Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/08/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]In the States that would be a high price for a less than pristine Summarit. If you do the flashlight through the lens trick and there is no haze and the front/rear elements are not too scratched then it is not a high price either. Unless the little old lady who only used it on Sunday owned it previously then it will have scratches, it is that soft. In Europe I obviously don't have a clue what is a good price. The Summarit is an interesting lens optically. Wide open it is low contrast and flares in the sense that shadows near light sources lose d-max. It is however not unsharp wide open. What is missing vis a vis new glass is the really fine detail. Stop down past 4.0 and it is a very nice lens. So for portraits and special "effects" used wide open it has a unique signature just as a Noctilux has a unique signature. I believe though that any Summarit that has not been professionally cleaned will just disappoint which is one reason it has such a poor reputation. So a thorough cleaning should be budgeted. If you are looking for a lens to produce "art" then the Summarit is a very nice brush. It's B* err out of focus rendition is a lovely sight. As an all around lens I think you would be dancing around its character when wide open so would instead recommend a 50 mm Sonnar 1.5(or a well inspected Russian clone) in screw mount as a cheap lens that is quite good at all apertures: again not up to current Summilux or even Nokton standards. That is assuming you want/need the faster aperture over a Summicron or even an Elmar. For a professional "money" lens I wouldn't give it a second thought. Why would you convert it to bayonet mount when screw to bayonet adapters are plentiful and available from many sources new and used? I've owned one for about five years and had quit using it as the 3/4 stop over a Summicron wasn't worth the softness. Then I had it cleaned, polished, and hard coated and am very very happy with this puppy now. Next time I post "funny" pictures I will post a one that demonstrates that a Summarit can indeed show very fine detail by 2.8. Help from Leica Anonymous to control those buying impulses cheerfully granted. Don dorysrus@mindspring.com