Leica
Mount Wide Angle Lenses
(<40 mm)
by Karen Nakamura
Leica
Mount
Wide Angle
Lenses
(<40 mm)
by Karen Nakamura
Wide Angle Lenses
Wide-angle lenses are essential for photoethnographic work, especially in the genre of environmental portraiture - showing people embedded in the surroundings in which they live and work. The standard technique is to use a wide- to very-wide angle lens (20-35mm) and get extremely close to the subject. This allows for a strong central subject but also includes enough of the background to place the person in his environment. The problem with wide-angles is that they have a tendency to exaggerate facial features (especially noses) if you get too close, so use this with caution.
 Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/1.7 |
For a while, I was holding out for the new Voigtländer Nokton 35mm f/1.2, but got caught up in the wonderful selection of 35mm lenses available in Leica mount. I now have several wide-angles lenses, all of which I love. For very detailed information on choosing between 3rd party 35mm focal length lenses, see Tom Abrahamsson's write-up, posted on the Leica Users Group in May of 2003, and reposted here with permission.
Canon
Serenar 35/f2.8: I bought a Canon Serenar 35mm f/2.8 with the
viewfinder on ebay. I think it was a bit of an impulse purchase as it
exceeded my budget,
but it looked mint and came with the leather case and a cute little viewfinder
(left). It's a 6 element lens, not hypercorrected but nothing to sneeze
at either.Typical
of lenses of the era, it has low contrast but high resolution. I particularly
like the "bokeh". I have a few photos taken with this lens
("Butch"
and "Construction
Worker")
in my Gallery
page. I was fond of this lens - the high resolution with low contrast
gives very unique looking photographs, especially on high-resolution B&W
film such as Fuji Neopan 100 Acros. I just never used it, so I ended up selling
this lens.
Canon
35mm f/2:
My
impression of this lens is very strong. It's pictured to the left here
on my Leica CL. As you can see,
the 35mm f/2 lens is very compact. I loved this lens but ended up swapping
it for the Leitz Summaron 35mm f/2.8 for fun.
Many of the photographs taken in my Japan 2003 Gallery use the Canon 35mm f/2. The lens is much sharper and contrast is higher than the f/2.8. Photos seem more "modern" perhaps to the point where I might use the 35mm f/2.8 for my retro photos.
I prefer the focusing lever of the older lens, as the newer lens mimics the same type of barrel as a SLR lens. The Canon 35mm f/2 uses the same impossible-to-find 40mm inner filter thread as the Canon 50mm f/1.8. Hoods are similarly hard to find. I bought a Canon clamp-on 42mm Series VI filter adaptor which I wanted to use with my screw-in Series VI lens hood (seen on my Jupiter-8 50mm f/2), but the Series VI hood vignettes slightly with the 35mm f/2. In Japan, I finally found a 40mm thread hood for the 35/2 made by "Hansa," a small company that is designing some neat classic gear. It specifically notes the Canon 35/2 and 50/1.8 as compatible. However, it intrudes in the framelines of the CL and M7.
Leitz Summicron-M 35/f2: Although it came in several variations, the Leitz Summicron 35mm lens is world renowned. The original 8-element Summicron is well known for its gentle softness, high center resolution, and wonderful "bokeh" or out-of-focus areas. The 35 'cron that I own is the 4th generation, made in Canada, 7-element, the so-called "Pre-ASPH" because it's the last non-ASPH version. It is known for its sharpness across the field, even illumination, and high resolution, and great bokeh. It's shown here pictured with my M7. The ASPH or aspherical Summicron 35 was released in 1997. It is known for its high resolution, higher contrast, but slightly less appealing "bokeh." It's also considerably larger and more expensive, so many people opt for the pre-ASPH version instead. |
|
Leitz Summaron-M 35/f2.8: I swapped my Canon Serenar 35mm f/2 for this Leitz Summaron at a swap meet in 2004. I'm not sure who got the better deal, but I'm pretty happy. This is the original six-element version designed for the Leica M3, which did not have framelines for the 35mm perspective. So, in order to get around this, the Summaron had "goggles" mounted on it which enlarged the field of view, forcing the 50mm framelines to be the equivalent of 35mm. They were made from around 1958 to 1974. Mine is an early unit, around 1959 using the serial number as a guide. One advantage of the goggles - the Summaron focuses down to 0.65 meters, which is closer than the regular 0.7 meters achievable on M-rangefinders. On the 0.72x M7 and M2, the goggles are really unnecessary because they have 35mm framelines built-in. They are only needed on the original M3 or the 0.85x M7/MP. I have some photos taken with the Summaron on my M3 in my PAW 2004 Gallery. I'm thrilled with the performance of the Summaron, it has both resolution, sharpness, and a softness of "bokeh" that older lenses are famous for.
