A fond farewell: 35 'lux is gone.

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kevin m

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I just sent off my 35mm Aspherical Summilux. Sold to a new owner. It was the best lens I've ever used in the 35mm format, but still, I'm glad to see it go.

Why? Because I'm tired of focusing on tiny differences in lens/gear quality at the expense of more imporant image-making criteria. I realize this is highly personal, but I find that once I start focusing on gear rather than vision, or other aspects of craft, I am too easily side-tracked.

The 35 Summilux is a fine lens. But the competing rangefinder lenses are all damned good, too, and at a fraction of the price. j

It's fun to have "the best" of anything, if only for awhile, but I'm glad to be moving on. 🙂
 
Good for you Kevin. Just curious - what 35mm lens did you decide to keep?
 
Ray, for now my "35" is the VC 40mm Nokton, pending its return from DAG for stiff focus. I'm winnowing my RF gear down to a two lens kit, though, and I'm still undecided whether to go for a 28/50 kit, or a 35 (or 40)/75 kit.

FWIW, I love my non-asph. Summilux 50 more than the Asph 35, and I'd be even sadder to see that go!
 
Yes, inquiring minds want to know 40 rokkor? 40 nokton?
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Tom, most of my rangefinder gear will be sold to fund a digital kit. Sad, perhaps, but true. Not having a digital option is simply no longer viable, if you want to earn any money shooting. So the sweet little Rokkor I bought from you will likely be sold, too. It makes a GREAT travel kit paired with the VC 21, and I'll be sad to see it go. 🙁
 
I hear ya. I shot all digital the past two weeks, and the workflow was so much faster than scanning.

Once they perfect a full-frame M body, I might just have to convert entirely. If they ever perfect it 🙂
 
I have resolved that the next lens I buy--50/1.4 pre-asph Summilux--will be my last for my rangefinder system.
 
jja said:
I have resolved that the next lens I buy--50/1.4 pre-asph Summilux--will be my last for my rangefinder system.
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Hey Juan, I was sure you already bought your much sought after 50/1.4 Summilux (though I was sure you meant Asph one)...I'm jealous of your patience...😉

BTW tomorrow will be hopefully my lucky day..my M6 is reported to be out for delivery by UPS right now after a month spent in shipments, sitting in our CA office, etc...Sunday it landed at last in Israel and today got Customs cleared ...
Tomorrow I'll be heading to work early (it is coming to my work) ... can hardly keep my heartbeat calm....
Will be taking with me your, ...xmm.. I mean my 50mm/2 Cron to slap it on the camera right away....wow, what an excitement....😀
 
Alex, excellent news indeed! I am glad that your camera is almost in your hands, after such a long ordeal. The M6/50 Summicron is a great combo, and please heed Kevin's words. It is too easy to get side-tracked trying to get the last little bit of resolution. Only acquire other lenses as you feel you NEED them.

Yes, I am trying to be patient for a Summilux. In time.
 
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Kevin you understand what photography is all about, making images not worrying about what lens looks best on what body.
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I never gave a damn about stuff when I was younger. I won a Kodak film grant in college for a super-8 movie I shot using a $3 thrift store camera with a magnifying glass taped to the lens for 'macro'; my still camera was a $50 Canon Canonet with a 48 to 52mm step up ring to use cheaper, Nikon sized filters. I got sidetracked somewhere in early middle-age acquiring more and more 'stuff' and I'm trying to get back on the rails. Wish me luck. 😉

(A sign of good fortune, perhaps: I just got an email from DAG telling me my 40 Nokton is repaired. )
 
kevin m said:
Because I'm tired of focusing on tiny differences in lens/gear quality at the expense of more imporant image-making criteria. I realize this is highly personal, but I find that once I start focusing on gear rather than vision, or other aspects of craft, I am too easily side-tracked.
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I hear you! It's liberating once you wake up to the fact that photography isn't about winning the approval of some snobs and self-appointed mavens on internet forums. I sold my MP for a couple of user M6 classics, my DSLR is a 20D, and my DRF is an RD1 and I have no immediate plans to "trade up". I'm a spendthrift in more than one area, but cameras/lenses is no longer one.
 
Good, Kevin!

I saw your FS ad and was happy to see how quickly the lens was snapped up. That was a bargain! 🙂

As for gear... I'm saturated. Maybe one day I'll start trimming down like you. However, right now, after my own 'lux purchase, I don't feel the need for anything Leica. Not even a Noctilux. Not, at least, in the same way that I longed for a Summilux like yours.

Good luck with the tough decisions you have ahead! 🙂 Like you, I'll sell some items from my shelves; in my case it's simply because I don't use them and someone else my give them a second chance at having a good, productive life.

Take care!
 
Howdy, Francisco.

Yeah, once you've got the 35 Aspherical Summilux, there's really nowhere else to go, lenswise, is there? 😉

I'm glad I owned the lens just to get it out of my system, if nothing else.

Cheers! 🙂
 
x-ray said:
Kevin you understand what photography is all about, making images not worrying about what lens looks best on what body. Congrats!
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Good logic. However, I prefer to have the best there is then to spend the saved money on Big Macs, shoes and Fashuionable shirts... Those shirts are so expensive, people spend a few Noctiluxes a year just to be good looking. If thewy succeed, I dunno.
 
I knew a young gal who had a keen interest in photography, and shot lots of medium format film with a plastic Diana/Holga, whatever. Nightime at the local fair, on the midway, she got a real nice action photo with some crazy motion blur and some relatively sharp areas too, of one of the spinning rides. She made a print in her makeshift darkroom, and entered it in the local photo contest put on by the newspaper. First prize was a medium format rolleiflex SLR kit, and she won. That's when her problems started...thick instruction book, light meter readings, f-stops & shutter speeds and all the rest of the complications of a modern professional camera. She struggled with it for awhile, and was never happy with any of the pictures...but she was always a rough and ready gal and not afraid to make a change, so she sold it less than three months after winning the contest/camera. If I remember correctly, she used the money to get outa town and do some traveling.
 
Owning a Leica does not make you a better photographer. Owning any expensive camera does not make you better. It is how you look at the world that makes you better. Just my thoughts
 
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