fredus Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Hi there ! Well I'm finally the owner of a Leica M6 TTL (Thanks to Jack Pien on this forum !) .. Of course I need a lens since it would be a very expensive paperweight without one. I'm heading toward a 50mm summicron. I've tried one when I first rented a M6 with the focusing tab and the removable hood. I liked it. I've notice that the new summicron don't have a tab but rather a red dot ... Is this for focusing ?? Is it convenient VS the tab ?? At what serial number did they stop including the tab on the 'cron ? Thanks for your help ! Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
didier Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 You can find infos on serial numbers at : http://www.imx.nl/photosite/leica/overview/listm.html If I am right, the 50mm summicron with focusing tab was stopped in 1994. It is however the same optical formula as the current one. cheers Didier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cameron_sawyer Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Tab versus no tab is a subjective, personal issue. Try them both. The red dot is for lining up the lens when mounting it and has nothing to do with focussing. But don't you think an F2 lens on a Leica is not quite the thing? This camera lives for fast glass. Consider a Summilux or a Nokton instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b_n_f Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 This is also a good source for serial number info: <a href="http://www.leicagallery.com/lensdates.htm" >LensNumbers/Years</a> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_eulass Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 A Summilux or a Noctilux would be nice, but you're also talking about several hundred additional dollars to have one, in the case of the Summilux, or an additional grand in the case of the Noctilux. Have you considered other focal lengths? My first Leica lens was 35mm Summicron aspherical and its still my mainstay lens. Well worth the investment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 I doubt if most folks shoot all that many photos at apertures of f/2 or f/1.4. If fast was all that important in this age of quality higher speed and less grainy films then we'd see a lot more high speed lenses on the market. Manufacturers really try to make what sells best. The over all market is flooded with relatively slow speed zooms. A 50/1.4 gives you very little depth of field at normal indoor shooting distances, and costs considerably more than an f/2. And if you do start shooting at f/1.4 with your 50 on an asssignment what are you supposed to do when you want to change to a 21 or 90? Life is full of compromises but the superb sharpness and rendition of an f/2 Summicron shouldn't be one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johann_fuller Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 The 50 F2 summicron is a superb lens - better opticaly at F2 than many other lenses stopped down. Your only drawback using this on your M6 is that the frameline only shows 2/3rds of what you get on film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry_freeman1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 The image in this <a href=http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a- fetch-msg?msg_id=006mAT>thread</a>is a later series 50 f2 cron @ f2 1/30 handheld. Notice the dof fall off in the table grain on the right side. My hands are too large to comfortably use the tab lense and I also did not like the clip on hood or its interference in the finder. Paid a local dealer $375 US for this one in mint condition...jf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p._so1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Jerry, I can't seem to see anything in the link. $375 for a minter sounds like a great deal! I've been considering upgrading from my Summarit to the legendary Cron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p._so1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Can someone post a picture of a recent black 50 Cron on a M3 (chrome) body? Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albert_smith Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 <I>Can someone post a picture of a recent black 50 Cron on a M3 (chrome) body?</I><div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_white2 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 This one's recent. Well, only 33 years. But they're meant to last a lifetime, right? ;-) PJW<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry_freeman1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 P. SO Sorry the link is now broken. See the thread: w/nw 'stuck inside' below, first pict...jf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p._so1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Albert/Peter, thanks for the picture. W/ some more overtime and luck, I hope to join the Cron crowd soon.<br><br> Jerry, I remember seeing that fantastic still life. Just superb contrast and sharpness. I just got into Leica photography and my hands are rather large as well. The tab is a bit hard for me to get used to...I think I would be looking for a modern Cron as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fredus Posted December 14, 2003 Author Share Posted December 14, 2003 I thought about a 35mm but I shoot 90% of the time with a 50mm on my EOS 33 ... make sense :-) I looked at the Nokton. While I like the fact that I can shoot at f/1.5 I'm not sure it's up to par with the 'cron ... Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roberto_watson_garc_a Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Beautiful pictures.I Like that reflection Albert. I have a ´cron and a ´lux, and there is no comparison about plasticity, if I can call it plasticity, I prefer the ´cron, although images of ´lux at 1.4 and 2 work so fine if you look for isolation at center of frame with a high contrast, I don´t like mid range of ´lux (2.8 to 16) too flatty and no roundness of image. About tab: I have a non tab ´cron and I´m very used to it, lately Tom Gallagher let me use his tabed one and found it very practical and faster to focus at closer distances (I have small hands). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m_. Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Fred: If 50/2 is the lens you are going for, get an older version with a tab. I said this before and will say it again: the group of people who like the one with the tab is nuts. The focusing is much easier and faster with the tab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m_. Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 I mean "who like the one withOUT the tab is nuts". Sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p._so1 Posted December 14, 2003 Share Posted December 14, 2003 Wentong, I don't really think I am nuts but will take your advice into consideration when I hopefully one day can spring the cash for the Cron. I only own one Leica lens (the Summarit that came w/ my free M3) and it is tabbed...coming from a SLR world, maybe I need more time to adjust to the tab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bart feliciano Posted December 15, 2003 Share Posted December 15, 2003 After borrowing a friend's tabbed 50, i made my own tab with a black plastic cable tie. http://www.buycableties.com/y14120c.html used something similar to this. It looks silly, but noone has noticed the tie on the lens yet and i can focus by feel. Please don't hit me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
douglas k. Posted December 15, 2003 Share Posted December 15, 2003 I owned a 35mm 'Cron with the tab and hated it. Better to try the different versions rather than take someone's word for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wes_baker1 Posted December 17, 2003 Share Posted December 17, 2003 I've got your solution: Get one with a tab and one without. Figure out which one you like least, and send it to me. But seriously, I already have a tabbed Summicron f2, and wouldn't part with it for anything. Despite being one of the oldest lenses I own, it produces more pleasant images wide open than any other normal lens I have, for any film format. With the possible exception of a Fuji 150 I use with 4X5... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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