semi-ambivalent Posted October 19, 2016 Share #81 Posted October 19, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) Reddot Forum has some nice info and (all color) images. The lens is pretty, and I want a Leica lab coat to wear in my darkroom. s-a Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted October 19, 2016 Posted October 19, 2016 Hi semi-ambivalent, Take a look here Leica Summaron-28 -image thread. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
40mm f/2 Posted October 19, 2016 Share #82 Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) Here is the official link: http://uk.leica-camera.com/Photography/Leica-M/M-Lenses/Summaron-M-28-mm-f-5.6 looking at the linked technical specs. This lens has quite good resolution in center and middle but terrible in the edges (past 15mm). No distortion! Good for APS-C but not for FF for anyone who likes not only the center well resolved. Edited October 19, 2016 by 40mm f/2 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted October 19, 2016 Share #83 Posted October 19, 2016 ... 1 meter minimum focus as I speculated... Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
henning Posted October 19, 2016 Share #84 Posted October 19, 2016 I haven't had a 28 Summaron for many years, but it was quite a decent lens. With respect to resolution it was the best I had in the late 60's among about 7 or 8 Leica lenses. It probably resolved close to the theoretical maximum in the centre for f/5.6 with very good micro contrast, and wasn't bad over most of the field. I used it often with Kodak High Contrast Copy and continuous tone developers and made some large prints - 55" x 80". The lens had fairly low contrast overall and vignetted to the full cos~4th as far as I recall. New coatings will have solved the contrast issue, but the vignetting is likely to remain. We'll have to see how that plays with the digital sensors, but then again, I still use my 15mm Hologon on the MM, and the Summaron's vignetting isn't as bad as that! The lens on Stephan Daniel's camera at the LHSA was certainly very pretty. Rather more bling than the 28 Elmarit. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardM Posted October 19, 2016 Share #85 Posted October 19, 2016 Example shots not impressive - at least i don't see any magichttp://en.leica-camera.com/Photography/Leica-M/M-Lenses/Summaron-M-28-mm-f-5.6/Images 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
willeica Posted October 19, 2016 Share #86 Posted October 19, 2016 I haven't had a 28 Summaron for many years, but it was quite a decent lens. With respect to resolution it was the best I had in the late 60's among about 7 or 8 Leica lenses. It probably resolved close to the theoretical maximum in the centre for f/5.6 with very good micro contrast, and wasn't bad over most of the field. I used it often with Kodak High Contrast Copy and continuous tone developers and made some large prints - 55" x 80". The lens had fairly low contrast overall and vignetted to the full cos~4th as far as I recall. New coatings will have solved the contrast issue, but the vignetting is likely to remain. We'll have to see how that plays with the digital sensors, but then again, I still use my 15mm Hologon on the MM, and the Summaron's vignetting isn't as bad as that! The lens on Stephan Daniel's camera at the LHSA was certainly very pretty. Rather more bling than the 28 Elmarit. The vignetting which appeared on the old lens is fixable in a matter of seconds in Lightroom. It is not a significant issue. Example shots not impressive - at least i don't see any magic http://en.leica-camera.com/Photography/Leica-M/M-Lenses/Summaron-M-28-mm-f-5.6/Images The photographer in the examples shown seems to have gone out of his way to create flare. I have shot the old version of the lens in bright sunlight (see link to my article with examples above) and I have not seen flare like this. Maybe the flare was intentional. I bought the older 1950s version of the lens and the hood solely as collector's items, but when I got the lens I tested it on an M240 and found that it produced superb images. I am still debating whether I need the newer version. The old version cost me about a quarter of the price of the new version. William Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
james.liam Posted October 19, 2016 Share #87 Posted October 19, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) Of all the legacy lenses to resurrect, I'm not sure this would have been my first choice. Speculative on my part, but an updated 35mm 8-element Summicron or even a 50 Rigid would likely have had broader appeal. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
viramati Posted October 19, 2016 Share #88 Posted October 19, 2016 Good looking piece of jewellry otherwise................... 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdk Posted October 19, 2016 Share #89 Posted October 19, 2016 This has to be one of the weirdest products yet for the contemporary Leica Camera AG. I will stick to my 28mm/2 and 28mm/2.8 ASPH lenses thanks. The f/2.8 one in particular is superb at every aperture and focus distance. The new or old 28mm Summaron is going to be inferior at any aperture, and the Elmarit ASPH will be better wide open than the Summaron at f/8, and the 28mm/5.6 isn't a bargain. This must be for the folks who bought the Lenny Kravitz edition M-P.Leica is really resting on their Laurels now, growing fat and lazy. 1 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
