Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/03/04
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Mark You wrote: >>We've been going off and on, hot and cold, love and hate on this lens for the 3 or 4 months I have been here. Both had a filter size of 39 but the thin second lens as 220g and the first made till '74 was 325g. I'm willing to bet the lovers had the five element and the haters like myself had the four element.<< I had both. I sold the older, fatter, heavier 5 element and kept the newer, thinner, lighter 4 element. The thin lens, I felt, had slightly better contrast. The 90mm lens in general, I think, is difficult to use on a rangefinder. More difficult for some (like me) than others. Wide open and in close DOF is quite narrow. I tend to disregard the rangefinder once I focus. So if a subject moves, and goes out of focus, I don't always notice. It could be that I used an SLR for too many years. It's always easier to blame the lens that it is to blame my technique. It's possible that the love hate relationship has more to do with technique and type of work, than the version of the lens. I never have a problem with the 90 M when shooting landscapes. For years I've heard people discount the 90 Summicron M, I think for the same reason. I love mine when the subject is in focus, and I hate it when the subject is slightly out of focus. Dave