My first Leica (T). Which Lens?

[Nordisc]

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Hi everybody,

 

I bought my very first Leica today after reading thousands of reviews and threads. I went for a black Leica T, which was incredibly affordable, instead of a Leica D-Lux 109. Now I have to choose a lens and I am quite unsure, if I should go for the 23mm Summicron, which is my favorite every day focal length or the 18-55 Vario, which offers a little bit more flexibility. Main focus is street and landscape, sometimes children.

 

I'm looking for a compact everyday lens for my first purchase and the upcoming holidays. Later on I will definitely go for the sensational 35mm Summilux as an addition.

 

Thanks for any recommendations.

 

Cheers Nordisc

[ropo54]

Hi everybody,

 

I bought my very first Leica today after reading thousands of reviews and threads. I went for a black Leica T, which was incredibly affordable, instead of a Leica D-Lux 109. Now I have to choose a lens and I am quite unsure, if I should go for the 23mm Summicron, which is my favorite every day focal length or the 18-55 Vario, which offers a little bit more flexibility. Main focus is street and landscape, sometimes children.

 

I'm looking for a compact everyday lens for my first purchase and the upcoming holidays. Later on I will definitely go for the sensational 35mm Summilux as an addition.

 

Thanks for any recommendations.

 

Cheers Nordisc

 

Congratulations and all good choices. If you are likely to shoot more in low light I would first acquire the 23mm. The 18-55 may struggle a bit in lower light scenarios but will absolutely shine outdoors and gives one a lot of flexibility. The 35mm is spectacular, with great IQ and a very fast aperture. Good luck.

Rob

[IkarusJohn]

Hi Nordisc,

 

I am, by nature, not so much of a fan of either AF or zooms.  The SL and its fabulous 24-90 and 90-280 changed all that.

 

I also have a black TL2 (as an addition to my M & SL systems); I have the 11-23mm f/3.5-4.5 zoom (full frame equiv. field of view 17-35mm), which I use as a standard, and I add 28mm and 50mm M mount lenses (giving equiv. fields of view of 42mm and 75mm).  What I have come to accept is that the zooms really are very good, and while they are relatively slow, the ISO performance of the TL2 really makes this limitation relatively unimportant.  It does, however, impact on depth of field (if this is important to you).

 

So, I guess it's a case of where you think you're headed.

 

The TL2 is an electronic camera, with AF, which would suggest that an all purpose zoom (18-56, giving 27-84mm equiv. fov) would be useful.  But for me, photography is all about providing an interesting image that others would not have thought of.  While the standard zoom is useful, I sometimes wonder if it lacks interest - both in field of view and in subject isolation through the option of shallow depth of field.  They are all generally sharp.

 

My approach has been to go for fast lenses in the standard range - I have M mount Summiluxes in 21-28-50-75 focal lengths - and to then add wide and telephoto lenses for that different perspective.  This can mean fussing about with lens changes, which none of us like.  Adding the APS-C sensor does give the option of greater reach with full frame lenses (the SL zooms on the TL2 give a very different option), but it does make the wide end more complex.  That's why I went for the wide zoom on the TL2, as the wide zoom on the SL is not yet available.

 

It is an interesting problem.  If you wish to add the 35 Summilux-TL at some stage (equiv. fov 52mm), then the 18-56mm zoom does look a bit like duplication (don't forget Robert Capa's injunction to use your feet).  If it were me, I would consider getting the 35 Summilux-TL first, and getting to know that one focal length, if you can bond with the 52mm field of view.  From personal experience, I started my Leica experience with 35mm, but found that I actually bonded better with 50mm.  For "street" (however you interpret that), I find the tighter framing of 50mm more useful, but then I often carry 28mm in my pocket ...

 

So, my first would be the 35 Summilux, and I would then add the wide zoom.  I have the wide zoom, and may add the 35 Summilux (a focal length I don't have in either SL or M mount).

 

Confused?  As you can see, I probably am.

 

Cheers

John

[earleygallery]

I don't have a T but do own a Canon M (very similar APS C mirrorless touch screen camera) and have the 18-55 kit zoom and 22mm prime. 

 

I much prefer the prime lens, being more compact and faster. However if I'm travelling light and want to take a camera but don't have photography in mind as it were or don't want to take my film Leica gear, I tend to pack the M and zoom. 

 

I guess my answer is you really need both lenses!  

[Guest VVJ]

FWIW, I have the 3 zooms and the 23mm and I use the 23mm 90% of the time.

 

If you cannot afford both lenses immediately I would probably start with the 23mm and shortly after that get the 18-56 zoom.

 

Have fun!

[MDCT]

I would do the 18-55 first. It is a stellar zoom and covers all of the normal bases. If you don't have the EVF I would do the 23mm after that. The 11-23 is also amazing. If you do have the EVF I would get some manual glass. I have a Voigtlander Nokton 40 and a bunch of old Rokkor glass. Some of these old lenses render things in a very unique way. The T generates very filmic looking files that work really well with these old lenses. Although I also have an A7 that has arguably better ballistics and a better sensor, I prefer the look of the files the T produces.

[MichaelU]

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I have the 23, the 35, the 18-56 and the 55-135. Approx. 80% I use the 23. My first lens was the 18-56. Since I got the 23 a few month later, I use it most of the time. It's fast, compact and delivers excellent IQ. If I would be at the begin again, I would certainly go for the 23 first.

