So what now becomes of the S lenses?

[ropo54]

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The cost of S lenses today has reached ridiculously low prices with the end of the S line.

What becomes of the lenses?  Keep shooting them till the system dies?  Yes, they can be adapted to the SL system. (But it seems few in the SL lineup are opting to purchase S lenses for their SLs). Yes, Leica may come up with an adapter for a new mirrorless system.  But, the latter will also likely come with a new series of mirrorless lenses too.

How much lower can prices go?

Or, buy missing focal lengths at the low prices?

Sell off the S system?  (And, buy into the Hasselblad X2D?)

See whether there will be a revival of the current S lenses once the mirrorless arrives with an adapter?

At the crossroads, what to do?

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[Photon42]

Hi Rob

I have still an S2 and some Contax and Hasselblad lenses, sold the S007 and the three S lenses I had some time back. I just use that S2 very rarely these days. The X2D is nice and compact, especially with Hasselblad's new lenses. I like that a lot. IBIS works surprisingly well and IQ is great. HC lenses can be adapted with some caveats.

I have no idea if and when Leica comes out with a successor of the S3. And I am not sure I am willing to pay what they will be asking. New lenses will certainly be available but also consider you cannot buy them used for some time and pricing will certainly be in the same league as the present S lenses. Most likely the old adapters for Contax and Hasselblad will then not work anymore together with a hypothetical S4/S adapter.

Cheers

Ivo

[Nick Guttridge]

I bought me S ‘CS’ lenses mostly second hand very inexpensively. I also bought a 007 ‘S2’ brand new for 50%.

Having tested the Fuji and Hasselblad they still can’t beat the Leica for studio use. I can shoot all day without changing batteries. The s never overheats, doesn’t trip up with connectivity issues.

carry on as normal, as long as I can get batteries in the future. 

 

 

[irenedp]

I had -and still keep- an S2 with three lenses, and recently got an S3 and the 120 ts new for a very nice price. I find the S to be a very usable system with wonderful quality. I had a Fuji 100 and changed it less than a year ago for a second hand Phase One. I use the Phase with a tripod for studio work and sometimes on location for complex shots, and the Leicas for most of the rest. That includes an M9 P and an M10r for when I need to walk long distances and travel light. 

I am not sure if I would be interested in the future S4. I don’t really need Ibis, but am sure that there will be an adapter for current S lenses, just as a Nikon did for the Z series. 

[LeicaR10]

Rob,  You may be well aware the S4 system is in development and should be arriving in 2025.  I have been told by Leica senior management the system is progressing very well.  That said, I fully expect the original S lenses to be backwards compatible with the S4 system.  Most likely the new S lenses will have the latest motor and optical technology.  Leica designed the S system for pros and its not a prosumer camera system.  I used the S system for over a decade for my business with great success.  The current S lenses are a true bargin and work perfectly with the SL system, albeit a bit slow with AF.  In my case, I never used the S camera AF for landscape photography.  IMO, the future is very bright for the S camera system.  You may recall it was the S system that saved Leica from oblivion and enabled it to be revitalized and grow under Herr Kaufmann's ownership.  You might decide to use S lenses on a SL2 or wait for a SL3.  The S lenses were optical engineering genius that require no firmware to improve performance and have a unique rendering.  Again, IMO, anyone who wants to get into MF photography with a most excellent camera system with bargin price S lenses (provided the AF motors were replaced) and a S006 or S007, now is the time to do it.  Hope you have a great time in Iceland.  Its a incredible place for MF landscape photography.  r/ Mark

[ropo54]

Thank you, Mark.  

Rob

[Pieter12]

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As long as Leica will continue to support the S, both cameras and lenses, I see not reason together rid of anything. I love the camera, the CCD rendering of the 006 and the S lenses.

[mikelevitt]

3 hours ago, LeicaR10 said:

Rob,  You may be well aware the S4 system is in development and should be arriving in 2025.  I have been told by Leica senior management the system is progressing very well.  That said, I fully expect the original S lenses to be backwards compatible with the S4 system.  Most likely the new S lenses will have the latest motor and optical technology.  Leica designed the S system for pros and its not a prosumer camera system.  I used the S system for over a decade for my business with great success.  The current S lenses are a true bargin and work perfectly with the SL system, albeit a bit slow with AF.  In my case, I never used the S camera AF for landscape photography.  IMO, the future is very bright for the S camera system.  You may recall it was the S system that saved Leica from oblivion and enabled it to be revitalized and grow under Herr Kaufmann's ownership.  You might decide to use S lenses on a SL2 or wait for a SL3.  The S lenses were optical engineering genius that require no firmware to improve performance and have a unique rendering.  Again, IMO, anyone who wants to get into MF photography with a most excellent camera system with bargin price S lenses (provided the AF motors were replaced) and a S006 or S007, now is the time to do it.  Hope you have a great time in Iceland.  Its a incredible place for MF landscape photography.  r/ Mark

If the S4 turns up, it's going to be mirrorless and with a much shorter flange-sensor distance without the mirror to worry about.  Leica will have a fully-functioning ($1000) adapter to make the S lenses work with the new body.  The question is will anybody pay $25k to keep their old S lenses going?  I've just bought into the system (on the cheap), mainly to get the CS lenses, and it's a unique pleasure to shoot with great images.   But my production work (sports/studio) is done with a mix of Canon and Fuji GFX100, with Leica M, Q,  and S kind of  hanging around for fun.  If the S4 is superior to the GFX, I might replace the GFX with it.

