The next such lens is rumored to be the Leica Summilux 50mm f/1.4 classic lens reissue that is expected to be announced together with the M11-D or shortly after.
lifeandmylens wrote:
Wow this is a cool reissue! Wonder if they'll keep it 1m MFD like the original or modify for .7m.
Judging by the 35 sr- my guess would be 1m. Which sucks!! Hopefully they make a change. 1m is so damn far and really throws you off if you are used to .7m
lifeandmylens wrote:
Wow this is a cool reissue! Wonder if they'll keep it 1m MFD like the original or modify for .7m.
I hope so. Initially, I thought Leica wanted to keep things the same for their reissues, but the 35/1.4 Steel Rim Reissue has a different filter thread compared to the original, so anything is possible. Perhaps Leica will listen to the feedback from many who would'd preferred a shorter MFD for the Steel Rim and make adjustments to the 50/1.4 Summilux Reissue.
rscheffler wrote:
If it's 1m, maybe @yukosteel@ can mod it like the 35SR.
Yuri modified both my Leica 35/1.4 Summilux and 50/2 Rigid lenses to have a minimum focusing distance of 0.7 meters. These lenses are now indispensable to me.
I believe this improvement makes a significant difference, and I'm very grateful. Hopefully, Leica will include this feature in future re-issues for everyone interested.
retrofocus wrote:
Isn't the 50/1.4 version I very similar in image quality to the Leitz 50/1.5 Summarit?
If you check the thread linked earlier by Fred, which BTW is an excellent comparison of the various fast Leica 50s, you'll see that indeed there are similarities in respect to bokeh characteristics. Both lenses are on the busier side with IMO the Summarit being slightly busier. The Summarit is also lower contrast, lower saturation, likely due to its older/weaker coatings (and possibly also condition of the optics, but he had it CLA'd prior to the test images).
I do like the look of the v1 Lux. Actually I like them all for how rendering has evolved through the generations. I remember trying one over 10 years ago at a Leica Store that had a used one for sale, but even back then I think it was ~$2K and couldn't justify it just for character. Did buy a Summarit though and still have it, though hardly ever use it.
My recollection is that the Summarit isn't all that sharp (could be my copy?) whereas the Lux v1 does appear to be decently sharp, even wide open (based on the images in that link).
rscheffler wrote:
If you check the thread linked earlier by Fred, which BTW is an excellent comparison of the various fast Leica 50s, you'll see that indeed there are similarities in respect to bokeh characteristics. Both lenses are on the busier side with IMO the Summarit being slightly busier. The Summarit is also lower contrast, lower saturation, likely due to its older/weaker coatings (and possibly also condition of the optics, but he had it CLA'd prior to the test images).
I do like the look of the v1 Lux. Actually I like them all for how rendering has evolved through the generations. I remember trying one over 10 years ago at a Leica Store that had a used one for sale, but even back then I think it was ~$2K and couldn't justify it just for character. Did buy a Summarit though and still have it, though hardly ever use it.
My recollection is that the Summarit isn't all that sharp (could be my copy?) whereas the Lux v1 does appear to be decently sharp, even wide open (based on the images in that link)....Show more →
This resembles my own experience with my Summarit lens. Its main weakness is its lack of center sharpness wide open - which is not uncommon, for example my Canon 50/1.2 L EF lens was similar with lack of center sharpness wide open. I never found this to be a deal breaker. When it comes to faster vintage 50 mm rangefinder lenses, my Nikkor 50/1.4 SC LTM is probably the sharpest wide open in the center.
Might also depend on the focusing distance as IIRC the Nikkor (which I also have) was optimized for better near distance performance. According to the other thread, the Lux v1 was optimized for infinity while the v2 was optimized for nearer distances. Anyway, I agree for 'character' lenses like the Summarit, lower sharpness and more aberrations are the reasons to use them. But back when they were new, it probably wasn't the design goal.
Fred Miranda wrote:
I hope so. Initially, I thought Leica wanted to keep things the same for their reissues, but the 35/1.4 Steel Rim Reissue has a different filter thread compared to the original, so anything is possible. Perhaps Leica will listen to the feedback from many who would'd preferred a shorter MFD for the Steel Rim and make adjustments to the 50/1.4 Summilux Reissue.
they cynical side of me says that the 35 SRR was intentionally made with a 1m min focusing distance so that not too long after they could issue v2 of the SSR with a shorter minimum focusing distance.
Could this lens be launched together with the Leica M11-D in two days? Leica may surprise us and release the 50mm f/1.4 Lux v1 with a 0.7m minimum focusing distance
