35mm Summicron ASPH V1 vs 35MM Summicron ASPH V2

[maxfairclough]

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I have the ASPH V1. I love it optically. Seems to tick every box for me. For those who have owned both, which do you prefer? 

Typical Leica user comment; but even though the optics work great for me I dislike the aesthetic/look of the plastic hood. Instead I love the new metal square hood. I understand the metal hood has it's cons being scratched from bumping into things but that is of no concern to me. 

Did you find the V2 a signicicant upgrade to the V1? 

Edited September 10, 2019 by maxfairclough
typo

[LeicaR10]

Maxfairclough,   The difference between the two are;  V2 has a metal lens hood and 11 aperture blades.  This article discussed the differences a little better.  Try:  https://www.streetsilhouettes.com/home/2016/7/9/leica-35mm-summicron-asph-i-vs-ii-24mp-vs-42mp-resolution-test .  Personally I never saw a difference in the resolving power of the two lenses.  But the 11 aperture blades does smooth out the bokeh and lens hood IMO is better on V2.   Hope this helps.  r/ Mark

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[indergaard]

I compared them directly for a few weeks on the same camera, my findings are:

V2 is noticeably larger with the metal hood. It's just as "long" as the Summilux 35 ASPH FLE with the hood attached on camera.
My V1 was actually slightly sharper at infinity than the V2 I tested.
V2 was slightly sharper in the extreme corners than the V1.
V1 had slightly warmer colors and more contrast and a more yellow/warm bias, V2 had slightly cooler colors with a more magenta bias with less contrast.
V1 and V2 both had minimal focus shift at f/2.8-f/4.0 at certain distances.
V1 tends to throw everything that is in front of the focus point more out of focus, whereas V2 seemed to offer more depth-of-field for whatever reason.
V2 had very slightly smoother bokeh at certain distances with a busy background. More or less unnoticeable unless shot against a busy background or a background with a lot of specular highlights or "lines".

I kept my v1 as the most important thing for me was the size. The v2 with the hood becomes the size of a Summilux 35, which defeats the purpose of using a smaller and lighter cron. Might as well use a Lux 35 FLE then. I also prefer the plastic hood for other reasons (lighter, easier to remove and re-attach, takes bumps and dings much better, doesn't block the viewfinder as much, etc).

Edited September 11, 2019 by indergaard

[swatch]

indergaard, at what distance you find focus shift?  Is it black or front focus shift?  Thanks