|
|
Leitz Elmar 35mm f/3.5 Although it looks like a collapsed 50mm Elmar, the 35mm is not a collapsible lens. This is the actual size when shooting. This makes for a very compact lens/camera combination. It's a simple 4-elements in 3 group triplet design. Not highly corrected but it doesn't need to be at f/3.5. Like the 50mm Elmar, the aperture setting is on the front of the lens. |
|
Former
Soviet Union Lenses: From
a person on the Russian Rangefinder mailing list, I bought a whole set of Russian
lenses and two Zorki 4K
cameras. In wide-angle lenses, I obtained a Orion-15 28mm f/6 rectilinear wide-angle
and a Jupiter-12 35mm f/2.8.
Orion-15 28mm f/6: The Orion-15 is famous for very high resolution (40+ lpm) performance and my own tests bear this out. Stopped down to f/11, it's great. Sharp and good color. The only problem is that f/11 (and even f/6) is pretty dark and inflexible. I ended up selling this.
Jupiter-12
35mm f/2.8: The Jupiter-12 is a copy of the Zeiss Biogon, a very famous
35mm f/2.8 design. Because it isn't retrofocus, the rear element almost touches
the focal plane curtains of Leica and Leica-clones*; while it hits the double
metal shutters of the Bessa R/R2 and the light baffles of the Canon P. But...
with all those caveats... if you have a camera that works with the Jupiter-12,
then it's a stellar lens. The non-retrofocus design means that there is very
low distortion. Overally, very, very high quality. It's a bit of a pain storing
the lens when it's off the camera because the rear element is so vulnerable.
I ended up selling this.
*In addition, if you have a Leica M6/M7, it partially blocks the metering area. On the M5/CL it actually hits the metering stalk.
|
Manufacturer |
Cosina Voigtländer |
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens |
35mm f/1.2 Nokton | 35mm f/1.7 Ultron | 35mm f/2.5 Color Skopar C |
|
Serial # |
|||
|
Place
of Manufacture |
Japan |
||
|
Date
of Manufacture |
2003~current | 1999~current | 2000~current |
|
Lens Construction |
10 elements in 7 groups 3 aspherical elements |
8 elements in 6 groups Aspherical element |
7 elements in 5groups |
|
Lens
Mount |
Leica M bayonet mount |
Leica M39 screw mount
|
|
|
Focusing range |
0.7 meter - infinity |
0.9 meter - infinity |
|
|
Apertures |
f/1.2,
f/1.4~ f/16 (x stop steps) |
f/1.7,
f/2.0 ~ f/16 (x stop steps) |
f/2.5,
f/2.8 ~ f/16 (x stop steps) |
|
Filter
Mount |
Filter:
52mm threaded |
Filter:
39mm threaded |
Filter:
43mm threaded |
|
Body Construction |
|||
|
Dimensions
and weight |
63mm D x 77.8mm L 490g |
55mm D x 47.7mm L (with hood) 203g |
|
|
Retail
price |
¥135,000
black MSRP (2003) |
¥65,000
silver MSRP (1999) |
|
|
Manufacturer |
Canon |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lens |
35mm f/1.5 | 35mm f/1.8 | 35mm f/2 | 35mm
f/2.8 Serenar Mk. I |
| Serial
# |
43593 | 1349x | ||
|
Place
of Manufacture |
Japan |
|||
|
Date
of Manufacture |
1957 ~ 19xx | 1957 ~ 19xx | 1962~1963 (Mk I) 1963~ 1972 (Mk II) |
1951~ (Mk I) 1957~ (Mk II) |
| Lens
Construction |
8 elements in 4 groups | 7 elements in 4 groups (Planar type) | 7 elements in 4 groups | 6 elements in 4 groups |
