LLL 35mm f2 Collapsible

[Smudgerer]

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Has anyone on the Forum got anything to say / report about the LLL 35mm f2 8e Collapsible lens? Thinking seriously of buying one for film M use, but cannot find a thread on it here on the Forum.

Edited October 11, 2023 by Smudgerer

[Erato]

29 minutes ago, Smudgerer said:

Has anyone on the Forum got anything to say / report. About the LLL 35mm f2 8e Collapsible lens? Thinking seriously of buying one for film M use, but cannot find a thread on it here on the Forum.

I reached them a few months ago. They told me that LLL had never planned to support E39 screw-in filter thread, which is a must-have requirement for the Barnack Camera, in terms of Black and White Photography. That's the deal killer to me indeed. I won't reconsider this lens unless they change their mind.

[wizard]

I fail to understand why anyone would spend the effort to make the 35mm f2 8-element lens COLLAPSIBLE, as it is one of the shortest 35mm lenses available anyway.

[pippy]

On 10/11/2023 at 10:08 AM, Erato said:

I reached them a few months ago. They told me that LLL had never planned to support E39 screw-in filter thread, which is a must-have requirement for the Barnack Camera, in terms of Black and White Photography. That's the deal killer to me indeed. I won't reconsider this lens unless they change their mind.

Is this what you were asking about, Erato (it is also available in silver-chrome finish)?;

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/295734037838?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=710-53481-19255-0&campid=5338723872&toolid=20006&customid=Si56oPAZAAAAVBSXAl0LMLQdXMQ3AAAAAA

Philip.

[ocean2059]

An E43 screw-in filter can be used with the supplied hood of the lens, according to PopFlash website, the one of the official stores in US - https://www.popflash.com/light-lens-lab/light-lens-lab-35mm-f/2-8-element-collapsible-black-paint-ltm/m-mount-with-lens-hood-new/

I've also been thinking about getting this lens for the Barnack camera with B&W film. I am pretty happy with LLL's 8E in M-mount - IQs are close to the Summicrion 35 v1. 

 

[sometimesmaybe]

Matt Osborne just posted something new on youtube re this lens

 

[Erato]

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On 10/12/2023 at 7:37 PM, pippy said:

Is this what you were asking about, Erato (it is also available in silver-chrome finish)?;

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/295734037838?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=710-53481-19255-0&campid=5338723872&toolid=20006&customid=Si56oPAZAAAAVBSXAl0LMLQdXMQ3AAAAAA

Philip.

Yep, they are. E43? Why don't they just keep the screw-in thread mount for E39 filters?

[pippy]

3 hours ago, Erato said:

Yep, they are. E43? Why don't they just keep the screw-in thread mount for E39 filters?

Don't know. Could be worse; they could have gone with E41mm!............

It does seem like a strange choice; especially when the lengths to which they went with their 'Rigid' are taken into account. Perhaps as they were not reverse-engineering a previously-made design this time their engineers decided to go with something 'a bit different' but still; strange decision.

Philip.

Edited October 14, 2023 by pippy

[Erato]

2 hours ago, pippy said:

Don't know. Could be worse; they could have gone with E41mm!............

It does seem like a strange choice; especially when the lengths to which they went with their 'Rigid' are taken into account. Perhaps as they were not reverse-engineering a previously-made design this time their engineers decided to go with something 'a bit different' but still; strange decision.

Philip.

I like this lens but the filter thread...😂

Perhaps you're right, they're the guy to make the call anyway.

I'd buy one for sure if E39 filters supported in the future.

Raymond

[pedaes]

8 hours ago, Erato said:

Yep, they are. E43? Why don't they just keep the screw-in thread mount for E39 filters?

They may have tested and found a vignette problem.

[Smudgerer]

Just ordered one anyway............LLL currently have a nice deal with the lens kit on sale including the lens hood, UV filter, LTM-M adapter, PLUS the new 35mm clip-on VF thrown in too, all for less than 1K €. Worth a toss.........

[Smudgerer]

On 10/18/2023 at 1:58 PM, Smudgerer said:

Just ordered one anyway............LLL currently have a nice deal with the lens kit on sale including the lens hood, UV filter, LTM-M adapter, PLUS the new 35mm clip-on VF thrown in too, all for less than 1K €. Worth a toss.........

The lens turned up the other day, and first impressions are very favourable. Quality construction and if it means anything at all the packaging was even better than some of my recent new Leica lens purchases this year, ( especially so regarding the 35mm Summilux 1.4 re-issue packaging, Leica might as well have sent that in a stiff paper bag with some packing chips, and the 'Lux didn't have the usual Leica leather lens case either, just a nasty cheap draw-string sac which was disappointing ).

For me this LLL 35mm collapsible f2 lens is to be used on my M2 and it matches nicely the 50mm Summitar F2 collapsible that I also own for that kit, but as the LLL 35 now also comes with an included 35mm clip-on VF and is LTM-M39/M mount compatible it will also take a ride or two on my great little Bessa L body as well.

