Looking for a 50mm lens

[triers]

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Hi all, I have just become a m10 user and now shooting with Voigtländer 28mm 1.5 Nokton. Now I am looking for a not-that-modern lens of 50mm and wonder if you could give me some suggestions.

I am new in leica so still not very clear with the different mounts, does L39 lens still work well with rangefinder on m-mount camera with a l39-to-m adapter? and what is it like when comes to m42 lenses?

When it comes to certain lens, I viewed some lens of Jupiter and cannon, the serial numbers of jupyter are really confusing. I have heard a lot of admires on those classic lenses on their color and special bokeh, but too many serials and factors to consider really made me exhausted

So my requirements is like a cheap leans (first time to try different mount lens, so better under 200 pounds, ok to be above if really deserves), not that low contrast (OK if with really good color).

Any suggestions? Many thanks.

[a.noctilux]

I have two Jupiter 50mm lenses, very cheap and for me it's not good idea as many faulty units are outthere.

For £200, (I don't know if it's enough now) I'd take old Leitz Elmar collapsible 3.5/50 with good adapter.

Only precaution  is use the lens uncollapsed, and the lighness is welcome.

I use two of these Elmar on M10 (and other M and LTM of course) and the results are quite good.

Even one Elmar is not coated,  so problem only when contrejour situation, but flare can be nice to have sometimes.

 

For all type of situation, now I use mostly Summarit-M 2.5/50 which cost (as cheap Leica lens) in second hand far more than your budget.

[Biotar]

Hi and welcome ... have fun with the M10! ... my recommendation for you would be the Canon 1.4/50 in ltm with adapter.

[jdlaing]

Collapsible Summicron.

[Smudgerer]

I like the 50mm f2 LLL ELCAN, for both it's size, ( I always prefer smaller lenses on a M ), and it's performance, the collapsible 50mm f2.8 Elmar is also a great lens for the same reasons.....

[a.noctilux]

Don't forget that for £200 it will be hard to find 50mm lens to do justice to M10.

Summicron or Canon 1.4/50 must be good I use them for a while as 50mm nut over some decades I use dozens of those costing much more than £200.

But hardly in the OP budget.

[Stuart Richardson]

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200 pounds is a very very low bar for rangefinder lenses. I agree that the Canon RF lenses are probably your best bet for that range, but you will also have to include the price of a LTM to M adapter. Any of the more modern but still not APO 50mm lenses are going to be more than that I think. When it comes to "cheap and good" in M mount, Voigtlander really is the leader. Depending on the lens and budget, Zeiss ZM and Konica also do well. Canon RF lenses are lower contrast and much softer wide open, but still can do nice when stopped down or when looking for more character. From your description, I would look at the more modestly priced Voigtlander lenses like the 50mm color skopar, 40mm Nokton etc. They will have more modern contrast. The summicron style copies are also worth a look, but are mostly out of your price range. For example 50mm Planar ZM, 50mm M Hexanon etc. Another tact would be Light Lens Labs Speed Panchro etc, but those are also well above 200 pounds. At this point, your best play is to look really carefully at used camera listings locally, estate sales, ebay etc. If you want to meet that budget, you are going to have to get a bit lucky.

[Stuart Richardson]

P.S. M42 lenses are not going to be fun on the M. You will need the EVF or live view to focus. At that point, you would be better served by another camera system. Leica thread mount lenses function more or less the same as M mount lenses once they have an adapter, so they are fine.

[jaapv]

Normally the lens cost should be somewhat in line with the quality of the camera. In the end ( or rather beginning ) it is the lens that produces the image. However a Canon LTM on M adapter (50/1.8) is fantastic value as the lens is better than the Summicron of its time which means pretty good  The glass and coatings are often immaculate  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lct]

• Sorry wrong post

Edited December 4, 2024 by lct

[frame-it]

1 hour ago, a.noctilux said:

Don't forget that for £200 it will be hard to find 50mm lens to do justice to M10.

Summicron or Canon 1.4/50 must be good I use them for a while as 50mm nut over some decades I use dozens of those costing much more than £200.

But hardly in the OP budget.

possible to get this beautiful lens within that budget if one makes an effort

https://casualphotophile.com/2017/09/05/nikon-nikkor-h-c-50mm-f2-ltm-lens-review-a-leica-alternative-thats-more-than-just-a-copy/

[spydrxx]

I'll add to the commentary that the Canon50/1.8 and 50/1.4  are both very good lenses, better than the Summicron of the same era. They are lower in contrast than modern lenses but this can be alleviated if desired in post processing. I frequently use the Canon 50/18 in lieu of my Summicron. I also can recommend the old standby Elmar 50/3.5...low contrast with beautiful classic rendering. If you are looking for what is described as more modern rendering (higher contrast, sharpness across the film plane, especially in the corners, you won't find it in your price range, unless you stumble on a real bargain in good shape.

