First M Camera:Bang for buck first lens?

[Cayenne]

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Hello all, 

First post hoping many more to come.

I have a chance to buy a Leica M Momochrom for a really good price from a friend...

Even at the good price, it is $$ as you might guess.

So, for my first and likely only lens for awhile, what would y’all recommend as a first lens?

I’m thinking a 35mm-50mm lens would be best, and while fast is better, I k ow I’m asking bang for the buck with good quality for this great camera and sensor.

Thank you in advance!!

 

cayenne

[logan2z]

A used 35mm or 50mm/2.4 Summarit might be a good option.  Excellent lenses, Leica quality, not cheap but relatively inexpensive for a Leica lens.  I've had my 35/2.4 Summarit for a few years and it's never let me down. 

I'm sure others will suggest Zeiss or Voigtlander M-mount lenses as less expensive options, but I have no first-hand experience with those. They seem to have a good reputation around here, though. 

Edited October 8, 2020 by logan2z

[a.noctilux]

Good suggestion, Summarit-M lens line was "hiden gems" (I've never found out before using one of them ! ).

I have a bunch of good lenses more or less "open", but my last purchase , just to try/find out, Summarit-M 2.5/35/50 "cheap second hand", small, light,

they are my most use 35/50mm.

With Monochrom good enough ISO (for me 10k ISO usable, even most of time I use 320/400 ISO), f/2.5 is not limited factor at all.

[JimmyCheng]

I would recommand the voigtlander 35mm nokton classic MC v2 f1.4 (wow, a mouthful), the reason being:

1. it is tiny, and that's part of the reason I get into leica (small, attractive manual lenses)

2. it is a 1.4 lens, so it wouldn't limit your creative options and works really well in all conditions (being a tad soft wide open ain't a bad thing)

3. it is affordable (compare to leica glasses)

4. it is remarkably well-built, as good as any leica glasses I've owned

Image quality wise, it is very close to old non-asph leica glasses, but with different color rendering (yellower). You got nothing to lose to try it out. As a matter of fact, even after using a bunch of leica glasses, I still come back to this little gem quite often.

[TomB_tx]

I'd suggest a 35mm lens, which has become my "normal" on digital M cameras. On film I used 50 more, but on digital the 35 image crops to 50 FOV while maintaining excellent image quality. 

I have both the 35mm f1.4 Nokton and 35 Summarit lenses mentioned above, and you won't go wrong with either. I tend to use the Summarit most on my M10, and the Nokton on my M9, which is more limited on high ISO, so the 1.4 aperture is handy in low light. The Summarit is somewhat sharper, but in most pictures you won't see the difference. The Nokton is a bargain at its price. Both have great handling, small size, etc.

The older Summarit 35mm f2.5 is identical optically to the newer "2.4" version (Leica was conservative calling it 2.5) and is can probably be found cheaper than the 2.4 version. I use the 2.5 version.

[Matlock]

14 minutes ago, TomB_tx said:

The older Summarit 35mm f2.5 is identical optically to the newer "2.4" version (Leica was conservative calling it 2.5) and is can probably be found cheaper than the 2.4 version. I use the 2.5 version.

I have one of each and, apart from appearance, they are identical.

[Guest]

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Depending on your focal length preferences, either the Zeiss Biogon 50mm f/2 or Voigtlander Nokton version iii 35mm f/1.2.  Very affordable compared to least expensive Leica glass and will give you the opportunity to find your focal length sweet spot before betting the farm.  I bought both.  Here’s a shot from the Zeiss on my M10P under challenging circumstances (indoors, backlit).  Please ignore the fact that I focused on the bite of pie rather than her eyes - apparently I was distracted and hungry.  🤣

 

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Edited October 8, 2020 by ChrisL

[danieldouloslee]

35/2 Ultron & 50 Planar are the best bang for buck with superb optical performance.

 

[astrostl]

Voigtlander VM 35/1.7 Ultron or ZEISS ZM 50/2 Planar (although the new TTArtisans 50/1.4 looks like it's getting great initial takes)

[sinjun]

I'd take a look at the Leitz 40mm Summicron C or the Minolta Rokkor equivalent. Very small and light, pretty sharp wide open but also with character, and, best of all, very cheap compared with the similar, contemporary 35mm Summicron. Be aware that, unless it has already been modified, it requires a slight modification to bring up the 35mm frame lines.

[Lelmer]

35 or 50, your choice. 

35 : summarit is a great choice, or you directly get the best, summilux 35 FLE, depending on your budget  

50 : summarit or summicron v5 (you can find second hand ones at very good price)

[Ko.Fe.]

Since it is Monochrome, lens needs to be sharp and just without excessive flaws. And if you are open to realize what non-Leica lenses aren't taboo, the choice is huge for 50mm lens and for 35mm lens isn't bad either. Used ZM, VM, all kinds. New MiC lenses are even more affordable, just bulkier.

