and
performs at its best at f/5.6. This resolution also comes with a large working distance. There is very
little chromatic aberration and no visible distortion. Corner sharpness is the only real downfall of
this lens and it isn't so bad at f/5.6. The corner sharpness improves significantly at f/8 although you
will pay a small price in resolution and sharpness when shooting at f/8.
Because of the large working distance, this lens works best with normal size coins - unless you
have a very tall copystand. If you need to shoot large medals, you will probably want a shorter focal
length lens.
All-in-all, there's not a lot to dislike about this lens. It should be a good general lens for imaging
coins on a bellows. If you want to get to 1:1 you will need more than 190 mm of extension (limit of
the Nikon PB-4 that I use). A 25mm extension tube should do the trick. That will allow you to image
almost any coin at full-screen.
Basic Function: Requires a bellows or extension tubes to function.
Appearance:
Aperture: 15 blades.
Image Samples:
About 1:2.5 magnification, f/5.6, cropped and resized:
About 1:2.5 magnification, f/5.6, 1 to 1 crop:
Good pixel level detail.
Good pixel level detail.
About 0.80:1, f/5.6, resized:
About 0.80:1 magnification, f/5.6, 1 to 1 crop:
Again, good detail, no problems.
Again, good detail, no problems.
Distortion: There is virtually no distortion with this lens. Straight lines on the
edge of the frame are straight on the image.
edge of the frame are straight on the image.
Performance: Sharpness vs Magnification:
This is a new graph that I recently constructed. I
have 4 lines that represent levels of performance
from outstanding (top) to fair (bottom). This
shows where this lens fit into the hierarchy that I
have created.
The Nikon 135/4 bellows shows very good to
good sharpness performance across the macro
magnification range.
This is a new graph that I recently constructed. I
have 4 lines that represent levels of performance
from outstanding (top) to fair (bottom). This
shows where this lens fit into the hierarchy that I
have created.
The Nikon 135/4 bellows shows very good to
good sharpness performance across the macro
magnification range.
Performance: Resolution vs Magnification:
This is a new graph that I recently constructed. I
have 4 lines that represent levels of performance
from outstanding (top) to fair (bottom). This
shows where this lens fit into the hierarchy that I
have created.
The Nikon 135/4 bellows shows very good
resolution performance across the macro
magnification range.
This is a new graph that I recently constructed. I
have 4 lines that represent levels of performance
from outstanding (top) to fair (bottom). This
shows where this lens fit into the hierarchy that I
have created.
The Nikon 135/4 bellows shows very good
resolution performance across the macro
magnification range.
