Puts and the new Summarit-M lenses

[traveller]

Article

Interesting read

 

[JNewell]

Facing the ZM line head-on? It will be interesting to see how they perform in real life, optically and physically.

 

[back alley]

they are still twice the price of most zeiss m lenses.

i can't see leica trying to 'take on' cv or zeiss, these lenses seem destined for others.

 

[Xmas]

Joe

I thought this was their best shot at taking on CV and Zeiss, they must be hurting?

Noel

 

[KoNickon]

Classic Puts: "Optically the Cosina lenses were no match for Leica...." He should reread his own reviews -- or maybe he has, and decided to gloss over them with a dismissive throwaway statement.

 

[Mazurka]

Note the past tense -- he's probably talking about those cheap and nasty zooms Cosina used to make. 😀

 

[John Noble]

The most important product announcement by Leica in a decade!

Oh good grief, Puts has been smoking some of that crazy Dutch hash again. I think the M8 has to be a little bigger news than a so-called "budget" lens line.

 

[richard_l]

Oh good grief, Puts has been smoking some of that crazy Dutch hash again. I think the M8 has to be a little bigger news than a so-called "budget" lens line.

That puzzled me too. Maybe he was referring to the importance of the new lens line to Leica's financial well-being rather than to its photographic significance.

Richard

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[Solinar]

An off topic post here - Why were the lenses called Summarits rather than the traditional nomenclature for this class of lenses, which had been the Elmarit ?

The lenses look to be more compact than their Summicron counter parts.

 

[Film dino]

Interesting read indeed. I note that the page heading is consistent with his stance on digital (non)-photography: "Photography & Image Capture"

 

[varjag]

Interesting read indeed. I note that the page heading is consistent with his stance on digital (non)-photography: "Photography & Image Capture"

Digital photography is photography. It is all about confusion of means and ends in heads of some people.

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[varjag]

Magus, let us not stretch analogies too far 🙂 Writing never presumed graphite (fairly modern invention). Nor any part in "photography" specifies whether quantum change registers in silver halide (film) or gallium arsenide (digital).

I see where these sentiments are coming from (being film guy myself), but IMHO all this bitter film-digital talk is focusing too much on details. Photography isn't really about either.

 

[BillBingham2]

When you put most CV lenses up against lenses costing 10X as much, there will be a difference. How will this new generation of glass measure up against ZI and CV, there's the question.

As I am not making money with my photography I am not chasing the “Best”. Leica might be trying to jump on the lower cost bandwagon. They are never going to be a CV, their cost of labor is too much. But they can employee several EU workers at these price points and make a reasonable profit. If we see a CL2 come out then we will see more cash coming in. The lenses alone with the high price of bodies will not create pull. Bring out a body at the same price point I think you may see something. Use some well placed advertising (well healed reader type of places) and some internet spending and you have a solid cash flow. Will this cannibalize their high end market, no, ZI did that a bit. This body has to be different from a Bessa enough to stand out to users like us. A CL2 might do that. They need to leverage their name and the fact that they are EU based. Same way as we might look for Made in America, they need a Made in the EU.

B2 (;->

 

[Bavaricus]

They are never going to be a CV, their cost of labor is too much.

Guess thats not hte point. Cost of labor in Japan can bie copmpared with Germany. Theres is little difference. Its the Quality Control. When making a visit in Solms just have a look who much material is in containers named "Schrott" means wastage, junk.
And its a difference wheter you allow 1/100mm or 3/100 tolerances in mechanics and so on ... THATS expensive!

Bye
Reiner

 

[ferider]

Guess thats not hte point. Cost of labor in Japan can bie copmpared with Germany. Theres is little difference. Its the Quality Control. When making a visit in Solms just have a look who much material is in containers named "Schrott" means wastage, junk.
And its a difference wheter you allow 1/100mm or 3/100 tolerances in mechanics and so on ... THATS expensive!

Bye
Reiner

Then please explain why the new 90/2.5 Summarit will be much cheaper than
the 90/2.8 Elmarit.

There is only one reason why Leitz charges as much as they do for their lenses:

Because They Can.

Roland.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Leica in the Grocery business:

During the previous decade Leica has produce

Somebody, please give this man some proofreader's e-mail.

In Vegas, I'm sure there's a bookie already with a list of odds of how many typos and idiomatic mistranslations appear on his crispily rendered keystrokes.

 

[HuubL]

Magus, let us not stretch analogies too far 🙂 Writing never presumed graphite (fairly modern invention). Nor any part in "photography" specifies whether quantum change registers in silver halide (film) or gallium arsenide (digital).

I see where these sentiments are coming from (being film guy myself), but IMHO all this bitter film-digital talk is focusing too much on details. Photography isn't really about either.

Excellent. Finally a scientist to indicate the similarities!

 

[Harry Lime]

That puzzled me too. Maybe he was referring to the importance of the new lens line to Leica's financial well-being rather than to its photographic significance.

Richard

I think he is talking about the manufacturing method, not the actual lenses.
It seems that a lightbulb has gone on in Solms and they realized they can adopt
modern production methods and still produce high quality products. As he mentioned previously each lens was a 'one off' design. With the new Summarit series they are sharing components among different lenses.

The great irony is that the Germans were among the early pioneers in such production methods, several decades ago.