Already have a 50, should I get a 40?

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maitrestanley

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Hey RRF,

just wanted to pick everyone's brains.

I used to have a 35summi but I unloaded it along with my M6 to pay for a digital kit. I recently got back into film and found myself an M7 with a 50M-hexanon as a kit.

Been shooting with that for a while now and I love the lens but I am starting to itch for something wider. I could get another 35summi and pay around 6-800$ for a good example.. but someone just offered me a 40 M-rokkor in excellent condition for a cool $250.

What would you guys do? Would you opt for the 40? Or spend the extra bucks to get the 35? I've always found the 35 a great in-door lens.. but always found it a little wide on the street. So maybe 40mm would suffice.

My main concern is that the 40mm fov is too similar to the 50mm fov to warrant the purchase.

Help!
 
The 40 framelines are not available on a M7. You'll have to guess/estimate from the 35 or 50 lines. I did that for a while but found I really disliked missing things I thought might be there. I know I could use an external finder but I dislike auxiliary finders as they ruin the compactness of a RF. I advise getting a 35.
 
I have just re-discovered my 40mm M-Rokkor (CLE version) as an alternative to my 50mm (Noctilux) and 35mm Summilux pre-ASPH. It is small, sharp and fits ideal when the Noctilux is to heavy (or impractical) and the 35mm Summilux to wide.

With some guessing it works quite well for me without having frame lines for 40mm. Also, I have just started a thread with some photos taken with this lens. 🙂

Cheers,

Gabor
 
If you think you could get 250 bucks or more out of the rokkor, you could always buy it, try it, and if you don't like it, sell it.
 
Why so close? Are you looking for a single lens kit? I know it's strange, but what about a CV 25/4? Use it edges of your M7 finder and you'll be pretty close. It's low on distortion and sharp as a tack. It's also small, very small so you can slip it into your pocket.

If you want to go wide, go W_I_D_E! You can $250 yourself to death with lots of fun stuff. Build a system that you can carry and enjoy. While some folks love 35 and 40 and 50 and 75, it's not me. My favorite three lens system was 25/50/105 in the RF world. In DSLR it will be 30/85/202 (or 270, not sure yet). I like big jumps but that's me, your mileage may vary.

B2 (;->
 
B2 makes a valid point, but there are other reasons for getting a particular lens. To answer the OP's question more directly: I got the M-Rokkor 40 b/c 1) I was impressed w/ the results I saw from it; 2) it's nearly as compact yet a stop faster than the CV 35/2.5 skopar I had; 3) prices are very reasonable. The fact that it is close to a 50 doesn't bother me; for me, 40 is more likely to replace 35. Then again, 28-40-100 (or 90) is a very versatile kit. But I agree: YMMV. 🙂
 
Thomas, I dislike auxillary finders too. They seem rather cumbersome.. I think they'd be okay with ultra-wides where focusing isn't an issue but with a 40mm, it'd be rather annoying to jump back and forth between finder and eye-piece. The good thing is I'm somewhat good at 'seeing' focal lengths so the 40mm framelines aren't 100% necessary. I'm fairly proficient at judging 35mm and 50mm FOV's so I would just judge 40mm somewhere between that.

I love your shots maddoc! Much of my photography consists of night shots too.. i love the feel of a dark scene.

Bill, I've considered the 25/4 but have disregarded it because of how slow it is. As mentioned just above, a lot of my photography takes place at night (and indoors, as well) so I like a bit of speed. I don't exactly need noctilux speeds but I prefer at least f2.. 2.8 if there is no other choice. I find f1.4 the widest i would go. Any wider and the DOF would be so slim that I would have no practical use for it.

I want a walkaround kit so that's why my biggest concern is that the 40 would be redundant alongside my 50. Maybe I should opt for a 24 or 28. The 40rokkor is still super tempting though. I might buy it to just play around with..
 
Stan, thank you ! 🙂 One more comment from me, wearing glasses and viewing through the VF (0.72x) without pressing the VF eyepiece against my glasses gives quite exactly the field-of-view of a 40mm lens.
 
Steve, the reasons you stated are exactly the same reasons that I'm leaning towards the 40 but instead of the size, one of my main concerns is the cost. Pretty much, the 40/2 is much cheaper against the 35/2summi and CV 35/1.4. Both of the alternatives are at least double the cost.

My biggest hope is that the 5mm difference between 35 and 40 will NOT be a huge issue for me..
 
I use my Rokkor CLE 40 as my 35mm lens and never miss the ASPH Cron I sold in favor of the 40. At f2, the image is not as sharp, but it renders very beautifully wide open. I know it can be very subjective, but I keep it for what it does at f2!
the Japanese call it the "water lens," and this is a great description of it.

I don't like it as much for color though - for black and white, it's my best lens.

*edit: my main lens is a 50 cron. Having a 40 is a perfect alternative if you don't like the look of wide photography (28mm or wider), and it still gives you a noticeably greater width from the 50.
 
Stan,

Well then take a look at the 28/1.9 or 28/2 (newer version, M mount). While I did not do a lot of inside stuff, I found f4 not too bad, but I have to agree, f2 would have been much better. I'm not really warm and fuzzy on the 21mm focal length, there are some 21/2.8 out there that are very good. It's just too wide or not wide enough for my tastes right now.

Look at the new CV 28/2 with your 50. While the price of the 40 is great and it's a great lens it's a bit too close. The M7 has a 28mm set of frame lines so no external finder. It's reasonably small, not as small as the 25, but still smaller than a 35/1.2 (what isn't!).

How about a 28/50/105 system? Pick up a 105/2.5 Nikkor and you are set.

B2 (;->
 
I have both the 40mm and a number of 50mm (including the Summilux) and I suggest you pass. They are all great lenses but everytime you go out you'll spend time trying to decide which lens to take. You'll end up taking both and only shooting one -🙂. Save yourself the grief and don't buy it. Of course you can see by the fact that I have two 35mm, one 40mm, 4 (or more) 50mm and two 28mm lenses that I do not follow my own advice.
 
Don't buy it. A 40mm is too in between. You'll end up selling it and buying the 35 or a 28 anyway so save yourself the hassle and expense just use the 50 till you can afford the 35.
 
To make decisions even harder ... The 21mm focal length is also quite useful together with a 50mm lens. 🙂

My own lenses are 21-35-40-50-90, BTW. 😀

Cheers,

Gabor
 
My main M6 kit for years was a 21/35/90. I never really liked my Leica 21, never really matched the way I saw stuff. The M7 has built in 28 frame lines so it's a natural for her. Now there is the ZI 25/2.8, which is a full stop faster than the CV 25/4. Bit bigger and from what folks say a bit better (sharper), and a lot more expensive.

I think a lot depends upon his vision and what his needs/desires are.

B2 (;->
 
The frame lines in recent M cameras are a bit more undersize than the ones in the old M2, M3, and M4. The 35 frame on your M7 is probably a great match for the 40. A couple strokes with a file on the end of the bayonet lug that pushes the frame selector will allow the 35 frame to show in the finder rather than the 50.The 40mm Rokkor is the same design as the 40 Summicron ~ the CL camera was a joint effort by Leitz and Minolta ~ and the 40mm Summicron was the sharpest "35mm" Leitz made before the aspheric. Go for it! You won't be dissapointed.
 
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