Some test shots with the lens on my M10-R last evening showed it to be a good performer, ( tried out just before the M10-R's LCD died on me ! ), and I'm very pleased with what I see so far. Handling is ok, it is after all a sort of copy of a older lens with older styling, ( Summicron 50mm ?? ), it's not as good as the Summitar collapsible in that regard, but close enough. One bonus I found was that the included lens hood with the LLL 35 Collapsible lens kit fits the 50mm Summitar perfectly so that solved a problem I've been having in trying to find a decent small sized lens hood for that lens.

All in all it was a very good deal, all less than €1k Euros, ( on sale ), with EU shipping / taxes plus LLL Canada through whom I purchased were very good indeed to deal with.

Edited October 28, 2023 by Smudgerer
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[Smudgerer]

13 hours ago, ValerieD said:

Great. Let’s see some photos ? 

Hello Valerie, any images that I'd post wouldn't be that helpful to many here on the forum who mostly look for different things in a lens or camera than I. In any image that pleases me I do not care too much for definition, sharpness, "character" ( whatever the hell  that is....), "drawing" or even the inexhaustible discussions around bokeh. Pretty much any lens made these days whether from China or Wetzlar is good enough for 90% of users in my opinion, we are spoiled by a wealth of choices.........Personally I am far more concerned about how a lens is built and how it balances and physically functions on any M I am using, film or digital, and in those respects this lens ticks the boxes very nicely. I'd buy it again if that means anything but hope I don't have to.

Look at these two far more objective reviews https://keithwee.com/2022/10/22/light-lens-lab-35mm-f2-collapsible-on-the-leica-m10-p-a-first-impressions-review/,

And this too:

 

Edited October 30, 2023 by Smudgerer
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[Rollei35]

Pardon me to dredge up this old thread.

I was about to pull the trigger to purchase this lens, mainly use it on my film M-A, and occasionally on digital M's like M10-R and M11.

Does the collapsed setting hurt anything in the camera? I understand the lens protruding part when collapsed is quite short (only a few millimetre?) so there is no chance it would touch sensor (digital) or the curtain (analog). But is the diameter of the back part of the lens too wide that it would scratch the inner part of the camera or it will interfere with the focus roller (I believe that's the name, correct me if I am wrong).

I always heard people say mount and unmount the collapsible lens fully extended when they talk about the vintage L39 lenses like Elmar 5cm/f3.5, etc. Is it also true for this LLL 35mm/f2 collapsible?

 

Thanks,

[spydrxx]

It is always a good idea to extend any collapsible lens when mounting it, regardless of the manufacturer.

[Rollei35]

46 minutes ago, spydrxx said:

It is always a good idea to extend any collapsible lens when mounting it, regardless of the manufacturer.

Then what I don't understand is after the lens is mounted on the camera, can you collapsed the lens and rotate it?

People seem never to be fussy about this, what's the difference between mounting when collapsed and rotating after being mounted? Don't they have the same effect anyway?

[hdmesa]

1 hour ago, Rollei35 said:

Then what I don't understand is after the lens is mounted on the camera, can you collapsed the lens and rotate it?

People seem never to be fussy about this, what's the difference between mounting when collapsed and rotating after being mounted? Don't they have the same effect anyway?

You can collapse it after it's mounted. You don't want to mount or unmount a collapsed lens because the rear elements stick back too far when collapsed. Technically if the lens is collapsed, you can pull it off or put it on – IF you keep it aligned perfectly straight. But if you insert or remove a collapsed lens at even a slight angle, the rear element can hit things inside the camera on its way in or out.

Edited February 26, 2024 by hdmesa

[Rollei35]

1 hour ago, hdmesa said:

You can collapse it after it's mounted. You don't want to mount or unmount a collapsed lens because the rear elements stick back too far when collapsed. Technically if the lens is collapsed, you can pull it off or put it on – IF you keep it aligned perfectly straight. But if you insert or remove a collapsed lens at even a slight angle, the rear element can hit things inside the camera on its way in or out.

Maybe I didn't make myself understood. I am not asking about the mounting/unmounting process, I understand mounting/unmounting is supposed to be done with lens fully extended.

I am asking, when the lens is mounted on the camera and fully collapsed, can I rotate the lens head without pulling it out? I mean the lens head is obviously rotatable. I just fiddle it by turning it around without pulling it out. Can I do that without damaging anything?

[hdmesa]

1 hour ago, Rollei35 said:

Maybe I didn't make myself understood. I am not asking about the mounting/unmounting process, I understand mounting/unmounting is supposed to be done with lens fully extended.

I am asking, when the lens is mounted on the camera and fully collapsed, can I rotate the lens head without pulling it out? I mean the lens head is obviously rotatable. I just fiddle it by turning it around without pulling it out. Can I do that without damaging anything?

Yes. Rotating the lens is required to line it up in order to extend it and lock it, so I don't see why rotating it would be an issue. It freely rotates when unlocked.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M