[Chaemono]

The new S prime lenses will become more like the SL primes in optical performance. People will prefer the old S lenses on the S4 for portraits, is my guess. See #267 below. There will ne thread started on the old S lenses that they render like film. Their value will go up with after the S4 is introduced. 

 

[LeicaR10]

Chaemono,  I totally agree with your assessment on the current S lenses going up in value.  r/ Mark

[Milan_S]

it's like with the Mandler lenses or cinematic lenses some people prefer the older or special look specific lenses like the S ones. There Summicron-S 100mm is definitely one of these lenses and they are even rare to find for sale now and they seems to be stable in value (if you can find one).

[Chaemono]

This one is a steal. Best portrait lens ever: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Leica-Summarit-S-120mm-f-2-5-CS-Aspherical-Apo-Macro-Lens-for-the-S2-System-/374740862427?_trksid=p2349526.m4383.l4275.c10#viTabs_0

David Farkas shows some portraits with it: http://www.reddotforum.com/content/2012/03/testing-the-cs-lenses-on-the-leica-s2-740/

[Pieter12]

MPB has one for about half that. They list it as in excellent condition. https://www.mpb.com/en-us/product/leica-120mm-f-2-5-apo-macro-summarit-s-11070

[mgrayson3]

CS vs. non-CS is my guess.

[Sarnian]

I sold my 007 and got a Fuji GFX100S. However, I did keep my (perfectly calibrated) 30-90mm just in case I can: a) afford the S4 when it comes out, or b) pick up a bargain 007 or 006 along the way.

The 30-90mm has a great focal range that isn't available in any other medium format system. Hasselblad = 35-90mm. Contax = 45-90mm and Fuji = 32-64mm. I do use the 30-90mm on my GFX100S but with a dumb adapter and with the lens pre-set at f11. 

[LeicaR10]

If there are some MF photographers out there looking for S gear at very good prices you might check out these two sites.  Just a passing thought.    r/ Mark

Try:  https://www.camerawest.com/products/meta.custom.condition/Used/meta.custom.system_id/Leica S

Try:  https://leicastoremiami.com/collections/used-s-lenses

Edited July 4, 2023 by LeicaR10

[Guest]

On 7/3/2023 at 5:54 AM, ropo54 said:

Or, buy missing focal lengths at the low prices?

That’s what I did. I now have five lenses for my S, and do not wish to part with any of them. 

[davidmknoble]

Even with the S3, I still shoot the S007 and the files remain great to edit.  37 and 64 mp provide incredible prints.  The color gambit on the S3 is the best I’ve ever seen in a Leica with the M11 really close in 2nd.

I have the Hasselblad CV II 50 back (50mp) and the difference I see there is really only in the color capture, it gets a little better color nuances, but that is Hasselblad’s trademark.

Assuming the S4 is a mirrorless 100mp system, new lenses will probably outperform that sensor.  However, Leica has said in the past the current lenses have more in them and can easily go to 100mp.

Now, I shoot mostly landscape and hover in the f/8 to f/13 range on these lenses.  I shoot the S-100mm wide open on up.

What we are talking about mostly is portability.  I’ll bet shooting an S4 with next gen lenses, next to an S3 with current gen lenses and printing a 17x22 print will show effectively zero difference.  The fact that the S system started out for robust use outside in the elements is what makes the system still great.

I’m considering the Hasselblad 55v and 38v as additions to the 907x system, but I also shoot that back on a 503cxi with a series of CF lenses (that were really inexpensive, similar to the S lenses now) and they come out great.  This will allow me to shoot 120mm film and digital with the same bodies and the 907x is so slim and small that throwing it in with 1-3 lenses is easy.

I expect the S4 will do the same thing, allowing the S3 and lenses to work with it, and it will be smaller.  I’ll likely wait for the used S4 market, which may be closer to 2027! LOL… But in the meantime I’ve picked up several S lenses to fill in holes, new at great pricing and I’ll keep abusing that system outside for landscape work.

Just my thoughts.

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[Petrus61]

I'm going to hang on to the S3 and lenses. I have 5 which were all bought in the "downtime" of waiting for the S3 to materialise....so bought a very good prices.  35CS, 70CS, 100F2, 120CS & 180CS - thinking of buying the others just to complete the set so to speak. Love their rendering and style.

 

[steve.chang]

Doesn't the Summicron-S 100 closely resemble the double-Gaussian design? It's amazing how Leica managed to use only seven elements to make this lens.

I cannot agree more with @Milan_S for the look/character from the current S lenses.