35mm Recommendation

[kshapero]

Always been a fan of the Zeiss 35/2.

 

[sahe69]

Another vote for the 35mm C-Biogon. Great lens.

 

[Jason Sprenger]

CV Color Skopar 35/2.5, it's very small, light and performs well.

I use it in my small bag in place of a ZM 35/2 and feel I'm not giving up much at all.

 

[rolfe]

CV 35/1.4 Nokton.

It's tiny, and if you need the wide aperture it's there...

 

[froyd]

The ergonomics of the 1.4 Nokton are hard to beat.

 

[lawrence]

The 1.4 Nokton is a wonderful lens for the money. Wide open there's loads of barrel distortion but it seems to disappear on stopping down. I much prefer mine to the Color-Skopar that I once had.

 

[richard_l]

Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM

 

[alonbenav]

If you like a really modern rendering, the Biogon-C is a winner, for sure.

For me, it was a bit too clinical. I went with a Summicron V3 and am extremely happy.

 

[newst]

If you are going to use it stopped down try a Canon LTM 2.8/35. Much easier on the wallet than the other, excellent lenses suggested here.

 

[iphoenix]

Daniel,
Why not simply go back a year or three and try an earlier Summicron?
You might find that when shut down, it gives you what you want.

 

[richard_l]

Daniel,
Why not simply go back a year or three and try an earlier Summicron?
You might find that when shut down, it gives you what you want.

In that spirit, you also might consider a Summaron.

 

[ktmrider]

Another vote for the Zeiss 35f2.8 C-Biogon. Reid Reviews says it is the sharpest 35mm they have ever tested. I have it teamed with the 35f1.2 Nokton so the 35mm focal length is pretty well covered.

 

[mslatfly]

I have a question that hasn't been covered here. I have an M3, so it doesn't come with viewer lines for a 35mm lens. Does that mean I do need to buy a Leitz lens with goggles, such as a 35 Summaron?

 

[rulnacco]

You could do that--I have a goggled Summaron with my M3, and it's not that big a kludge, although certainly not as nice as the unadulterated viewfinder.

There are a couple of other options, though. One is to buy an external 35mm viewfinder, by Leica or another manufacturer. The Leica is most expensive, but is brilliant indeed--very bright and clear; the Zeiss would be next most costly, and of course Voigtlander has (or at least had) some available which are certainly nice, and reasonably priced. And there are no doubt loads of old finders by various other makers, but with few exceptions not as nice as those mentioned above (well, except maybe for the old Canon external finder).

Another possibility is to cover the frameline illumination window with a bit of black tape and then use the whole viewfinder, which is roughly the same field of view as 35mm. There won't be any framelines, but it works reasonably well in most cases.

(One problem with the goggles is that the round window is actually a prism, and it's secured in place by three screws that can be adjusted to change its orientation. If it comes out of alignment, meaning your rangefinder image will be out of vertical alignment and/or may be slightly off as far as distance, it can be a real dickens to get back in alignment--and to keep it there. Mine did that, and I sent it off to a repairer who got it back in alignment three times--and three times, within a short period, it came back out. I finally sent it to Malcolm Taylor, the elder god of Leica repairers, who used extra long screws and a bit of lacquer to keep it where it belonged. But it still seems to drift a bit with temperature changes, on occasion. Even Malcolm said he couldn't swear it would stay in alignment forever, certainly. So that is one aggravation with the goggles to keep in mind.)

 

[mslatfly]

Thank you. Very helpful. I did remember about the viewfinders right after I posted my question. I didn't realize they cost that much. But it still gives me options. And, i didn't think at all about just ignoring the viewfinder's bright lines, and just frame it edge to edge. That's may be the best option.

 

[Huss]

Thank you. Very helpful. I did remember about the viewfinders right after I posted my question. I didn't realize they cost that much. But it still gives me options. And, i didn't think at all about just ignoring the viewfinder's bright lines, and just frame it edge to edge. That's may be the best option.

I have found that ignoring the frame lines on the M3 provides coverage equal to 40mm lens. It's not wide enough for 35mm.

35mm external VF's used run about $150 once they come on the mkt.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

... That's may be the best option.

Best of worst options.