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35mm aspherical summicron V 35mm 1.4 summilux

Eikonphoto

By Eikonphoto
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Eikonphoto

Eikonphoto

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Okay, I'm about to invest in a lens, possibly one of the 35mm. Summicron Versus Summilux ........ which is better?

I am not familiar with either lens, but need a mid range lens. I am thinking either a 28 or 35, but the differences in the 35mm are not clear to me. Looking for your thoughts guys ..... techinical and artistic. :)

Sorry if this posted twice, I am not that exprerienced a 'poster'

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wlaidlaw

wlaidlaw

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Okay, I'm about to invest in a lens, possibly one of the 35mm. Summicron Versus Summilux ........ which is better?

I am not familiar with either lens, but need a mid range lens. I am thinking either a 28 or 35, but the differences in the 35mm are not clear to me. Looking for your thoughts guys ..... techinical and artistic. :)

Sorry if this posted twice, I am not that exprerienced a 'poster'

 

Maybe you should look at the Zeiss ZM35 Biogon - boy is it sharp. the attached is a crop not a resize picture of a Tamron mount I took for a Contax Forum this evening. Taken at f22 at 1/125 using an ancient Minox 8 x 11 flash that is the only working flash I have currently that will fire off on the M8 - all the others are dedicated.

 

Wilson

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wparsonsgisnet

wparsonsgisnet

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Karen, with regard only to a Leica 35mm lens, get the asph version in preference to the non-asph one. In this length, the older design is highly susceptible to flare.

 

You could be using this lens for decades; you don't have to scrimp.

 

I had both versions of the 'lux and the asph version is several times the lens in comparison to the older one.

 

Can you rent them and try?

 

Also, this subject is well-covered here. Do a search in the Forum.

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xrogers

xrogers

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I've had the Summicron for a few years, and got the Summilux last summer after coming across a good deal. I still have both, and use the Cron as a standard lens on an M6 when my daughter uses it.

 

They are both very sharp. Hair splitting types may say different, but from f2.0 down I can't tell a difference in sharpness (both lenses seem at their best between f4 and f8). The Lux is excellent at 1.4, as well, across the entire field. I'm frankly amazed at how good both these lenses are.

 

The Lux hood sticks into the finder frame some, the Cron not appreciably (and probably not at all on the M8, but I haven't used the Cron there yet). With the hood off the Lux, I don't think it gets into the M8 finder frame at all (at least I haven't noticed it...).

 

I'd say get the Lux for the speed, or get the Cron for the size. If push came to shove, I'd keep the Summilux because it isn't much bigger, and I use the extra stop quite a bit. If I didn't use the extra stop, I think I'd save a few ounces and dollars.

 

I hear the Zeiss is a good lens too. But I really like the consistent Leica lens interface (at least from 21-50)---the same focus throw, focus tab position and f-stop detents.

 

Enjoy your new lens!

 

Until later,

 

Clyde Rogers

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sean_reid

sean_reid

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Okay, I'm about to invest in a lens, possibly one of the 35mm. Summicron Versus Summilux ........ which is better?

I am not familiar with either lens, but need a mid range lens. I am thinking either a 28 or 35, but the differences in the 35mm are not clear to me. Looking for your thoughts guys ..... techinical and artistic. :)

Sorry if this posted twice, I am not that exprerienced a 'poster'

 

Hi Karen,

 

This review may be of interest to you:

 

Luminous landscape

 

All four lenses discussed so far in the thread are covered, as are many others.

 

Cheers,

 

Sean

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gravastar

gravastar

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Don't forget the CV 35/1.2 asph...

 

That's one lens I like very much. It has low flare with light sources in the picture and good/reasonable performance wide open and excellent when stopped down. However if Karen is looking for a lens to use on an M8 I'd recommend caution with the 35 1.2 Nokton. I had to remove a small amount of metal from the rear protective shroud before it would focus at infinity. Some people have had this problem and some not, it depends on how symmetrical the inside walls of the M8 are with respect to the lens axis. In my case the shroud caught on one side only. So it's a question of try before you buy.

 

There is a comparison between the 35 1.4 ASPH Summilux and 35 1.2 ASPH Nokton (and other fast lenses) by Sean Reid on the Luminous landscape site here.

 

Bob.

 

ETA: LOL Sean posted as I was typing!

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Jager

Jager

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Hi Karen,

 

If I were you the first thing I'd figure out is the focal length you'd most prefer. A few years back I bought a VC 35 Color Skopar - it was a focal length I didn't then have and the lens was cheap (relative to Leica glass). Well, I really liked that lens - but even more, I fell in love with that focal length. At that point I wrestled with the same question you are - 35 ASPH Cron or 35 ASPH Lux. They are both sterling lenses. The Lux buys you that extra stop, at the cost of a few extra bucks (ok, more than a few), and a little more size. Since low light stuff is important to me, I ended up going with the faster lens. I immediately fell in love with it and it ended up becoming my glass of choice 90% of the time.

 

That was on film, of course.

 

On the M8, the 35 Lux it still is an exceptional lens. It would probably be my choice if I were limited to one lens. But I missed the FOV that the 35 gave me on film and so that prompted me to buy the 28 Cron. I've only had that a couple weeks and am still getting acquainted with it, but first impressions are very positive.