|
Lens
Mount |
Leica
M39 screw mount |
|||
| Focusing
range |
1 meter
- infinity |
|||
|
Apertures |
f/1.5,
f/2.0 ~ f/22 (x stop steps) |
f/1.8, f/2.0 ~ f/22 (1 stop steps) |
f/2.0
~ f/22 (1 stop steps) |
f/2.8
~ f/22 (1 stop steps) |
| Filter
Mount |
Filter:
48mm threaded |
Filter:
40mm threaded |
Filter:
40mm threaded |
Filter:
34mm threaded |
| Body
Construction |
Solid chromed brass | |||
|
Dimensions
and weight |
56mm D x 29mm L |
48mm D x 28.2mm L |
49mm D x 28mm L 107g |
48mm D x 25.5mm
L Mk. I |
| Retail
price |
¥35,000 (1958) | ¥32,000 (1957) | ¥19,000 (1962) | ¥21,000
(1951) ¥19,500 (1957) |
| Manufacturer |
Leitz |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Lens |
35mm f/3.5 Elmar |
35mm f/3.5 Summaron | 35mm f/2.8 Summaron |
| Serial# |
16081x | 16958xx | |
| Place of Manufacture |
Germany |
||
| Date of Manufacture |
1930-1950 My one: 19xx (given serial#) |
1946-60 | 1958-74 |
| Lens Construction |
4 elements in 3 groups | 6 elements in 4 groups | 6 elements in 4 groups |
| Lens Mount |
Leica screw mount (m39) |
Leica M bayonet mount w/ coupled rangefinder "goggles" |
|
| Focusing range |
1 meter - infinity |
0.65 meter - infinity |
|
| Apertures |
f/3.5, 4.5, 6.3, 9, 12.5, 18 (no click stops) |
f/3.5, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22 (no click stops) |
f/2.8 ~ f/22 |
| Filter Mount |
A 36 push-on |
A36/A39 push-on |
Filter: E39 |
| Body Construction |
Chrome brass |
Nickel / Chrome |
|
| Dimensions and weight |
130g |
195g |
210g w/ goggles |
| Retail price |
¥ |
||
|
Manufacturer |
Leitz |
Leica |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens |
35mm f/2.0 Summicron | 35mm
f/2.0 Summicron-M (4th type; #11310) |
35mm f/2.0 Summicron-M ASPH |
|
Serial# |
33968xx | ||
|
Place
of Manufacture |
Germany
|
Canada | Germany |
|
Date
of Manufacture |
1958-69
(Mk. I) 1969-1979 (Mk II/III) |
1979-1997 My one: 1986 (given serial#) |
1997~current
1958-74 |
|
Lens Construction |
Mk I: 8 elements in 6 groups (Gauss
type) Mk II: 6 elements in 4 groups |
7 elements in 5 groups (Gauss type) | 7 elements in 5 groups (1 aspherical) |
|
Lens
Mount |
Leica M bayonet mount |
||
|
Focusing range |
0.7 meter - infinity |
||
|
Apertures |
Mk
I: f/2.0 ~ f/16 (1 stop steps) |
f/2.0
~ f/16 (1 stop steps) |
f/2 ~ f/16 |
|
Filter
Mount |
Filter:
39mm threaded |
39mm thread Hood: 12524 |
42mm thread
|
|
Body Construction |
Black
painted alloy or chrome brass
|
||
|
Dimensions
and weight |
150g |
26mm x 52mm |
34.5mm x 53mm |
|
Retail
price |
$180 in 1962 |
¥ | |
|
Manufacturer
|
Leica
|
Nikon
|
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens
|
35mm f/1.4 Summulix | 35mm f/1.4 Summilux ASPH | 35mm f/1.8 W-Nikkor |
35mm
f/2.5 W-Nikkor |
|
Serial#
|
||||
|
Place
of Manufacture
|
Germany
|
Japan
|
||
|
Date
of Manufacture
|
1961-1995 | 1956-6x 1957-6x (Screw mount) |
1952-61 |
|
|
Lens Construction
|
7 elements in 5groups | 9 elements in 5 groups (one aspherical) | 7 elements in 5 groups (modified Gauss?; Xenotar type) | 6 elements in 4 groups (Gauss type) |
|
Lens
Mount
|
