75mm or 90mm?

[Dustoff06]

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New to the Leica rangefinder world and looking for some advise. I have an M9, 28mm Cron and 50mm Lux. I am looking to round out the system with either the 75mm Cron or the 90mm Cron. Up until the last few days, I thought the 90mm was the answer, given that there is not such a huge difference between my 50 and a 75. However, after 1500 pics or so, I’m noticing that in certain situations (e.g. low light, non distinct backgrounds) focusing demands a lot of attention. So, I guess my question is how difficult is it to focus the 90mm compared to the 75mm? I’m even considering a Leica magnifier for the veiwfinder to improve my success rate/speed. Finally, I am not buying the lens for a specific purpose such as portrait, landscapes, etc., just want the reach when warranted. Thanks.

[Shootist]

I have a M8 and a 50 Lux, 75 Cron and 90 Elmarit. I find none of them hard to focus in any light or environment. One reason is I have my rangefinder adjusted properly for both distances and the vertical alignment and I use a diopter lens that make the RF patch crystal clear.

 

You should think more about the field of view each lens has and how you will use it to make your decision on which one you buy.

 

Do I find the 75 to close to the 50, no, and I don't find the 90 to close to the 75.

[esquire53]

With the M9 I start using the 90mm again. However I had the "old" 75mm 1:1.4 in my arsenal, didn't used it for some time, it's a large beast, but a killer lens ...

They might be not to easy to find, but open, a very fine lense and gives you the extra stop ...

 

Cheers and good luck

 

Uwe

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[Guest reiver]

Try the Summarit-M 90 2.5

I use it for analog and sometimes with my M8, the Summarit Lens are quite good, take a look at Ferdinands picture with that lens:

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/menschen/154960-prominenz.html

[Jager]

The two lenses in the M lineup with the reputations for being most difficult to focus are the Noctilux and the now-discontinued 75 Lux. In both cases it's because of the extremely narrow depth of field of those lenses when shot wide open at close distances (Uwe's photo above demonstrates how good it all works when you do it right...)

 

The 90 Cron obviously has less depth of field than the 75 Cron when shot at the same distances. Both require careful attention when focusing at very close range. But neither are particularly known for being especially finicky or problematic.

 

I would make the choice clearly on the merits of focal length preference. You should be good with either.

 

Welcome to the wonderful world of Leica! Your focusing hit rate should improve with time and practice.

[Walt Calahan]

My advice is always to try both lenses before purchase to discern what works for your way of seeing.

 

That said, I like the focal length jump from my 35 mm to my 75 mm. If I owned a 50 mm instead, I'd probably investigate a 90 mm over the 75 mm.

 

The 75 mm f/1.4 is a fabulous lens, which is enhanced by using the viewfinder magnifier made by Leica. Once I put the magnifier on my camera, critical focusing because much easier, especially on my .85 M6 TTL. If I were to use the 75 mm without the magnifier with a camera having a viewfinder with a wider angle of view, I could see problems.

 

Hope this is helpful.

[Adam Marelli]

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Dust Off,

 

Recently I tested out a 90mm on a trip to India, its a brilliant lens. The focusing was not an issue, but if you shoot people, the depth of field is so shallow that if they lean forward a bit, their eyes could be out of focus, but their forehead is.

 

If you love the shallow depth of field the 90mm focal length will be better than the 75mm. Its just a lens math thing.

 

The 50m and the 75mm are close. I would go 75mm only or 50mm and 90mm. It really depends on your shooting style.

 

Here is a sample of mine below. I wrote about the 90mm on my site if you want to read a fuller explanation of my reactions to the lens, its limitations and performance.

 

Best-Adam Marelli

Walking Barefoot » Adam Marelli Photo

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[Dustoff06]

Thanks for the quick responses and advice. I think I'll look into a diopter for the M9 and go with the 90mm Cron.

 

Adam - Great site that is now bookmarked!

[jacarape]

Hey Dusto, I was born in WC, welcome and go Phillies and Flyers! I'm still a Cheeser 50 + years later.

 

I have a 75/1.4 and the 90/2.8. and as the Shootist mentions, they are really not an either or focal length. I would not say that in some peoples experinces they are close is wrong, it's just not my experience and you'll create your own.

 

For about 500 bucks, a 90/2.8 Elmarit M gives up little to the Cron by all accounts I have read (I don't own one, the little E-M is very nice). That buys a lot of hoagies.