 

 

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[Nordisc]

Hi everybody, 

 

thanks for your comments. My idea behind the 23mm is not only the 2.0 aperture for low light, but also the size of the lens. Hopefully this combination offers a small "everyday package" for most situations. The smaller the cam the more I will use it. That was one reason against the Q (at the beginning of my purpose). The Q is a fantastic camera, even the 28mm would not be a problem so far, but for my first Leica and the fact, that I am not a Pro, the T is the better option.

 

John: Confused? Maybe.   As a result, the quality of the Leica lenses apparently offers a wide range of use cases. At the moment, I would actually go for the 23mm.

 

I do not use the EVF and I am not sure, if there is something missing compared to my cameras before. Maybe I`am gonna add some stuff (second lens, EVF) after a couple of weeks. The holiday will answer this question. 

 

Maybe a last notice: The T ist not only my first Leica, it is the main camera. It is not only an addition to a M oder SL-System. I have to figure out, which is the most suitable combination. Maybe it takes a couple of months. After the bad reviews and the reservations regarding the T/TL-System, I was pretty unsure about the decision.  Now I`m looking forward to gain new experiences with my T.

[mmanda]

Hi everybody, 

 

thanks for your comments. My idea behind the 23mm is not only the 2.0 aperture for low light, but also the size of the lens. Hopefully this combination offers a small "everyday package" for most situations. The smaller the cam the more I will use it. That was one reason against the Q (at the beginning of my purpose). The Q is a fantastic camera, even the 28mm would not be a problem so far, but for my first Leica and the fact, that I am not a Pro, the T is the better option.

 

John: Confused? Maybe.   As a result, the quality of the Leica lenses apparently offers a wide range of use cases. At the moment, I would actually go for the 23mm.

 

I do not use the EVF and I am not sure, if there is something missing compared to my cameras before. Maybe I`am gonna add some stuff (second lens, EVF) after a couple of weeks. The holiday will answer this question. 

 

Maybe a last notice: The T ist not only my first Leica, it is the main camera. It is not only an addition to a M oder SL-System. I have to figure out, which is the most suitable combination. Maybe it takes a couple of months. After the bad reviews and the reservations regarding the T/TL-System, I was pretty unsure about the decision.  Now I`m looking forward to gain new experiences with my T.

 

I'm a new T user too and have just pulled the trigger on a 23mm last night, its expected to arrive tomorrow.  For me I wanted portability, I want this to be a go everywhere with me camera and the main purpose I got it!  So the 23 fitted that criteria and of course I know it takes amazing pics! I work shift work and do nightshift, so i have the opportunity to get out in the dark and play around with a camera - main reason I got it.

 

If I really fall for the T, I may ditch my A7II and lenses and just get the TL2 later (or wait as long as I can and see if a new TL mount with built in EVF does get released).I can hire a DSLR if I need to shoot anything that requires one(hasn't happened in a year or more).

 

The best camera is the one you use

[Jkulin]

I have had my T a year now and initially bought the 18-56, which covered 99% of what I needed.

 

A good 11-23 came up and although I couldn't really justify it I bought it and between the two lenses they cover all my needs.

 

Speed wise they are perfect and if need be I give them an extra stop of the ISO, I don't like auto ISO preferring to dictate my needs rather than have the camera choose it for me.

 

I really can't see the need for any other lenses in relation to how I use my Leica T, if I wanted to do Sports Photography then I would use my Nikon's, but I didn't buy the Leica for that.

[IkarusJohn]

Nordisc,

 

I think the ideal is to buy once and buy well. Good luck with your choices. There are few bad choices; just what works well for you. Sit back and think about what you like, and think ahead and choose accordingly.

 

The TL2 is a good single system. So, what focal lengths do you use? The most common is still 28 to 90. Wider and longer is useful, but handheld, you still don't want longer than 180. Ergonomically, you probably don't want any longer. So, wider? I like wider; but wider than 18 or songets tricky.

 

So, look at the focal lengths you want (converting for APS-C) and then look at what's available and going through be available, and make your choices. It's a good system with no bad choices.

[frame-it]

get the Leica M adapter , and a 50mm summilux f1.4 ASPH.

 

 

 

Hi everybody,

I bought my very first Leica today after reading thousands of reviews and threads. I went for a black Leica T, which was incredibly affordable, instead of a Leica D-Lux 109. Now I have to choose a lens and I am quite unsure, if I should go for the 23mm Summicron, which is my favorite every day focal length or the 18-55 Vario, which offers a little bit more flexibility. Main focus is street and landscape, sometimes children.

I'm looking for a compact everyday lens for my first purchase and the upcoming holidays. Later on I will definitely go for the sensational 35mm Summilux as an addition.

Thanks for any recommendations.

Cheers Nordisc

[Budfox]

Get the 23mm. Small, big aperture, faster performance.

 

The 18-56 is a bit slow at the long end (only 5.6) which can make a difference especially with the EVF which can get laggy on the original T's when the aperture is too small (not enough light).

 

You will notice that the other zooms are 4.5 at the long end which can make a big difference to performance. They are worth considering in the future also.

[Nordisc]

Thanks everybody. I went for the 23 mm and purchased a new one with a 20% discount. Can`t wait to open the box!

[mmanda]

Thanks everybody. I went for the 23 mm and purchased a new one with a 20% discount. Can`t wait to open the box!

That's exactly what I did. 20% off eBay tech sale

[IkarusJohn]

Thanks everybody. I went for the 23 mm and purchased a new one with a 20% discount. Can`t wait to open the box!

Good work. Have fun with it. It's a great camera!