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50mm/2.8 collapsable


mann61

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once owned one of that generation, a clean one too, but the pictures were not that clean, sharp enough but not spectacular. for me it would depend whether I worked on film or on an M8 with it, in the latter case I could work away the fog in postprocessing.

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haha! don't know! once owned a 75 cv, a 25 cv and still a 15 cv. all impeccable, especially the 75 is gorgeous as a portraitlens. i would personally not count on cv with fast lenses though

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I own a new generation collapsible Elmar. It produces beautiful pictures with a very pleasant "plasticity"; however, what really impresses me is its sharpness for such a small and low-cost lens. It is one of the best value for money lens among the 50mm's.

 

Paul

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I'm thinking about buying a clean collapsable elmar sn161xxx can anyone tell me how old the lens might be and how sharp they are?

Ta DM

 

I have got one (M-mount) 163...; it is from 1958.

 

Open - from 1: 2,8 to 1:4 - it may be a little bit less sharp than my 1:3,5 (also M-Mount) from 1954. Stopped down to 1.8 both are quite sharp without any visible differences. The older version seems to have a sharper but at the same time warmer touch, but this is very subjective. The 1:2,8-opening was said to push the old Elmar-concept beyond it's limits. So if you don't need the half stop more you should better look for a 1:3,5. The 1:3,5 with M-Mount are equivalent to the famous screw-mount "red scale" Elmars, though with M-Mount they have no red-scale (all those little Leica differences... imagine the discussion it would have stirred in a Leica forum during the fifties, when the "upgrade" to M-Mount didn't have the red-scale....).

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I own a new generation collapsible Elmar. It produces beautiful pictures with a very pleasant "plasticity"; however, what really impresses me is its sharpness for such a small and low-cost lens. It is one of the best value for money lens among the 50mm's.

 

Paul

 

The new 2.8 Elmar - produced since 1994 until recently - is a really different lens compared to the "famous" old ones which were built with variations from the beginning of Leica until mid-sixties. I havn't used it, but it is said to be really sharp in the modern Leica sense; some say that on short distances it is the sharpest of all 50mm.

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The Elmar is the lens which helped to build Leica's reputation. A good one is today still an excellent lens. I would disagree with the comments by Lotw and assume the he actually had a not such a good example if that was his experience.

 

I tested a black scale 3.5, red scale 3.5 and later 2.8 against each other and too found the 3.5 Red Scale the best of the bunch. But the difference is slight, beyond 3.5 they all look the same (although the later lenses offer better contrast and colour rendition).

 

Just make sure you buy a really nice clean example and you'd be happy with any of the 5cm Elmars.

 

The latest model is of course the sharpest - but only available in M mount (you don't say if you need LTM or M). I have long said they should have produced the latest Elmar in LTM, but Leica know best.

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I would disagree with the comments by Lotw and assume the he actually had a not such a good example if that was his experience.

 

Of course that could be, I might still prefer it above a cv then, also because it collapses, which is a good reason in itself to want it. Few dealers would not admit you to take some shots with it on film before buying

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I own a new generation collapsible Elmar. It produces beautiful pictures with a very pleasant "plasticity"; however, what really impresses me is its sharpness for such a small and low-cost lens. It is one of the best value for money lens among the 50mm's.

 

Paul

 

Second that. The collapsible is my "desert island" lens---when I only have room in my carry-on bag for one camera and lens, that's the one I take. It ends up getting used a lot, and I like the photos it takes. Shame they discontinued it, but there are still a lot of them in the retail pipeline.

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the latest version 2.8/50 is a killer lens....probably hte best value for money lens available form Leica...buy it.

 

andy

 

Only problem with it here in UK was that they priced it exactly the same as the Summicron, whereas in other markets I am pretty sure it was cheaper.

I have had the earlier 2.8 since I bought one with my M3 in '68, swopped it for a screw one a couple of years ago and it gets frequent use on the III, and its great for enlarging and close up too, lovely lens.

 

Gerry

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the latest version 2.8/50 is a killer lens....probably hte best value for money lens available form Leica...buy it.

 

andy

 

Here's a page from the removed on-line technical data sheet for the lens.

 

Paul

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The original 50 2.8 is virtually identical in performance to the DR and Rigid Summicrons, just lacking 2.0.

 

The recently discontinued one is a much more modern lens, very sharp without being harsh.

 

You have the watch the old lenses as some are pretty dirty inside and scratched and they do not preform up to original standards. They are really nice if you find a good one.

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50mm 2.8.pdf

 

Bl =170 gr

Ch = 245 gr

 

50mm/2.8 collapsable is a very nice lens :D

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Eelco

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