asterinex Posted August 21, 2016 Share #1 Posted August 21, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) Un uncle of mine has two R lenses which I may borrow when I want:) I never shot with leica , always with Zeiss C/Y glass.These are the lenses : 1) Summicron 35/2 : Serial 2403962, Summicron-R 1:2/35 Leitz Canada 2) Leitz wetzlar summicron-R 50mm 1:2 I want to use them on a Sony A7 or a Leica T. Can anyone tell me more about these lenses ? Are they good ? From what year are they ?... thx Gert Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted August 21, 2016 Posted August 21, 2016 Hi asterinex, Take a look here Info please on Summicron 35/2 and 50/2. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
jip Posted August 21, 2016 Share #2 Posted August 21, 2016 Hey there, So the 35mm lens is one of the very first 35mm Summicron lenses by Leica for the R system, the performance is good, but nothing very special to todays standards, it will give an amazing classic rendering to your images. The lens you speak of seems to be from 1970 and is if not upgraded a '2-cam' lens this is only important if you want to use it on a Leica R body, and doesn't matter at all when you want to shoot it on the Leica T or A7, of course the Leica T has an APS-C sized sensor so the field of view would be 1.5 times more narrow than on the A7 or any other fullframe camera. The 50mm lens you speak of is also the first version Leica made for the R series camera's and is a good performer, with the same classical characteristics, it's a very good lens though, as are all Leica lenses basically. Very compact with good quality performance, makes it a nice small compact 50mm. You'll notice that the Leica glass has a more natural look than the Zeiss glass in general, a bit less punchy maybe but more life like to my taste. I use the Leica S system with Leica S lenses which are the worlds best in my opinion, and I pay the price for it! But I also have the 'Leica S-Adapter C' which makes it possible to use the Zeiss lenses for the Contax 645 system with full autofocus and aperture functionality. The Zeiss lenses are older and aren't as good as the Leica lenses but they are still amazing with a real Zeiss look to them which I sometimes really like. In the end all Leica and Zeiss glass is usually more than good enough for what we do, so you can't really go wrong. The Leica glass is usually more compact though with equal of better performance of the equivalent lenses of the same era. I hope this helped you a bit I wrote an article about the Leica Summilux-R 80mm using it on the Leica M240 which is a bit what you would be doing (using SLR lenses on a mirrorless system) You can read it here: http://jipvankuijk.nl/summilux-r-80-leica-r8-m-typ-240/ The article really shows how an old lens by Leica can deliver amazing results digitally and on film in todays age. Mine is from 1980 it's the 24th lens produced out of the total of 12250 lenses. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 21, 2016 Author Share #3 Posted August 21, 2016 Thx Jip, What is the price for these lenses( first models )in the Netherlands? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve McGarrett Posted August 21, 2016 Share #4 Posted August 21, 2016 For me, first version of Summicron-R 35 is a wonderful lens, better than second version in many respects in my opinion; its only fault is a far from exceptional flare resistance. Summicron 50 v1 is very good too; you can't do wrong with these lenses, but of course it's a personal choice in the end. As for price, I can't be accurate but I think that 300-400 € for 50 and 600-800 € for 35 could be a good starting point, if in great condition... Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jip Posted August 21, 2016 Share #5 Posted August 21, 2016 300-400 for both, the first generation Summicron-R is not very wanted since the Version two isn't much more expensive. Version two is had for between 600-1200 depending on the state it's in. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 21, 2016 Author Share #6 Posted August 21, 2016 300-400 for both, the first generation Summicron-R is not very wanted since the Version two isn't much more expensive. Version two is had for between 600-1200 depending on the state it's in. You mean 300 euro's for both lenses or 300 euro's each ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jip Posted August 21, 2016 Share #7 Posted August 21, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) You mean 300 euro's for both lenses or 300 euro's each ? 300-400 each... I don't think there is much price difference between the two. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 21, 2016 Author Share #8 Posted August 21, 2016 (edited) ok thx, I picked them up and are ready for a testdrive. Here they are. Both in really nice condition. What a build-quality ! Btw; I found 2 really nice picture galleries of the R-35 E48 (first generation)Looks pretty impressive to me http://cnc.xitek.com/thread-1162793-1-1-1.html https://www.flickr.com/photos/yoyo31/sets/72157625167197330/ Edited August 21, 2016 by asterinex Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jip Posted August 22, 2016 Share #9 Posted August 22, 2016 Build quality has never been a problem with Leica haha enjoy them just be aware that they might give quite a lot of chromatic aberation which is easily dealt with in Lightroom. This is due to their purpose as lenses for film and not sensors. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Locutus Posted August 22, 2016 Share #10 Posted August 22, 2016 Obviously you shoot them on Tri-X 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 22, 2016 Author Share #11 Posted August 22, 2016 Obviously you shoot them on Tri-X lol, for the body I'm torn between Sony A7 , Sony A7II, Fuji X, Leica T. The Sony is FF, so no crop, but somehow it doesn't feel like a cam, more like a high tech toy. Any suggestions ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Locutus Posted August 22, 2016 Share #12 Posted August 22, 2016 Sony A7's are indeed cameras as designed by software engineers, utterly unenjoyable. Fuji X is nice but crop sensor which is a bummer. Leica T? to costly for what it is. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve McGarrett Posted August 22, 2016 Share #13 Posted August 22, 2016 I think that lenses designed for 24x36 should be used on 24x36, so between the 3 I highly suggest the Sony option for 35 and 50 you were asking for (and all other R-lenses, by the way). Ultimately, feeling of use is a matter of taste. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB_tx Posted August 22, 2016 Share #14 Posted August 22, 2016 Although the Sony A7 can be criticized, I use one with my R lenses (and other manual film-era SLR lenses) and get very good results. Focusing with these manual lenses is easier with the EVF than with any dSLR I've tried. I'm sure the Leica SL would be better, but I'm happy with the A7 for my use. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 23, 2016 Author Share #15 Posted August 23, 2016 I'm also looking for other cheaper lens caps. I want to keep the orginal leica caps at home, so I don't loose them.Is it possible to put normal other caps on them and what mm-size to they need to have ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
masjah Posted August 23, 2016 Share #16 Posted August 23, 2016 I'm also looking for other cheaper lens caps. I want to keep the orginal leica caps at home, so I don't loose them. Is it possible to put normal other caps on them and what mm-size to they need to have ? I think you can buy "generic" Leica R caps on line at a somewhat less outrageous price than the Leica branded ones. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbealnz Posted August 23, 2016 Share #17 Posted August 23, 2016 Take your lenses to any of the "older" camera stores, ones that seem to have used items. Most have screeds of spare old caps. Sit and try them. There are push on, as well as those that use the filter threads. Trying will be the best way. Gary 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jip Posted August 24, 2016 Share #18 Posted August 24, 2016 Don't bring lens caps at all, waste if time and really what do they protect exactly? The first thing I do is put the lens cap in the box at unboxing and never look at it again until I sell the lens. Which I rarely do. (front cap I mean not the rear cap) 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve McGarrett Posted August 24, 2016 Share #19 Posted August 24, 2016 Remember me to never buy any lens from you 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
asterinex Posted August 24, 2016 Author Share #20 Posted August 24, 2016 For me these Leica lenses are a lot of money. The reason I buy them is because I know I can always sell them for the same price I bought them.If I keep them in good condition! A lens cap is a must. I have 3 kids and my camera is always swinging around while running after the kids. Dangerous ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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