Leica LTM Summitar hood options

Leica M39 screw mount bodies/lenses
C

CharlesDAMorgan

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I have a Summitar from 1949 with 10 blades - SN 753333. It is a lens I love, there is a cool rationality about the images - not too contrasty, sharp and with a rendering that I really love, a serenity about them all.

The glass is in excellent condition for its age - some tiny dust and minimal haze, with cleaning marks of no great size. It has a tendency to flare in bright sunlight, which doesn't surprise, and I'm thinking about putting a hood on it to help the issue.

I've seen the rather wonderful, if huge, hinged barndoor type hoods, and have seen it said that there are numerous different versions. I'd be most grateful for help in choosing the right one or alternatives!

Why I love it

boatwork-1-of-1.jpg


And some flare showing in the black of this angelic wonder serving proper coffee after a month of lockdown!

ministering-angel-1-of-1.jpg
 
How much shading do you need for the front element? I use the screw-in Summitar to E39 adapter + a black E39 protection filter.. this combination gives some shading, but not as much as a regular hood. On the plus side, it keeps the lens small and inconspicuous.
 
A good question Lynn - the second photo was taken with the Summitar orange filter in place, so that is obviously not quite enough. One of the reasons I have been taking it out of the Leica III is to be inconspicuous - I don't want attention to my photographic activities when I'm supposed to be out exercising (a coffee shop stop seems to be permitted!).
 
I've used a few different combinations, but settled on a simple Chinese 39mm adapter, with a step-up 39-40.5 adapter if I think I might be using filters (I've got an extensive set of 40.5mm filters). My Summitar has not shown itself to be especially flare-prone, so a larger hood isn't really necessary.
 
On the Summitar I use IROOA without any difficulty, and it also fits the Summicron and Elmar 50s. The only negative is the slight intrusion of the hood into the finder.
 
I've discovered that the Leica vented hood for my Summicron also fits my Summaron, but is a little loose on the Summitar, which given it pings off the Summicron as the will takes it, I'm not sure I'll risk it with the Summitar. I think I might just go for a barn door job, they are inexpensive enough.

However, one of the joys of the old Leica kit is the names they use. Apart from things like the PLOOT and the NOOKY, I've now found there's a hood called the FOOKH. The schoolboy lurking just below the surface had a good giggle with that one.
 
From memory I think the barn door hoods have two different types of fitting??? To
do with the clips and how they locate on the lens??? Anyone?
 
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