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Leica Elmar-M 2.8 50mm vs Summicron 2.0


IWC Doppel

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I am thinking about an everyday 50mm, I have a 50 Lux V1 with hood and would like to try another 50mm for outdoor daylight use.

 

Any views of the Elmarit vs Summicron regarding rendering etc. I am not a super detail man and like the size of the Elmar M

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I think you refer to the Elmar-M 50mm (although being a 2.8, it should be an Elmarit). I have supplemented my 1.4/50 ASPH with the 2.8/50. The 2.8/50 is very compact of course and I also find that it draws beautifully; especially clean colours. Some say it may be better than the 1.4/50 ASPH in the close up range, but I have no experience with that.

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The 50mm Elmar-M is a terrific lens. Draws beautifully.

The only thing I dislike about it, is that the front does not have one fixed position when pulled out like the older versions. that makes that the diaphragm ring sometimes ends at the wrong site of the lens. Besides this... it is just great, and, but this is personally, I like the looks of this old design.

At the moment I mostly use my 50mm summicron (last version). Build quality feels a but better than that of the Elmar-M. With regard to image quality... they just draw differently. Both are great.:D

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The Elmar is more compact and renders the same as the Summicron at a moderate f stop. If I really want to travel light, the Elmar is always with me. It is one of the fastest focusing lenses available.

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I think you refer to the Elmar-M 50mm (although being a 2.8, it should be an Elmarit). I have supplemented my 1.4/50 ASPH with the 2.8/50. The 2.8/50 is very compact of course and I also find that it draws beautifully; especially clean colours. Some say it may be better than the 1.4/50 ASPH in the close up range, but I have no experience with that.

 

I did likewise, added a black Elmar-M 50 to my 50 lux asph, because I want to stay light, compact and discrete when traveling and because I *feel* that the lux 50 asph is a bit vulnerable at the tab because of its mass. I'd rather keep it at home for stills. I only compared them in close-up range and I really see no differences at 2.8 and up, except in the bokeh where both are beautiful but the Elmar-M a bit more defined. Btw, the Elmar-M has a slightly wider angle as you can see in the specs.

However: this was my second try of an Elmar-M 50, my first experience was not that enthusiastic, it was much softer than this copy, so I would advise you to seriously check before you buy; I now have a more recent version.

I did not decide for the Summicron, because it's not that compact and in situations where compactness is not the issue I prefer the Summilux

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I agree with the comments about clean colours and rendering and I'd be inclined to call them crisp. This 'look' doesn't appeal to everyone and if that includes you then you might like to consider an early Zeiss 50/2 Sonnar. I have one from 1947 and it has a lovely fingerprint that's quite different from your Summilux.

 

Pete.

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The only thing I dislike about it, is that the front does not have one fixed position when pulled out like the older versions. that makes that the diaphragm ring sometimes ends at the wrong site of the lens.

 

When I collapse mine, it stays in the same position because it is quite stiff, which is about one third of a circle to the right, so I do not experience this problem

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I own Elmar-m and I like it, but, if I were you, I would consider also a Summarit 50. It's small, light and cheap. Having both, I used both extensively.

Summarit is far better than Elmar-m

Fgcm

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  • 4 weeks later...

I have Elmar-M and Summarit-M, well, Summarit is very sharp in corners at all aperture, but center is less sharp than Elmar, Summarit has some CA, Elmar almost no CA, corners becomes very good after 5.6 on Elmar, for me, Elmar has more 3D look than Summarit. Summarit-M just perfect sharp lens, Elmar has better shadows too.

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The (my) Elmar-M is sharp as hell, contrasty and almost immune to flare. Great little lens, which is often underestimated. My copy firmly locks into place (it does require some effort to do so, however) when extended, so there is no problem of varying aperture stop locations.

 

Andy

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I am thinking about an everyday 50mm, I have a 50 Lux V1 with hood and would like to try another 50mm for outdoor daylight use.

 

Any views of the Elmarit vs Summicron regarding rendering etc. I am not a super detail man and like the size of the Elmar M

 

I had the modern version Elmar-M on two different occasions (first was a chrome and at a later time a black one). As to the size, it's really small without the hood attached. But because it's a screw-on hood it was more convenient for me to just leave it on always, and that adds about a centimeter or a little more to the length.

 

As for optical performance, I also have a Lux pre-ASPH (V2, i.e. black, e43 filter) and since you said it's for outdoor daylight use, I will mention that if you mean stopped down, I certainly couldn't see any difference between these lenses from f/5.6 on down. The Elmar certainly was lighter than the Lux though. Moreso if your V1 is a chrome version, which is heavier than my black anodised.

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There are many legends at Leica's. ;) For good light i prefer the Elmar and for low light i favor the Summilux asph and pre-asph so my dear old Summicron tends to remain on the shelf i'm afraid.

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I just bought a mint condition Ver. IV Summicron, and shot with it extensively yesterday.

 

I must say for a 33 year old design the image quality is totally modern, and I am shocked at how well it compares to today's ASPH designs.

 

I would say a legendary design, based on my copy......:)

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There are many legends at Leica's. ;) For good light i prefer the Elmar and for low light i favor the Summilux asph and pre-asph so my dear old Summicron tends to remain on the shelf i'm afraid.

 

In fact your Summicron remains on the shelf. So you have it and you never think to sell it !

Right ? :-)

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