Advice for 50mm

[jacopastorius]

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Hi all. I recently bought an M10 and love It so much. I am using a Voigtlander 35 Ultron f2 on It and i definitely love the colors and rendering I got. I can easily say this is my favourite camera/lens of all times 

I need a 50mm and given I love the Voigtlander 35 Ultron so much was looking forward to Voigtlander 50mm Ultron. In the same budget range there is Leica summicron f2 (second hand)

My budget is around 1000€

Thank you so much for helping 

[Carlos cruz]

I think there’s plenty of  different 50 lenses to be had for 1000€ and eventually everyone has few of them. 
I have color skopar 50/2.5 90% of time on camera as it’s optically good enough for me and I like my lenses small, in opposite corner I have canon 50/1.2 for more “painterly” uses and a honorary 50- repackaged contax planar 45. Which ever lens you choose as your first probably won’t be your only 50. 

[jgeenen]

The Apo-Lanthar 50mm - albeit being a little bit bigger - is my favorite high-performance 50mm lens on a digital body. The 1.5/50 Nokton asph. vintage (not the Heliar classic!) is a great and comparingly compact performer as well (I use that mainly with my MP). Closest in size and handling might be the tiny Color Skopar 2.2/50 - but I have no personal experience with that lens. 

Re. Summicron 2/50. Without doubt an excellent lens (even if it is 30-40 years old), but difficult to get in the 1000 Euro price range in very good condition. I have seen a lot of offerings with the one or the other limitation. 

[lct]

I'm not aware of Ultron 50/2 but the Skopar 50/2.2 matches well the Ultron 35/2. Both tiny lenses that work well on M11 and M240 but i have no experience with M10 cameras.

[3D-Kraft.com]

Thypoch Simera 50/1.4 ASPH.

[01af]

If I wanted a Voigtländer 50 mm VM lens for my Leica M then it would be the Nokton 50 mm 1:1.2.

[chris7273]

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Few ideas that I have for my next 50mm.    
 

Skopar 50mm f/2.2 : light, compact, close focus, not expensive 

light lens lab 50mm f/2.0 “rigid” : not light, not compact but beautiful 

simera 50mm f/1.4 : not light, not compact, close focus and f/1.4

The Skopar is on top of my list now as a good all rounder. 

[jaapv]

My favourites Canon Serenar 1.8 LTM and Voigtlander Nokton 1.5 ii.

[lct]

31 minutes ago, jaapv said:

My favourites Canon Serenar 1.8 LTM and Voigtlander Nokton 1.5 ii.

May i ask if color fringing is an issue with your Nokton? I guess yours is the MC v2 variant? My SC v2 suffers from color fringing at f/1.5 mainly and also, to a lesser extent, at f/2.

[jaapv]

No idea. I use it on my Monochrom. But I have not seen it mentioned in reviews.

[spydrxx]

If you're looking for vintage Leica 50s prices you would do well to check completed auction prices (not asking prices) on Ebay. They are pretty representative of used vintage lenses in varying degrees of condition. To me, the questions of greater importance are what subjects do you primarily shoot and what rendering is most appealing to you. Although I have several 50 Summicron versions, I prefer earlier ones. If I want really sparkly shots, I find the 50 Zeiss Planar does the job well, and for a good middle of the road 50 I also enjoy the older Canon Serenar 50/1.8 (LTM with a LTM->M adapter mount), which IMHO surpasses the early Summicrons and is a lot less expensive. Besides using it on my film body and (non-Leica) digital bodies, I can use it on my older Leica Barnack bodies. But, as you can tell from the spread of answers, everyone has their own favorites. Whatever you choose, take a good year to familiarize yourself with its nuances and capabilities to determine if it suits your style and needs. It is hard to go wrong with almost any of the choices in this focal length.

[jacopastorius]

Many thanks for lots of inputs guys. I have a lot to think about and searching for reviews and sample images now!

[pippy]

5 hours ago, jacopastorius said:

...In the same budget range there is Leica summicron f2 (second hand)...My budget is around 1000€...

If the Summicron is either the v4 or v5 (i.e. anything from 1979 to the present day as the optics are identical) my advice would be to go for that.

The fact that this optical formula has been retained by Leica for over 45 years speaks volumes...

Philip.

Edited July 11 by pippy

[widi5006]

There are lots of 50mm in your price range.....I think the main decision factors will be to choose between a well corrected and sharp lens or a character lens.....also size/weight can vary greatly. These are some of the lenses I own and use in that range.