 

Ultimately, I think you can't go wrong with the 28 Cron, 35 Lux, or the 35 Cron.

 

Sean Reid pointed you to a very helpful article on Luminous Landscape. What he - modestly - didn't do, was to note that his subscription site has a lot of other information relevant to the kind of questions you're asking. It costs about as much as a good book or a magazine subscription and is much to be recommended.

 

Jeff

 

P.S. Hope you survived today's "wintry mix" ok (I'm in Virginia but work in D.C.)

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Eikonphoto

Eikonphoto

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I have been leaning toward the 28mm for some time, because of the 1.3 M8 factor, which will still leave me wide (which is good for my shooting style in general) but feel I should give the 35mm a look in as an option as so many on this forum find it to be their favorite lens.

I have also been very spoilt in the DSLR zooms that I rely on for my work. My Leica lenses at the moment are 12mm CV, Nocti 50 and 90 2.0 - so as you can tell I have a gap in the medium wide arena. I have just finished reading the Luminous landscape article and will check out Sean's info also. I normally seem to have no problem shoving money at the issue, but this is a crucial lens decision since it will likely be the one I use most regularly. If I buy a 28mm, I will not buy within 15mm either side of that. Oh well, it's nice to be in a position to make that decision I suppose.

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xrogers

xrogers

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Karen, I wish I had practical experience to relate to you. Maybe in a year I will, but here's an opinion.

 

Right now, the 35 Summilux is my favorite M8 lens, and the 35 focal length is my favorite on film Leicas. But if someone offered me a 28 Summicron in trade for the Lux, I think I'd go for it. I'd lose the Lux speed, but gain a lens that was better separated from my 50, and that used the best viewfinder framelines in the M8.

 

You've already got low light covered with the Noctilux. It pains me to say it as a long-time 35 lover, but I think an ideal setup would be complete with a 28 Summicron.

 

Until later,

 

Clyde Rogers

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Guest guy_mancuso

Guest guy_mancuso

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I have not read any reviews on either one but do own the Lux ASPH and did try the Cron when in Yosemite in December . First there both excellent lenses for sure, the only thing that looked a little different overall was the cron had more contrast which for me in the desert with the hot sun maybe not such a good thing . But really that was the big difference beside the speed issue and of course the bokeh which at 1.4 would obviously be smooth. Really can't go wrong with either. I have the 28 cron so the Lux made more sense here on the 35mm

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j. borger

j. borger

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I have a love-hate relation with my 35 cron asph ... depending on lighsituations pictures can turn out real boring and clinical, while in other situations pictures turn out breathtaking and very 3 dimensional.

One difference from the 35 lux is the higher contrast of the cron Guy refered to. I consider lower contrast a pre with digital in most if not all situations.

Another , perhaps even more important difference ... the 35 lux has a completely different fingerprint ... sharp in the center and a bit softer to the corners ... where the 35 cron asph is sharp corner to corner already at F2.0...

I prefer the 35 Lux for the reasons above ..... so i would choose the lux over the cron if i had to do it again ... not for the 1 stop .. but for the reasons above.

An other way to put the difference: the 35 lux asph is closer to the older Leica lensdesigns than the 35 cron asph.

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mwilliamsphotography

mwilliamsphotography

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My first ASPH 35mm was the Cron. I sold it in favor of the Lux because I was constantly "just" running out of light. Ms excel at being low light machines IMO, and I learned my lesson ... when in doubt, choose speed over marginal differences in size.

 

Others may have different criteria, and want the smallest set of lenses possible.

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Peter Branch

Peter Branch

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When I bought a new 35mm for my M6 ttl a few years ago I had a long discussion with Leica people about these two lenses. Knowing me they came down firmly on the side of the f/2 because it has virtually no distortion, it has slightly but still noticably less flare and it has more uniform coverage of the image area. It seems from the comments above that a number of people agree with that assessment. I have been very happy with my (their) choice.

 

With the M8 the image coverage issue and to some extent the distortion issue are less significant due to the smaller sensor diagonal. As the 35mm is the equivalent of a 50mm lens on film I suspect that now having an M8 I would go for the f/1.4 simply because I like to have a fast lens with this field of view. With the M6 I used a Noctilux which now acts as a superb people/portrait lens on the M8 but is now, in my view, a bit of a specialist item.

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wattsy

wattsy

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I've owned two ASPH 'crons and an ASPH 'lux in recent years. I agree with the general view that there are noticeable differences between the two - the 'cron is not simply an F2 version of the 'lux. Peter's analysis about distortion, etc. may well be true but I much prefer the look of the 'lux compared with the 'cron. I'm not sure if it is just the greater contrast of the 'cron, but I've always found the way that lens draws to be a little too 'heavy' for my taste.

 

From an ergonomic point of view I prefer the 35 'cron. There's not a huge difference in size between the lenses but the 'lux does seem to cross that line for me where the shape and size of the lens starts to dominate the feel of the camera. The beauty of the 'cron is that, even with the hood, the lens feels just right.

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