[spydrxx]

I'll add...just do an Ebay search and you should find lots of examples, good quality coming out of Japan at reasonable prices.

[DadDadDaddyo]

I'll suggest you might take a look at the classic Elmar 50mm f/3.5 (sometimes labeled '5 cm').

It's as close as you can get to the original Leica lens that started it all. If the f/3.5 speed seems slow by modern standards, remember the huge ISO range you've got. 

The images produced by the Elmar are infused with a 'look' that people rave about yet struggle to define. Put it on a Monochrom, or convert your color images to mono, and it's like going back in time. 

Elmars are inexpensive in the marketplace, and, in my opinion, unjustly overlooked. And, if you later add a thoroughly modern 50mm lens to your stable, you'll be glad to have the Elmar available to you for the classic images it produces.

My own Elmar 5cm dates from 1936. I don't remember when or where I got it, let alone how much I paid for it (but it wasn't much). I do know I'll never part with it. 

The 50mm Elmar. Seriously worth a look!

Edited December 4, 2024 by DadDadDaddyo
typo

[a.noctilux]

Indeed.

50mm or 5cm Elmar produced since 1925 to 1961 in about 365k units can be very good candidate.

I was lucky having had many units as "throw-in" (so free for me) when I bought Leica screwmount.

So very good for "free" or cheap lenses.

Some Elmar 3.5( I've read that ) had problems with haze or clean marks or mechanical trouble, so be careful when buying cheap.

[3D-Kraft.com]

I am pretty sure, that you'll buy another lens soon due to the limitations that you'll have with a £200 lens on a M10. If you buy non-M-mount lense, you have to spend extra money on an adapter and cannot use 6-bit coding easily.

So, at the end, waiting a bit and save some money, might be the better strategy. If you want an affordable, modern lens, best value for money at the moment seem to have the TTartisan 50/1.4 ASPH, but you must take into consideration, that it may requires focus calibration with the tool which comes with the lens. On eBay UK it seems to be available starting from £259 (shipping from China).

[earleygallery]

The best non Leica option would be a Voigtlander Skopar 50mm.

If you can find a decent Elmar for that budget go for it, ideally an M mount 2.8 or 3.5 version. 

The Jupiter can be very cheap and if you’re lucky, very good. I have one that is superb, for the price they’re worth a punt! 

[triers]

16 hours ago, 3D-Kraft.com said:

I am pretty sure, that you'll buy another lens soon due to the limitations that you'll have with a £200 lens on a M10. If you buy non-M-mount lense, you have to spend extra money on an adapter and cannot use 6-bit coding easily.

So, at the end, waiting a bit and save some money, might be the better strategy. If you want an affordable, modern lens, best value for money at the moment seem to have the TTartisan 50/1.4 ASPH, but you must take into consideration, that it may requires focus calibration with the tool which comes with the lens. On eBay UK it seems to be available starting from £259 (shipping from China).

i know its a low budget, and my thought is to have some fun with those classic lenses and not spend too much money for a first try.

many thanks to your advices and im considering a lense like zeiss 50f1.5, Voigtländer 50f1 or even more expensive one in 2025 (most of my budget in 2024 was spent on m10 itself)

Edited December 5, 2024 by triers

[triers]

On 12/4/2024 at 8:56 PM, a.noctilux said:

I have two Jupiter 50mm lenses, very cheap and for me it's not good idea as many faulty units are outthere.

For £200, (I don't know if it's enough now) I'd take old Leitz Elmar collapsible 3.5/50 with good adapter.

Only precaution  is use the lens uncollapsed, and the lighness is welcome.

I use two of these Elmar on M10 (and other M and LTM of course) and the results are quite good.

Even one Elmar is not coated,  so problem only when contrejour situation, but flare can be nice to have sometimes.

 

For all type of situation, now I use mostly Summarit-M 2.5/50 which cost (as cheap Leica lens) in second hand far more than your budget.

thank you for your recommendation, my problem on old leica lenses like Elmar collapsible 3.5/50 and summicron 2/50 is the coating, does it reduce the quality of pics that much when strong light source included in the view?

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[jaapv]

The coating on the Canons is much better than that of Leica of the period. I would advise against  very fast old lenses.  The rendering at large aperture can be interesting but they are best regarded are specialist lenses for occasional use. If you get a bit higher on the price ladder, I am very much impressed by the Voigtländer Nokton 50/1.5.