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Lens NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1:1.4 1980s Artralab Hong Kong (mount Sony E-mount/FE-mount) shown in this review was provided by by Artra.

Navigation

1. In short
2. Main Specifications
3. Assembly
4. Focusing
5. Image quality
6. Sample Photos
7. My experience
8. Price
9. All Artralab lenses
10. Video review
11. Results
12. User Comments
13. Add your review or question on the lens

Note: on the official website near the front lens of the lens there are the inscriptions “NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1: 1.4 1980s Artralab + serial number“, but in the lens from the review the inscriptions are slightly different “NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1: 1.4 1980s Artralab Hong Kong (and without serial number).”

Note: there is a similar lens NONIKKOR-MC 1:1.4 f=3.5cm 1980s Artralab Hong Kong, but with a body design typical of Nikon Nikkor lenses from the 1960s.

In this review, I will abbreviate the NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1:1.4 1980s Artralab Hong Kong lens as Nonikkor 35/1.4.

Note: The Nonikkor 35/1.4 lens is available in different mounts. This review shows the Nonikkor 35/1.4 version for mirrorless cameras Sony E / FE with full frame sensor. At the same time, Nonikkor 35/1.4 is also available with mounts Nikon Z, Leica l и fujifilm x.

In short

Nonikkor 35/1.4 is a modern manual (manual focusing only) fast prime lens for mirrorless cameras with a full-frame sensor.

First of all, the Nonikkor 35/1.4 is interesting as a modern lens using a retro body design. The Nonikkor 35/1.4 makes reference to the Nikon Nikkor optics of the 1980s. Nonikkor 35/1.4 will look good on modern mirrorless cameras Nikon Z fc и Nikon Zf. But also on the system cameras Sony E and alliance Leica l / Panasonic L / Sigma L The lens looks just great.

Nonikkor 35/1.4 is very well built and pleasant to use. The disadvantages are strong vignetting at F/1.4 and “dirty” color rendition.

Useful:

• All Artralab lenses
• All autofocus lenses for Sony E/FE

Main technical characteristics of NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1:1.4 1980s Artralab Hong Kong:

Review Instance Name	Near the front lens: NONIKKOR-MC 35mm 1:1.4 1980s Artralab Hong Kong On body: Assembled in China Lens Designed in Hong Kong Mysterious inscription “343” on the aperture control ring Mount side: E:MOUNT
Basic properties	The lens uses the Sony E mount and is suitable for full frame mirrorless cameras Manual focus only Metal mount, metal body Multi-Enlightened Optics Retro design
Front Filter Diameter	52 mm
Focal length	35 mm EGF for cameras Sony, Nikon, Leica with APS-C sensor is 52.5 mm
Zoom ratio	1 X (this is a fixed lens, it does not have a zoom)
Designed by	Option from review for Sony full frame mirrorless cameras. This lens exists with mounts: Nikon Z Leica l fujifilm x
Number of aperture blades	10 rounded petals
Tags	bayonet mount mark focusing distance scale in meters and feet. Meters: 10, 5, 3, 2, 1.5, 1.2, 1, 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.5, 0.45, 0.35 and infinity mark. Feet: 30, 15, 7, 5, 4, 3.5, 3, 2.5, 2, 1.7, 1.5, 1.2 depth of field scale for F/4 (green), 8 (pink), 11 (yellow), 16 (blue) mark for working in the infratasm spectrum (red dot on the depth of field scale) aperture scale on aperture ring
Diaphragm	F / 1.4 to F / 16, controlled by aperture control ring. There are marks for F/1.4, 2, 2.8, 4 (green), 5.6, 8 (pink), 11 (yellow), 16 (blue). The ring rotates with clicks.
MDF	0.35 meters, maximum magnification ratio of approximately 1: 7 (measured)
The weight	293 grams (measured, lens only, without Sony E caps) 315 grams (measured, with covers, Sony E version)
Optical design	7 elements in 5 groups The optical design is clickable for magnification. The scheme is similar to the diagram Uranus 35/2
Lens hood	Must be screwed into the front filter thread; marking unknown
Manufacturer country	Made in China. Assembled in China, Lens Designed in Hong Kong
Period	Since the spring of 2023
Price	About $ 380

It's important: light transmission (aperture) Nonikkor 35/1.4 at F/1.4 aperture is in the area T / 1.8. I compared Nonikkor 35/1.4 with the lens Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 DC DN C (Contemporary). Nonikkor 35/1.4 at F/1.4 gives an exposure approximately 1/3 lower than Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 DC DN C (Contemporary) at the same F/1.4 value. exposure varies both in the histogram and in the measurement system exposure all else being equal. This behavior is typical for some Chinese lenses, for example, PERGEAR 35mm 1: 1.6 HD.MC (real T/2.4 at stated F/1.6).

