I have GAS, and I need help with my Kit

[danieldouloslee]

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This is going through a rabbit hole now, but I got an incredible offer from a trusted person for a 50 APO which would be the equivalent price for the following:

50 Summilux ASPH, 28 Elmarit M, Leica M2

 

I'm going to have to sleep on this, and look through all 50 APO photos  oy another late night lol 

[Mute-on]

A 50 APO won’t give you a 28mm perspective, and neither can you crop to get it ....

of course you can get perfectly acceptable and amazing photos with either!

[danieldouloslee]

Haha very true. I'm inclined to go option A at the current moment (swap the 35 Ultron for the 28 elmarit/cron), but the APO would be something id probably die with. One of those thoughts right now 

[Peter Kilmister]

As an owner of a 50 APO I have to warn you that, however perfect it is, it is not ideal for street photos. 50mm is ideal in my rural area, as is a 90 or 135. In a tight urban space 21, 24, 28 or 35mm lenses have an advantage due to their wider angles. 35mm is always a good compromise. If I had to take one lens to a city environment then 35mm would be my first choice.

[Jeff S]

55 minutes ago, Mute-on said:

A 50 APO won’t give you a 28mm perspective, and neither can you crop to get it ....

 

It certainly will if one maintains the identical subject to camera distance.  Only moving closer or farther away will change perspective (relationship between near and far objects), e.g., to maintain same subject size.  Cropping from the same location will also maintain perspective. Angle of view, and focal length, are different matters.

Jeff

Edited June 17, 2019 by Jeff S

[Kwesi]

53 minutes ago, danieldouloslee said:

Haha very true. I'm inclined to go option A at the current moment (swap the 35 Ultron for the 28 elmarit/cron), but the APO would be something id probably die with. One of those thoughts right now 

Ok let me see if I can join in torturing you some more😀.

Just saw your instagram - you are 50 guy. Simple as that. It doesn't matter wether you are in Japan or New York. You may be comfortable in a 35 but definitely not 28 or wider. You will be very frustrated with all the extra elements that are suddenly in your frame. You are definitely not a 75 or longer. too tight for you and you will hate the weight of the E55 90/2.

So, here is my suggestion for Japan, buy the the most expensive 50 you can afford and buy a DLux 7 to use with family and experimenting other focal lengths while on your trip.

[danieldouloslee]

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Thank you, @Kwesi! I have enough $ set aside to purchase the Fuji X-T3 with the 18-55 kit lens (which will be coming with us), alongside whichever option I am planning on going. The Fuji would satisfy family portraits and the like. 

Now, it's time to consider, 50APO or 50 Lux with additional lenses (which I suppose, hopefully, will satisfy my GAS). 

 

[fotografr]

Maybe this won't be of interest to you, but perhaps it will be to someone. I just saw a 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M for sale at fredmiranda.com for $6300, including shipping. That's really a low price and it's in beautiful condition.

[budjames]

Get fewer lenses, but only from Leica for your M. 

My favorites travel kit is an M10, Summicron 35, APO Summicron 50 and APO Summicron 75. My 35 gets the most use accounting for about 70% of the photos that I take.

Regards,
Bud James

Please check out my fine art and travel photography at www.budjames.photography or on Instagram at www.instagram.com/budjamesphoto.

[Ko.Fe.]

If I would be predominantly 50mm shooter I would never have A and B, but just 50 Lux ASPH on digital and 50 Lux pre-ASPH on film.

I could see many dynamic street photography done with 50. And my good looking family pictures were  taken with Jupiter-8 and 50L.

But I switched to wider and lost my 50 mojo. Think twice, before letting GAS to take over. 

[danieldouloslee]

Hi all,

Thanks for entertaining me with your thoughts. I am not sure if it is appropriate to continue this thread because now the question has become:

APO 50mm Summicron or 50mm Summilux ASPH. 

I have the funds to do either (and if I go with the latter, I plan to round out my kit with a 90 Summarit and perhaps a 28 Elmarit). If I purchase the APO, I will keep my VC Ultron 35/2.

The questions lingering in my head regarding the 50mm lenses are as follows:

1. Based on the reviews I am reading, if I am a predominately f5.6-8 shooter, would there be a real difference between the two lenses?
2. Color rendition on the APO is said to be Positive Film/Medium Format like. Wouldn't this be more or less easily replicated when PP?
3. Would my film exposures benefit from me using the APO 50?

I am trying my hardest to justify the APO's cost being double of the Lux ASPH. I have a trusted person willing to sell it to me at a great price, and I just want to make sure I am making the most appropriate purchase.

[james.liam]

57 minutes ago, danieldouloslee said:

APO 50mm Summicron or 50mm Summilux ASPH. 

The questions lingering in my head regarding the 50mm lenses are as follows:

1. Based on the reviews I am reading, if I am a predominately f5.6-8 shooter, would there be a real difference between the two lenses?
2. Color rendition on the APO is said to be Positive Film/Medium Format like. Wouldn't this be more or less easily replicated when PP?
3. Would my film exposures benefit from me using the APO 50?