You could get even Jupiter-12 and with wide hood it is sharp lens, with distortions less than Summarit-M 35 2.5. Black Jupiter-8 or even Industar-61 L/D are under 100 USD lenses. 

Want less extreme low end, get Zeiss Planar 50/2 ZM and Biogon 35 2.8. Those are lenses which won't need any upgrade.

Color Skopar 35 2.5 with Canon 50 1.8 are in the middle. 

Edited October 8, 2020 by Ko.Fe.

[CosmoM3]

• Zeiss C-Biogon 35/2.8
• Leica Summarit-M 35/2.4 or 2.5 ASPH (they're all ASPH)
• Voigtlander Ultron 35/2

Compact, very sharp, contrasty for the Monochrom and you don't need fast lenses that sensor.

[Cayenne]

First, THANK YOU everyone for all the feedback and suggestions!!

I've been busying exploring, researching and finding pricing for these lenses.

I was toying with the idea of maybe trying out for my first pair of lenses:

Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 II MC Lens - $599.00

and maybe:

TTArtisan 50mm f/0.95 Lens for Leica M - $755

I was thinking the smaller 35mm for likely the main carry lens to start with, and the 50mm to play with the M10 Monochrom, which is already apparently a low light monster, to take it to even higher levels of what's possible to shoot low light.

I can't afford the Leica one at $12K+....but from reviews I've read, it seems to be a good bang for buck lens.

I thought between the two lenses listed above, it would give me a LOT of new possibilities to play with.

I'm still looking....

Just curious, what are some good reputable places to buy used Leica lenses online?  I looked at KEH and they don't have much of what I'm currently looking for...and seem kinda low on M mount lenses in general?

 

Again, thank you in advance!!

cayenne

[Ko.Fe.]

I have Nokton 35 1.4 II. @f1.4 it is not FLE, but better lens than ELC Lux. 

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TTA fast lenses are good, but you really need to make choice between hauling big and heavy chunk on camera for reason to have some funky bokeh or benefit from Monochrome high ISO capabilities and use compact RF lens, which will not protrude too much into VF.

 

[astrostl]

18 minutes ago, Cayenne said:

Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 II MC Lens - $599.00

and maybe:

TTArtisan 50mm f/0.95 Lens for Leica M - $755

Depends on what you want. PhillipReeve has technical reviews of both the CV 35/1.4-E and the TTA 50/0.95. All lenses are a mix of tradeoffs, and I would say that the CV is deliberately sacrificing optical quality for speed and size (explicitly with a "classic" look) and that the TTA is deliberately sacrificing both optical quality and size for speed. If that sounds great, then great! For my tastes I'd much rather have the VM 35/1.7 as a smallish fastish all-arounder 35 and the VM 50/1.2 as a large fast 50 while making fewer optical compromises.

[Cayenne]

Adding onto my recent post.

Aside from considering the TTArtisan 50mm f/0.95 as my 50 low light monster.

The 35mm I think is my most important choice.

It was pointed out since I'm going for the M10 Monochrom, sharpness is likely my main target for the 35mm as that it will be on the camera the most.

Any votes between the :

• Voigtlander Ultron 35/2
• vs
• Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 II MC

??

I think I'm close to pulling the trigger and would really appreciate just a bit more advice and commentary on these.

 

Again, THANK you all in advance, this has been most helpful!!

C

[Ko.Fe.]

Both are good lenses. Small size, good handling. Quality build.

Both have not always ideal bokeh wide open. With /1.4 been more on the wild side if w/o, sometimes.

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[lct]

If you like glow (halos around highlights), you could consider the CV 35/1.4 SC v2 too. Otherwise your choice is good. I have both lenses BTW and prefer the 35/1.4 but this is pretty subjective anyway (digital CL, CV 35/1.4 SC v2, f/1.4).

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Edited October 8, 2020 by lct

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[Guest]

1 hour ago, Cayenne said:

First, THANK YOU everyone for all the feedback and suggestions!!

I've been busying exploring, researching and finding pricing for these lenses.

I was toying with the idea of maybe trying out for my first pair of lenses:

Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 II MC Lens - $599.00

and maybe:

TTArtisan 50mm f/0.95 Lens for Leica M - $755

I was thinking the smaller 35mm for likely the main carry lens to start with, and the 50mm to play with the M10 Monochrom, which is already apparently a low light monster, to take it to even higher levels of what's possible to shoot low light.

I can't afford the Leica one at $12K+....but from reviews I've read, it seems to be a good bang for buck lens.

I thought between the two lenses listed above, it would give me a LOT of new possibilities to play with.

I'm still looking....

Just curious, what are some good reputable places to buy used Leica lenses online?  I looked at KEH and they don't have much of what I'm currently looking for...and seem kinda low on M mount lenses in general?

 

Again, thank you in advance!!

cayenne

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