leslie_p. Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 I wanted to trade my 50mm lux for a 35mm lux or cron but nobody seems interested in a trade right now. I'm now trying to sell it with no bites thus far ..sooo..I would like to know what 35mm lens would compliment a Leica M6..the only problem is I'm on a budget - since I still have the 50mm with me. Can anyone please do me the favor of posting pics from various 35mm lenses to see the differences in crispness/contrast. I have read so many reviews of the Color Skopar lens (mostly negative). Or can someone sell me a 35mm summicron at a decent price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clayh Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 The 35/2.8 Summaron in an M mount is every bit as good as the same vintage 35 cron, IMO. It is just a stop slower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john15 Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 The skopar 35 pancake II is supposed to be a very nice lens; Mike Johnston says good things about it and Mike knows glass better than most. Makes the M6 a very compact kit and the price is right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry_lehrer Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Les, You cannot tell the differences 'tween closely similar lenses on your monitor. Ya gotta handle 16x20 inch prints. BTW, what is the lowest cash price that you would accept for your Summilux? No trade,'cause I would not part with my 4th version 35mm Summicron. Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WM Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Try the VC 35/1.7 Ultron. Tack sharp for $300+. Great budget lens ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 No Pics I am afraid but I own the 35mm cron dating from around the late 70's (contemporary with the M4P or thereabouts) or possibly ealry 1980s. (I cannot recall its design code number I am sorry but its either the last or second last non aspherical design.) I can assure you that it is sharp and contrasty and by Leica standards very affordable. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Camera Quest has a good page on Leica lenses and deals with both qulaity and price issues. http://www.cameraquest.com/mlenses.htm The following Photoethnography link also has a useful guide to Tom Abrahamsons view of various 35mm lenses. http://www.photoethnography.com/ClassicCameras/index-frameset.html?Lens-LSM-Tom35.html~mainFrame I should add that I also have a Summaron 35mm in F3.5 dating to around 1954 - the first version withour eyes but designed for use with the M3 with an accessory viewfinder. Its a much under rated lens which performs very well so long as you do not mind the modest maximum aperture. It does not use the Summicron lanthanum glass so lacks soem of its bite but is never the less a fine lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCL Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 I would second Clay's 35/2.8 Summaron suggestion. I used one for about 10-12 years and loved it, sharp, contrasty...it never failed me. Then I moved on to other lenses and cameras sold it to fund their purchase. I've regretted it ever since. IMHO it well outperformed my current 35/1.4 Summilux. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Probably the best bang for your buck in a "35"mm lens would be either the 40mm Summicron-C or the same lens design under the Minolta Rokkor-C banner. It's a simple matter to modify it to bring up the 35mm frame line in an M body and the coverage is actually a better match for the frame lines found in M4-P and newer Leicas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
back_alley_. Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 the cv 35/2.5 is very sharp and very contrasty, almost too contrasty. a canon 35/1.8 or 2 or even the 2.8 are very good lenses also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Just had a look at Kevins Cameras. http://www.kevincameras.com/ If you check out the M mount lens pages you will find this one ; leica_35_2_3165069 found on page 4 of the M mount lens section, which appears to be the one I have and I referred to above. (Sorry, the site does not allow me to link directly to the relevant page.) I suspect you might get one cheaper than this if you hunt around though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray . Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Hey Al may be on to something. I'm waiting for mine in the mail... Or get a Hexar AF, camera included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray . Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 my minolta summicron cost $200 btw... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 The Minolta version takes standard 40.5mm filters while the Leitz takes that strange not-exactly-standard-39mm size series 5.5 used by nobody else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leslie_p. Posted October 4, 2005 Author Share Posted October 4, 2005 Thanks for your suggestions everybody. I think I need to sell my NIB Minolta auto meter IV F to help fund this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 You're between a rock and a hard place! That's one of the best meters ever made. You'll probably soon regret selling it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry_kincaid1 Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 No budget! And don't give up the 50mm lux; it's a great lens. The sharpest 35mm lenses are the new ones, the 35mm f2.0 cron asph and the 35mm f1.4 summulux asph. Test show they're eqully sharp from 2.0 up. I just bought a used 35mm summilux asph, so I'm now trying to sell my (still fairly new) 35mm cron, if you're interested. I've grown attached to low light photography, so I finally decided to get the f1.4 lens. The cron was perfectly fine, however, and I hate to let it go. But those two lenses really overlap in performance. Here's two photographs I took with the 35mm cron: one landscape of the Na Pali Coast in Kauai, Hawaii, in bright light, and another one hand held in Cape Town South Africa wide open, probably at 1/15 per second. Needless to say, I really like the 35mm cron, and I'm looking forward to using its brother or sister, which ever. Let me know if you're interested in buying a like new 35mm cron asph, with box, case, lens shade, uva filter, everything.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry_kincaid1 Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 And the Na Pali Coast of Hawaii.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_.1 Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 Larry- excellent use of a 35mm. Leslie, maybe check out the Zeiss 35mm f/2.0 from popflash.com. As for keeping your 50 lux, give it consideration if you think you're mainly a 50mm shooter with occasional 35mm usage. In this case, keeping a fast Leica 50 and going with a less expensive (yet still superb) 35 might be the way to go. Either way, that Zeiss seems like a nice lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aizan_sasayama Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 tom abrahamsson also likes the 35/2.5 pancake ii, and prefers its ergonomics over the 1.7. you'd need iso 400 film instead of 100 for low light. where have you read negative reviews? alan soon has a minireview in the archives, only one i know of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leslie_p. Posted October 4, 2005 Author Share Posted October 4, 2005 Larry, I sent you an email asking you a question but I doubt I could afford an ASPH version of any lens. =( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leslie_p. Posted October 4, 2005 Author Share Posted October 4, 2005 Just on forums ..peoples personal reviews/opinions..etc. not on any major website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny massey Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 Has anyone mentioned the Konica Hexanon-M 35? Seldom for sale second hand but worth the wait. A bit big and heavy versus the competition but a stunning performer, quite affordable when and if, very well built and brilliant in use (sensibly placed focusing tab). Sorry, you can't have mine. Johnny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexd Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 I own the "Color Skopar" VC 35 pancake (first edition) whith an M6 classic. I bought the lens 3 years ago for budget reasons, I didn't trade it because of the quality (even though I could now afford a summicron). The lens is sharp, light, with a good "bokeh" (my humble opinion). I would suggest the second version because of the ergonomic improvements (shade, focusing tab). Seems to be very resistant to flare ! Give it a try ... http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/3777820-lg.jpg<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ulrik Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 I have the VC 2,5/35 mm PII. This is a well made and very nice lens. Buy it only new or at least used with return option as even factory new lenses often show a focus mismatch (my third lens was o.k., had to send the first two lenses back). Ulrik Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_Es Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 Get an older Summicron 35/2. The current Voigtlander 35/2.8 is excellent, if you don't mind the f2.8 as fastest f-stop. (My shots + lens testts tell me this is an extremely good lens.) Might consider the Voigtlander 35/1.7. Excellect optics, though build quality might be problematic. The Voigtlander 35/2.8's build quality is excelletn in my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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