Leica M bayonet mount |
Leica M39 screw mount Also
Nikon RF mount |
||
|
Focusing range
|
0.7 meter - infinity |
0.9 meter - infinity |
xx meter - infinity |
|
|
Apertures
|
f/2.0
~ f/16 (1 stop steps) |
f/1.4 ~ f/16 |
f/1.8, f/2.0 ~ f/22 (x stop steps) |
f/2.5, f/2.8 ~ f/22 (x stop steps) |
|
Filter
Mount
|
Filter:
E41 / Series 7 |
Filter:
E46 |
Filter:
43mm threaded |
Filter:
43mm threaded |
|
Body Construction
|
Chrome brass |
Black alloy | Light alloy |
Originally chrome plated brass. |
|
Dimensions
and weight
|
245g early 195g late |
46.2mm x 53mm |
55.8mm D. x 39.5 mm L |
55.8 mm dia. x 34.8 mm 110 g (post-1958 model) |
|
Retail
price
|
|
¥39,500
(1958) ¥33,600 (1959) ¥27,500 (1961) ¥27,000 (1962) (Nikon Mount) |
¥27,500 (1958) ¥22,000 (1959) ¥18,000 (1961) |
|
Former Soviet Union
|
Manufacturer |
Zagorsk |
KMZ |
Zeiss | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lens |
28mm
f/6 Orion-15 |
35mm f/2.8 Jupiter-12 | 35mm f/2.8 Biogon | |
|
Serial# |
||||
|
Place
of Manufacture |
USSR | USSR | ||
|
Date
of Manufacture |
1968-1974 |
Manuactured in 1969? |
1952-61 |
|
| Lens
Construction |
4 elements in 4 groups (Double-Gauss) Resolution: 45/18 |
6 elements in 4 groups Resolution: 34/12 |
x elements in x groups (Gauss type) | |
|
Lens
Mount |
Leica
M bayonet mount |
|||
| Focusing
range |
1.0 meter -
infinity |
xx meter - infinity |
1.0 meter - infinity |
xx meter - infinity |
|
Apertures |
f/6.0
~ f/22 (stepless) |
f/3.5, f/4.0 ~ f/xx (x stop steps) |
f/2.8 ~ f/22 (x stop steps) |
f/2.5, f/2.8 ~ f/22 (x stop steps) |
| Filter
Mount |
Filter:
40.5mm x 0.5 threaded |
Filter:
xxmm threaded |
Filter:
40.5mm
x 0.5 threaded |
Filter:
xxmm threaded |
| Body
Construction |
Aluminum | Aluminum | Originally chrome plated brass. |
|
|
Dimensions
and weight |
51mm D x 21.2 H 65g |
50mm D x 28 mm H |
||
|
Retail
price |
|
|||
SuperWide Angle Lenses (<28mm)
Super-wide-angle lenses
are specialized lenses that have limited use in day-to-day photography. They
excel in some types of environmental portraiture, but can easily be over-used.
I have a second-version Elmarit 28mm f/2.8 in my lens collection, made 1973 given the serial number. It's an 8-element retrofocus design, which means it works with the Leica M7, M5, and CL unlike the first version. It's a nice lens and I got it inexpensively because it was a real beater. A quick CLA by DAG has restored it to it good working condition. I'm annoyed however that there isn't a widely available hood (at a reasonable price) for this lens because it does seem to flare easily. In general, I prefer the 35/2 Summicron to this unless I need the slightly wider perspective.
Voigtlander Super-Wides
Cosina surprised the camera world in 2000 when it released the Voigtlander
Bessa L camera with two ultra-wide lenses in Leica M39 screwmount: the 15mm
f/4.5 Super-Wide-Heliar Aspherical and the 25mm f/4 Snapshot-Skopar. Resolution
and
contrast on both
were excellent -- and the 15mm was rectilinear, not fisheye. The Bessa L
had no built-in rangefinder or viewfinder, so these lenses both came with tiny
albada
type accessory
viewfinders.
