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50mm rigid cron and the M8?


unclebob

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Got a question, and I cannot seem to find a defeinitive answer...

 

I know the DR Summicron is forbidden for the M8, but is it safe to mount a 50mm rigid Summicron to the M8?

 

They just seemed priced right for my needs.

 

Also, will it matter that it is not coded at this time?

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The 50 rigid Summicron is a wonderful lens, with a distinct look to the images. You can have the lens "mount", which is the entire barrel at the base, coded. John Milich provides this service, as do others. But with the 50 it isn't absolutely necessary for any lens correction in-camera, it would mainly give you the lens data in the EXIF files.

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Yes, the rigid summicron is fantastic on the M8. It has a pleasant lower-contrast look when wide open, and it's also more contrasty when stopped down. The infinity lock takes some getting used to, but I don't mind it at all. I don't bother with coding because at this focal length I don't notice any problems with colour shift.

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I went ahead and pulled the trigger on a 28mm f/2 Ultron. The price and focal length was right and I wanted something normal.

 

However, on the monitor, those .68 VF's seem to be wasting an aweful lot of real estate when it comes to 50mm.

 

I'll know more when I have the M8 in hand, but I can see a 50mm taking the place of a portrait lens.

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I went ahead and pulled the trigger on a 28mm f/2 Ultron. The price and focal length was right and I wanted something normal.

 

However, on the monitor, those .68 VF's seem to be wasting an aweful lot of real estate when it comes to 50mm.

 

I'll know more when I have the M8 in hand, but I can see a 50mm taking the place of a portrait lens.

 

You're gonna like that Ultron, especially on the M8. The 50 is a nice length for the M8 too, but I found that a 75mm f/1.8 is just amazing for portraits on the M8. When it goes out with me, the Ultron 28, Nokton 35 f/1.2 (ver.1) and the Heliar 75mm go out with it.

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My LN Rigid looks really retro on the new chrome M9P. Pictures are superb at normal apertures.

 

As with film, for the best corners wide open, get a more modern lens. The 1969/79 will give you a better image at F2. The latest 50 2,8 collapsible is great for a compact package.

 

Works on M8 also. Get a UV/IR filter for that camera, same as any other lens you stick on it.

 

I sold off my DR because it would not mount on digital.

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  • 4 weeks later...
....

As with film, for the best corners wide open, get a more modern lens. The 1969/79 will give you a better image at F2....

Are you forgetting that the corners at full-frame don't apply with the cropped M8?

 

When I first upgraded my 1960s rigid 50mm Summicron for a current version, sure the younger lens produced superior images. But, although I intended selling my older version, I found I liked its rendering so much that it is still in my possession and in use. I also discovered that I was not alone in this judgement.

 

Another plus point for that older lens. The lens unit unscrews and can be fitted, via an adapter, onto an old Leica accessory (BOWUM) nicknamed 'Copy-legs'. This combination enhances the close-up capabilities for 50mm lens on an M body. There is a good illustration of this combination at work in Brian Bower's book Leica M Digital Photography.

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Aviator, conditions might help to explain, but your picture shows lower contrast than I obtain with my very similar lens. I have made slight adjustments in LR4 and will post my slightly more contrasty version if you approve. There could be fog, smoke or mist in the air which accounts for the low contrast as presented. I only mention this lest some aspirants might be deterred from buying a good specimen 50mm Summicron from the 1960s.

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Yeah please post your version.

 

I like this low contrast.

 

Conditons were mostly backlight against the brigth overcast + some smoke from the burning chimney.

 

It is easy to bring more contrast in a picture during post processing, but very difficult ro reduce it.

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Yeah please post your version.

 

I like this low contrast.

 

Conditons were mostly backlight against the brigth overcast + some smoke from the burning chimney.

 

Thank you. It is easy to bring more contrast in a picture during post processing, but very difficult ro reduce it.

Only slight adjustments in LR and I could have gone much further, but it does show the scope of treatment for images from older lenses. Of course it would have been better to work with a raw file; my adjustments are to a small Jpeg file.

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