Re: [Leica] Leica IIIa and Summar 50 f2 vs Leica IIIc and Elmar 50 f3.5

[Ted Bradshaw <ted@junior60.demon.co.uk>]

Re. the above camera and lens combinations, Tony Salce"
<NadinaTony@bigpond.com> wrote:

> I wanted to know what people's views were of the above two combinations and
> which would be the preferable purchase. I shoot mainly family photos and
> street photography. Your comments would be appreciated.

As a general purpose combination, I would suggest that you go for the lllc
and Elmar combination. The camera is of a later design and different,
improved construction, and the Elmar lens is overall a better performer than
the Summar, although lacking in the faster maximum aperture.

Summar front elements are made of soft glass and are prone to scratching,
and the lens does suffer from flare, as well as giving soft results wide
open. Moreover, the Summar does seem to be somewhat variable in performance
from one example to the next.

Having said all that, I love my Summar and would not part with it, but my
Elmar is a much better performer in the generally accepted sense of the
term.

As far as the camera bodies are concerned, the llla is a little smaller than
the lllc. I have a lll and a lllf and, perversely in view of what I said at
the beginning of this post, I prefer the lll/

Look at it this way: whichever set you buy, you will probably grow to love
it, and in that case the LTM infection will set in and you will probably
finish up with the other combination as well!

Good luck.

Ted Bradshaw.