The best 50?

[philipus]

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I've been reading Erwin Puts's "Leica Chronicle" with great interest recently because of various threads that have popped up.

 

In the section on the 0.95 Noctilux, he says that that lens is "at least as good as the [summilux 50 Asph], the reigning champion of high-speed lenses of 50mm". He also says that "stopped down the lens equals and even surpasses (slightly!) the performance of the [summilux 50 Asph]."

 

Puts calls the 50 Summicron APO "the best standard lens that money can buy", noting that there is "zero distortion and at maximum aperture the lens is a significant improvement compared to the predecessors."

 

Optically speaking, and realising that there's little practical experience with the 50 APO at this point, which of these three lenses is the best lens?

[farnz]

Best for what?

 

Pete.

[bpalme]

I own standard Summicronand the current noctilux, Summilux. I can't tell any difference in color and sharpness from the Summilux and noctilux. ( from normal use ) so it's a matter of size or 1 stop..take your pic.

Some situations I prefer the "bad" bokeh of the Summicron and it's cooler temp.

I can't bring myself to sell any of them. I love them all.

I can see the new APO being a pretty fine lens but it's hard to say one is "better" since they are not apples to apples.

 

Which lens is sharper... The one hand held at 1/15th ,1/30th or 1/60th?

[Guest MarcRF]

I thought about the 50mm before buying it... my candidates were (latest versions)

 

Summilux

Summicron (non APO)

Summarit

Zeiss 50/2

 

(noctilux just too damn expensive and heavy.. and the APO was just too expensive..)

 

important for me was weight, size (thats the points where the noctilux got out besides the price.. up to 3000 was acceptable), overall performance and too a lesser degree than you might think now... the look of the lens.

 

the Summilux isnt as sharp as the cron but for my needs as a non-pixelpeeper by far sharp enough. it has great bokeh, which I seriously love and with the built in chrome hood had a nice stye... its small enough and with 500g its not too heavy for a lens (I had dslr lenses before that were heavier so i'm used to heavy stuff)

 

the overall package of the summilux won for me... even if money was no matter I'd still buy the summilux and with the extra 7000€ buy me either a M9-P or 2-3 nice lenses to accompany the Lux on my journeys (or just go on a nice trip with my girl and take lots of pictures rather than spend it in gear )

[farnz]

... Summicron asph (non APO) ...

At the rsk of being accused of being a pedant the APO is the only asph 50 Summicron.

 

Pete.

[Guest MarcRF]

At the rsk of being accused of being a pedant the APO is the only asph 50 Summicron.

 

Pete.

 

that was my bad.. I'll edit it... well thought it was asph too thanks

[lars_bergquist]

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My own 50mm lens is the Summilux ASPH. I won't touch the Summicron because it has stabbed me in the back too many times with its stray-light antics, especially those rectangular flare patches.

 

I have tried the Noctilux but I am not interested. I don't need the extra speed; in any case, this is not why people do buy that lens. Instead, they quote small d.o.f., and that special Noctilux rendering while wide open.

 

Placement of sharpness in the subject space is an important element of composition. But do we have to clobber our viewers across their heads with an iron bar? Sometimes it pays to be subtle. You can acheive enough 'subject separation' with a Summilux to direct the viewer's attention to what you want to emphasise. And if you think you can make the background go away completely with a Noctilux at f:0.95, think again. A workable photographic composition will still have to be thought out and executed in three-dimensional space.

 

Remains that 'fingerprint'. Now we are speaking of really subtle effects. How much are you willing to pay, not only in money but also in weight, bulk and carrying and handling discomfort, to enjoy those subtle effects? That is for you to decide, of course. But at least you should think clearly about it. And to me at least, no lens that weighs much more than 450 grams is really hand-holdable, at least during a prolonged work session.

 

So the Noctilux leaves me stone cold. Oh well there is the prestige – that is, the bling factor. That is real of course. But maybe this is not the appropriate forum …

 

Then there is the Apo-Summicron. I have not tried it (who has?) But the pertinent question is, will it improve your results? With the Summilux ASPH I can already produce images that are sharp to the limit of the human eye's and also the sensor's resolution. Will I be well served by a lens that can resolve more than my eyes can see, with any presentation medium? Now, if you will view a meter-size print in order to scrutinise it at the eye's near focusing limit of 25cm or even with a magnifier, then you are either a neurotic pedant, or a malignant fault-finder who wants to prop up your ego by finding other peoples' faults, and again, this is not the right forum. Peter Karbe has got his dream lens, the one he wanted to produce already a decade ago – not because he's mad, which he is not, but because he wanted to prove his or Leica's optical prowess – but that has nothing to do with me.

 

The lens that produces the best results that you can use, is the best lens. More than that is overkill.

 

The old man from the Kodachrome Age

[farnz]

I'll interpret the question posed in the title as "Which is your favourite 50?" and I'll answer that by saying my 1947 Carl Zeiss Jena 50/2 Sonnar in Contax RF mount with an Amadeo Muscelli adaptor at the moment. Once you're bitten by 'Sonnar Madness' there's no going back. It's not nearly as well-corrected as my 50/1.4 Summilux asph, it has much more contrast and colour than my 50/1.4 Nikkor Kogaku Tokyo (also a Sonnar), it is lighter than even my 50/2.5 Elmar it has out of focus areas that are yo my eye smoother than Marylin Monroe's silk stockings and it is just full_of_life. And it's talked me into acquiring its sister, the 1946 CZJ 85/2 Sonnar in Contax mount.

