50mm walkabout for a Leica iiig

[02Pilot]

FWIW, this is what my IIIg is wearing these days:

Quite a lovely lens, but not necessarily cheap, and perhaps not fast enough for your needs.

 

[mpaniagua]

Would vouch for VC Heliar 50m f/3.5.

Lens is amazing and looks pretty cool on a Barnack. Its the lens that usually is attached to my Leica IIIf. Just remove the hood or it will look silly 🙂


Usually have a Leica cap over a film canastier cap on the lens.

Regards

Marcelo.

 

[bayernfan]

the collapsible summicron in LTM remains my favorite 135-format lens to date. this despite the fact that I'm a 35mm focal length shooter.

 

[Graybeard]

Thank you, everyone, for all of the helpful comments.

I enjoy street shooting in Europe, especially in the early evening when everyone is out and about.

I need a relatively fast lens for shooting in narrow streets (which, inevitably, run the wrong way with respect to late afternoon Sun). Pushing the film (I use Tri-X and HP5) is a limited option as I must take my film through airport x-ray machines. While there is often a posted declaration at the airport that ISO/ASA 800 will suffer no ill effect; I'm not prepared to make this leap of faith.

I have some reservations about the Color Skopar 50mm f2.5. It has its admirers as well as (not a few) less than enthusiastic reviewers; given the current asking price for these things (USD400 for a clean one), I question if the Skopar offers any advantage over a LTM Nikkor 50mm/f2, a Topcor-s 50mm/2, or a first generation collapsible Summicron.

I'm thinking the Nokton 50mm/f1.5 best suits my requirements.

Please, everyone, continue the discussion.

Good light all.

 

[pyeh]

Not the latest, but many will still consider the Leica Summilux 50mm f/1.4 (pre ASPH) to be relatively modern. Just a hair faster than the Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5, but not by much and definitely no difference in actual use.



Cheers,

Benny, you know very well you've got the only one of those in the world!

 

[Graybeard]

FWIW, this is what my IIIg is wearing these days:

Quite a lovely lens, but not necessarily cheap, and perhaps not fast enough for your needs.

How would you compare (if you are in a position to comment) your Hexanon 50mm/f1.9 to the ltm Nikkor 50mm/2, Canon(aka Serenar) 50mm/f1.8, or Topcor-S 50mm/f2.

"Can't say for lack of experience" is an acceptable reply - this is a discussion among friends, after all.

 

[Rob-F]

Canon Sonnar. Small, fast, and delicious. 🙂

I was perfectly happy and had everything I needed or wanted until you showed this. Now I want one, just like that.

It's beautiful!

 

[bennyng]

Benny, you know very well you've got the only one of those in the world!

Hey Peter!

Yeah, I know these aren't exactly popular as these modern LTM lenses don't focus to 0.7m, only to 1m. Didn't know that when I picked it up as I thought I could have the best of both worlds with an LTM to M adapter.. Now I know why nobody buys this lens.

I could loan you one of these if it interest you. Selling for close to the M mount version these days, unlike the insane prices in the earlier days.

Cheers,

 

[02Pilot]

How would you compare (if you are in a position to comment) your Hexanon 50mm/f1.9 to the ltm Nikkor 50mm/2, Canon(aka Serenar) 50mm/f1.8, or Topcor-S 50mm/f2.

"Can't say for lack of experience" is an acceptable reply - this is a discussion among friends, after all.

Well, I don't know that I can give you a definitive analysis, but my impression so far is that the Hexanon is rather unique compared with the others (well, the first two, as I have no experience with the Topcor). It is an Ultron derivative, and as such the look it produces is a bit different than the Sonnar Nikkor or the double Gauss Canon. Quite sharp in the center even wide open, with a very nice 3D pop to things compared with the others. Not quite as creamy as the Nikkor, and a bit more interesting than the Canon. I've really liked the Konica lenses on my Hexar AF and Konica III, and this one has lived up to expectations (it's quite similar to the Konica III lens).

I haven't had it long, so I don't have a lot of samples, but here are a few:

 

[lxmike]

I occasionally use a Nokton 1.5 on my IIIg but find my collapsible 5cm 3.5 elmar much more pocket friendly

 

[LCSmith]

What makes a "walkabout" lens? Sanctioning by the Society of Australian Aboriginal Photographers?

 

[Graybeard]

What makes a "walkabout" lens? Sanctioning by the Society of Australian Aboriginal Photographers?

Not sure what the Aussies are using.

A walkabout lens for me is one used for everyday streetshooting.

 

[Erik van Straten]

The finest lens for the IIIg in terms of ergonomics plus rendering is the Color Skopar 50mm f/2.5. This is a beautifully finished brass lens. It comes in true black paint or real chrome, both are gorgeous on a IIIg. Image quality is superb.

I would not use a bigger lens on a IIIg because the image in the viewfinder will be cut off by the barrel of the lens.


Erik.

 

[lxmike]

Benny, you know very well you've got the only one of those in the world!

what is the story on this lens, how where etc did it get an ltm mount? its 😎 by the way