Which pre WWII ltm lenses would/do you most like to use on M digital?

[pgk]

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We discus lenses at length but Im not sure that this question has been asked too often. Of the pre-war lenses made by Leica which do or would you most like use on a modern digital Leica?

[farnz]

I do use a 7.3 cm /1.9 Hektor and a 50/3.5 Elmar on a modern digital Leica.

I would like to use a 85/1.5 Summarex.

I also use pre-WWII Sonnar lenses.

Pete.

[Ecar]

In addition to the lenses that Pete mentioned, I also use the Summar and the Xenon.

Unless I'm mistaken, there are actually no prewar Summarexes. IIRC, although a few were manufactured during WWII, the majority were made after the war. I may be wrong though.

[lct]

My only "pre-war" is from 1948. Elmar 35/3.5. 

[Danner]

The Summitar 50/2.0 made from '39 to '53 (IIRC).  Fast, sharp in the center, dreamy in the outer zones.

[farnz]

1 hour ago, Ecar said:

Unless I'm mistaken, there are actually no prewar Summarexes. IIRC, although a few were manufactured during WWII, the majority were made after the war. I may be wrong though.

Thank you, Ecar, I hadn't checked and I gratefully stand corrected.

Mind you, Paul didn't mention which war so perhaps it was pre- the Wars of the Roses. 

Pete.

Edited January 25, 2021 by farnz

[jdlaing]

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Elmar 3.5

[Ralf1960Mono]

Since a few days I use sometimes Hektor 73mm from 1938 with my M10M. 

Edited January 25, 2021 by Ralf1960Mono

[pgk]

43 minutes ago, farnz said:

Mind you, Paul didn't mention which war so perhaps it was pre- the Wars of the Roses. 

Perhaps I should have said before 1940😉.

[Stef63]

Thambar 90 mm f2.2.  Mine is a very early serial number from 1934 (first production year) lens.  Always emotional when seeing the results this lens produce on a color or monochrom digital M.  Difficult lens, but more like a pencil in your hand that enables you to paint with light.  Not a snapshot lens but when you have an idea in mind, this is the lens that can materialise your idea into a creative photo.

One of the top Leica LTM lenses to add to your LTM collection. 

[darylgo]

9 hours ago, lct said:

My only "pre-war" is from 1948. Elmar 35/3.5. 

1941 is my Elmar, 80 years old and going strong.  The latest sensors from Leica make this lens look better and better.  

[pgk]

17 hours ago, lct said:

My only "pre-war" is from 1948. Elmar 35/3.5. 

I'll add; a lens which was in production prior to 1940 (but may have remained after this date) so that yours is included. I'm curious though because, given that the 35mm lens is now almost considered as a 'standard' by many (as I do myself) and now vies with the 50, was it such a heavily used lens before 1940 or was it overshadowed by the 50mm in those days. How does it perform relative to contemporary 50s?

[lct]

39 minutes ago, pgk said:

I'll add; a lens which was in production prior to 1940 (but may have remained after this date) so that yours is included. I'm curious though because, given that the 35mm lens is now almost considered as a 'standard' by many (as I do myself) and now vies with the 50, was it such a heavily used lens before 1940 or was it overshadowed by the 50mm in those days. How does it perform relative to contemporary 50s?

35mm were considered WA lenses then. The standard/normal focal length was 50mm and remained so after WW2. Reason why some old and a few younger photogs still "see" in 50mm like truly yours nowadays. We had a 35mm lens in the bag though and 35mm has become a new standard with M2/M4 and following M cameras. Compared to contemporary 50mm lenses, pre-war 35's had basically the same character when they had the same optical design, with less contrast, more flare and more field curvature. This snap has been shot with my Elmar 35/3.5 from 1948 at f/3.5 on a digital CL and i didn't feel the need to sharpen it in PP. 

