Opinions on the 28 Summicron vs Summilux

[james.liam]

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I have owned the 28 Elmarit for about 2 years and it is a lovely lens but for my applications I need an extra stop or two. 
Selling off some lesser used lenses, I may be able to get the Safari Summicron (to match my Safari M10) or a 2nd-hand black Summilux for a little more. 

I’ve heard mixed things about the Summicron (a little focus shift, colors a tad desaturated). 

Anyone who’s used both care to comment?

Thanks in advance. 
 

Edited September 9, 2020 by james.liam

[jdlaing]

Go for the Summilux. The extra stops are not mandatory but they sure are nice to have when you want them. 

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[Fedro]

difficult to say without knowing which use you have in mind. I ended up getting both over the years and am keeping both

Personally I think that the Cron is a great lens, but the Lux has a special, very cinematic look wide open. If you like that, go for the Lux. Also it has more pop

I use it mostly as an environmental portrait lens, but it can be a good all rounder too (just a tad on the heavy/large side)

if you prefer smaller and lighter or more discreet the Cron is excellent, for street for example. I prefer it for film too because of its gentler rendering

If I had to keep one, it would be the Lux

[james.liam]

As is mentioned, indoor photography becomes a challenge with the petit Elmarit. 
 

wouldn’t have considered the Summicron were it not for the Safari paint. But a 2nd hand Summilux and a Safari Summicron are within. US$200 of each other. I’m not a collector otherwise the Summicron is a no-brainer

[chasdfg]

Had both, kept the cron. But I have a 35lux FLE which I'm not inclined to sell (am 35mm guy) and I felt there was a bit too much overlap between the 28lux and 35lux.

I never noticed focus shift with my cron (never set out to test it but nothing observable in my shooting - but I am not the most particular of shooters regarding focus shift, field curvature etc.). Not desaturated either. Sharp and punchy (less so than the elmarit asph) with microcontrast. I feel it pairs well with a 50apo, because it doesn't really embellish the backgrounds so much. The lens reminds me of the 35mm 1.4 ZM as well in terms of clarity. I can't articulate it but this is just my feel. 

The lux is a nicer lens in terms of rendering. As Fedro said, very cinematic. I'd say it pairs well with a Noctilux in terms of look. Because the situations it truly shines with that cinematic look are between 0.7m to about 2m or so, I feel the "stand out" range of the lens is rather limited. But like the Nocts, when it shines it really shines. It has my favourite bokeh of all the lenses I've shot (reminds a little of the 35lux Pre-FLE).

Image quaility wise I never shot the 28lux aside from f1.4 but I'd say the lux and cron would probably be comparable stopped down. Which also means the 28cron gives you 90% or more of the 28lux in a much smaller package, unless you shoot close range a lot. If you're not bothered about size, I'd just go for the extra stop of the lux. I appreciate the cron's size as it's my smallest lens.

Can PM me if you'd like some sample shots illustrating what I'm trying to say above (28cron - 50apo look vs 28lux cinematic)

[Ecar]

I have both (although my Summicron ASPH is the v1, not the latest one) and agree with what Fedro and chasdfg wrote above. In addition to the extra stop, the Summilux offers that unique wide-open wow factor in the right conditions (quite similar indeed to the 35/1.4 ASPH v1). The Summicron, on the other hand, is smaller and lighter and has overall better ergonomics IMO, which make it a better choice for travel or a full day outing on the streets, although it won't beat the Elmarit in this respect.
Also, either lens will render quite differently than your Elmarit, particularly in terms of contrast, so you may need to consider that if you want OOC image consistency across your various lenses.
AFAIC, when I'm not playing with vintage lenses 😉, I use the Elmarit (also a v1 ASPH) for street, the Summicron as an all-rounder and the Summilux for the night, indoors or for effect. The Summicron is my 'least favourite' of the three, but the one that would probably stay if I had to keep only one in this focal length.

[LeicaR10]

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James.Liam,  I agree with Jdlaing, Fedro and others about the rendering of the 28 Summilux and utility of the 28 Summicron.  Both are superb lenses.  If you have deep pockets or want to go a little crazy, I would suggest the following.  Since you have the Safari M10, you might consider getting the Safari 28 Summicron first.  It is produced in limited numbers, the finish is excellent and renders in a sharp, somewhat contrasty way.  Then, I would keep an eye out for a silver 28 Summilux that looks really sharp on the Safari.  Yet, the 28 Lux renders in a cinematic way compared to the 28 Summicron when shot wide open.  Best of all possible worlds....check this photo out that I found at Pebble Place.  r/ Mark

https://www.pebbleplace.com/geartalk/2020_05_16.html   (Click on the photograph for a good look)

PS...I found a silver 28 Summilux for you...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Leica-Summilux-M-28mm-F1-4-f-1-4-ASPH-Silver-Anodized-6-Bit-M-240-M10-11911/183989764792?hash=item2ad6a502b8:g:iZEAAOSwtKldnvVn

Edited September 10, 2020 by LeicaR10

[otto.f]

2 hours ago, chasdfg said:

never noticed focus shift with my cron (never set out to test it but nothing observable in my shooting

+1

[Fedro]

3 hours ago, otto.f said:

+1

+2

[MarkP]

2 hours ago, Fedro said:

+2

+3

[james.liam]

Interesting and varied experiences! One thing for certain, no two 28s in the Leica Scuderia are even remotely similar. Love that silver model! Stunning but with customs and taxes, I could buy a good 2nd-hand Fiat Cinquecento for that price.