I recently obtained a Cosina-Voigtlander 15mm f/4.5 Super-Wide-Heliar and am excited to give it a spin. It's definitely a special purpose lens, but I think it will be excellent for photographing crowds and protests. Next to it, my widest lens is the 17mm f/4 Fish-Eye Takumar from Pentax (in M42 mount), which of course is a fisheye with more limited utility.
From one of my Leica list pals, I bought a Cosina-Voigtlander 25mm f/4 Snapshot-Skopar. It's a much more practical lens than the 15mm Super-Wide-Heliar. The viewfinder is the older type, without the brightlines. Still, it's accurate enough for most purposes.
|
Manufacturer
|
Cosina Voigtländer
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens
|
12mm f/5.6 Ultra-Wide Heliar Aspherical | 15mm f/4.5 Super-Wide Heliar Aspherical | 21mm f/4 Color-Skopar |
|
Serial #
|
|||
|
Place
of Manufacture
|
Japan
|
||
|
Date
of Manufacture
|
2000.7~ | ||
|
Lens Construction
|
10 elements in 8 groups 1 aspherical element |
8 elements in 6 groups 1 aspherical element |
8 elements in 6 groups |
|
Lens
Mount
|
Leica screw mount |
Leica screw mount RF coupled to 0.7m |
|
|
Focusing range
|
0.3 meter - infinity |
0.3 meter - infinity |
0.5 meter - infinity |
|
Apertures
|
f/5.6~22
(x stop steps) |
f/4.5~22
(x stop steps) |
f/4
~ 22 (x stop steps) |
|
Filter
Mount
|
Filter:
xxmm threaded |
Filter:
xxmm threaded |
Filter:
39mm threaded |
|
Body Construction
|
|||
|
Dimensions
and weight
|
50.5mm D x 38.2mm L 162g |
49.6mm D x 30.7mm L (with hood) 105g |
49.6mm D x 29.1mm L 109g |
|
Retail
price
|
¥ |
¥65,000 (MSRP) |
|
Viewfinder |
Reverse-Galileo |
Reverse-Galileo |
Reverse-Galileo |
|
Manufacturer
|
Cosina Voigtländer
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens
|
25mm f/4 Snapshot-Skopar | ||
|
Serial #
|
994070x | ||
|
Place
of Manufacture
|
Japan
|
||
|
Date
of Manufacture
|
|||
|
Lens Construction
|
7 elements in 5 groups |
||
|
Lens
Mount
|
Leica screw mount |
||
|
Focusing range
|
0.7 meter - infinity |
||
|
Apertures
|
f/4~22
(0.5 stop steps) |
||
|
Filter
Mount
|
Filter:
39mm threaded |
||
|
Body Construction
|
Chromed brass and alloy | ||
|
Dimensions
and weight
|
49.5mm D x 29.5mm L 90g |
||
|
Retail
price
|
¥45,000 |
||
Viewfinder
|
Reverse-Galileo |
||
|
Manufacturer
|
Leitz
|
Leica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Lens
|
28mm f/2.8 Elmarit (I) | 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit (II) | 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit (III) |
28mm f/2.8 Elmarit-M (IV) |
|
Serial#
|
33968xx | |||
|
Place
of Manufacture
|
Germany /
Canada
|
Canada | Germany
|
|
|
Date
of Manufacture
|
1965-72 | 1972-79 My one: 1973 (given serial#) |
1979~93 |
1993~ |
|
Lens Construction
|
9 elements in 6 groups | 8 elements in 6 groups | 8 elements in 6 groups | 8 elements in 7 groups |
|
Lens
Mount
|
Leica M bayonet mount |
|||
|
Focusing range
|
0.7 meter - infinity |
|||
|
Apertures
|
f/2.8
- f/22 |
f/2.8
- f/22 |
f/2.8 ~ f/22 |
f/2.8-f/22 |
|
Filter
Mount
|
Filter:
E48 |
Filter: E48 Hood: 12501 Finder: 12007 |
Filter: E49 |
Filter:
A |
|
Body Construction
|
Black
painted brass |
Black painted alloy |
||
|
Dimensions
and weight
|
225g | 235g |
250g |
53mm x 41.4 |
|
Retail
price
|
|
|||
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