Assembly

In general, the lens is well built. Nonikkor 35/1.4 has bayonet mount metal and the lens body itself is completely made of metal. The focus ring is rubberized.

The weight of the Nonikkor 35/1.4 lens itself is just under 300 grams. In your hands the lens feels like a solid and pleasant thing.

The diameter of the filters is standard 52 mm.

The markings on the lens are engraved and filled with paint. The depth of field scale is made in the form of multi-colored stripes, the color of which corresponds to a certain value of the F number:

The diaphragm consists of ten blades and forms a hole in the shape of a regular decagon, while in photographs in the blur zone, fairly round discs of blur are obtained at any aperture value. The diaphragm can only be controlled manually using a special ring. The aperture ring rotates with clicks. The clicks are poorly expressed. The aperture control ring is tight. In fact, you can set any intermediate aperture value (due to the tight movement of the ring).

The design of the Nonikkor 35/1.4 is nice, and the lens itself is compact. The design is similar to the original ones Nikon Nikkor 35mm 1:2 (1981-2005), Nikon Nikkor 50mm 1:1.4 (1981-1986) and other Nikon Nikkor AI/AI-S lenses of that time. True, the color scheme of the depth of field scale does not match the original Nikon Nikkor lenses, and the Nonikkor 35/1.4 does not have “bunny ears“. Also, the design of Nonikkor 35/1.4 is a bit reminiscent of modern lenses Nikon Z Nikko SE: Nikon Nikkor Z 28mm 1: 2.8 SE и Nikon Nikkor Z 40mm 1: 2 SE.

Focusing

The focus ring is rubberized. The ring rotates on 135 degrees (3/8 of a full turn). Focusing is smooth and enjoyable.

During focusing, the trunk of the lens runs forward but does not spin. During focusing, the entire lens block moves.

On the ring there is a scale with focusing distance in meters and feet and a depth of field scale. The minimum focusing distance is 35 centimeters, and the maximum magnification factor is small, approximately 1:7.

Nonikkor 35/1.4 has a slight 'Focus Breathing' effect (changing the viewing angle while focusing). When focusing towards the MDF, the viewing angle decreases.

Focus Shift (focus shift, changing focus distance due to iris)

Have a hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop) for fast and accurate focusing in all temperature conditions

Important: focus picking with Nonikkor 35/1.4 and Sony α7 III, Sony a3500 и Sony NEX-6 works well at F / 1.4.

Image quality

Nonikkor 35/1.4 is quite weak at open apertures due to field curvature and strong vignetting, while color rendition suffers due to the yellowish tint of the lenses. And here chromatic aberration Fixed well.

Sharpness

1. at F/1.4 the resolution in the center of the frame is mediocre
2. the situation changes significantly with aperture down to F / 2.0, where the lens shows good sharpness in the center of the frame
3. there is a slight drop in sharpness towards the edges and corners of the frame (which is good; usually such lenses have a catastrophic drop in resolution at the edges of the frame)
4. important: the lens has a significant field curvature

Distortion

1. there is significant barreling distortion

Vignetting

1. very strong vignetting F/1.4 (example)
2. vignetting decreases with focus towards MDF. Most noticeable when focusing on infinity
3. vignetting almost disappears at f / 8
4. vignetting difficult to fix in the editor

Aberration

1. you can observe a small amount of chromatic aberration (usually similar lenses have much more of them)
2. spherical aberrations are well corrected

Rest

1. from bright light sources you can get a lot of glare, while they can be of enormous size (Example 1, Example 2, Example 3)
2. The character of the bokeh is a little nervous, with doubling of elements. Discs of blur towards the edges and corners of the image turn into lemons/cat eyes (Example 1, Example 2)
3. easy to get the effect of a 10-pointed star (example)

It's important: Lenses appear slightly 'yellow'. Yellowness is clearly visible in high contrast images: 1 view, 2 view. Perhaps this is a reference to old optics, which over time can change their clearing color, become cloudy, turn yellow/green. But the original old Nikon Nikkor optics from the 1980s do not have this drawback. This yellowing is typical, for example, of some older Takumar lenses. A striking example is ASAHI OPT. Co. Super Takumar 1:2/35. In any case, for modern optics this antireflection behavior is a serious drawback. The effect in photographs is clearly visible when shooting with a fixed white balance. With a large sample of photographs, it becomes clear that the lens creates “dirty” color rendition, which is not always cured by successful installation white balance. Perhaps the lens was originally designed this way, for example, to take more black and white photographs.

