LTM Lenses advice?

[shirubadanieru]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Hi everyone, I’ve recently acquired a Leica III and I’ve been enjoying this camera so much that I have not touched my M3 at all for over a month now. I was wondering if there are any Barnack Leica users here who could recommend me their favorite lenses for the system. I currently own: 

- Nickel Elmar 5cm f3.5 (elmar, uncoated from 1933) 
- Chrome Elmar 5cm f3.5 Red scale (coated from 1954)

I’m thinking of getting rid of one of the Elmars (still have to decide which one) and get another 50mm that is compact / light but a bit brighter and a 28/35mm as well. 

Edited May 15, 2021 by shirubadanieru

[oldwino]

In 28mm, I have a coated Hektor that I think is pretty great. 
the Summarons in 35mm are all nice.

I like my 1934 uncoated nickel Elmar - classic rendering. 
I also really like my 1935 Summar 50mm, which was factory coated at some point in its life. Quite unique rendering and very sharp in the center. 
 

Ive also enjoyed the Nikkor LTM lenses, which tend to be just as sharp as the Leica lenses, but with better contrast and coatings. 
 

For more modern lenses, the 28 Voigtlander Color Skopar is amazing. 

[Pyrogallol]

For 35mm any Summaron or the 1950’s Nikon equivalents.

for 28mm try the 1950’s Canon lenses, the early brass and chrome ones not the later black plastic and chrome ones that get hazy.

if you have to sell one of the 50mm Elmars, keep the red scale one, but no other 50mm is as compact or light as the Elmar.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[shirubadanieru]

4 hours ago, Pyrogallol said:

For 35mm any Summaron or the 1950’s Nikon equivalents.

for 28mm try the 1950’s Canon lenses, the early brass and chrome ones not the later black plastic and chrome ones that get hazy.

if you have to sell one of the 50mm Elmars, keep the red scale one, but no other 50mm is as compact or light as the Elmar.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

thank you! nice collection. I know the red elmar is better & coated but I haven't noticed much difference between uncoated & coated elmars to be honest..but I love how Nickel looks (since my camera is black paint & nickel)

[shirubadanieru]

6 hours ago, oldwino said:

In 28mm, I have a coated Hektor that I think is pretty great. 
the Summarons in 35mm are all nice.

I like my 1934 uncoated nickel Elmar - classic rendering. 
I also really like my 1935 Summar 50mm, which was factory coated at some point in its life. Quite unique rendering and very sharp in the center. 
 

Ive also enjoyed the Nikkor LTM lenses, which tend to be just as sharp as the Leica lenses, but with better contrast and coatings. 
 

For more modern lenses, the 28 Voigtlander Color Skopar is amazing. 

I'd been searching for a nickel Elmar & a nickel Summar or Hektor but hard to find in good condition. Have you tried the Hektor vs Summar? 

[farnz]

10 hours ago, shirubadanieru said:

and get another 50mm that is compact / light but a bit brighter

As soon as you look for "brighter" then 'compact' and 'light' are likely to be reduced of course, particularly in comparison to your (wonderful) 5cm/3.5 Elmar.

I use either a Nikkor Nippon Kogaku 50/1.4 Tokyo in LTM mount or a Canon 50/1.2 in LTM mount; the former more than the latter but I tend to prefer the Canon when shooting with some b&w film because it seems to handle mid-tone greys a little better although the Nikkor has more contrast and is my 'go-to'.

You might also consider 50/1.4 Summilux pre-asph in LTM, which Leica produced as a special edition for the Japanese market in 1999.  It's the same lens as the last M-mount 50/1.4 Summilux pre-asph version but in LTM.  They crop up in the usual places from time to time but since you're based in Japan (I think) they probably pop-up more frequently in the shops in Ginza.

An alternative might be the 50/1.4 Summilux v1 "SOOME" in LTM (E43 filter thread) but I think they're getting quite rare now and therefore will cost more.

Pete.

[lct]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

With modern glass, 35/2 asph # 11608 & 50/2 # 11619:

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[Decimusmaximus7]

I use both the Canon 50mm F1.5, which is a sonnar design, as well as a 1946 Leica 50mm F2 Summitar. 

[a.noctilux]

LTM lenses are so cheap (in most cases, even Leitz lenses) that I buy them to try out.

Some are great, some have lovely characters, some (most) are old with flaws, so there is only "try and try" to have any chance to find one(or two) which work.

To name some "great old LTM lenses" in 50mm (to try by oneself) : Summar 5cm, Summarit 1.5/50, Elmar 5cm (you have two ! ), Canon 1.2/1.4/1.8/50mm, Jupiter 3/8, etc.

Forgot to mention a special lovely lens LTM collapsible Summicron 5cm which is compact and completes very well the Elmar 5cm.

Remember that with bigger front (= more light), the viewfinder of camera would be obstructed so needing to use the nice SBOOI !

 

Edited May 15, 2021 by a.noctilux

[shirubadanieru]

23 minutes ago, a.noctilux said:

LTM lenses are so cheap (in most cases, even Leitz lenses) that I buy them to try out.

Some are great, some have lovely characters, some (most) are old with flaws, so there is only "try and try" to have any chance to find one(or two) which work.

To name some "great old LTM lenses" in 50mm (to try by oneself) : Summar 5cm, Summarit 1.5/50, Elmar 5cm (you have two ! ), Canon 1.2/1.4/1.8/50mm, Jupiter 3/8, etc.

Forgot to mention a special lovely lens LTM collapsible Summicron 5cm which is compact and completes very well the Elmar 5cm.

