Low Voltage - Leica CL, Summicron 50

Godfrey

Godfrey

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I took out the Leica CL fitted with a Summicron-M 50mm lens the other day. Wasn't feeling particularly sprightly.. The sun was setting, I walked into the early evening light. This bit on the sidewalk near my home made me laugh as it articulated how I was feeling precisely.


Low Voltage - Santa Clara 2021
Leica CL + Summicron-M 50mm f/2
ISO 800 @ f/4 @ 1/80s​

I look at the dozen or so photos I made and they give me a new appreciation for just how superb a performer the Leica Summicron 50mm lens is. 🙂

Enjoy!

G
 
Which version of the Summicron 50 are you using?

I have owned all but the V3 (and APO).

I love both the collapsible and DR/Rigid. The latter for the ultimate in B/W micro detail (was also stunning on Kodachrome 25).

The V4 was great but seemed a bit of a downgrade on B/W from the first two (higher contrast but less fine detail). On the other hand, for color negative film, V4 rendition was unbeatable.

Recently I have been shooting a Topcon-S 50mm f2 LTM. It's the closest in rendition to the DR/Rigid I believe any manufacturer has ever come. I can't believe this lens is that sharp wide open (it may even beat the DR/Rigid in that respect). And it is simultaneously luscious. I haven't developed anything in color yet
 
bluesun267 said:
Which version of the Summicron 50 are you using?

I have owned all but the V3 (and APO).

I love both the collapsible and DR/Rigid. The latter for the ultimate in B/W micro detail (was also stunning on Kodachrome 25).

The V4 was great but seemed a bit of a downgrade on B/W from the first two (higher contrast but less fine detail). On the other hand, for color negative film, V4 rendition was unbeatable.
Click to expand...

I suspect that what you are calling the version 4 is what I call the version 3. Do you mean the 11817, made from 1969 to 1979? It is the one with no focusing tab and the nice long DOF scale. The version 4 has a focusing tab (the only one with one) and a short focusing throw with short DOF scale.
 
I've never been able to remember which years/version of the Summicron-M 50mm is which. Mine is the current series, with the 6-bit code for the digital M bodies as delivered and the builtin lens hood (which I never use, since I bought a nice, aftermarket, rigid metal hood that is always on the lens).

I had an early '50s collapsible, and a previous post-1980 model as well in the past. Looking through my images and such, I see little difference between the old and the new. But then I mostly use it with digital cameras and do the rendering to color or B&W post-capture in an image processing system.

G
 
Bingley, your photos are the perfect retort to anyone who claims that Leica optics are overpriced nonsense. On my (albeit cheesy) screen, they look like they could have been shot with a 4X5. Most impressive!
 
Retro-Grouch said:
Bingley, your photos are the perfect retort to anyone who claims that Leica optics are overpriced nonsense. On my (albeit cheesy) screen, they look like they could have been shot with a 4X5. Most impressive!
Click to expand...
Thank you!! I brought the Summicron 50/2.0 v. III along on this trip to take precisely these kinds of photos and I think it performed pretty well on the digital CL.
 
Here are a few more photos from this trip. On the digital CL, w/ its APS crop sensor, the 50mm ’chron functioned as a 75mm equivalent lens, which was good for photos taken from the boat as we cruised the Elbe. The countryside of Saxony is gorgeous.

Along the Elbe by Steve Macfarlane, on Flickrf

Along the Elbe by Steve Macfarlane, on Flickr
 
Well, shot on the 4:5 APS-C sensor of the more recent Leica CL. When I read the thread title, I thought briefly it may have been the older Leica CL (which I have) that utilizes film cartridges and such. Images on 4x5 film can sometimes be really, really impressive. Nice that some folks find the summicron 50mm on digital APS-C to be similar. And so much easier in terms of processing, etc. I find this mildly distressing as I continue to string along my film addiction with MF and LF endeavors...

Indeed, Leica lenses are darn nice. Sure, there's some other lenses are also darn nice (e.g., Zeiss). But whew! I do notice the quality of images from the summicron...

My favorite 50mm summicron is the v4. Mine orginally had a "tiger claw" focus tab. Nothing wrong with that, but when I had DAG overhaul the lens, I asked for a "half moon" focus tab replacement. Been darn happy ever since. The v4 lenses and v5 lenses are supposed to be the same except for the built-in hood on v5 lenses. Good....now I won't worry about needing the v5. The APO is something else entirely, and I'm letting that one sit out. I only have so much $$$ to apply to my hobby and it don't make sense to send it all (and then some to come!) just to one 50mm lens.

Long live the v1 through v5 summicrons (50mm). Such amazing lenses, eh?
 
Some lodgings along the Elbe… the new RFF software won’t allow me to upload the full-sized files, so the quality of these photos is somewhat degraded from the originals, which are quite sharp and crisp.



930E152A-2F2E-474B-BE51-0F7C3A56751B.jpeg7D3C74B4-5597-4899-8705-252114F4A278.jpeg
 
rfaspen said:
Well, shot on the 4:5 APS-C sensor of the more recent Leica CL. When I read the thread title, I thought briefly it may have been the older Leica CL (which I have) that utilizes film cartridges and such. Images on 4x5 film can sometimes be really, really impressive. Nice that some folks find the summicron 50mm on digital APS-C to be similar. And so much easier in terms of processing, etc. I find this mildly distressing as I continue to string along my film addiction with MF and LF endeavors...

Indeed, Leica lenses are darn nice. Sure, there's some other lenses are also darn nice (e.g., Zeiss). But whew! I do notice the quality of images from the summicron...

My favorite 50mm summicron is the v4. Mine orginally had a "tiger claw" focus tab. Nothing wrong with that, but when I had DAG overhaul the lens, I asked for a "half moon" focus tab replacement. Been darn happy ever since. The v4 lenses and v5 lenses are supposed to be the same except for the built-in hood on v5 lenses. Good....now I won't worry about needing the v5. The APO is something else entirely, and I'm letting that one sit out. I only have so much $$$ to apply to my hobby and it don't make sense to send it all (and then some to come!) just to one 50mm lens.

Long live the v1 through v5 summicrons (50mm). Such amazing lenses, eh?
Click to expand...
I’m more of a Zeiss Sonnar fan, but I do love the version III Summicron 50. Seems to work really well w/ the CL digital sensor.
 
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