Important: At the time of writing this review, there was no Nonikkor 35/1.4 profile for popular RAW converters. You can create a profile yourself or wait for its release.

Examples of photos on Full Frame (Sony a7m3)

Camera used sony a7 III (24 MP Full Frame Exmor R BSI CMOS sensor). All photos in this review are shown without processing, according to the principles ZEROJPEG. The standard snapshot management method is unchanged (0,0,0).

Original photos c sony a7 III in JPEG/RAW format ('.ARW' with compression) you can view / download this link (100+ files, Google Drive gallery).

Sample APS-C photos (Sony NEX-6)

Sample photos on Sony NEX-6 (16MP Sony Exmor APS-C HD CMOS sensor), specially for this review, prepared Natalia (Instagram). All photos in this review are shown without processing, according to the principles ZEROJPEG.

Original JPEG ('.jpg) images can be download / watch this link (40+ files, GOOGLE DRIVE). The same photo shoot can be viewed from the other side through the prism sony a7 III и MEIKE 85mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens FF STM.

My experience

Nonikkor 35/1.4 was released even before the release of a full-frame camera with a retro body design Nikon Zf. At the time of the announcement of Nonikkor 35/1.4, there was only a cropped camera with a retro body design Nikon Z fc. Apparently the Artralab company knew something in advance.

It was difficult for me to understand the highlight of Nonikkor 35/1.4; the optical design of the lens is similar to the old one Uranus 35/2.

I can only recommend Nonikkor 35/1.4 to camera owners Nikon Zf и Nikon Z fc, on which he can emphasize the user’s commitment to the old design of photographic equipment. But it is worth paying tribute to the courage of the Artralab company, which immediately, right in the name, declares that this is 'NOT NIKKOR' ('NONIKKOR').

By the way, there are practically no such manual alternatives to the 35/1.4 class for full frame with a Nikon Z mount.

Price

Nonikkor 35/1.4 is in the area 380 dollars.

Video review

Appearance

Results

Nonikkor 35/1.4 is an interesting lens, but it has very strong drawbacks. It can serve as a standard manual lens for every day for owners of full-frame or cropped mirrorless cameras. First of all, Nonikkor 35/1.4 will look good on cameras with a retro design Nikon Zf и Nikon Z fc.

10 main advantages

1. Unique design that references Nikon Nikkor optics from the 1980s
2. compact dimensions (for example, the original Sony FE 35mm 1.4 / 35 GM much larger)
3. common thread for 52 mm filters
4. good build quality: the lens body is completely made of metal, including a metal mount
5. smooth focusing ring
6. hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop)
7. ten aperture blades that always give a fairly rounded opening
8. good sharpness in the center of the frame after f / 2 and excellent on more covered apertures
9. There are options for popular mirrorless mounts Sony E, Nikon Z, Leica l, fujifilm x
10. peculiar drawing

10 main disadvantages

1. high price
2. aperture is at the T/1.8 level (lower than higher quality lenses with a maximum relative aperture of 1:1.4, which should give light transmission at the T/1.5-T/1.6 level)
3. clearing gives a yellowish tint
4. a strange decision to release a similar lens with mounts Sony E, fujifilm x и Leica l (while making a reference to Nikon Nikkor optics)
5. front and back covers without logo/name (do not inspire confidence in the manufacturer)
6. The clicks of the aperture ring are poorly expressed, the aperture control ring is quite tight
7. no CPU pins to form the correct EXIF
8. there is no lens profile for popular RAW converters, the lens is not 'hardwired' into modern cameras
9. in back or side light, you can easily get a large number of artifacts
10. mediocre resolution at F/1.4, strong vignetting at F/1.4, significant field curvature

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Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram