I enjoy reading everybody's endless lens tests on PDML as well as two Leica lists, the Rollei Users Group and many websites. I have bought and sold equipment based on the aforementioned collective wisdom. I continue my own endless tests. (Today I tested two Leica R lenses against a Canon FD and a Leica M.) Currently, I use a Leica M, Canon FD, Pentax ME Super, and recently have unearthed my old Spotmatic and a basket of M42 lenses. The discussions about the 28/3.5 remind me of the SMC Tak M42 28/3.5 I toured Europe with ages ago. I have 12X18 color prints on the wall from that beauty that are among the best I have ever made. However, the best B&W prints I have are 11X14s from Plus-X, shot with an Asahi Pentax H1a (pre SP) and the 55/2 Super Takumar M42 lens in 1965. Some include a roll of Bill Graham and the San Francisco Mime getting busted for using the F-word in a public park. (Little did they know what was going to be happening in those parks a few years hence.)
The problem with all these tests is all the major makers turn out some great lenses. Mike Johnson has written words of wisdom on this subject in his Sunday column. Like him, I love the feeling of focusing and using screwmount Pentax and Leica M lenses. I went around the world with a Leica M6 and a Ricoh GR1 (quality p&s). I print, show, and occasionally sell more shots from the GR1 than the Leica. Under the loupe I can only tell the difference because the GR1 is a 28mm. I have a rat's nest of 36 exp strips of Velvia in a box that I cannot match to any particular camera. Now I mark the test rolls with a felt pen to avoid arguments with myself. After all, like El Dorado, that perfect lens is just down the road waiting to be discovered. I'll tell everybody after I get mine. Bill Lawlor
