First 50mm... Noctilux or APO-Summicron?

[francesco calcagno]

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Hi,

on M10 

...my first 50mm

Noctilux 0,95 or APO-Summicron-ASPH f2?

 

thanks  

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[Malcolm Kays]

APO-Summicron

[a.noctilux]

😇                the two,

 

...

or you would never know which one suits you 😉

have a look here

and here

...

another link,

this thread can be amusement or decision sources (Neil can help you ! )

Why don't you just buy a "modest" lens like plain Summicron-M or the hiden marvel Summarit-M ?

Then later with experiences go to one of the two or the two if you can afford them.

 

You would have all kind of user experiences as answers to make your mind but that are other's guys experiences, not your's.

Edited August 9, 2019 by a.noctilux

[rent]

I had both. Kept the Summicron-APO. The 0.95 was just too much to lug around.

[Mark T]

You should buy the most expensive one

[Milan_S]

You will buy one of them and eventually want to buy the other. 

I had the three modern fast 50s but decided to keep only the two the most extremes: 50 APO and 50 Noctilux f0.95

Both are very different and fit each other well. I use the 50 APO much more due to weight and size. 

So buy the 50 APO first you will never regret it, superb sharpness and micro contrast with a touch of swirly bokeh. The 50 APO reminds me of a MF lens. 

The 50 Noctilux f0.95 is gorgeous for it's rendering of people half or full body...

 

50 APO 

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50 Noctilux f0.95

 

 

[pedaes]

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Please do not buy the Noctilux first as it is so difficult to use wide open and such a huge weight and size if you use it at f2 etc. Do not think it is 'sharper' because of its cost, it is not.. The APO-Summmicron is absolutely the one to go for between the two you asked about . Unless you are wanting to spend big the 50mm Summarit will serve you well. All IMHO of course.

Edited August 9, 2019 by pedaes

[Peter Kilmister]

@pedaes Spot on! Very well written advice.

[michali]

I agree with those suggesting the  50mm Summicron APO. I had the Noctilux 50mm and 0.95 got rid of it after 8 months  -weight, chromatic aberration wide open & personally I also don't like the "exaggerated" bokeh. I have never missed it.... 

The Summilux 50mm f1.4 ASPH is also an excellent lens, it's permanently attached to my M bodies.

[spydrxx]

Another suggestion for the Cron, having owned both Crons and a Nocti. The Noctliux is really much more of a special purpose lens iMHO: bigger, harder to tame, harder to achieve sharp focus wide open,, more expensive, heavier, blocks part of the viewfinder. I know about salivating over one because they get so much attention, but what you don't read so much about is many people selling them after the fascination wears off.

[Jeff S]

If you have to ask the question or rely on a poll, then neither.  There are many other fine choices that are also capable of superb results... or not.... depending on the user.

Jeff

[TomB_tx]

I was tempted by the original Noctilux (f1.2) in 1969, but chose the regular Summicron instead, and I've never regretted it. The newer Noctilux models don't interest me at all - too big and heavy.

Now on the M10 the 2.5 Summarit is my favorite lens.

[Jon Warwick]

As a prior owner, I think an M Summicron APO is as near perfect as an M lens comes (but, as an aside, I personally think that every SL “prime” lens beats the M lens in terms of natural rendering and also resolution).

For an M, I’d personally also look at the 50mm Summarit. Nice and compact, balances well on an M10, and sharp too.

The Noctulix is more specialist, and can conflict with why some people are attracted to the Leica M system (namely small size and light weight).

[Kwesi]

Hi Francesco,

Welcome to the forum apologize in advance for being blunt. If you have to ask to make a decision between these two lenses, you are not ready for either one.

I would strongly suggest buying 50/1.4 ASPH - shoot it for a while, get to know it strengths and shortcomings, then decide wether the 50/0.95 or the 50/2 APO would suit you better.

 

[RagingCANE]

I’m in the process of choosing my first 50 also. Knowing myself, if I try to be practical (is that even a thing in the Leica Universe?), and buy a less expensive cron or lux 1.4, I will still want the APO.

I never considered the Noctolux because of the size.

Edited August 10, 2019 by RagingCANE

[james.liam]

32 minutes ago, RagingCANE said:

I’m in the process of choosing my first 50 also. Knowing myself, if I try to be practical (is that even a thing in the Leica Universe?), and buy a less expensive cron or lux 1.4, I will still want the APO.

I never considered the Noctolux because of the size.

...which is exactly what I did. Would’ve been cheaper getting what I knew I’d want in the first place. 

[Jollicoe]

Get the 50mm APO first. 

[jakontil]

I have had my sheer of noctilux for some time and eventually gave it up in place for an apo, actually the second time i spent on apo, whilst my most used lens was in fact a summilux but the apo is just a special lens

practically the noctilux is too big for my liking and limited my moves, great lens though but summilux fits me better

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[MarkP]

Amongst the faster / esoteric Leica 50s:

1.4/50 Summilux: best compromise for price, speed, versatility. Renders beautifully. Compromise is it's a little long on M cameras but nothing compared to a Noctilux.

2.0/50 APO-Summicron: the 'superlative' lens, is reasonably compact, perfectly balanced on an M camera. Probably all one ever needs, but at a significant price.

0.95/50 Noctilux:  I see no point in this lens unless you are in to shooting wide open . Otherwise it's just excess weight and wasted money.

However, I do have a 1.0/50 Noctilux v3, a gift from a good friend. It is very different to all the others.  My 'art' lens.  It renders & colours so beautifully & gently compared with all the other 50s. I rarely use it wide open because zero-depth-of-field-only-the-cornea-in-focus photography is not my thing. It is a particularly lovely lens for photographing people and, despite it's bulk, it is my go-to 50 when I take a camera to family functions etc.

 

However, for a first 50 you really should see if the focal length suits you.  Consider a Summilux ASPH or standard Summicron ASPH. You can buy a lot of glass or photographic holidays for the difference between either of these two lenses and the APO-Summicron or Noctilux.

 

 

[Fedro]

I have both and love both, but if I had to keep only one it would be the Apo, which is a lot more flexible. the Noctilux I use mostly in specific situations 

I think it is sensible to start with something less expensive though as others have suggested like the regular cron, the Elmar or the lux

my first Leica 50 was the lux Asph many years ago, amazing lens