Summilux 35 FLE at close distance

[didier]

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Dear all,

I am a 50 guy. I own 5 different Leica 50s and several longer lenses, and sold my only WA a few years ago (summicron 28 v1).

I shoot mostly people / travel / everyday with my M today.

Now that I am the happy 😃 father of 2 toddlers (7 and 19 months) and particularly in those times when most - if not all - shooting opportunities are indoor,  I feel like having something wider.

So I will use it as a walk-around lens + environmental portraits, particularly to catch great moments with my daughters.

I used the summilux M 50 a lot for most of my shooting, but was never satisfied with its close-up performance, especially wide open or @ f2, particularly compared to the APO 50, which is amazing.

(I already wondered if it was my copy of the 'lux 50 which was the reason ?)

 

I thought about getting a 28 again, but a 35 could be better to go a little, but not too much, wider.

Those of you who used / are using both the 'lux 35 and 'lux 50, can you describe how differently (if different) they behave at close distance ?

and / or how the 'lux 35 compares to the APO 50 ?

Thanks for your insights !

 

Take care

Didier

 

[Fgcm]

Didier,

Both the 50 apo and the 35 asph perform very well at close range. Better than my copy of the summilux.

the 35 Asph is only a neck behind the apo. 

You will love it. 

a 28 would be too wide.

ciao

Franco
 

 

[Jeff S]

Floating lens elements (FLE) were added specifically to improve close focus performance.  While I don’t have the lens, or toddlers, a good friend uses his 35 FLE to produce some wonderful pics of his young daughter. 

Jeff

[kinch123]

Agree with above comments that (a) 28 is too wide — and anyway we have iPhones for that  and (b) 35 FLE is great close up and approaches the 50 APO in performance.

Young Children: If you can get them to freeze and pose, then cannot beat the 50 APO. This lens was made for photographing very young humans - another way of saying that it’s unforgiving when used on the rest of us! When you’re quietly trying to capture more spontaneous moments, the 35 will be your friend given that it’s easier to hit focus and you have more room to crop.

Additionally, you might find that the 35 works really well for cafe and restaurant table moments where the 28 is a bit too wide and the 50 is too narrow. I find the 35 just right here and still permitting a tad of cropping where necessary.

[danieldouloslee]

I don't necessarily think a 28 is too wide. When documenting my 3 and 1 year old daughters, it's been mostly the 28 Cron and 35 FLE. I previously owned the 50 Lux ASPH and sold it for the APO, which works in my favor as its stiction is smoother so I can nail focus of my kids much quicker. I mostly use the 50 for portraits, though I just picked up the 75 Nokton and excited to play with that as well. It really depends on your composition and style, @didier

 

However, I will say this–the 35 FLE or the 28 Lux would probably pair better with your 50 APO than my 28 cron, as the characteristics of these lenses are very similar. That has been my biggest gripe about the 28 cron. 

Let me know if there's any way that I can help!

 

Examples of the 28mm Cron V1:

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Examples of the 35 FLE:

 

 

 

Edited May 25, 2020 by danieldouloslee

[Shameetman]

35 fle from close 

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[Shameetman]

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And horizontal 

 

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Edited May 25, 2020 by Shameetman

[Shameetman]

I use the Summicron 50 next to my 35 lux. The 35 really feels wide for portraits, but sometimes surprises me too. I think the 50 is more easy to handle but the 35 can be fun and can give a lot of satisfaction when used in the right way.  
 

 

[colint544]

 I always think that any Leica M is at its best when fitted with either a 50mm or 35mm lens. The 35mm Summilux ASPH FLE is really versatile and, for my money -  quite different in character to any 50mm lens. Close-up, it's fantastic because of the way you can blur the background. 

I didn't much like my copy when I got it, mostly because of poor build quality - which got worse the more I used the lens. Leica ended up fixing all the problems (rattling, virtually non-existent aperture detents, focus ring jamming before infinity) - at a cost - but I've come to realise what a great lens it is. I'd recommend it, but do check the build quality.

This is a shot I took on the 35mm Summilux ASPH FLE, wide open in bad light. 

Leica M5, Ilford HP5 pushed to 800 ISO

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Edited May 25, 2020 by colint544

[colint544]

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[newnew]

I probably will not keep my FLE as I discover I am not comfortable with that angle but the optical quality of the lens can not be much questioned besides a personal taste of how it "draws". For children portraits it can be quite a tool with nice effects at these portrait distances. here is a shot of my grandson.

 

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[newnew]

Another one @ f 1.7

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