Personal work which is normally model photography and portraiture.

I think lens is too soft shot wide open for wedding photography but I will use it for at least three types of photography.

When will I use the Leica 50mm Elmar f2.8 lens? They look sharp to me and that is supposed to be a soft lens wide open). (See the results from my new Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f1.4 lens shot wide open. With clever use of light I will try to get it looking sharp wide open too. I have seen sample images with the exact lens I bought and it is sharp at f5.6. Shot wide open the 50mm Elmar lens will have the old Leica lens soft glow look similar to my Leica Summarit 50mm f1.5 lens but stopped down to f5.6-f8 it should be almost as sharp as my Leica Summilux ASPH 50mm f1.4 lens. The slower Elmar lenses are also less in demand so old versions can be picked up on eBay at a good price and in nice condition. In an ideal world I would chose f2 over f2.8 but the early 50mm f2 lenses are said to have very soft lens coatings so finding one in good condition is not as easy. I could have bought a 50mm f2 collapsible lens instead such as a Leica Summar 5cm f2, Summitar 5cm f2 or an early Summicron 5cm f2 all of which share the same basic design where the lens is collapsible into the camera body. The Leica Elmar 50mm f2.8 lens is a collapsible design so the lens becomes more compact when not in use. Version 2 of this lens is said to be the most popular Leica lens ever made until it was superseded by the first Leica Summicron 50mm f2 lens in 1953. I want to be able to use my 50mm Elmar lens when there is less than ideal light so I opted for the 1950s f2.8 version. The original 1920s Leica Elmar 50mm lens was f3.5 and even smaller. The newer version 4 Leica Elmar-M 50mm f2.8 lens is lighter, sharper and with only 6 blades but I wanted a lens with quirks and more character and also with a smaller price tag! The older version 3 Elmar lens I bought can be picked up for about half the price of a used Leica Elmar-M 50mm. (+ YouTube Review).Ĭontinuing my quest for the smallest lightest most compact Leica M camera setup I decided to buy myself a smaller 50mm for when I need to pack light, a 15 blade 1959 chrome Leica Elmar 50mm f2.8 lens with bayonet mount and E39 filter thread. If you want a compact Leica 50mm this might be the lens for you! It is my smallest 50mm and one of my smallest lenses for any camera. Leica Elmar 50mm Review (f2.8 Collapsible)(Smallest Leica 50mm?)(1959) + YouTubeĪ quick Leica 50mm Elmar review – a vintage Leica lens, 50mm f2.8 with a collapsible design.

Leitz leica 50mm summicron f2