[Leica] M-lenses on M8

[pklein at threshinc.com (Peter Klein)]

Seth:

Great to see you here.  I can likewise vouch for the Rigid on the M8.  I 
have a DR, which as you know is the same lens.  After some hemming and 
hawing, I had DAG grind down the close-focus part of the cam so I could use 
it on the M8.  No regrets--it has the same "it" quality on the M8 that it 
did on film:  Smooth transitions, very nice fine detail, and a little bleed 
of bright highlights into adjacent dark areas that gave a little "glow" to 
the proceedings.

On the M8, 50mm has a marked short telephoto quality, but I find myself 
using it fairly often. Here are a few DR/M8 shots:

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004685-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004642Crop-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004637-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004636-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004621JimGreenGesture-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004626Darkside-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004596StretchBW-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004603ChowShibaBW-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004593TheaterBW-w.jpg.html>
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004594PinknBlue-w.jpg.html>

And as with film, you'll usually want to keep bright light sources out of 
the frame  :-)
<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/pklein/album170/L1004610Crabby-w.jpg.html>

I have a 90mm Elmarit, but on the M8 I've only shot test pictures of soup 
cans and cereal boxes with it to test focus.  They look about like what it 
looked like on film--a bit dreamy at f/2.8, nice portrait quality at f/4, 
and tack-sharp at f/8.

 From what I've heard, 90mm lenses are the most difficult to get right on 
the M8.  The M8's tighter tolerances are amplified by the relatively long 
focal length. My 90mm Elmarit's focus is significantly off on the M8. For 
outdoors, I have been using a CV 90/3.5 Lanthar that focuses perfectly.  On 
the M8, a 90 is more like a 135mm is with film.  It's great for distant 
scenics, but for 4-15 feet away, you might find a 50 or a 75 more to your 
liking.

I have no experience with the 35/2.8 Summaron.

I believe you are, like me, a 50mm kind of guy with film, so you may find 
that you are a 35mm kind of guy with the M8.  If that's the case, you might 
want to pick up a non-aspheric 35mm Summicron. That might very well become 
your normal lens on the M8, if as Len says, the Summaron doesn't have quite 
enough contrast.

Hope this helps.
--"Major General" Peter

At 02:44 PM 12/8/2008 -0800, Leonard wrote:
>You will love the 50/2 rigid Summicron on the M8. While it is lower
>in contrast then the Summilux Asph for instance, I find it's very
>smooth and detailed. Photos taken with it are wonderful. There are a
>few on list that use it all the time.
>
>I can't speak of the 35/2.8 Summaron but I did test two very clean
>3.5 versions (LTM and M version with goggles) just yesterday. The M8
>brutally shows their very low contrast. They can be made to look fair
>by using the auto levels feature in Photoshop but without
>manipulation I wouldn't use them.
>
>I have never used the other two lenses.
>
>Cheers,
>Len
>
>
>On Dec 8, 2008, at 3:03 PM, Seth Rosner wrote:
>
> > Hello friends,
> >
> > What a coincidentally useful time to return LUG-wise! I'm finally
> > considering an M8 or M8.2; would wish to use 35/2,8 Summaron, 50/2
> > Rigid Summicron, 25/4 CV Skopar and 90,2,8 Elmarit (the 5-glass
> > 1958 rendition). Any comments/opinions on good or bad imaging with
> > any of these on an M8? Thanks.
> >
> > Best to all,
> >
> > Seth