Leica Summarit .5cm f1.5 lens

kshapero

kshapero

South Florida Man
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Can anybody tell me anything about the Leica Summarit .5cm f1.5 lens circa 1953 or thereabouts? Really a gorgeous chrome lens.
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They are good lenses, sharp, moderate contrast, and nicely made. The problem is that most of them have too many coating scratches on the front element, and many also have haze or separation problems. I've never seen a completely clean one out of the 3 or 4 I've owned (I think one of them was a keeper of sorts, but even it had some issues).
 
Elmarit 5cm 1.5

Elmarit 5cm 1.5

I have one, clean front lens, dusty looking inside. The lens itself is beautiful to look at.

These were taken with it in Rome. ( Hope I've uploaded them correctly)
 
Elmari 50mm 1.5

Elmari 50mm 1.5

This is from an Summarit bought in Perugia. Seems in need of a clean but I might like it for portraits as it is.
 

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What a lens! Love it with my M3!

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After two years, I am just now getting creative with this lens. If you want retro:

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If you want to go sharp, this is a comparison with the D40, same exposures at the same time on a very windy Spring day:

Nikon D40:

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Leica M3 + Summarit 5 cm 1.5, Kodak film:

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Wow, that summarit renders just like my Jupiter 3! Is the summarit also a sonnar based on the old Zeiss pre-war 50/1.5 design? I don't think my J3 has any coating to speak of - is the summarit the same?
I just can't believe how similar it looks.
 
It is one of Leitz's pre-Summilux designs (based on a Schneider Xenar?). They have soft coatings that are easily scratched and examples with clean glass can be hard to find. Filter size is an odd thread, and they are prone to flare when wide open. However, I love mine and it is very sharp when stopped down a few stops. The lens is heavy and has a solid feel to it. Mine was the first 50mm Leica lens I bought. I later sold it after acquiring more modern glass, immediately regretted the sale, and eventually replaced it with another. The first one was in better shape. It gives images a very distinctive, medium-to-low contrast 1950's look.

Ben

[Edit: should read Xenon 50/1.5, not Xenar]
 
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