Focusing - New vs. Old

[ash13brook]

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I bought a new 28mm Elmarit. I already had an older 50 Summicron.

The new lens has the focusing ring almost right up against the camera with the little focusing assist thing on it. The 50 focuses out from the camera a little more. 

I'm finding myself trying to focus the 28mm with the aperture ring a lot. 

Do you all use the little focus assist 'nub' on lenses that have them? What's your technique?

Or... maybe I should buy a new 50mm Summicron so they're similar. Will somebody clear that with my wife, though?

 

Thanks,

Matt

[a.noctilux]

The thing is called focus tab.

 

With a little practice, you would like it or not.

 

Use your left index-finger in the tab concave to focus.

 

Leica M lenses are (when the tab is there) meant to focus with ONE finger.

[lct]

[...] What's your technique? [...]

 

To each its own. You may wish to try that one:

 

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[TomB_tx]

The focus tabs have been on small lenses at least since the 35 Summiron / Summicrons (of the 1950s-60s) for the M models. I much prefer them, and is one reason I now use a 50 Summarit 2.5 instead of my Summicron 50.

[fabior]

and with a little practice you can focus in advance knowing the correspondence of the position's tab with the focus distance. I find it very practical.

[pico]

I bought a new 28mm Elmarit.

The new lens has the focusing ring almost right up against the camera with the little focusing assist thing on it. The 50 focuses out from the camera a little more. 

I'm finding myself trying to focus the 28mm with the aperture ring a lot.

 

If it were my lens I would make an extension to glue into the focus tab recess.

[schattenundlicht]

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You could use the Leitz PLUNG detachable focusing aid, sold for roughtly 750 $ in the 1960ies. Third party clones were cheaper, of course

 

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[adli]

Cheapest trick is to learn to know your lenses.

[a.noctilux]

 

Great photographers like to customize the focus ring.

 

DDD has his Summicron-M with "a long rod":

https://leicarumors.com/2014/12/21/leica-m3d-5-david-douglas-duncan-limited-edition-camera-additional-coverage.aspx/

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Also custom made to be adjustable with one finger:

 

From:

http://www.citysnaps.net/blog/2009/08/27/part-2-film-is-history-pixels-are-disneyland/

 

Here is my pre-M4-2 tabed Cron kit :

 

[spydrxx]

My first Leica lens was a tabbed Summaron in the late 1960s..., I thought it was a fantastic user friendly design, and today 50 years later, I still think so. The only thing beating it, IMHO, was a two opposite focus tab arrangement on an old Ricoh 500 rangefinder camera, my 2nd 35mm camera, One could quickly coincide the images by moving the tabs to zero in due to a short focus throw (about 90 degrees).

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[pico]

An SK Grimes focus assist on Summicron 50mm

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Note how it keeps the camera from falling forward.

It does so at infinity as well.

Edited April 17, 2018 by pico

[Belle123]

The focus tab has always been one of my favorite things about the M lens designs. I use my left index finger for focusing, while holding the camera steady with same hand. Only need slight movement to focus. Also keeps your hand out of the rangefinder view. The right hand is busy with aperature and setting timing and the shutter.

[Richardgb]

I bought a new 28mm Elmarit. I already had an older 50 Summicron.

The new lens has the focusing ring almost right up against the camera with the little focusing assist thing on it. The 50 focuses out from the camera a little more. 

I'm finding myself trying to focus the 28mm with the aperture ring a lot. 

Do you all use the little focus assist 'nub' on lenses that have them? What's your technique?

Or... maybe I should buy a new 50mm Summicron so they're similar. Will somebody clear that with my wife, though?

 

Thanks,

Matt

 

 

The thing is called focus tab.

 

With a little practice, you would like it or not.

 

Use your left index-finger in the tab concave to focus.

 

Leica M lenses are (when the tab is there) meant to focus with ONE finger.

 

I also use the focus tab on my 28mm Elmarit as suggested, but I do find the aperture ring quite lightly 'clicked', which means it gets changed it inadvertently (whether or not due to a 'focusing' slip). This has a knock-on effect if I'm using flash on the A setting (which, for most consistent results, I do).