Leica LTM Summarit 50mm 1.5 Questions & Opinions

[SonicME64]

I've been shooting 35mm SLR's and medium format for some time now, and have decided to see what rangefinders are all about. I picked up the above, a Summarit 50mm 1.5 a few days ago for $150, I really couldn't pass it up. I'm planning to pair it with a Voigtlander Bessa R that I'll be buying next week. The lens has no scratches on either the front or rear elements, but does have a slight haze inside. The aperture blades are clean and snappy, with no oil, and the focus is somewhat stiff through the range. It is an early Summarit (S/N: 740797) with Taylor, Taylor and Hobson engraved on the barrel. I'm planning on shooting a roll through once I get the body to see how it performs as is, but I will probably end up getting a professional CLA on it for good measure. Is this adviseable anyway due to the haze and stiff focus?

I guess what I'm looking for is some opinions this lens compared to other Leica LTM lenses (Summar, Summitar, Summicron and the like) or any other LTM lenses (Canon, Nikon, Voigtlander, Russian lenses)? I've done my reading on LTM lenses of this era, but there is a lot of conflicting information... rather there's conflicting opinion on whether this is a good lens or not. I've searched here and have found the same thing, some love it, some hate it. I know it probably doesn't compare to newer optics, but just want to get some differing viewpoints. Should I have gone for something else? Suggestions on what should I get next?

Thanks!

 

[Meleica]

contrast is fairly low on this lens.....with haze it will only be worse...

Dan

 

[raid]

It's a great lens, and well worth getting the CLA done. Haze will deteriorate the performance much than cleaning marks.

It is somewhat soft wide-open, but in a very pleasing way. Gets very sharp by F4 and continues to sharpen until F8.

My CLA'd Summarit, in LTM. On the Canon 7. Probably ~F2.8.


Wide-open.

Brian: Who did the CLA for your lens?

Raid

 

[Peter A (NYC)]

I was about to sell mine because the aperture blades came apart inside. Now I'm having second thoughts. Fantastic lens...

 

[GoodPhotos]

This is the lens that most often sits on my IIIf. I love it.
No, it isn't as tack sharp wide open as a modern lens and yes it does tend toward lower contrast (especially with portrait films), but it's quirkyness is a welcome change from the DSLR shooting that I do for 'work'.

My film cameras are for fun and this lens is fun, and given the poor rep that it has it is usually a bargain. Mine came with no haze at all and only the slightest of 'cleaning' scratches.

This is wide open f/1.5 at 1/50 on very flat NPS and photoshopped to B&W:

 

[rich815]

It's quite unique. I like mine as a good balance against my sharper and more contrasty Summicron DR. Tends to flare easily though. Best in bright, but overcast conditions or in that warm, deeply angled winter sun or late day sun.

 

[telenous]

Have a look at this discussion from the archives:

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-13655.html

In a nutshell: The Summarit demonstrates many characteristics that have been banished from modern lenses like the plague (flare, nutty bokeh, softness wide and wide-ish open) but which many here, including me, find they can be turned around to great pictorial effect. Like a poster in the old thread said, I don't think you can use the Summarit as your only 50 lens (it's too unpredictable for that) but it can make a superb special application lens.

From the lenses you mention I think the collapsible Summicron and the later rigid and DR versions, edge closer to a modern behaviour.

 

[SonicME64]

From the lenses you mention I think the collapsible Summicron and the later rigid and DR versions, edge closer to a modern behaviour.

At this point, I think I may end up going with a Bessa R2 instead of an R. That will give me access to M lenses as well instead of just the LTM lenses. I say this because I'm finding more M Summicrons than LTM ones, not to mention that the LTM ones are generally way out of my price range. Right now I'm watching a rigid Summicron M that is in need of some TLC, so that may be the deciding factor on whether I go R or R2. I have seen some decent prices on Summitar lenses, which I understand are the predecessor of the Summicron. How do these stack up against the Summicron?

Thanks for the responses thus far.

 

[Rob-F]

As far as I know, all Summitars are coated. A Summitar is a coated Xenon--that's my understanding. Has anyone seen an uncoated Summitar?

 

[raid]

I took out my Summarit yesterday, and I hope to finish today the second roll with it this weekend. I use a lens hood with the Summarit. If the results come out far too "unpredictable", I will send it for cleaning.


This image is from a test of 50mm lenses:
http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=5288280

Dana was falling asleep after sitting still for so many test photos!


Raid

 

[themaxou]

Hi everybody. Apologize my poor english, I am french It is my first post on RFF !

I think that with Leitz lens, we can not talking wether a lens would be better than another one. All LTM lens have their own characteristics

Summarit might be a lens based on Schneider Xenar lens. Leitz would have used the schneider optical formula and would have marked it under Xenon name. The Summarit might be a coated Xenon and was market after the Xenar patent fall.

It is a beautifull portrait lens at wide aperture because of its very particular fuzziness. The lens is flare prone at wide apertures and can deliver good pictorial effect If you are not looking for a huge sharpness, well, I mean a sharpness delivers by modern lens, It will probably suit to you.

I've got a Leica IIIc. I shoot with old lens (Elmar, I am waiting for a Summar and I would like to test a Summarit or an Hektor 7,3 f1,9), coated or not, because in my point of view, I don't care about huge sharpness. I am looking for a large grey scale and old Leitz lens are perfect for my research. I do not enjoy a lot modern lens because they are to sharp and they have a lack of mellow...

The Summitar and the Summicron are evolution from the Summar, the first Leitz lens with a wide aperture...


I hope that you will understand what I mean if not, I will ask my boss for some english courses

 

[FrankS]

Message understood themaxou. I agree with you. If I want sharpness uber alles, I'll use a MF camera. Welcome to RFF.

 

[trittium]

I reciently had mine cleaned, and I was supprised at how sharp it was stopped down. It renders very "creamy" images wide open.

I beleieve this was at f5.6

f1.5