Flummoxed....50mm Summicron (SL)?

[Linford]

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I was absolutely flummoxed this morning at the announcement of the 50 Summicron (SL). I got on the SL bandwagon when the camera was announced. I have owned the 24-90, 90-280 and 1.4/50mm Summilux. Great lenses of course. I recently sold my 29-280 to a friend who had better use for it. He has a child in middle school who is active in sports and stage productions. Because of the prohibitive size, I did not use the lens very much. I think the image quality is excellent but the size/weight proved just too much. I have grown completely frustrated by the way Leica has handled the lens support for this platform. Sure it is a great camera, but really!!! Leica is now 4-lenses behind it's very own "LENS ROADMAP" and with little communication to us regarding an ADJUSTED ROADMAP. Obviously there have been some detours. I am mostly an M-shooter but I really like the SL. I sometimes love the idea that I have an auto focus option with fantastic optics. But, I have to say that there is not a week that passes by that I don't consider divesting completely from the SL platform and going back to the M full-time. I've even ventured into researching the Hasselblad X1D. I wish our friends from Wetzler would tell us what is going on with the SL platform.

Edited January 11, 2018 by Linford

[adan]

It is just a rumor of an announcement. From an unofficial (but usually - eventually - reliable) source. There is a big difference.... Leica's own website does not concede its existence.

 

If true, it will probably slot into the roadmap behind the lenses already mapped (35, 75, 90, 16-35), filling in one of "generic unnamed" grayed-out lens symbols. If true.

 

Now, Leica may well be behind the curve in meeting their own map - valid reason for frustration and irritation (but also hardly unprecedented).

 

But announcing a 50 Summicron-SL (if and when) is not going to put them further behind. It won't somehow distract Leica from the work already on progress (Production and Design are separate departments). More likely suspects would be the intro of the CL (and even the M10), which is/are in production and thus perhaps tying up some production or at least assembly capacity.

[Alistairm]

Well said @adan. 

 

And honestly, is another 50mm Leica ever a surprise? 

 

That said, I do understand the frustration @Linford. The good news is, the CL seems to confirm Leica's commitment to this lens mount as the new standard and I am sure the lens line up will continue to pack out. In the meantime, the CL has scratched my Leica itch for a while... but looking forward to 2018 being a big year lens wise for us SL users. 

[Csacwp]

Leica should release an SL2 this year to proove that they are still committed to the system. The SL sensor is long overdue for an upgrade.

[geetee1972]

I can understand the OPs frustration. The bigger faux pas would be if they released a 50mm lens that was one stop slower than the Summilux-SL but which was just as expensive and just as large. Heck imagine if it were also more expensive! A 50 Summicron for the SL has to be smaller, lighter and faster to focus otherwise it's a big gaff.

[Linford]

Leica should release an SL2 this year to proove that they are still committed to the system. The SL sensor is long overdue for an upgrade.

 

Why in the world would anybody upgrade and reinvest into a platform to which Leica is obviously not committed--or perhaps has such a low priority? I really am not one to complain about anything. This is just very disappointing and frustrating for all of us.

[geetee1972]

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Why in the world would anybody upgrade and reinvest into a platform to which Leica is obviously not committed--or perhaps has such a low priority? I really am not one to complain about anything. This is just very disappointing and frustrating for all of us.

 

I don't think their actions so far are indicative of not being committed, though it does give that impression. Leica cannot afford not to be committed the platform having spent as much as they will have done developing the platform. Their release of the TL2 and the CL shows they are committed to the concept of mirrorless and the L mount itself (in much the same way that Sony has developed the E-Mount to work across both APS-C and Full Frame camera bodies) and since most people buy into Leica for its image quality, they can't rely on a smaller sensor to continue to market themselves in this way.

 

Almost certainly the reason we aren't seeing a faster roll out of lenses for the SL will simply be because Leica just doesn't rush things; OK they have the S line of lenses and cameras but they don't have much other history or retained expertise for making AF lenses. They'll be on a steep learning curve for that and it will only be made even steeper if they are aiming to also move the performance of these lenses on.

[ramarren]

Leica has so far produced three outstanding lenses for the SL: 24-90, 90-280, and 50 mm. These have all been found to be exceptionally good performing lenses, some of the best of breed at specific focal lengths and lens openings as a matter of fact regardless of whether zoom or prime. In my professional shooting life, I rarely needed anything else for the 95 percent of my shooting assignments. In fact, I more normally needed only the two zooms. 

 

It will be nice to have some primes, it will be nice to have the ultra-wide zoom. It would be nice to have a 1.4x or 2x extender for the long zoom, and at least a 400-450mm tele. It would be great to have a native 60mm and 100mm macro too. All of these things will eventually come to pass ... in the meantime, adaptation of other, existing Leica M, R and S lenses goes a long way to filling the gaps well. 

