Travel with Noctilux?

[Sam]

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Heading to Italy soon and very tempted to take the Noctilux 0.95. We'll be walking lots each day and it would either be mounted on the M240 or in a shoulder bag. I have lighter lenses but would love to utilize this lens' unique resolving character. Curious to know if others have traveled with this breast. 

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[80_20]

Last month I spent one week in Berlin /w M9-P & 0.95/50 - I carried the combo 10-12h per day on the shoulder without any bag. My experience - you get used to the size and weight very soon.

[cirke]

I was 10 days in the mountains and I took only the 35 Summilux
going to Paris for 10 days I take only the Noctilux 0.95, this lens is 90% of the time on the M240

[DLS]

My last trip to Italy it remained on my M240 75% of the time.  If I had to choose only one lens to travel with, the Nocti is the one.  You'll need a ND filter to get the most out of it for daylight shooting, but when the sun sets, it is incomparable.  

[IkarusJohn]

Noctilux on the camera and 28 Summicron in a pocket - perfect. 

[CheshireCat]

I don't see why not. As already suggested be sure to bring a 3-stop ND.

Also bring an ultra-wide.

Edited September 5, 2015 by CheshireCat

[Herr Barnack]

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I took my f/1.0 Noctilux to Mongolia on two different trips.  I was able to get images that I otherwise would not have gotten. 

 

When traveling, I will always take the Noctilux.  It is heavy for an M lens - but it does me no good sitting at home in the safe.  I recall carrying the Nikkor 80-200 f/2.8 when I shot with Nikon gear - that was a heavy lens.  The Noctilux is nowhere near as heavy as that behemoth.

 

Sometimes we M shooters complain about our "heavy" M lenses.  They are not heavy at all compared to some of the Canon & Nikon glass.

Edited September 5, 2015 by Carlos Danger

[jaapv]

Or Leica R glass...

[lpeeples]

Good to know. Going to New York in October for a street photography workshop.  I am debating taking the 50 apo or the nocti.  Still deciding.  Also have to decide on the 240 or 246.  Will probably bring both though....

[MarkP]

Personally, for travel I would take my 50 Summilux ASPH or APO-50 any day over my 1.0/50 Noctilux.

[Jan1985]

I can't hear that anymore when some Leica User are crying how "heavy" the noctilux is. that is totally bullshit. so i can also say as an ex-canon-shooter that the noctilux is so light compared to the setups i used before on my wedding photography where i am on my legs almost 10-12 hours. the noctilux is a fun and light tool for me and delivers this special look. i love it and there is no better lens for me. so take it and shoot it till it dies.

[elmars]

The Nocti has nearly the same weight as the new Canon 1,4/35mm.

 

Elmar

[CheshireCat]

I can't hear that anymore when some Leica User are crying how "heavy" the noctilux is.

 

And indeed, the "lux" word in Noctilux is the Latin word for light.

 

[Sam]

Thanks for the feedback. It's exactly what I was looking for.

 

Yes, I've carried a Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS on many occasions and it's quite a lot heavier than the M w/Noctilux.

 

And yes, I have a 3-stop ND filter and will also be bringing the EVF. At 0.95 I believe my focus accuracy is better with the EVF than the rangefinder.

[6bit]

What ND filter is everyone using?

[jaques]

I can't hear that anymore when some Leica User are crying how "heavy" the noctilux is. that is totally bullshit. so i can also say as an ex-canon-shooter that the noctilux is so light compared to the setups i used before on my wedding photography where i am on my legs almost 10-12 hours. the noctilux is a fun and light tool for me and delivers this special look. i love it and there is no better lens for me. so take it and shoot it till it dies.

well hear it one more time: it's HEAVY and HUGE- for a Leica shooter. The reason I shoot Leica is primarily the camera size to image quality ratio.

 

Every year I shoot at a music festival alongside a lot of pro photographers. Many of them carry two or even three huge DSLR's- with massive heavy lenses. They have backpacks, belts and all kinds of contraptions to help them deal with their gear.  I have my leica on a strap and a few lenses in my pockets.

 

After a full day of wondering around even my little leica feels a bit heavy to me. I can't imagine how those other people suffer under their loads... and I don't want to. ;-). There are certain shots I just can't get with my set up- that the others get easily- but I don't care too much. Let them take those shots. For me traveling light and small is the name of the game. There are certain shots I get that I don't think they can easily get- discretion is often an advantage. Most times I leave the Noctilux at home due to the weight and size and extreme narrow DOF.

Edited September 22, 2017 by jaques

[jlindstrom]

For the ND-filter I have the Leica 4-stop filter. It works great and is strong enough for shooting in harsh midday sun.

 

I just spent 5 weeks travelling in Spain and Nocti on M10 was my main camera. It never felt too heavy.

 

I use a shoulder bag when moving between places and onsite I use Gordys leather wrist strap. I also use Leica grip on the camera, which helps against wrist fatigue when shooting.

 

I was at first little dissapointed with the lens, thinking I’d spent a fortune on a one trick pony. I was getting purple edges on almost everything, trying to shoot wide open (or near) as often as I could. At that point I didn’t ND, so I was ofter over exposing which made things even worse.

 

Since getting the ND and getting over the wide open everything syndrome, things have improved significantly. If I want to, I can usually shoot wide open. But it’s not the only f-stop anymore. And shutter speeds are now easily in the 1/250 to 1/500 range even in harshest sun, so no over exposing. This has reduced the purple edges to almost zero.

 

So for me the future holds travels with nocti and 28 summicron, nothing more.

 

 

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[IkarusJohn]

Mine has now found a permanent home on the SL. I don’t have a colour M digital anymore, and I’ve solf my Summicron for the 28 Summilux, which I prefer for digital.

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[jeff_m]

A 32 oz bottle of water weighs more and does nothing for your creativity but you will carry that everywhere. Yes, by all means take it and at least a 4 stop nd filter.

[Keith_W]

I recently went to a well known tourist spot in Australia, carrying only my M10 + 28 Summilux and a mini tripod which I would prop up on rocks to take pictures. 

 

While I was waiting for a sunset, I saw a small woman with a massive camera bag, a Nikon D810, a 70-200/2.8 lens, and a huge metal tripod huffing her way up the hill. She got to the top and proceeded to unpack all her gear. She looked absolutely drained. As it turns out, she's a pro photographer doing a shoot for a magazine. We photographers are all gearheads, so she was keen to play with my camera after I showed it to her. She was amazed at the results I was getting from such a simple and light setup but she won't move to Leica because of the cost and because her Nikon system is more versatile (all true!). 

 

Well, I used to be like that. I would trudge around with my 5D and a backpack full of lenses, flash, tripod, etc. So a Noctilux wouldn't faze me. Except for the cost.