I'm sure you will. Don't sell it will you.learn to tickle the trait out of it.
I'm sure you will. Don't sell it will you.learn to tickle the trait out of it.
It might prove hard if I'm overly satisfied with the Nokton+Heliar combo in 50 mm department, but I won't rush too much with this decision.I'm sure you will. Don't sell it will you.
That second shot is marvelous. My hand automatically moved toward the screen to pinch her cheek.I think part of the joy of the Summilux is finding you actually managed to focus manually at 1.4 !
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I also have the Zeiss 50mm 1.5 Sonnar and I think I prefer it's bokeh. The Summilux bokeh can be nasty at times I'm afraid. I try and find an example!
I'm not sure I could ever be 2.4K supportive. There's something really good in that rendering of the Sportster.Round three: Leica Summilux-M 50mm ASPH.
So I occasionally practice this "bidding in support" in some auction sites. I was looking for something else in eBay and while there, I found this good looking Summilux ASPH and I bid on it just for fun and to show support to the seller. No GAS really involved in that decision! But I made the grave mistake of not checking what these lenses actually go for. I assumed for a pristine 6bit-coded Summilux ASPH it'd be around 3k easy. I made a bid of €2.4k and went about my day.
As the closing time closing in I became nervous about not getting any "You've been outbid!" emails. Turns out € 2.4k is a pretty normal price for this lens on the ebays.
Now you gotta realise I didn't have real GAS over another fast 50, not at least this soon! I mean, I had the Nokton for the entirety of 2 days before performing this stupid stunt. Nokton performs stupendously well for a 430-eur-used lens. Smooth to focus and very lovely rendering -- extremely perfectly sharp at all apertures on the center.
Of course, Summilux ASPH/practically-APO is in its class of its own. While I'm waiting for it to arrive from Ireland I'm starting to wonder if it's too perfect a lens? What I mean in this case:
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These (all are in this post) pics taken with Nokton are extremely lovely. Sensational quality and rendering for a 430-eur-used lens. But just "expected" and "appropriate for the money paid" for a Summilux? Taking these sorts of shots with lenses a fraction of the price feels more fulfilling, satisfying. I hope that's not going to be the case in the long run.
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Both these lenses are sharp and probably clinical to some eyes; perhaps the Nokton being 1/8 of the cost and performing a touch softer in places where it helps sounds like a real winner? Nokton does have some midfield/edge softness when shooting wide open. Then again, it's perfectly understandable ESPECIALLY when the vastly more expensive Leica gear behaves exactly the same, having midfield dips and whatnot. I'm not going to fault these lenses for copying the winning rendering recipe to a fault.
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I don't deny: pretty much everything that I've read about the Summilux ASPH sounds like a winner to me. "The best bokeh in a fifty", that eye-piercing 3D pop at any aperture, all the talk about it being actually sharper than the 50 Summicrons (non-APO). For a fifty shooter, this is the desert-island lens.
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And Nokton's not entirely perfect. The biggest issue: the bokeh balls have ugly nipples in them. Will definitely prefer a plain bokeh ball or a soap bubble.
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Consider this post your regular "buyer's remorse" post and also a serenade to Nokton 1.5 ASPH! During the immediate aftermath of winning the bid I returned the Nokton back to the store as I had the option to. I think the 48 hours with it will leave a permament good memory.
I think I'm ready for a 50 mm lens for my M. The problem is of course how many options there are to choose from!
Money being no obstacle, I'd probably go for Leica Summilux 50, the newest. I like focusing tabs and speed!
Money being an obstacle, I'm very much drawn to the exotic Voigtländer 50 Heliar. They say it's got that biting pop and sharpness while retaining "non-clinical" rendering. But at f/3.5 the widest it's not an all-year-round lens option, not at least with my M240-P. But it surely looks creamy smooth stuff. The other downside is that I'd have to buy it new because the owners apparently love it so much they never sell them.
Another super interesting option is "the perfect budget 50", surely the Zeiss 50 Planar. Now, this is everything I love about a lens, and probably more. But there's the discussion about clinicality and character look -- I get it a little bit with my 35 Summicron ASPH and the thing about clinically rendering lenses is that you get those for every platform with autofocus and all.
I could also be going for 75mm but I don't know just yet.
Ah, screw it. Let's skip the usual grazing over the lens options for a week, my usual MO, and let me announce I just placed on order the 50 Heliar and the new 21/3.4 Color-Skopar.
I think there are some missingIn my five years of renewed photography hobby, I didn't tolerate a fifty for the first 3½ years. And now look where I am. I only own one 35mm which is supposed to be my "main" angle and then there are three (four) lenses for 50mm. I have the rangefinder's frameline previews to thank, using these I could get accustomed to the idea of framing the world into 50.
Fifty is where most of my fantasies usually lie. This is not probably a comprehensive list but these following fifties I'd like to at least shoot if not own.
I obviously didn't jot down every desire because I am sure the list should contain closer to a dozen lenses, not just these seven.
- Zeiss Sonnar 50 f/1.5 (the pop)
- Leica Noctilux 50 f/1 (Mandler)
- Leica Noctilux 50 f/0.95 (Karbe)
- Leica Summicron 50 f/2 (the classic)
- Leica Summilux 50 pre-ASPH f/1.4 (another classic)
- Leica Elmar 50 f/2.8 (collapsible retro classic)
- CV 50 APO-Lanthar f/2 (the new kid on the block)
Oh yes. I limited myself to M mount lenses on purpose...I think there are some missing
Not even as expensive as some on that list
like the summar, the rigid, the pentax L43, ...
I'm sure Brian would have "some" suggestions.
There's a wonderful world of M42 lenses available as well with a lot of 50mm to choose from. And those are normally really cheap.
This is why I'm a bit reluctant to fork out on 'the' Summilux ASPH. Aside from the fact that whatever your own financial circumstances, that's still a lot of cash one could be spending on family in these times, @mike3996 , I think, is the owner or a Summilux and he's still chasing the 50s!I think there are some missing
Not even as expensive as some on that list
like the summar, the rigid, the pentax L43, ...
I'm sure Brian would have "some" suggestions.
There's a wonderful world of M42 lenses available as well with a lot of 50mm to choose from. And those are normally really cheap.