Remember that with bigger front (= more light), the viewfinder of camera would be obstructed so needing to use the nice SBOOI !

 

thank you! Ever tried Hektor? which one is you favorite from the leica lenses you mentioned?

[a.noctilux]

20 hours ago, shirubadanieru said:

thank you! Ever tried Hektor? which one is you favorite from the leica lenses you mentioned?

Sorry, I've never found Hektor 2.5/5cm (neither Summitar ... maybe later) to try out.

My favorites are equally one of Elmar 3.5/5cm/50mm which I also have from many periods (1930's to 1950's), coated or not.

Those Elmars are good enough if different from unit to unit, and so compact/light.

[Danner]

I regularly shoot a 1953 Summitar (50/2).  Usually on an M6, but I also have a IIIf.  It's a great lens and produces lovely images with a vintage Leica 'glow'.  If you come across a clean copy, I recommend you get it.

[earleygallery]

I have the 25mm Snapshot Skopar f2.5, it's a great little lens and although not rangefinder coupled it has 3 click stops on the focus ring making it very easy to focus whilst looking through the viewfinder (shoe mounted) and sufficient DoF to ensure sharp images.

Also a fan of the 5cm Summar, but you need to find a good one.

[Pyrogallol]

Taken last Monday on a 50mm Summar, lightly coated. Copies of darkroom prints.

 

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[shirubadanieru]

I’d love to try a Summar but it’s so hard to find one that’s not heavily scratched or hazy  I’d like to get a clean Hektor 5cm and a clean Summar and see which one I prefer. 

Summitar / Summarit / Summicron are all rather too large / heavy for a Barnack leica at least for me. 

[a.noctilux]

By my 8th Edition of Leica Pocket Book, 122.860 units of 5cm Summar and 10.655 Hektor,

you have some more chances to find Summar.

 

In my case, I have one Summar in pretty shape "uncoated" then some years later I was lucky to have one coated accompaning an almost new "II" with serial number of "I" (converted)

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[romualdo]

Currently trialing a 50mm f1.8 Kern Switar (Alpa) lens on my LTMs

Fav other LTM lenses are Summicron 50 rigid, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 35mm f2, Summaron 35 f2.8 & f3.5, Nikkor 28mm f3.5, Nikkor 105mm f2.5

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[pippy]

As far as the 35 is concerned you could do a lot worse than pick up one of the Jupiter-12 lenses. They are pretty much an exact copy of the per-WWII Zeiss Biogon and have the typical Zeiss rendering. Ridiculously low-price in comparison to anything else but still really good performers.

Here's a snap taken on an M9 (via an adapter) with profile set for 35 Summicron v4;

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

The early versions were silver in colour but the later lenses were in Black Paint finish which will fit in with the III really well!

Philip.

EDIT : Just a small caveat about using Former Soviet Union lenses on a LTM Leica body. The lens-flange to film-plane distance of the FSU bodies is marginally different from that of the Leica bodies. With my J-12 here there is no discernible loss of sharpness whatsoever (and it has been used extensively on both digital and film cameras) but with longer f/l lenses accurate focussing - especially at wide apertures - might not be possible. I've read many tales by owners who have had FSU lenses adapted for use with Leicas but 'straight out of the box' shooting might be disappointing.

I have a few J-8 50mm f2 lenses and some seem to work fine whereas others don't so sample-variation seems to be the case. Interestingly (perhaps) it is always the earlier J-8s which work better than the later versions.

Just a thought!

Edited May 17, 2021 by pippy

[Anbaric]

20 hours ago, shirubadanieru said:

I’d love to try a Summar but it’s so hard to find one that’s not heavily scratched or hazy  I’d like to get a clean Hektor 5cm and a clean Summar and see which one I prefer. 

Summitar / Summarit / Summicron are all rather too large / heavy for a Barnack leica at least for me. 

I don't find the Summitar too big for an LTM camera (it's from the IIIb era, after all, and collapsible) and it's a really nice lens. Stop it down and you might mistake its rendering for that of a much more modern lens; open it up and you get that signature swirly bokeh. A Summar may be more convenient if you want to use the III as a pocket camera, but as you say they are hard to find in nice condition. Mine is so hazy it's a special effect lens at this point. I still regret not buying a clear and coated version at a camera fair a few years back. I've never used the Hektor, but you'll pay collector prices for that one. A Summitar would be 'better', cheaper and faster, with a proper aperture ring, and you can find them coated.

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[shirubadanieru]

28 minutes ago, Anbaric said:

I don't find the Summitar too big for an LTM camera (it's from the IIIb era, after all, and collapsible) and it's a really nice lens. Stop it down and you might mistake its rendering for that of a much more modern lens; open it up and you get that signature swirly bokeh. A Summar may be more convenient if you want to use the III as a pocket camera, but as you say they are hard to find in nice condition. Mine is so hazy it's a special effect lens at this point. I still regret not buying a clear and coated version at a camera fair a few years back. I've never used the Hektor, but you'll pay collector prices for that one. A Summitar would be 'better', cheaper and faster, with a proper aperture ring, and you can find them coated.

Thank you! For the size and weight of the Summitar I’d probably consider the collapsible summicron instead? Should offer better rendering, and it’s a bit lighter & smaller.

I just love the size of the Summar & Hektor and would be a perfect way to complement my Elmar 50mm. But yeah, Summitar / Summicrons can definitely be found in better shape and should provide more ‘modern’ rendering VS those two lenses from the 1930s.