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Edited January 26, 2021 by lct

[Mr.Prime]

my 1935 Elmar 50/3.5

...I have an inexpensive ltm -> M adapter on it’s way to me as I type...

[UliWer]

Am 26.1.2021 um 14:00 schrieb pgk:

I'll add; a lens which was in production prior to 1940 (but may have remained after this date) so that yours is included.

Post-war coating for lenses which were designed long before the war may make a difference. Not so much for the Elmars - 50, 90 and also 35mm - which had simple designs with not so many glass-air transitions. 

But for other designs coating may transform the character of the old lenses quite substantially. My favorite is the Summar, and I love to use my old nickel version which is almost 90 years old now. Though it has been coated and I think this adds a lot to its unique appeal. The Summar is quite sharp in the center  - not far behind the modern Summicron  (non Apo. Asph. of course...). Towards the edges the resolution decreases dramatically and it get's very bad by modern standards. This creates a three dimensional effect you won't see with other lenses. With coating the effect becomes even stronger as the overall contrast is increased. 

 

[Guest]

1. Nickel-Elmar 3.5-50 from 1933 - uncoated according to the missing blue or other shining through colors.
2. Elmar 4.0-90 from 1941 - uncoated - neither pre- nor post-war but a real war lens with better pre-war parts may I presume?
Although the lens cap was already black painted because the lack of chrome.

[Guest]

1. Nickel-Elmar 3.5-50 from 1933 - uncoated according to the missing blue or other shining through colors.

2. Elmar 4.0-90 from 1941 - uncoated - neither pre- nor post-war but a real war lens with better pre-war parts may I presume?
Although the lens cap was already black painted because the lack of chrome

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•  Leica M 8.2  •  'cron 50 coll.  •  SOMKY  •  LR 5  •  Stuttgart  •  May 2013.  •

[84bravo]

I'm a big fan of the 50mm Summitar. I have two in excellent condition, a pre-war uncoated lens and a late 50's coated lens. The coated lens runs circles around the uncoated one and it's one of my favorite 50s.

[pippy]

On 1/26/2021 at 1:00 PM, pgk said:

I'll add; a lens which was in production prior to 1940 (but may have remained after this date)...

Funnily enough having recenty acquired an "older-lens-formula-but-'made'-in-1953" 50mm f1.5 Summarit in M-mount (and, subsequently, having thoroughly enjoyed my 3 - understandably - very brief shooting-outings with it) I did some checking and this web page took me a bit by surprise;

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-wiki.en/index.php/Summarit_f%3D_5_cm_1:1.5

I'm going to be asking for some help from our Friendly Fellow Forumites over in the Historica sub-forum as most sources (which I've seen so far) suggest that the change of designation from the lens being a 'Xenon' to a 'Summitar' state 1947 yet the link above states that there were 103(!) "Summitar" named examples produced in 1939...

In which case I'll nominate the 50mm f1.5 Summitar!

I've already posted a few snaps in various threads so sample images are available. I'm learning more and more about how it renders with each trip out. Today was (in many ways ) an f5.6 day on the M-D and I could hardly believe how sharp it is. Absolutely astonishing.

Phiilp.

Edited January 31, 2021 by pippy

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[BrianS]

The Summarit 5cm F1.5- I like, but is post-war. I also have a post-war coated 5cm F2 Summitar. Somebody at Leica really should have given more thought to the naming... 

 

Summar, wide-open on the M9. This one has cleaning marks, I since replaced the front element.

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A different Summar, with clean glass- wide-open.

 

And a 1934  CZJ 5cm F1.5 Sonnar, wide-open on the M9.

Warm November Day by fiftyonepointsix, on Flickr

Manassas Christmastime by fiftyonepointsix, on Flickr

 

I use the 1930s Zeiss Sonnars more than the Summar and Xenon. It should be noted that "Bloom" on glass improves performance of uncoated optics. The "Bloom" on this Sonnar means it is better than it was when new.

 

 

Edited February 1, 2021 by BrianS