X2D destroyed my love to modern Leica-Advise on lens lineup

[a.noctilux]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

My answer to "lens lineup".

1- no lens lineup is needed for many

2- one lens is enough

 

...

3- that said, OP you already have one of the best (in your only image, I see the 1.4/50 pre-asph Ti ), why not use this a lot

4- Noctilux 1/50 is something else to try out (my many decades of using it, in Bali/Java also along with 1.4/75 on Kadachrome), I still have those and use them less&lesser

[a.noctilux]

I forgot to say that with Noctilux 1/50, I use rarely aperture 1.2 to 4.5, I know why .

Something with focus shift and shape of aperture opening, or just considering this is F/1 (then F/5.6 lens).

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/284086-leica-m-film-photos-feel-free-to-share-yours/page/118/#comment-4297884

My prefered one (don't remember the lens)

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!

Edited May 4 by a.noctilux

[a.noctilux]

another with one of those lens

...

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!

[Viv]

12 hours ago, pgh said:

If you missed it I’m not sure I can help further. 

OK. I'm not interested enough to pursue the matter.

[jakontil]

We have almost the same situation.. long story short… the noct 0.95 will fit better than the 1.25 75 noct

We create the art through leica vintage glasses, leave everything else to blad 😂

[BWColor]

All of these choices are so personal and are not of the third world.  We are spoiled by being able to afford gear and that we live at a time when technology is positively impacting our choices.

I’ve split the duties between the M11 and X2D in a very different way.  I’ve been a bit partial towards B&W when shooting film.  I believe that the M11 Monochrom provides everything that I had in film and additionally deals with very high ISO with ease.  I also appreciate the high resolution of a 60Mpix monochrome sensor and prefer more modern lenses…many APO.  My X2D is for color and my taste in color was formed during my Velvia film days..which haven’t ended..Velvia just got way more expensive..shopped at Map Camera in Tokyo and found that Velvia 50 & 100 were still available, but 35mm was $35/roll..  The new X2D v lenses are amazing to someone that likes a more modern look.  

I do have a few questions.

With recent advancements in digital editing, is it easier to make a modern rendering look classical, or a classical rendering to look modern?  Another question, is it easier to sharpen an image without excessive artifacting, or easier to downscale high resolution images without artifacting?

Both the M11 Monochrom and X2D cameras are relatively high resolution.  With high quality APO lenses on the Monochrom, preserved detail is about the same with these two cameras, but at high ISO the X2D seems to struggle a bit.. but I haven’t compared downsized images from the X2D after conversion to B&W.

[Ko.Fe.]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

On 5/4/2025 at 9:41 AM, dkCambridgeshire said:

Another customer has likely not bonded with the 1kg 75/1.25 – and I wonder why? Perhaps he also thought it would be his grail lens?

If you could post a few of your 'boudoir' portraits on TLF maybe we could offer some opinions as to whether you really, really, need to buy another lens? 

The old adage, "It's not the camera or lens .... It's the ****** using the b––––– thing !"   – comes to mind.

 

Googled "X2D". Looking good. But for workout I prefer Basic-Fit. 

The old adage is tricky one.

Most of photogs I know, well, all I know do/did prefer something specific. Why? Because specific gear was matching them.

As I have mentioned many times, often I see some photos, I like them, starting digging and it is with Leica M ones. 

But none of them are taken with 75 and longer ones and WO.

Leica M allows to get close, physically and emotionally close.

And not because it is "discreet", it isn't, but because:

Quote

It's the ****** using the b––––– thing !

😁

 

[Ne314satel]

On 5/4/2025 at 8:31 AM, Uwiik said:

Hi all, 

A few words. 50/0.95 is completely different for me than 50/1.0. I use my 50/0.95 on the street, only it can separate a person from people. And 50/1.0 is a only portrait lens for me. Besides Leica, there are many beautiful lenses from Canon, Zeiss, Minolta, etc. for the M system. Sometimes their price is less than the price of the cap for 50/0.95)). And I only accept Leica in b/w, because after the color from the X2D I can't look at the color from the M11))

[insideline]

On 5/4/2025 at 3:04 AM, Uwiik said:

First time using manual RF camera ever, first two weeks I thought something is wrong with my camera 😂  Hard to teach new trick top an old dog, that’s why I got myself a film camera exactly to force myself to be mindful when shooting…Please go easy on me, just re learning and re absorbing this fascinating hobby one more time in my life 😉

 

On 5/4/2025 at 7:29 AM, Uwiik said:

Just texted the other vendor, the V4 is local and I can play with it as long as I want inside the shop, having my 1.2 notorious for impossible focus but a keeper, I certainly want something that is at least possible to focus if I am getting another Noctilux…Let’s see what happens next weekend but I need to unload the 4 lenses I never use. 

With regards to your quest to learn about what lenses and bodies may best suit you, I personally applaud and support your time and efforts to try new equipment, otherwise how would you ever know which lens designs and qualities may best suit your personal style and objectives. My Father got me shooting Leica and Hasselblad as a 12 year old in 1972 and in 1975 I purchased my first Leica lens, an F1 E58 Noctilux that to this day is still one of my all time favorite lenses. Over the years I continued to purchase new Leica M and Hasselblad V lenses and for the most part I kept them all, but for sure there were some that were sold within a year as I simply did not enjoy how they rendered or how they were to use in the field. Now as a 67 year old I now primarily use my early 35mm 1.4 pre-asph Summilux, the same titanium V3 50mm Summilux pre-asph you have (lovely lens) and E58 F1 Noctilux. I still own my original 35mm AA Double Aspherical but prefer the small 35 1.4 pre better. I also own the  Hasselblad X2D and 55V which for color is simply a fabulous camera and one lens combination. I have owned the 75 1.25 and I found it quite different to the 50 .95 as the 75 is sharper on center but with superior subject separation, in fact I found the 75 1.25 Noct to be similar to the Hasselblad 80 1.9.

