Thor,Wonder what that means for the current ZM (Oberkochen, West Germany) Zeiss Sonnar 2.0/85mm? Is it soft or sharp?
I do certainly want a 2.0/85 for my IIIa at some point. Will need to keep the Jena/Stuttgart difference in mind. Is the only way you can tell the postwar from the prewar 2.0/85 the T coating?
Jan
From: Thor Legvold <tlegvold@xxxxxxx> Date: Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:24:28 +0200 ... I asked Henry Scherer the same thing when I was looking for a 2/85 Sonnar. Here's what he had to say: Quote: There are two 85mm f2.0 lenses. The first was made after the war inJenafor the postwar Contax IIa. It was made in very small numbers and isa Tcoated lens. It is a very great lens being very sharp. The secondwas madein West Germany after the partition of Germany. It was advertised by Zeissto be a portrait lens, meaning it's soft, and it certainly is. If you want asoft 85 this will be easy because many were made. It will also berelatively easy to find one in almost mint condition because they were notused being so soft. If you want a sharp 85 that looks good this isgoing tobe difficult and you will have to be very patient. There are not a lot ofthe earlier Jena T lenses, they got used a lot and marked up because they areso sharp and so good looking ones are extremely rare. It has taken measlong as a year to find a suitable postwar Jena T 85 2.0 Sonnar. The sharpest lens ever made for the Contax rangefinder mount is the postwar Jena T 85mm f2.0 Sonnar. It is also an APO design and so does very well with modern color film. They are hard to find because not alotof them were made. They are hard to find in beautiful condition becausethey took such great pictures and got used a lot. But they are definitelyworth the work and patience required to find. /Quote