colint544 Posted February 9, 2018 Share #1 Posted February 9, 2018 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) I used to have the 35mm Summicron v1 eight element lens. It was lovely on the M6 I had at the time. Bought the lens in 1998 for £350, advertised it on eBay in 2011, and was astounded to get £1650 for it. I thought it was a nice lens, but it sometimes flared a bit, and at F2 the out of focus background could be rendered nervously rather than smoothly, especially if it had any points of light in it. Beautifully built though. I now have a Summilux ASPH FLE and a Summaron F2.8. Anyway, I've just looked at Red Dot Cameras in London, and they're selling a version 1 eight element for £2200. That's a lot more than for a nice chromed brass 35mm Summicron ASPH. What on Earth is going on? Edited February 9, 2018 by colint544 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 9, 2018 Posted February 9, 2018 Hi colint544, Take a look here The rocketing price of the 35mm Summicron eight element. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Csacwp Posted February 9, 2018 Share #2 Posted February 9, 2018 Internet hype. The early lenses are lovely but so is the Asph with the right processing. The Asph has smoother bokeh, especially the older version with 8 aperture blades. I’ve tested mine alongside 3 new copies with the 11 blades, and my old copy has smoother bokeh at all f stops and a very slightly cooler color rendition. 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colint544 Posted February 9, 2018 Author Share #3 Posted February 9, 2018 Thank you, yes - I always understood the 35mm Summicron ASPH to be a wonderful lens, especially in the out of focus backgrounds, even though I've no experience of it. But people have always heaped praise upon it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pedaes Posted February 9, 2018 Share #4 Posted February 9, 2018 Hasn't the 'double ASPH' lens become mainly a collectors item. Reports suggest the lens that followed has superior performance, so not a problem for photographers 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wizard Posted February 9, 2018 Share #5 Posted February 9, 2018 ... What on Earth is going on? Capitalism at its best. Supply and demand . I bought my v1 for M3 at a relatively modest price in as new condition and will not sell it anytime soon. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colint544 Posted February 9, 2018 Author Share #6 Posted February 9, 2018 (edited) Capitalism at its best. Supply and demand . I bought my v1 for M3 at a relatively modest price in as new condition and will not sell it anytime soon. Yes, the demand certainly seems to have gone through the roof, if the price these days is any sort of indicator. I sometimes think it would be nice to have hung onto my eight element, because it's probably a great lens on the M Monochrom. But the Summaron does a great job, I like it a great deal - the background at F2.8 is, to my eyes, super smooth. Edited February 9, 2018 by colint544 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Lord Posted February 9, 2018 Share #7 Posted February 9, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) ^ I too am a fan of the Summaron. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
otto.f Posted February 9, 2018 Share #8 Posted February 9, 2018 A lot more comfortable than bitcoins then 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve McGarrett Posted February 9, 2018 Share #9 Posted February 9, 2018 Hasn't the 'double ASPH' lens become mainly a collectors item. Reports suggest the lens that followed has superior performance, so not a problem for photographers Double Asph? You're probably referring to the Summilux 35, not Summicron... 5 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
semi-ambivalent Posted February 10, 2018 Share #10 Posted February 10, 2018 I used to have the 35mm Summicron v1 eight element lens. It was lovely on the M6 I had at the time. Bought the lens in 1998 for £350, advertised it on eBay in 2011, and was astounded to get £1650 for it. I thought it was a nice lens, but it sometimes flared a bit, and at F2 the out of focus background could be rendered nervously rather than smoothly, especially if it had any points of light in it. Beautifully built though. I now have a Summilux ASPH FLE and a Summaron F2.8. Anyway, I've just looked at Red Dot Cameras in London, and they're selling a version 1 eight element for £2200. That's a lot more than for a nice chromed brass 35mm Summicron ASPH. What on Earth is going on? The next-to-latest 35mm Summicron has been in production for twenty years (1997). Everything before it has been pushed into "vintage/collectible" status because that lets the haves charge more to the have-nots. Best not to buy into the loco weed. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colint544 Posted February 10, 2018 Author Share #11 Posted February 10, 2018 The next-to-latest 35mm Summicron has been in production for twenty years (1997). Everything before it has been pushed into "vintage/collectible" status because that lets the haves charge more to the have-nots. Best not to buy into the loco weed. I think you're right. The internet drives a lot of the hype. There's a great camera shop in Glasgow, on Parnie Street - where I originally bought my eight element, back in 1998. They haven't dealt in used Leica gear for many years. The owner told me that the internet put them out of the Leica market. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
willeica Posted February 10, 2018 Share #12 Posted February 10, 2018 It is also a collector's item. This shows how the collector market has valued the lens at various auctions. http://collectiblend.com/Lenses/Leitz/35mm-f2-Summicron-(BM,-chrome).html William Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted February 10, 2018 Share #13 Posted February 10, 2018 The price is set by what the market will bear. In this instance the market is driven by desire (which has likely been created by reviews, hearsay, authoratitive-sounding opinion, and a few example pictures) but if the price is too high the lenses will remain unsold. A lens's advertised price, whether by bricks and mortar dealers or online, doesn't reflect the market - only the sold price does. If I advertise a toenail clipping for £10,000 it doesn't make it worth £10,000 until someone buys it. (I have several for sale by the way if anyone's interested. ) Pete. 3 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted February 10, 2018 Share #14 Posted February 10, 2018 The price is set by what the market will bear. In this instance the market is driven by desire (which has likely been created by reviews, hearsay, authoratitive-sounding opinion, and a few example pictures) but if the price is too high the lenses will remain unsold. A lens's advertised price, whether by bricks and mortar dealers or online, doesn't reflect the market - only the sold price does. If I advertise a toenail clipping for £10,000 it doesn't make it worth £10,000 until someone buys it. (I have several for sale by the way if anyone's interested. ) Pete. Whose toenail is the clipping from Pete? If it's Elvis I think you might be underpricing it! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exodies Posted February 10, 2018 Share #15 Posted February 10, 2018 For me, the interest isn’t the toe it’s cut from but the curve and lack of burr. Well honed wire cutters are best for the job. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted February 10, 2018 Share #16 Posted February 10, 2018 Whose toenail is the clipping from Pete? If it's Elvis I think you might be underpricing it! No it's not one of Elvis Costello's, James. It was specially grown burrlessly in south London, cut ("crafted?") by a skilled artisan, and supplied with full provenance papers just as soon as I prepare them. Pete. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
enboe Posted February 10, 2018 Share #17 Posted February 10, 2018 Maybe the Summicron v1 will make it onto Leica's Legacy Lens roadmap. I wonder if the glass types are still available. I could see them offering the v1 8 element for $6K or so. Any takers? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
a.noctilux Posted February 10, 2018 Share #18 Posted February 10, 2018 I think so that Leica will offer it as "new Classic SAWOM/SAMWO" one day. I'm not waiting for it as I use with pleasure the original for some time now. Beginning with the goggled M3 model (SAMWO), I love the rendering so much I have now also the M2 model (SAWOM). The glass types are not special: http://www.marcocavina.com/articoli_fotografici/mandler_2_35_summicron/00_pag.htm From Marco Cavina article, here is his drawing 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colint544 Posted February 10, 2018 Author Share #19 Posted February 10, 2018 It is also a collector's item. This shows how the collector market has valued the lens at various auctions. http://collectiblend.com/Lenses/Leitz/35mm-f2-Summicron-(BM,-chrome).html William That steady climb in the price is remarkable. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-A-C Posted February 10, 2018 Share #20 Posted February 10, 2018 What's strange is I have never been that impressed with the image quality of any Leica 35mm Cron. The Zeiss lenses have always produced higher quality images IMO. I do own a 35 ASPH and enjoy its size and handling. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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