james.liam Posted October 19, 2016 Share #90 Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) This has to be one of the weirdest products yet for the contemporary Leica Camera AG. I will stick to my 28mm/2 and 28mm/2.8 ASPH lenses thanks. The f/2.8 one in particular is superb at every aperture and focus distance. The new or old 28mm Summaron is going to be inferior at any aperture, and the Elmarit ASPH will be better wide open than the Summaron at f/8, and the 28mm/5.6 isn't a bargain. This must be for the folks who bought the Lenny Kravitz edition M-P. Leica is really resting on their Laurels now, growing fat and lazy. Speaking of lazy and thoughtless, I think the Leica editions "celebrating" the 1949 Chinese Revolution probably their most grotesque. Perhaps a Castro Brothers Edition of a bring-your-own-sensor M9 with a broken rangefinder and batteries of a type that no longer exist? Edited October 19, 2016 by james.liam 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pedaes Posted October 19, 2016 Share #91 Posted October 19, 2016 . The new or old 28mm Summaron is going to be inferior at any aperture, I think this is missing the point, and I am sure Leica themselves would advice one of their other 28mm lenses if performance in terms of 'sharpness' was the key need. No one would accept the degree of vignetting shown in the sample images from a modern lens. I have ordered a copy and in time I am sure we will have a thread for Summaron images which will be fun. Perhaps William could start with some from the original. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramarren Posted October 19, 2016 Share #92 Posted October 19, 2016 I didn't see the announcement of this lens until this morning. So I nipped in here to see what the chatter was. Sigh. You're all soooo predictable, folks. "The price is too high!" "Only f/5.6? It's useless!" "Can't possibly perform well." Ad nauseam. It's a special interest lens, special order only, based on a 60 year old lens design but recomputed for modern multicoatings, and fitted with a six-bit-code M-mount. What in that brief would give you the notion that it was cheap? Do you not think that perhaps Leica optical engineers know what they're doing? If you don't, why do you bother to be interested in Leica equipment at all? Great photography isn't about perfection. Great photography is about capturing the moment, the emotion, the Zeitgeist. A lovely old lens design like this sees differently compared to modern, ultra high tech optical designs. It's that difference in how they image that makes different lenses interesting, and worth spending money on. I'd love one of these lenses ... fitted to my M-D it would sing. If I can find the shackles, I'll order one. It would be a fitting companion to my 1972 Summilux 35 v2, and my 1960 Hektor 135/4.5. I've posted photos made with those and haven't heard any complaints about their imaging quality... 16 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted October 19, 2016 Share #93 Posted October 19, 2016 William - I, likewise, bought the lens mostly as a novelty when I found a mint collector quality version (hard to find good copies) at a good price. I'm an avid 28mm shooter. And, likewise, once I received it, I found it to be a nice little lens to shoot. I actually would grade the lens to have modestly high contrast. At 5.6 it is sharp. I probably shoot this lens mostly at f8-16 and really have not noticed that it has any more vignetting than my 28 Summicron. I find it fine on FF and for most photos the soft corners don't jump out. I guess if folks want to shoot it wide open and into the sun it will produce more of the Leica glow, but I'm not sure the newer version with better coatings will be quite the same "glow"... but it will have higher contrast. Mine is mostly mounted on my IIIg. My advise for folks would be to patiently wait for a good original copy at1/2 to 2/3 the cost of the new (be careful to look for haze). It is just a beautiful little collector that can be shot like any of the newer designs. But, if you want one with no haze or cleaning marks then the new version would be a relatively "cheep" 28 that would be a lot of fun to shoot and own. Rick p.s. William, your site is really nice and the 2.8/5.6 photos posted there are great! 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
4X5B&W Posted October 19, 2016 Share #94 Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) Lots of negativity here......hey it's a special order lens that most people won't be the slightest bit interested in. Interesting that it's pretty much the same price point as the modern, super sharp 28 Elmarit ASPH that many people find too contrasty, with a somewhat harsh look. This lens is not only super compact, light, with a very attractive appearance, and will give a super smooth OOF image quality that I can't wait to see on my Monochrom. I see this lens as being very desirable when used with a Monochrom for classic analog image quality. Maybe not for everyone.......that's why it's a special order item Edited October 19, 2016 by 4X5B&W 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdlaing Posted October 19, 2016 Share #95 Posted October 19, 2016 I'll wager they sell several thousand of them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted October 19, 2016 Share #96 Posted October 19, 2016 .... But, if you want one with no haze or cleaning marks then the new version would be a relatively "cheep" 28 that would be a lot of fun to shoot and own. Rick ... That's it, I agree (I add that in my MODEST tours in Leica Shops around the world I encountered two dealers (Milan and Paris) that told me "i have a pair of customers that simply buy any new lens that Leica introduces...". I repeat, is a modest touring (5 or 6) so, if statistics matters, some decent numbers are already on order... ) 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
james.liam Posted October 19, 2016 Share #97 Posted October 19, 2016 This lens is not only super compact, light, with a very attractive appearance, and will give a super smooth OOF image quality that I can't wait to see on my Monochrom. I see this lens as being very desirable when used with a Monochrom for classic analog image quality Don't have much OOF anything on a 28mm lens starting out at f/5.6 and diffraction hitting at f/8. A very narrow operational window for a digital sensor. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NB23 Posted October 20, 2016 Share #98 Posted October 20, 2016 Collapsible BP summitar, please 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted October 20, 2016 Share #99 Posted October 20, 2016 I want an Elmar 35/3.5 like that. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
4X5B&W Posted October 20, 2016 Share #100 Posted October 20, 2016 Don't have much OOF anything on a 28mm lens starting out at f/5.6 and diffraction hitting at f/8. A very narrow operational window for a digital sensor. It depends on the point of focus of course, and we are talking about the "transition" of the OOF rendering. A vintage symmetrical design such as this does it extremely well. Additionally I'm sure people will be shooting this lens wide open most of the time, so the number and shape of the aperture blades will not be a major contributing factor. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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