 

1. No

2. No

3. Yes

Edited June 21, 2019 by james.liam

[Mute-on]

I have developed a simple and useful rule for travelling with Leica M: one lens per body, and a maximum of one extra lens in the bag.  

After my first couple of trips, the extra lens in the bag stayed at home ... I never used it. However, that was when taking two bodies (and therefore two different focal length lenses). 

In your case, I would suggest a maximum of two lenses. More is not better, you will have a Fuji zoom for infinitely variable focal lengths. 

Lastly, Leica bodies deserve Leica lenses, IMHO. The magic is in the lenses, so focus on that ...

[Ecaton]

Your style of street deserves a RF with a one lens solution, a 50mm. Have a look at the compact and lightweight ZM50 1.5 Sonnar. "Zeiss pop" @f5.6 - 8, for street and unique for portraits @f1.5-2.8 (with challenging focus shift on a RF body though).  For general travel and family shots how about adding a jack of all trades such as a Sony RX100VI into the bag?

[otto.f]

Mostly you pay a lot of money for one more stop. With the APO it’s the other way around. Strictly speaking GAS is not about spending as much money as you can per se, but acquiring gear and not especially for the cheapest price.

But seriously, I would find this a very hard choice to make. The street properties of the APO are excellent: handy, quick, unobtrusive, a perfect unit with the M body. Personally I like the 1.4 to 2.0 properties of the Summilux 50 a lot and it has thus a broader range of applications; this is not what you do now, but it will give you something in reserve to develop later. I pretty hate the weight and bulk of the Summilux 50 though, that is why I sold it. For me, it’s the worst M lens when it comes to forming an organic unit with the body. People may find this strange, but I much prefer the Summilux 75 on an M body. With the Summilux 50 your camera can’t ever stand upright on the table, it always tips down; you can prevent that by letting it rest on the focusing tab, but that doesn’t feel good. 

I’m not interested in the APO because for the money I find it too straightforward. I have the Elmar 50 M  for landscape along with the 75lux for street and stills and this does it for me. I see the Elmar 50 as excellent as the APO at 4.0 and up, at least on my MM1 I wouldn’t need more, it’s 8x10” image quality. 

Btw, on this forum a few years ago someone showed that at 5.6, but even at 4.0, all these 50’s are equally good.

Oh and btw, if you’re mainly shooting at 5.6 and 8.0 you wouldn’t need a Leica in the first place at all, optically that is. 

Edited June 21, 2019 by otto.f

[danieldouloslee]

@otto.f - I agree with you on the weight (I got the silver brass and boy is it heavy, esp strapped on my neck!). I definitely use f1.4-2 while indoors as I have the M-D262 and ISO can be limiting. It's just that my outside shooting would necessitate f5.6-8 and I am not sure what "magical" effect the APO would have at those apertures to justify the 100%+ premium. In addition, I wouldn't be printing larger than 12 by 24".

4 hours ago, otto.f said:

I’m not interested in the APO because for the money I find it too straightforward

Could you also elaborate by what you mean by this statement? Your insight is greatly appreciated.

[a.noctilux]

Daniel,

If not already said, why not give Summarit-M 2.4 or 2.5/50mm a try 👻.

Or just try out for a while plain vanilla Summicron 50mm from different periods.

That said, with my dozen (s) of 50mm for M lenses, I can't choose the "right one to do them all".

So why some users have (and use, GAS ?) more than one 50mm (or another focal lengths) lens.

Edited June 21, 2019 by a.noctilux

[Ecaton]

vor 4 Minuten schrieb a.noctilux:

Daniel,

If not already said, why not give Summarit-M 2.4 or 2.5/50mm a try 👻.

That said, with my dozen (s) of 50mm for M lenses, I can't choose the "right one to do them all".

So why some users have (and use, GAS ?) more than one 50mm (or another focal lengths) lens.

Nothing wrong with the Summarits, but they offer nothing special (I have the 50 f2.4 and the 75 f2.5). If it has to be Leica glass it should be those with character imho. In lieu of the Summarits I'd choose some of the Voigtlander and Zeiss 50mm instead.

[danieldouloslee]

@Ecaton - I suppose this is why I am in the Lux ASPH and APO discussion as we speak  hahaha oy the problems of GAS. I wish I could afford both haha

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[a.noctilux]

47 minutes ago, Ecaton said:

Nothing wrong with the Summarits, but they offer nothing special (I have the 50 f2.4 and the 75 f2.5). If it has to be Leica glass it should be those with character imho. In lieu of the Summarits I'd choose some of the Voigtlander and Zeiss 50mm instead.

Not expensive enough that what I thought some years ago, when Summarit-M "cheap" lens line came in the market.

But when I appreciate the most compact 50mm modern lens (2.5/50), I changed my view and use them a lot now in place of my other 50mm lenses.

I have plenty of 50mm "character lenses" (Summar, old Summarit 1.5 , some Summilux-M, Noctilux, Canon "more or less old", Jupiter and so on), and this Summarit-M is the best "all-in-one" no other 50mm lens in my stable can compare.

But that just me ...

and in my view there is no short cut to nullify GAS  😩