From what I'm able to gather from the collected commentary, the Summicron is the least distinctive of the lot; reasonable size & weight, competent at all apertures but lower contrast than the Elmarit and less "pop" wide-open than the Summilux. Resolution sounds exceedingly high no matter what the choice. 

The 28 Elmarit (latest version) isn't really that compact when the hood is mounted. Which in my case, is always.

The Summicron is a bit of a compromise all around, no?

Edited September 10, 2020 by james.liam

[tgray]

I think the Summicron produces the most interesting images of the three lenses.  I don't particularly like the bokeh of the Summilux.  The Summicron sharpness and contrast is just right for me.  The vignetting on it is relatively pronounced which is part of its character.  It all depends on how you look at it.  I feel like the Summilux is the compromise lens: worse bokeh, larger/heavier, expensive, not as sharp, non-46mm filter, color fringing.  It is a stop faster - no denying that.

Some people don't like the Summicron that much and find it boring.  Some do like it though - personally it's my favorite lens.  I will admit I don't have the Summilux - I debated buying one or upgrading my Summicron to V2, and after reading a lot and looking at a lot of images, I decided I'd be happier with the Summicron.

For those that like the Summilux more: no arguments here, we all have our tastes.  For me, the Summicron wins out.

[stephan54]

I sold the Elmarit asph in favour of the Summicron 28 v2 and am very happy with my decision: great detail and subtle colour transition. Prefer the handling of the Summicron to the Elmarit which has a very narrow ring to detach or attach the lens to the camera. On the other hand I used the Elmarit a lot and found the results attractive, but I find the Summicrons results even more attractive. You cannot go wrong. Tried the Summilux, but the one stop wider did not convince me to change my mind.

[Erikvw]

23 hours ago, james.liam said:

I have owned the 28 Elmarit for about 2 years and it is a lovely lens but for my applications I need an extra stop or two. 
Selling off some lesser used lenses, I may be able to get the Safari Summicron (to match my Safari M10) or a 2nd-hand black Summilux for a little more. 

I’ve heard mixed things about the Summicron (a little focus shift, colors a tad desaturated). 

Anyone who’s used both care to comment?

Thanks in advance. 
 

Dear James, just like you, i own the M10-P safari edition and made the choice for the 28mm 2.0 summicron safari edition. 
1. Because the summicron is well portable, much better then the summilux on the M.
2. The matching colours of the lens and the body is priceless. 
3. For the summilux look I bought the Q second hand.

for the Price of the Silver summilux you then have the best of both worlds and an extra (autofocus) camera.
So... don’t doubt and make the right decision😉

[BJohn]

I would say it depends more on what you want in terms of overall rendering and not on the actual F number. The Cron 28 as well as the Cron 35 and even the APO 50 have a very clean rendering. They would be my choice for professional jobs (like team portraits for a company).

The Lux 28 as well as the Lux 35 have both a very unique cinematic character and I totally love it. Couldn’t be more happy with my copy of the Lux 28. It sticks 90% of the time on my M.

[CosmoM3]

I have the Summicron 28mm ASPH II (or V2) and it's a fantastic lens. I has its place in my bag and it's currently permanently mounted to my M-D

[dkmoore]

On ‎9‎/‎10‎/‎2020 at 2:02 AM, LeicaR10 said:

James.Liam,  I agree with Jdlaing, Fedro and others about the rendering of the 28 Summilux and utility of the 28 Summicron.  Both are superb lenses.  If you have deep pockets or want to go a little crazy, I would suggest the following.  Since you have the Safari M10, you might consider getting the Safari 28 Summicron first.  It is produced in limited numbers, the finish is excellent and renders in a sharp, somewhat contrasty way.  Then, I would keep an eye out for a silver 28 Summilux that looks really sharp on the Safari.  Yet, the 28 Lux renders in a cinematic way compared to the 28 Summicron when shot wide open.  Best of all possible worlds....check this photo out that I found at Pebble Place.  r/ Mark

https://www.pebbleplace.com/geartalk/2020_05_16.html   (Click on the photograph for a good look)

PS...I found a silver 28 Summilux for you...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Leica-Summilux-M-28mm-F1-4-f-1-4-ASPH-Silver-Anodized-6-Bit-M-240-M10-11911/183989764792?hash=item2ad6a502b8:g:iZEAAOSwtKldnvVn

The price on this is WAY high and the seller doesn't have good enough feedback/ratings. I would not buy this one.

[LeicaR10]

Dkmoore,   I agree with you.  My post #7 was meant as an example for the OP.  Just like the my Pebble Place link.  Too bad Leica only made a limited number of silver 28 Summiluxes.  These will most likely go up in value.  r/ Mark

[jrp]

The Summilux needs to be stopped down half a stop to get rid of purple fringing in night shots. 

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[james.liam]

Do help me on this; I know the 28 Elmarit well; sharp, great color, "punch" and high resolution across the frame w/o curvature of field. 

The Summilux creates stunning images at ƒ/1.4 from what I have seen on this site. They are powerfully cinematographic in character. But is it the equal of the Summicron @ ƒ/2?  How does the Summicron v II (of the three, the one I know the least about) differ from both the Elmarit and Summilux?  Or the Summilux vs the Elmarit @ ƒ/2.8? 

The 21 & 24 Summiluxii are very specialized but at smaller apertures, not up to the technical quality of the Elmars. Does the 28 Summilux escape that niche nature? 

Edited September 12, 2020 by james.liam