 

 

I prefer that Leica concentrate on making excellent lenses, quality design and build, and take their time to get it right before shipping. 

[Irakly Shanidze]

Leica has so far produced three outstanding lenses for the SL: 24-90, 90-280, and 50 mm. These have all been found to be exceptionally good performing lenses, some of the best of breed at specific focal lengths and lens openings as a matter of fact regardless of whether zoom or prime. In my professional shooting life, I rarely needed anything else for the 95 percent of my shooting assignments. In fact, I more normally needed only the two zooms. 

 

It will be nice to have some primes, it will be nice to have the ultra-wide zoom. It would be nice to have a 1.4x or 2x extender for the long zoom, and at least a 400-450mm tele. It would be great to have a native 60mm and 100mm macro too. All of these things will eventually come to pass ... in the meantime, adaptation of other, existing Leica M, R and S lenses goes a long way to filling the gaps well. 

 

 

I prefer that Leica concentrate on making excellent lenses, quality design and build, and take their time to get it right before shipping. 

 

I 100% agree. So far, for straightforward commercial work this is my camera of choice. Even with just two zooms SL is capable of covering 95% professional assignments, except for some specialized cases.  Adding an M and R adaptors turns it into a fully capable system.

Use of TL lenses for 4K video makes SL even more versatile. 

[thighslapper]

Now that the TL2 and CL rush is over I suspect Leica has prioritised production of the 3 missing SL lenses and is stockpiling them as we speak.

 

If they don't all appear in the next few months it implies major production/quality control issues.

 

I'd put my money on the 75 or 90 (or both) appearing in the next 4 weeks.

 

I'd also expect Leica to announce at the same time another batch of 3-4 lenses slated for late 2018 (which probably means 2019).

 

Beyond that the crystal ball looks a bit murky ......

[geetee1972]

So what so we thinkj the 50SL Summicron will cost then and how large will it be?

[Jon Warwick]

So what so we thinkj the 50SL Summicron will cost then and how large will it be?

Info on front diameter size and other thoughts here of the SL Summicrons ....the pending ones seem to all share the same size “casing”. Whether the 50SL would also, I don’t know, but 3 of the SL Summicrons supposedly do ...

 

https://www.reddotforum.com/content/2016/09/setting-a-new-standard-with-leica-sl-lenses-a-discussion-with-peter-karbe-at-photokina-2016/

[Guest VVJ]

So what so we thinkj the 50SL Summicron will cost then and how large will it be?

 

The (hopefully) soon to be released 75mm and 90mm should give us a good indication.  I am hoping around 500g realizing that it might be closer to 700-800g.

 

Price wise I would guess $4-5K soon to be jacked up to $5-6K if the lenses are well received and truly as good at they say they are.

[Alistairm]

At least the slowness of Leica's releases puts less strain on my marriage. 

[Guest VVJ]

The (hopefully) soon to be released 75mm and 90mm should give us a good indication.  I am hoping around 500g realizing that it might be closer to 700-800g.

 

Price wise I would guess $4-5K soon to be jacked up to $5-6K if the lenses are well received and truly as good at they say they are.

 

A price tag of $4,750 and $5,150 respectively and a weight of 720g and 700g.  Not that far off...

 

I am interested but won't go through the pre-order madness and will patiently await first impressions...

 

I hope they announce the 35mm soon as well.  

[Linford]

A price tag of $4,750 and $5,150 respectively and a weight of 720g and 700g.  Not that far off...

 

I am interested but won't go through the pre-order madness and will patiently await first impressions...

 

I hope they announce the 35mm soon as well.  

 

I agree. I too am interested but want to wait and see a little more. I do find it interesting that they simultaneously release two lenses that I would think compete with on another. I, also, had to laugh at my initial reaction to the pricing, I thought, "That's not too bad--pretty good actually." Only in the Leica world is 5k considered not too bad. I guess maybe I'm punch drunk.

[Chuck Albertson]

The 50 Summicron is up on the company's SL Web page now, with availability expected second half of this year (same for the 35 Summicron). Looks like the 75 and 90 are available, I'll have to check the usual suspects for pricing, etc.

[Linford]

The 50 Summicron is up on the company's SL Web page now, with availability expected second half of this year (same for the 35 Summicron). Looks like the 75 and 90 are available, I'll have to check the usual suspects for pricing, etc.

 

The 35 Cron is exciting. I imagine that I will end up with the 35-50-90. Would be awesome to have a macro worked in there along the lines of the S-Summarit. As I right this, I find my words sound more and more like I AM dedicated to the platform. Frustrated, but feeling a little better about it.