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Renting / Hiring Leica Lenses in England...


snappert

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Hi all,

I am just looking for a establishment here in England that will rent and hire out Leica lenses.

In particular, I am really looking for one lens to hire to finish an article I am currently working on; that lens is the Leica Noctilux M 50mm f/0.95, or any other similar fast lens...

I need to hire one because I can not afford to own such a fast lens, and nether do I have the full need of one.

Any info you guys can share would be much appreciated.

cheers

N.

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Hireacamera.com (UK outfit) have lenses available in M mount but mainly Zeiss ZM lenses – certainly not a Noctilux. The Classic Camera at one time had some kind of rental scheme going but I don't think it ever took off and I doubt that they still provide the service (and I further doubt that it ever included an F0.95 Noctilux).

 

Short of finding a private owner willing to lend one (possibly for a fee), I think your only option is to buy a Noctilux and sell it on when you have finished with it. It's what I'd probably end up doing if I was in your shoes. Do bear in mind that a Noctilux is not the easiest lens to shift nowadays and you will not get back what you paid if you buy it new but it may still be worthwhile.

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Thank you all for your replies.

I did believe this would be a futile search, but thought it would be worth posting a thread here just to ensure I've done all I could... but I will keep searching.

To be honest if I could afford one I would purchase it and keep it in a heart beat!

But I just don't have that much cash at my disposal right now... maybe if I can find no other option a fianance deal may look more appealing...

 

It's just a bit annoying as the exact thing I am looking for in this country exists in the states.

LensRentals.com - Rent a Leica 50mm f/0.95 Noctilux

Just to far out of my grasp, geologically...

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I would imagine your search is going to be fruitless.

 

The Leica model is not like Hasselblad or Phase, Nikon or Canon, where one can hire in most major cities throughout the world.

 

No doubt a contributing factor to the comparative dearth of pro users.

 

Sadly, I think your right.

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are there any other cheaper, I mean much cheaper, alternative lenses that are sharp and fast, around the f/1 mark that would suit a M9?

 

You can search for various threads like this on the CV Nokton, which as noted, often appears to suffer from focus shift. I recall that Sean Reid wrote an article some time ago on ultra fast 50's and compared this lens to the two most recent Noctiluxes, and his sample also had severe focus shift.

 

The 50 Summilux asph is plenty fast enough for some, so it depends on what you're trying to accomplish.

 

Jeff

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