Goodbye Summicron ..... Hello Elmar

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Pymm

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Couple of days ago I bought a 35mm asph. under the condition I could bring it back and swap it for something else within 14 days. I have tested it and I like it but I like my Elmar better, also the 50mm I like. I have tried both lenses with different fims and the Elmar represent the sort of film really well, so rather than having one M6 with an Elmar and a 35mm Summicron which only enbles you to shoot one type of film at a time, I have decided to bring back the Summicron and get a second body, also with an Elmar, because I love this lens.....
I am leaving for the shop in 20 minutes or so and have got my eye on either an M2 or an M3 both in A condition, or just get another M6TTL like I have now, , the Elmar 50mm 2.8 has already been reserved (chrom this time, it's the only one they had left). I am also very tempted to get a IIIG with a 3.5 elmar uncoated, alongside the m2, m3 or M6 but we'll see how far the dollar stretches this time ..... but tempted I am....
 
I had my eyes on a M2 with a 35 Elmar. But it was far out of my financial reach :-(
 
But then again, spend your money on something worthwhile, something that lasts. I have bought a load of things in my life, all high quality products, these tend to keep their value this is how I see Leica too. I still have my 1970 Quad hifi installation, my 1965 Marshall guitar amplifier, my 62 gibson gold-top, my 67 gretsch, 1962 telecaster etc. etc. All these things were expensive at the time, and I had too bend around lots of corners to acquire them, but I still have them now and piece by piece they are worth more than the price I paid for them. So I would go for the leica if I were you.
 
Ooooh, nice guitar gear. That gibson gold top would be high on my "if I ever win the lottery" list 🙂
 
I have a '34 uncoated 50mm Elmar. Cleaned the 70-year haze around the aperture surfaces, it is beautiful for portraits etc. Terrific soft contrast and sufficient sharpness. Very different from my 1,2 Canon and my 1st gerneration Rigid Summicron.
I will keep them all.
 
I am reminded of the confession of the noted rake. After an hour recalling remarkable conquests, the old priest finally said "I will set your punishment--but it will be for bragging."

Just a thought.
Johne
 
I'm not quite sure that I'm willing to discount it entirely; I just found reference to a '62 GT re-issue. But it had to be a pretty damn rare model at the time, since the SG was in full swing in '62.


johne said:
I am reminded of the confession of the noted rake. After an hour recalling remarkable conquests, the old priest finally said "I will set your punishment--but it will be for bragging."

Just a thought.
Johne
Click to expand...
 
The 1st time Gibson re- issued the Les Paul gold top was in 1968. the original gold top LP was last made in 1958 .
 
Pymm said:
But then again, spend your money on something worthwhile, something that lasts. I have bought a load of things in my life, all high quality products, these tend to keep their value this is how I see Leica too. I still have my 1970 Quad hifi installation, my 1965 Marshall guitar amplifier, my 62 gibson gold-top, my 67 gretsch, 1962 telecaster etc. etc. All these things were expensive at the time, and I had too bend around lots of corners to acquire them, but I still have them now and piece by piece they are worth more than the price I paid for them. So I would go for the leica if I were you.
Click to expand...

Pymm,
You just gave me permission to purchase that MP3 I've been lusting for. I'll just have to save for my other lenses. By the by....does your '62 Les Paul Gold top include the original Alligator case?
 
in &2 there were 7 gold-tops made, not a formal re-issue series but a made to order batch. The differed from the original model for making use of a different neck and apparantly differently wound elements (not sure about that). One of them was apparantly ordered by alexis Korner (not sure about that too) the others by musicians of a less known character, I bought mine third hand (with certificate by gibson) which belonged to a member of an american 60 ties band, can't remember which, but who cares.... I bought it in 1972, never liked the sound much for I am after all a Telecaster man, and much more fender than gibson, but at the time the gold top was hard to resist. I never played it on stage, but did do some studio work on it.
Enough about guitars ... this is after all a photography forum...

As mentioned I exchanged my 35 summcron for a chrome elmar and a black mint condition M6 basic, standard whatever they are called. I have been shooting all day today, one camera with tri-x and the other with pan 50 ..... followed by apx 100 and a half roll of efke. I did tripod shot of shoppers in the busy munich streets, I like the "motion" these shots bring you, half ghostly figures packed with shopping bags, some blurs, some barely reckognisable, some slightly faded..... I feel good with the descision to trade the 35... since now I will be prepared for every sort of setting, 400 or 50/100asa, the fact that this makes such a difference with elmar lenses still surprises me ....
 
Socke said:
I had my eyes on a M2 with a 35 Elmar. But it was far out of my financial reach :-(
Click to expand...
The 35mm/3,5 Summaron is a much better lens for about the same price as the Elmar. It is very small and looks retro, like the Elmar.
 
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