Available in M-mount :

Voigtlander APO.....probably the highest IQ on that list, medium size/weight

Voigtlander 50mm 1.2.....character lens between 1.2-2, sharp and modern after that.....bigger and heavier

 

Adapted lenses in various mount, most of them only available used but also a lot cheaper (most of these are between 100- 300 usd)

Contax/Zeiss 50mm 1.4 Planar............somewhat of a character lens wide open, sharp stopped down......medium size/ weight

Minolta Rokkor 50mm 1.4....................similar to the Contax

Minolta MD Rokkor 50mm 1.2...........slightly bigger and heavier than the 1.4, but still small for a 1.2...great chacter up to f2, modern after that

Helios 77M-4 (50mm 1.8).....................character lens, great when you get a good copy (can be tricky).....but cheap and on the smaller/lighter side

TTartisan 50mm 1.4................................basically a Summilux 50mm clone, but bigger and heavier...slightly inferior IQ but worth it for the price

Jupiter 3 (50mm 1.5).............................character lens at 1.5, sharpens up at f2, low contrast, cheap, very small and light

Super Takumar 50mm 1.4 (different versions)...........Similar to the Minolta Rokkor in image characteristics, maybe a bit more modern

Carl Zeiss Pancolar 50mm 1.8...........contrasty lens with great color, small-medium weight and build

Canon 50mm 1.4 LTM.........................one of my favorites, small-medium weight and build, very similar to the Summicron 50mm at f2...also available in an 1.8 (very small and great IQ)

 

And there are many more.... these are great and I enjoy them all for different uses.

Just outside your price range would be my absolute favorite 50mm.....a used Summicron (v5), I bought mine in excellent conditon for about 1200 usd (will depend on where you live)...decently corrected lens with some character wide open, small and reasonably light with great build quailty.

 

 

 

[jacopastorius]

2 hours ago, widi5006 said:

There are lots of 50mm in your price range.....I think the main decision factors will be to choose between a well corrected and sharp lens or a character lens.....also size/weight can vary greatly. These are some of the lenses I own and use in that range.

Available in M-mount :

Voigtlander APO.....probably the highest IQ on that list, medium size/weight

Voigtlander 50mm 1.2.....character lens between 1.2-2, sharp and modern after that.....bigger and heavier

 

Adapted lenses in various mount, most of them only available used but also a lot cheaper (most of these are between 100- 300 usd)

Contax/Zeiss 50mm 1.4 Planar............somewhat of a character lens wide open, sharp stopped down......medium size/ weight

Minolta Rokkor 50mm 1.4....................similar to the Contax

Minolta MD Rokkor 50mm 1.2...........slightly bigger and heavier than the 1.4, but still small for a 1.2...great chacter up to f2, modern after that

Helios 77M-4 (50mm 1.8).....................character lens, great when you get a good copy (can be tricky).....but cheap and on the smaller/lighter side

TTartisan 50mm 1.4................................basically a Summilux 50mm clone, but bigger and heavier...slightly inferior IQ but worth it for the price

Jupiter 3 (50mm 1.5).............................character lens at 1.5, sharpens up at f2, low contrast, cheap, very small and light

Super Takumar 50mm 1.4 (different versions)...........Similar to the Minolta Rokkor in image characteristics, maybe a bit more modern

Carl Zeiss Pancolar 50mm 1.8...........contrasty lens with great color, small-medium weight and build

Canon 50mm 1.4 LTM.........................one of my favorites, small-medium weight and build, very similar to the Summicron 50mm at f2...also available in an 1.8 (very small and great IQ)

 

And there are many more.... these are great and I enjoy them all for different uses.

Just outside your price range would be my absolute favorite 50mm.....a used Summicron (v5), I bought mine in excellent conditon for about 1200 usd (will depend on where you live)...decently corrected lens with some character wide open, small and reasonably light with great build quailty.

 

 

 

many thanks for the detailed descriptions! after viewing some recipes and image samples I have to say that I am impressed b voigtlander apo lanthar. I think I have to decide between this and Leica summicron. How can I identify the V5?

[lct]

2 hours ago, jacopastorius said:

How can I identify the V5?

By order numbers.
Among others:
Black anodized: 11826
Platinum: 11624
Silver: 11816
Silver 50 jahre: 11615
Silver LTM: 11619

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[TomB_tx]

I used the Summicron 50 v3 for decades with no complaints. Finally got a v5 when I added digital Ms just to see the difference. The v5 does give a bit more snap to images at wider apertures, but differences seem slight to me. The integral hood of the v5 is handy but it makes the lens a bit fatter, and I prefer the handling of the v3 - but I'm used to after using it so long. On M10 I now use the 2.5 Summarit more often. Recently added the Nokton 1.5 ii for film use and it is stellar: small size, no VF blockage, nice handling. Hard choice between the v5 and Nokton ii - except for price!

[lct]

Another vote for the ZM Planar 50/2. Almost perfect lens with less flare and less color fringing than the Summicron but also more contrast, which can be perceived as too harsh for gentle portraits. The Planar has a focus bump and a separate bayonet hood, like other ZM lenses, and it has a short focus throw. It can be pen coded easily the same way as other ZM lenses too.

Edited July 12 by lct

[sinquerer]

The 50 Summicron is the most perfect 50mm for a Leica M. I've tried a lot of them. Planar is too harsh, Nokton is too soft, APO-lanthar is too big. If you just want one and done, get a Summicron. 

Edited July 12 by sinquerer

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[jacopastorius]

1 hour ago, lct said:

Another vote for the ZM Planar 50/2. Almost perfect lens with less flare and less color fringing than the Summicron but also more contrast, which can be perceived as too harsh for gentle portraits. The Planar has a focus bump and a separate bayonet hood, like other ZM lenses, and it has a short focus throw. It can be pen coded easily the same way as other ZM lenses too.

have you ever tried the sonnar?