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Could the 50 ASPH be a substitute for the Nocti?


Guest Seb V

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I am coming round to the fact that ASPH lenses are actually quite cool. After using the 28 summicron a lot I am growing to like the crisp contrast and sharpness,

So I might sell my Nocti and 50 lux and get the 50 ASPH, leaving me with the 28 and the new 50 as my lens set.

The question is, would I miss the Nocti? I shoot a lot wide open so...

The Nocti is enormous and the 50 ASPH seems so dinky. Also the focus tab is the same as the 28 giving a certain standardisation to my focussing method.

To be honest, unless I want to do something specific with it's DOF, the Nocti stays in the bag and the Lux is my usual 50.

I dunno, what do you think? - I can't keep all of em

 

Seb.

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Seb,

 

Sure you can "keep em all".

 

Seriously though, there is much more difference in how they perform than just 1 f/stop.

 

How they appear to render images is where the real difference is. Each has its place, and I think neither will supplant the other.

 

Best,

 

Jerry

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D'accord... let's make it simple,

 

1) If you hate SF20 or Metzblitzermonger, then buy Nocti

2) If you absolutely love the SF20 and your Gigabitfilm/PannyFthang, then buy Summi ASPH...

 

By the Nocti's stroke of fortune, the f1 shots aren't as bad as people make it out to be. Geewhiz, there's always that disaster prone Cannon 50mm F1 L lens that you can borrow from PV... Danke Dieu that it has been discontinued (only to be replaced by the idyllicallyfoul 50mm f1.2 L...)...

 

Remember, you don't think all 50mm M lenses, I suggest just sticking to one that you like depending on what you shoot most. For moi, I do a lot of jazz clubs, so Nocti is logical.

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Guest leica_mage
I have both and use both. I can almost guarantee if you get rid of the Nocti, you will miss the f stop and the characteristic fingerprint of the lens. The ASPH is a superb lens, but sometimes having that extra stop makes all the difference.

And not only in terms of capturing the light but also in the way it's captured!!

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I was in Classic Camera today trying the 50 ASPH. I just can't help feeling they are too damn stiff in the focus ring. I am sure they can be loosened at Leica - I suggested they send one to be smoothed out and if turned out to be like my 28 then I would buy it. They said they wouldn't because someone might come in and want stiffer focussing.

Also, the lenses with M8 conversion are 90GBP more than without but the ones without come with a voucher for FREE conversion.

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I was in Classic Camera today trying the 50 ASPH. I just can't help feeling they are too damn stiff in the focus ring. I am sure they can be loosened at Leica - I suggested they send one to be smoothed out and if turned out to be like my 28 then I would buy it. They said they wouldn't because someone might come in and want stiffer focussing.

Also, the lenses with M8 conversion are 90GBP more than without but the ones without come with a voucher for FREE conversion.

 

 

Seb,

 

Some of the 50 & 75 ASPH's have issues and Leica is aware of this. Mine is a very good example, (touch wood! :) ).

 

You started by saying that you liked the look and light-handling you were getting from your 28/2. Who in his right mind wouldn't?! The 50 ASPH comes closer to this and in addition renders textures on objects with a richness (on Portra) that no other Leica lens can, not even the 75/2.

 

A fast 50 needs to be "a bit" stiffer than your 28/2 or a 35/2 because you could not begin to focus it accurately with a shallow DOF if there were hardly any resistance. I believe you were playing with a bad example, but if you find a proper one, mount it on the camera and try to focus it at various objects at 2' to 20'. Use the tab. I think it will begin to make sense and I believe Leica got this right. My 1972 Summilux is a LOT stiffer than my 50 ASPH and always WAS. Is your Nocti not stiffer?! If not, you definitely handled a poor example. If you handle a good example, make sure it can focus smoothly from 2' to infinity with only a very slight increase in resistance at ~ 3' (when the elements are shifting).

 

The Nocti was never for me, BTW. Tried it for stage and club shooting in the 70's when I could borrow one from the Leitz press pool in NYC whenever I wished. Always felt more comfortable with my old Lux, and the 50 ASPH blows that lens into the weeds! :) My 50 ASPH seems to gather a lot more light at f1.4 and in addition, shows no evidence of vignetting and is sharp into the corners wide open. It really IS amazing.

 

Do you use your Nocti for its "special effects"? If not, find a good 50 ASPH. :)

 

As for the lens coding, nice that you can get the voucher, but in practice, with a 50, even if you DO pick up a digital M sometime in the future, I think you will find that the coding is less significant than it would be with a 28, 24, 21, etc...

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