90mm elmarit & 50mm Cron (rigid) with M8

[JWW]

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In the last couple weeks, I purchased a used 90mm Elmarit (thin) and a 50mm Summicron rigid for my M8. For the reasonable prices on these, I was really pleased with the performance of both these lenses. I was reading the posts regarding bokeh with the 75mm lux and 50mm Noctilux and wanted to compare bokeh wide open on the 90 and 50. Here's a few examples. 1st two using the 90mm and last with 50mm. This is the first time I'm trying a picture attachment so I'm crossing my fingers!

 

Jan

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[lars_bergquist]

The old non-tele 90 mm Elmarit (1958 to 1974) is a very simple design (in a non-pejorative sense) of five elements in three groups. It is not a tele design, but a long-focal length one. It also has one of those lovely iris diaphragms with as it seems nearly infinitely many blades ... So it is no wonder that bokeh is very good. And the fact that you can use the lens head on a Visoflex is also welcome. This was what kept the lens in production even after the introduction of the first Tele-Elmarit.

 

There is of course no need to tell you that definition is good wide open and excellent at 5.6. There are a number of older Leica lenses that many people think are obsoleted by the new aspherical wonders. But a lens is a tool, and a tool is not obsolete as long as it does what you want, in a way you like.

 

The old man from the Age B.C. (Before Coating)