monochrom

Leica 50mm Impromptu Test : Summilux v’s Summicron v’s Noctilux

Yesterday I visited the Leica Store in Mayfair by chance. I was in London on business and had time to kill so I thought I would pop in and see if they had any news on the 50mm Summicron APO I ordered 6 months ago. I’m used to having to wait for Leica glass but only when it is actually in production. I have heard stories (mostly on the net) that the production of the new Cron has been halted.

Anyhow, when I arrived at the shop, the manager (didn’t catch his name but it’s him in the pictures below) told me that whilst he wasn’t sure when the lens would be available, he was sure the stories were “conjecture”. I took this to mean that the stories on the internet about Leica having halted production due to quality issues were nonsense and that in true Leica style,  they are taking their time to get it perfect.

He then said “I do have a prototype of the lens in the shop, would you like to see it?”

I didn’t expect this and with a lump in my throat, I bit his hand off.

He took the lens off the body of a Monochrome and handed it to me. I have shot with a 50mm Summilux for the past 18 months and I immediately noticed the difference in weight and length. In true Cron style it’s lightweight, small and compact. You can’t really say that about the Summilux. The build quality is also typical of the Summicron line up… solid as a rock, nice to hold and easy but firm when you slide the focus ring.

The manager then asked me if I would like to try it out in the shop and I suggested doing comparative shots against the Summilux. He then proposed throwing the 50mm Noctilux in to see what I thought. He took a Noctilux from the shelf and handed it to me. This is a BIG lens. Way too big for street shooting in my opinion. It is also seriously heavy, comparable to large SLR zooms. However it did feel solid and it looks pretty impressive.

I thought it would be a good idea to grab a shot from my Summilux first and then shoot the Summicron and then (just for fun because I have no intention of ever owning a Noctilux) shoot the big, unwieldy f/0.95.

So I snapped a shot of the manager, in very low light, full open with the Summilux, then I swapped the lens for the Summicron. Immediately, again, I noticed the weight difference. The next noticeable difference, and a very important one, was focusing. Sliding the focus ring using the focus tab was smoother than any M glass I have come across. It seems firmer, but is still easy to pull round with one finger. However, if you’re used to Zeiss glass, you might find this too stiff as I always found Zeiss lenses to be too easy to turn.

Anyhow I popped one off with the cron, didn’t chimp and then mounted the Noctilux. This lens turned my sleek little M Monochrom into an offensive weapon. Big, fat, heavy and obvious. This is the first time I have ever seen (in real life) handled or focussed a Noctilux and I found it difficult. The focal plane is so thin, I had to really take my time to get the overlap perfect. In this sense, I think you would lose the “decisive moment”.

Here are the results…
The images have not been edited at all – they are straight form the card into DNG converter and exported from Aperture as JPG’s.
If you click on the images you can see the full size JPG.

Leica 50mm Summilux shot at f/1.4

50mm Summilux ASPH

Leica 50mm Summicron shot at f/2.0

50mm Summicron APO (Prototype)

Leica 50mm Noctilux shot at f/0.95

50mm Noctilux

Now, admittedly, this is not a very (or at all) scientific test, but you can see the differences in sharpness, clarity and bokeh easily in each image.

I’m going to leave it to you to work out which one you prefer, as lens choice (or lens result), really comes down to personal preference. I personally prefer the shot with the new Summicron. I think it’s sharper and the bokeh is much nicer. I’m not sure I like the image from the Noctilux at all. It seems to substitute light for contrast resulting in the flattest of the three images and the bokeh is too “undefined” for my liking.

However, I do think that both the Summilux and the Noctilux would work better with a colour capable M9, ME or M than they do on the black and white sensor Monochrom. The Summicron is perfect for the Monochrom and I think delivers the best results in this test.

I would like to thank the unnamed Leica Mayfair Store manager for his time yesterday and for letting me play about with these wonderful bits of glass and I’d like to hear your opinions of which lens gave the best results.

Incidentally, The Leica Store in Mayfair is split into two, one on either side of the street. On one side is “the” Leica Store and on the other there is a dedicated Leica “S” Store, which got broken into the previous night. The front door was smashed and every cabinet in the place was emptied. I dread to think how much money was in that loot but if anyone offers you “nearly new” S kit at a special price, be very careful!!!