 

"Best" 50? I'm afraid I don't understand the question.

 

Pete.

[IWC Doppel]

From a technical perspective the new APO is clearly king, but rendering of others might be more appealing, plus DOF and speed may affect use.

 

If I had to keep one 50 only, you now what I'm not sure which I would have

[Nena Kerner]

Brothers, the reference (!) is the good old summicron. It's the main reason for Leica being known at a great company for camera shit and things like this.

[M9reno]

Nicely put...

[flyalf]

...

I won't touch the Summicron because it has stabbed me in the back too many times with its stray-light antics, especially those rectangular flare patches....

 

The old man from the Kodachrome Age

 

Really? I take it that you don't use any filter? It seems to me that my Summicron has a front element quite well protected even with the built-in hood, but for added protection I use a non-Leica hood.

 

But then again I have no experience comparing to other 50mm.

[ramosa]

I love the Cron 50. In fact (ha), I had one, sold it to get a Lux 50 asph, then sold it to get another Cron 50! The Lux was just too perfect for me on digital.

[tomasis7]

Best 50 is

 

Summarit 2.5

 

because its

 

lighest

smallest

fastest to focus manually

 

as bonus, its cheapest.

 

Ignore bokeh orgy, it doesnt make you better photog

 

currently i have cron 3rd, I miss tab and long lenght annoys me Half speed difference is not important.

[tomasis7]

The lens that produces the best results that you can use, is the best lens. More than that is overkill.

 

yeah!

 

btw 50 apo and Nocti are "meaningless" indeed. At the moment, they are in small niche of users that produce usable for Money.

 

Today M Monochrome renders billions rate ISO or I rather develop 1600-3200 iso Trix with slow speeds. So very fast lenses or sharpest are moot.

[Carduelis]

The best 50 mm lens is a personal decision based on your photographic needs. For me, weight, compactness and optical quality are my main requirements plus the fact that I tend to shoot at higher f numbers above f4. Although I don't own one at the moment (because my camera has a cropped sensor), I could see myself in future considering Zeiss ZM 50 mm Planar, Summarit 50 mm f2.5 and Summicron 50 mm f2 lenses. I am not interested in the more expensive, faster, heavier Leica lenses.

[CalArts 99]

I see the new APO Summicron has a focusing tab. I personally can't use the current 50 Summicron very well because having the tab has become so ingrained with my use of the M that it slows me way down to use any lens without it.

[M9reno]

I love the term "bokeh orgy". I know what you mean.

[Paul J]

I am truly astonished by the Noctilux 0.95. Sure, it is what is it is wide open. You love it or hate it. But at medium apertures and stopped down it is just truly incredible. The colour detail, tonality has a character that is unmatched in anything else I have owned or tried. Beautiful colour and just the perfect amount of contrast and tonality. It is a feat in engineering. I have owned many fast lenses before and have never had anything that comes close to its performance wide open and I use this lens alot wide open because it is very capable at doing so and it suits my style. This is my standard lens I use it for my work and I use it as my personal camera. This lens, combined with the M9 has supplanted most of my work with medium format. I used to shoot only with a Hasselblad and Phase One. Now 90% of my work is with the Leica and I largely attribute this lens for the shift. It's only Billboard work that sees me dust off the Blad now and I hope a higher MP M10 will let me do away with MF entirely. It is without doubt the best lens I have ever owned and is pretty much attached permanently to my camera. The lens hood is tiny but I've not really noticed any flaring. At least nothing significant. I can't comment on the 50 APO but will consider it once I start seeing in depth reviews to supplement/compliment the Noctilux.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[bpalme]

I am truly astonished by the Noctilux 0.95. Sure, it is what is it is wide open. You love it or hate it. But at medium apertures and stopped down it is just truly incredible. The colour detail, tonality has a character that is unmatched in anything else I have owned or tried. Beautiful colour and just the perfect amount of contrast and tonality. It is a feat in engineering. I have owned many fast lenses before and have never had anything that comes close to its performance wide open and I use this lens alot wide open because it is very capable at doing so and it suits my style. This is my standard lens I use it for my work and I use it as my personal camera. This lens, combined with the M9 has supplanted most of my work with medium format. I used to shoot only with a Hasselblad and Phase One. Now 90% of my work is with the Leica and I largely attribute this lens for the shift. It's only Billboard work that sees me dust off the Blad now and I hope a higher MP M10 will let me do away with MF entirely. It is without doubt the best lens I have ever owned and is pretty much attached permanently to my camera. The lens hood is tiny but I've not really noticed any flaring. At least nothing significant. I can't comment on the 50 APO but will consider it once I start seeing in depth reviews to supplement/compliment the Noctilux.

I agree. If you like subject isolation it rules.

Rasta Mon Noctilux on M9 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Sheriff of Nottingham Noctilux 0.95 on M9 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Peasant Lady Noctilux 0.95 on M9 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Stopped down it's crazy sharp like all the others. A fine lens for everything.