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I spent the bank holiday with a 75mm Summliux


IWC Doppel

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I was lucky enough to borrow a mint late 75mm summilux, just back from Solms after adjustment and cleaning. It took me a while to get even remotely used to the length, but a very nice lens indeed. I really like the way it renders, superb with close range portraits. I really liked it at f2.8.

 

Any other thoughts on 75mm as a length ?

 

I think I will add it to my want list ;)

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I was lucky enough to borrow a mint late 75mm summilux' date=' just back from Solms after adjustment and cleaning. It took me a while to get even remotely used to the length, but a very nice lens indeed. I really like the way it renders, superb with close range portraits. I really liked it at f2.8.

 

Any other thoughts on 75mm as a length ?

 

I think I will add it to my want list ;)[/quote']

 

I really like the Summilux 75mm. I added LeicaGoodies focus assist (Steer) for a bit of help. The lens is one of three I have been absolutely committed to for decades. Noctilux users who love OOF (bokeh) might chime in here with their impressions - I hope.

Edited by pico
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I really like the Summilux 75mm. I added LeicaGoodies focus assist (Steer) for a bit of help. The lens is one of three I have been absolutely committed to for decades. Noctilux users who love OOF (bokeh) might chime in here with their impressions - I hope.

 

+1 for both lenses (both with a Steer). check out a thread by adan on other mandler lenses. the thread is practically a reference work on the subject, with illustrating photos from each lens.

 

good luck finding a summilux 75

 

rick

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Once adjusted a superb lens. Use for concerts, great portraits, good travel lens and excellent close ups. Near enough to 50 that can also be a tighter "normal" lens. And you get both frame lines together so easy to compare.

 

Rendering wonderful, and good fit for M system. Have 90 Elmarit and love it but 75 wins out. It is heavy but hard to leave home without it.

 

18, 35 and 75 good mini package too.

 

Have a 75 Cron on order but hard to give Lux up. It is very special and no wonder Mandler said it was his favorite lens!

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I have found a comparison for you - mostly in respect of out of focus areas, as I did not really nail the focus of the Noctilux image.

 

First one, M9 with Noctilux at f/0.95, shot at ISO 640, 1/25th

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Second image, Summilux 75/1.4, at 1.4 (I think - the EXIF says 2.8, but I don't think that was right), ISO 160 at 1/500

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Also consider the Voigtlander 75 f2.5 Color-Heliar!

 

I do have many lenses in this range, including a 75 Summilux and other rare samples, but the moment, I saw the first test shots from the tiny, little Voigtlander, I truly was astonished!

 

It renders in a very classic way, not contrasting the beautiful rendering of the Summilux, but indeed it could well be mixed with some Mandler lenses and would not throw out the balance of a series of photographs, when used.

 

The Voigtlander is small change in price of second hand samples, compared to the Summilux and it is really a beautiful lightweight and very compact lens, to also have in the bag, if the Summilux is simply to big and heavy to carry also.

 

In my opinion, the Color-Heliar is the ideal lens for anybody, to figure out, if the 75mm frame is for them or not.

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Thanks guys, John I love your 50 Summilux shot

 

Here are a couple at F2.8, close and long :

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And a couple close up at F1.4 and two more showing the bokeh wide open. I was impressed how well it shot into the light as well.

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I have little use for the 75mm length. I have even less use for large, heavy and clumsy lenses on a M camera.

 

Given that, the 75mm Summarit is a very nice lens – on a M8, where its angle of acceptance is equal to that of a 100mm lens on a 24x36 camera. And that is a useful length.

 

And I have short patience with the current rage for fuzz too.

 

The old man from the Negative Age

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I have little use for the 75mm length. I have even less use for large, heavy and clumsy lenses on a M camera.

 

Given that, the 75mm Summarit is a very nice lens – on a M8, where its angle of acceptance is equal to that of a 100mm lens on a 24x36 camera. And that is a useful length.

 

And I have short patience with the current rage for fuzz too.

 

The old man from the Negative Age

 

Well, we both like and have use for the 75mm focal length.;)

I find it to be quite an 'intimate' focal length without the tighter framing of 90mm+ lenses, and goes well for me in combination with a 35mm, and particularly 28mm lens.

It's unlike you to write with such 'negative waves'.

 

Having said that, although the 75 Summilux is very tempting for it's rendering, I don't want the size and weight. I'm more than happy with my 2.0/75 Summicron ASPH and the 2.5/75 Color-Heliar. I agree with Dirk that the CV is a great little lens and under-appreciated. Sean Reid has a very favourable review of the CV. As expected it is much softer than the Summicron but also only cost me 10% of the Leica.

Edited by MarkP
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In some ways it has made me more interested in using my 90 that doesn't get much exercise. I did find the weight a little bit if an issue, more that I thought I would.

 

The other thing I will look into is moving from full res LR to small jpg as I note that my pictures do look a little dark, I wanted to keep the mood of the wet overcast day but on the forum they remind me of setting the brightness to low on a projector and crushing blacks

 

Shame Leica didn't do an Elmarit-M 75 with similar rendering as the 90, I do think I prefer the 75 length. I am very inexperienced of anything much over 50, I bet if I 'averaged' my shots over the last few years it would be less than 40mm....

 

I really get 35 and 28 and can adapt to 24 and 50 okay, 21 I'm getting better at and still a bit lost over 50, but 3 days solid with the 75 was great, I took my 35 along and had to work hard not to put it on !

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Second image, Summilux 75/1.4, at 1.4 (I think - the EXIF says 2.8, but I don't think that was right), ISO 160 at 1/500

 

John, could it be that it is actually at 2.8? I don't know the shooting distance or if you cropped but at say 1.5m at 1.4 the DOF is 1cm; at 2.8 it is 2cm. A nice photo though.

 

In some ways it has made me more interested in using my 90 that doesn't get much exercise. I did find the weight a little bit if an issue, more that I thought I would.

 

The whippet photo is really very nice. Btw the first version is lighter (490g) than the second (600g) and the third (560g) though, of course, has 1m minimum distance.

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Well, we both like and have use for the 75mm focal length.;)

I find it to be quite an 'intimate' focal length without the tighter framing of 90mm+ lenses, and goes well for me in combination with a 35mm, and particularly 28mm lens.

It's unlike you to write with such 'negative waves'.

 

Well, some people regard me as the resident old curmudgeon.

 

But my own experience – which is of course not necessarily obligatory for other people – is that 75mm is a sort of betwixt-and-between length, without either the ease of a 50mm or the concentration of 90mm. Your mileage, as usual, may vary.

 

This said, the Color-Heliar is a nice little lens, well built and of course very compact. If you do like the length, I do recommend it for your attention. It is much like the 'thin' 90mm Tele-Elmar (of which I have written today here: http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/customer-forum/252623-elmar-c-90-4-vs-tele-2.html) but it is actually slightly better wide open.

 

The old man from the Age of the 9cm Elmar

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What's with all the B&W?

 

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