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Info please on Summicron 35/2 and 50/2


asterinex

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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

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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. 

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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...

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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. 

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ok thx, I picked them up and are ready for a testdrive.

 

Here they are. Both in really nice condition. What a build-quality !

 

gallery_51942_5443_106581.jpg

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 by asterinex
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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. 

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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.

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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.

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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

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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)

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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 !:)

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