The price your dealer is asking for that mint 75 1.25 is incredible and far far less than what you would pay in Vancouver or the US so why not buy it and use it for a year as you could sell it for much more over here if you did not get on with it.

So I am the opposite to the commentators who say 'stop buying and just shoot' given you're are just getting back into photography. Try different lenses so that you can personally discover which suit "you" the best as none of us can do that for you.  Sorry to hear about the changes in your home county, I am originally from Vancouver and it too is not the innocent city it once was. Enjoy your journey with photography and so nice to hear you and your wife worked so hard to enable you to do so. 

[tom0511]

First I believe 75/1.25 is still a modern lens. And if you like 50 why get 75? For me on the M 50APO is my choice, sold my Nocti0.95 and don't look back. Can't focus at these wide apertures reliable anyways, except maybe for stills.

No Leica lens will make the colors of the M10/M11 look like from x2d.

For me M is about compact , unobtrusive, environmental images. That's why I prefer mainly f2.0 and slower lenses nowadays. Except the CV single coated 35/1.4 I got.

 

 

[Eoin]

On 5/4/2025 at 8:05 AM, Uwiik said:

What I thought… Like I mentioned on first post, I have a 75 APO and I just do not use it… My curiosity piqued because the last week I have heard 2 different people raving about 75 Nocti swearing that it will convert me from 50mm and I happen to want another lens right now, preferably another Nocti, I already have 50 1.2 Nocti so 75 Nocti seems like logical, but my heart says otherwise… what to do.. 😑

I have a fetish for fast short telephoto lenses. I find 75mm and 50mm almost interchangeable with a little footwork. I have always liked the 75 APO Summicron M and it was the first lens I re bought getting back into M, so I am very familiar with it. Since then I also added a 75 Noctilux and 75 Summilux.

Personally, I am a fan of modern ASPH Leica lenses, preferring their stronger tones, contrast and optical correction. The 75 Summilux with its softer rendering gives options the Noctilux or Summicron can’t really do without added special filters. I bought the 75 Noctilux as a better corrected lens, in place of the .95 50mm. I just couldn’t get on with the .95’s chromatic aberrations.

Straight up, if the Summicron 75’s rendering does not please you, the Noctilux’s is also unlikely to please either, as they are very similar at comparable apertures.

For sure, the Noctilux’s size and weight on the M is usable but not practical for general usage. On the SL2 it is a joy to use and perhaps its best use case.
However, of all the 75s, the Noctilux 75 combined with the M11-M … makes everything pop like no other can.

[Bliz]

On 5/4/2025 at 8:31 AM, Uwiik said:

Help me with my sickness please… 

Tbh? Take a trip somewhere you’d like to take pictures. You don’t need any more stuff imo.

[Buscap]

On 5/4/2025 at 1:37 AM, andybarton said:

You’re not a broke husband any longer then 😊

Your dealer is trying to sell you a lens that he has, rather than one he hasn’t got. 

I’ve never tried one, but the 75/1.2 is a beast to focus accurately.

Andy,

 

Spot on! The 75 Nocti is my fav but even on my SL3 with it's amazing EVF I still screw up focus, the dof is so small.

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!

[raizans]

I usually stop down quite a bit for tight portraits, reserving wide open more for subjects farther away, like on stage, or 3/4 portraits in vertical orientation. A tripod would also help with tight head portraits. Just be happy we don’t need head braces like back in the day!

[kiwidad]

On 5/4/2025 at 2:29 AM, FrozenInTime said:

Your dealer is not your friend ... just think how large and impractical that 75 Noct will be. Also very modern looking, as is the 50/0.95 Noctilux. These big lenses do not sell quickly and have terrible residuals once you realise they are not for you. Dealers have the 75/1.25 and 90/1.5 stuck on their shelves for years.

Just be happy with the 50mm Summilux v3.

 

On 5/4/2025 at 2:39 AM, LocalHero1953 said:

I keep waiting for one of those 75/1.25 dealers to drop their prices enough for me. They are clearly not looking for fast turnover!

Till that happens I'll keep using the poor man's Noctilux: the Summilux 75/1.4 😉

I’d second this. I am probably never going to own a 75 noctilux but I did acquire the 75 summilux.  It’s a great lens but so hard to hit focus on. i can’t imagine a noctilux and for portraits I can’t imagine using it wide open anyway. What part of the face would like be in focus? Nose eyes or ears lol

[LocalHero1953]

19 minutes ago, kiwidad said:

What part of the face would like be in focus? Nose eyes or ears lol

Eyes and lips. Those are the erotic parts. And I don't mean pornographic. In sensual, romantic terms, the eyes and lips are what we notice and are most expressive of feelings (we can't easily control the rest of the face). Shoot slightly from above (which reduces double chins!) and you'll get those features standing out.

[3D-Kraft.com]

Am 5.9.2025 um 08:50 schrieb kiwidad:

I am probably never going to own a 75 noctilux but I did acquire the 75 summilux.  It’s a great lens but so hard to hit focus on. i can’t imagine a noctilux and for portraits I can’t imagine using it wide open anyway. What part of the face would like be in focus? Nose eyes or ears lol

Depends on the distance. If you shoot 1/3 ... 1/2 body portraits, the whole face including ears is in focus and you can blur the background nicely like with no other Leica M lens.

It's not that hard with the 75 Noctilux, see the series starting from here: 

But you need an EVF, especially fort the 75 Summilux as it's calibration does'nt seem to be consitant over the whole focussing range.

Edited September 10 by 3D-Kraft.com