Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black USA

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

Disclaimer: I'm a Canon DSLR user that had a wonderful opportunity to borrow a Leica M9 with this beautiful lens for about 10 days so my experience is somewhat limited in comparison to an actual owner of this lens.

With that out of the way, I know for certainty that one day I will find a way to justify purchasing an M9 just to use this lens. Seriously. The bokeh is just marvelous and the lens is fantastically sharp wide open. The background and foreground just simply disappear.

I also took a few shots at f/8 set at the hyperfocal distance (zone focusing) and actually took some of my favorite shots of my trip around Asia this way. It helped simplify things for a beginner manual shooter like myself.

The colors the lens captures are really vivid. My Canon shots from the same trip are literally pale in comparison -- there's something more dead, dry and stale about those shots.

If you've never shot with a Leica M9, this is a fantastic lens to start with. Great focal length, a big enough aperture to give you a little room for error with manual focus but still big enough to great fluffy, creamy, luscious bokeh. Can't wait until the day I own an M9 and this lens!

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

I waited a long time to try this lens out. Finally, B&H had this lens in stock and I quickly bought it after losing out a few times. My copy is perfect. Has a nice smooth but well dampened focus and extra firm positive aperture clicks. The slide out hood is smooth but very stable and provides good protection from the front lens element. I also own the Summilux Asph and to be quite honest I prefer the Summicron. I am not a big fan of the focus tab on the Lux. Surprisingly, the Lux also has a shorter focus throw than the Summicron. Focusing with the Cron is much easier and quicker too. The Lux is definitely slightly sharper in the center, but the Summicron outpreforms the Lux in the far corners at F/2-F/2.8. Bokeh from the Summicron isn't as smooth as the Lux, but it's not nasty either. Honestly, you cannot go wrong with this lens in the 50mm focal length. I've read that the build quality of the 50mm Zeiss ZM Planar is equal to the Summicron. Baloney! the Summicron is much better made and yes, I've tried the Zeiss as well.

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

Perfect lens in any aspect. Beautiful image qualities are perfectly combined with exceptional built quality. You must have one to realize what it is. I'd say: it gives smooth, delicate images and it's absolutely sharp starting from the f2! But this sharpness is not rude, it doesn't 'abrasive' in it. I've owned/tested so many 50mm lenses/not Leica ones/ and this one leaves them all so far behind..

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

This lens on my M9 is certainly among the world's best picture making machines. The weight and size create a fine balance when attached to the M9. It produces all of the fine qualities that people talk about when they are trying to describe the "Leica look." Out of focus area looks good--smooth gradient of tones from center to edges of image. Not everyone agrees, but I like the slide out lens hood; it can't get lost, and it's always ready to use. If I had to choose one camera and one lens it would be an M9 with this lens. If permitted, I would also add a 35 mm asph.

I haven't identified any negatives about this lens, except price. But this is one of those few products that quickly takes on a legendary quality. Why get something second rate when you can have best for not too much more. Cream floats whereas certain other products sink out of sight.

Be careful not to loose the lens cap. E39 snap in lens caps cost about $30+ and often have to be ordered. Only Leica would design a lens that requires an odd sized lens cap. On the other hand, if that is the only fault that I can come up with, we are talking about a super lens.

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

I have a Noctilux lens which remarkably gathers in too much light to be useful in normal sunlight conditions. So I bought this 50 Summicron lens to use as my everyday lens (a task once held by my 28 Summicron). All I can say is WOW! This lens is tied for sharpest along with my 28 Summicron. You would have to force yourself to take a bad picture with this lens. And you still get the "Leica look" as well -- sharp in the focus area, fading to smooth cream around the edges with a very nice glow. And one other bonus with this lens: the focus is a full ring around the lens and not the little notched handle as my 28 Summicron has. The ring around the lens is much more ergonomic and intuitive. At [$] this lens is not cheap but it's the least expensive fast lens that Leica offers.

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

I bought this as the first lens for my M9 thinking I was making a compromise because the Summilux was (is) unavailable. I have been so pleased with the images it produces that I'm already thinking that even when I get a Summilux, I won't be able to let this one go. This lens on the M9 fits easily in a fleece pocket, and you can truly sometimes forget it's there. How can it get any better?

Comments about Leica Normal 50mm f/2.0 Summicron M Manual Focus Lens (6-Bit, Updated for Digital) - Black:

This 50mm Summicron is used on my Leica M8.2 for travel, portraits, and general photography. The quality build is immediately noticed from the solid construction of the lens. When used the aperture and focusing mechanisms are perfect. Not too smooth, not too tight. Focus is tack sharp and the rendition is exceptional. Wide open it's sharp with great bokeh, stopped down it doesn't get any sharper. Very little if any sharpening is applied to my RAW files. At [$], it's not a cheap lens but it is probably one of the best deals you can get for a Leica lens.