Jump to content

Two lens combo for M9, which combo you will pick?


topgun

Recommended Posts

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I am a lazy guy and do not want to change lens all the time, I prefer two lens combo for M system to go out . Dear M9 or film user, which combo you will pick?

 

1) 28/2 + (50/1.4A or 50/1.0)

2) 35/1.4A + (75/2 or 75/1.4)

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • Replies 52
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Personally, I'd opt for 28/2, 35/1.4A, 50/2.

 

You can have a great one-lens kit with the 35, a nice two-lens kit with the 28/50 and with all three you can do it all.

 

If you're shooting slow film then maybe the 50/1.4 or faster would be helpful, but for the M9 you can just raise the ISO. When the light gets really low the 35/1.4 may be a better choice anyway.

 

Since I started shooting with the M9 I've done over 90% of my work with one of my 35mm lenses. If I were a bit more confident I'd save time, effort and money and just dispose of all but the 35's:D

Link to post
Share on other sites

Firstly welcome to the Forum.

 

I would go for a 35mm & a 50mm. The Summilux 35mm & 50mm f1.4 are my two most used lenses on the M9. There's a wide choice of good 35 & 50mm lenses, which ones you decide on obviously depends on your budget.

 

Another very good option IMO is the 28/35/50mm Tri-Elmar, my favorite travel lens. Some say it's a little slow at f4. It's always the first lens to go into in my bag when traveling.

Link to post
Share on other sites

35 almost always on camera. Usually go out with the 501.4A also. I'll only take the 751.4 or 90 2.0 if I know I'll be taking portraits. I find that the 28 is too wide for usual needs.

Link to post
Share on other sites

To return to this overly beaten track: All this is intensely personal. Only you can decide. Any advice is of necessity extremely subjective, and therefore irrelevant.

 

Now for a different piece of advice: On the front of your M there is a little lever. With it, you can temporarily swing in various finder frames, even if the lens is not mounted. So you can find out for yourself what would suit your way of seeing pictures, and your subject matter, even with lenses you don't even own (yet).

 

Don't feel that you should use lenses of adjacent focal lengths, like 35 and 50mm. A rengefinder camera is not like a SLR with a zoom. 35 plus 90mm for instance is 'the' classical M combo. With the M you don't search for the picture, hoping to find it in the finder. You find it already before you have raised the camera to your eye. You have a lens appropriate to the situation already mounted, and you are looking at the world through the virtual frame of that lens. It's like the sound of one hand clapping. I go out with a 35mm lens on the camera, and I see 35mm pictures all over the place. Same with other lengths.

 

The old man from the Age of the Laughing Zen Masters

Link to post
Share on other sites

I've been a user (advanced amateur?) of a M6 for 17 years with only 2 lenses (35/1.4 & 75/1.4). And I found this kit wonderfull. I don't really remember a situation where I missed something else.

 

When travelling light (for non-photographic biz) I always bring my 35mm (and often only it), that makes of a leica-M almost a pocket camera.

 

Now I'm shooting M9 (My M6 is at Solms for a its first general revision after >30000 clicks) and I've completed my set by a 24/2.8 ASPH & 2/50 Cron (thanks eBay)

 

With the M9, I've had the feeling that my old objectives where brand new.

  • I get +/- 50*60cm Black & White Print from the 35/1.4 (EPSON-3880 Mat Print), that are almost perfect (no noise, outstanding sharpening and with Light-Room PostProcessing you can do amost what you want). I have the feeling that my Hassy will not work a lot anymore.
  • The 75/1.4 is fabulous for portait (for me it's an easier tool than the Noctilux)

So my personal advice would be 35 & 75

  • I'm not sure yet that the 50 has a real added value between the 35 & 75
  • The 24/2.8 is amazing, but for me it's definitely "an additional option" above the 35/75 combo.

2 regrets:

1 - My Canadian 35 cannot be coded :mad: (I'm going to butcher it)

2 - the 75/1.4 isn't sold anymore :mad: (but I already got one :D)

 

Cordialement,

Benoît

Link to post
Share on other sites

I am a lazy guy...

 

...says it all, really.

 

Using the search function before posting is a courteous thing to do. Perhaps we can just amalgamate this with the dozen or so other threads on the topic...? :rolleyes:

 

Oh, and by the way, it's subjective. There is no right answer.

 

Regards,

 

Bill

Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi,

 

With the M9, my two lens kit is 35 cron asph and 75 cron AA.

I take 90% of my pictures with the 35 wich I love. It is my lens cap and the lens I take when I go out and don't plan to take portraits.

75 AA is sharp and has this special Leica glow that has the 50 lux wich IMHO is too close to the 35 to be the second lens.

 

After this great combination I added a 50 Elmar 2.8 which is a very good and special lens with a beautiful signature.

Then recently a 21 Elmarit asph: fabulous for sharpness and contrast and special glow.

 

I would start with a 35 and keep it for a while as a only lens then would choose to go wider or longer.

 

All the best,

Jean-Luc

Link to post
Share on other sites

These questions pose fun hypotheticals. If I had to give up all but 2 of my lenses I'd keep the 21 lux and 35 lux asph. This is based on having sufficient spacing for wide to near normal and would rely on the generous cropping capacity of the M9 so the the 35 could act as a normal to short tele as crops. But just try and take away my other lenses!!

Link to post
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...