 

I also have the newish 28/2.8 ASPH, and a 28-75 combo works well, I went to 28-35-75-90 lineup and am happy but would love to have the ZM 21 and 50/1.5.

 

I don't have an M digital, I'm using them on an MP. But the thing I really like about rangefinders, is I don't have to focus in the SLR sense. It's much easier to line up a vertical line then focus, especially in low light. For the money, a 90 E-M is a great choice, for portraits, the 75/1.4 is probably the best ever. IMHO

 

Cheers-jac

[vonheim]

... I am looking to round out the system with either the 75mm Cron or the 90mm Cron. ..... So, I guess my question is how difficult is it to focus the 90mm compared to the 75mm? I’m even considering a Leica magnifier for the veiwfinder to improve my success rate/speed. Finally, I am not buying the lens for a specific purpose such as portrait, landscapes, etc., just want the reach when warranted. Thanks.

 

I have the 75mm f/2 and a 90mm f/2.8 and I don't think one is more difficult to focus than the other. Though I should mention I am looking for a 1.25x or 1.4x magnifier to improve the success rate.

 

There is another aspect to consider. The 75mm Cron has a minimum focusing distance of 0.7m while the 90mm's focus down to 1m. This gives higher magnification with the 75mm at 0.7m than with the 90mm at 1m. On the flip side, at further distances the 90mm gives higher magnification.

 

Finally, the shutter speed required to avoid effects of camera shake is normally higher for the 90mm, which I do notice in use (sometimes need higher ISO etc.)

 

Hope this helps!

 

Cheers,

 

Knut

[farnz]

I have the 90/2 APO Summicron asph and it is a simply astounding lens although the 90/2.8 Elmarit I had punches far above its weight and imho is one of teh best value for money Leica lenses to be had.

 

I had the 75/1.4 for a while but never got on with it, perhaps because I discovered that it back-focussed by about an inch, but also because the 75 frame lines are only the corners and are inaccurate on the M8.

 

Pete.

[Rick]

Tina where are you? 75mm/1.4 is soo nice. It has that ooh-la-la bokeh and it is so clear stopped down. It isn't hard to focus at all. It is one of my favorite lenses. Period. It is a bit of Mandler history. If, you can find it, buy it. When the M9 came out it just about doubled in price. It is the Cream Machine. The 90/2 is probably Leica's best technical lens. It is fantastic. Get it too. But, the 75/1.4 is one of those lenses that you have to own before it is gone.

[esquire53]

The 75 1:1.4 is a heavy beast, but not difficult to focus.

Matter of fact, I think it is actually easy to focus, but takes a bit longer. You have a lot of turns to make, but it is bery fine pitch.

A few test shots will get you there and with the M9 you don't even have to bother with the coding ...

 

I think one of the best for available light shooting.

 

Cheers

Uwe

[Guest BigSplash]

I have the 75mm Lux and an old 90mm cron. I like the 75mm very much and do NOT find it difficult to focus,

 

My understanding is that the 75mm was introduced originally for press photographers that could have the portrait type qualities of a 90mm (ie depth of field) yet allow the final image to be cropped as needed. Personally if that was the motivation they succeeded. The f1.4 setting has phenomenal depth of field and I find that a real bonus. It is also more contrasty compared to my stock of 30 year old Leica lenses. ...very similar to the new lenses of today's generation although it is not an ASPH.

 

The old 90mm lens has a great bokeh is cheap on the used market but is not as contrasty as the current 90mm and the old one is heavy and much larger ...but I like itm

[tobey bilek]

Neither is difficult to focus. What is difficult is the longer & faster the lens and the closer the focus, the more critical lens collimnation and rangefinfer adjustment become.

 

What people fail to do generally, is get the focus close, then move the camera by bending at the waist to do the final adjustment. I like portraits done at 5 feet. I set the lens to 5 feet and simply move to that distance by rangefinder.

 

If you want the ultimate sharpness in the close range, 75 works better.

 

If you want to do tight head portraits, you have to approach the subject too closely with a 75.

 

don`t know about Summarits, bit all modern 90`s except the collapsible 90 send to be a little soft under 6 feet. Seems to be a product to telephoto design as opposed to plain long focus. I exploit this with my 90 2.0 pre asph as it takes the edge off portraits. Stopping down does not sharpen the image. The 75 will not be soft.