cosmotographer

[cosmotographer]

    This was an interesting review for me as I’ve felt like I could push this lens back in my extensive backlog of review drafts I’ve compiled since the start of the pandemic, but the Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II had unintentionally pushed itself to the front of the line to this finished review.

What was meant to be a 28mm gap-filler for my beloved Leica Q-P, which I’ve sold to a close friend, turned out to be more than a rebound relationship. This was mostly due to the Leica M-D (Typ 262) that I had picked up last month during a trade for my M Monochrom (Typ 246) with a local Leica photographer. While this isn’t a review on the Leica M-D per say, as the lens was pretty much permanently mounted on that body, but how the Summicron 28mm ASPH II turned into one of my favorite lenses for everyday documentary photography.

  Introduction

The Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II (11672) – we’ll just call it Summicron 28 ASPH II for the sake of verbage – was quietly introduced in 2016 as part of the “ASPH II” trio which consisted of the following:

Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH II ([eafl id=”5267″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH II” text=”11673″])

Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II ([eafl id=”6200″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 APSH II” text=”11672″])

Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH II ([eafl id=”6247″ name=”Leica Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH II” text=”11677″])

These new revision models are relatively easy to physically differentiate to their previous generation thanks to their screw-on metal lens hoods, yet I’m surprised by how many Leica photographers have no idea how to identify them. The lens hood improvement alone should be a give away, which replaced the god-awful plastic lens hoods from the “ASPH I” generation – that were frequently lost due to its shit design and in the Summicron 28mm’s case, obnoxiously large.

Based on the technical reviews, the lens showed obvious improvements over their previous siblings, especially the Summicron 28mm ASPH II, which was noticeably sharper and contrasty, especially at wide-open. This is even more apparently at infinity. Not to take anything away from the ASPH I version, but it was getting long in the tooth and it definitely could have used some polishing from the engineers in Wetzlar and after sixteen years, they answered the call by bringing forward a future-proof “ASPH II” for the megapixel wars to come.

Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II

While this lens is a favorite for street and documentary photographers since its original inception back in 2000, the 28mm focal length in particular helped me grow as a photographer, therefore it’s very personal to me. That being said, the 28mm is not my favorite focal length (that goes to the 35mm), but you cannot ignore its utility and flexibility.

What is tricky about this lens is that it’s positioned in a strange spot against its rivals, particularly within its own family tree:

Leica Summilux-M 28mm f/1.4 ASPH (11668)

Price: $7,295

Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II (11672)

Price: $4,895

Leica Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH II (11677)

Price: $2,595

Leica Summaron-M 28mm f/5.6 (11695)

Price: $2,895

As you can see from the short list above, the Summicron is comfortably positioned between both the fastest and slower (I’m not really counting the Summaron as that is a very niche lens), the Summicron had unfortunately positioned itself to a corner as the least compelling lens out of the three. I’ll explain why in my conclusion.

  Build and Design

The 28mm of Leica’s Summicron line of lenses have surprisingly have not changed much in terms of their raison d’être of all Leica lenses: keep it small, make sure that it’s sharp, and the ergonomics must be on point. As one of the three reintroduced aspherical lenses, the Summicron 28mm incorporates a modern style screw-in metal lens hood, which is vast improvement over its predecessor as the previous version was unwieldily and fell off easily. The rest of the lens is typical Leica: all aluminum lens design with an internal brass helicoid that give it its legendary smooth focus and durability that Leica lenses are known for.

The new “ASPH II” line of lenses come with the much improved screw-on metal lens hoods

Glow Up

The focus ring feel extremely smooth with a nice drag to it, unlike the FLE lenses like the Summilux 35mm ASPH II and Summilux 50mm ASPH due to their floating elements, the aperture ring has a satisfying click with good resistance built into the detent spring. Unlike my Summilux 35mm FLE, I never accidentally bumped the aperture ring to the point of shifting it.

A surprising compact design for a fast wide-angle lens

Leaner

The lens is slightly bigger and heavier than both aspherical versions of the Summicron 35mm (11879 and 11673), but I consider this to be immaterial in differences. There were a couple of times where I had accidentally grabbed my Summicron 35mm ASPH II out of my bag because it looked identical to the 28mm. I won’t be the first to have this happen to me and definitely won’t be the last, but you have to admit that these are first world people problems when you couldn’t tell which Leica lens you pulled from your bag.

The new Summicron is aesthetically more beautiful and smaller than the older ASPH I.

“…the Summicron hits the perfect balance between size and weight.”

Ergonomics

While people may prefer the smaller (and slower) Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH (including the excellent [eafl id=”6247″ name=”Leica Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH II” text=”ASPH II”] version) due to its small size and weight, I’m going to be honest with you: the Summicron feels much nicer to use without being invasive to the viewfinder. While the smaller size of the Elmarit is one of its strengths, some may even say moreso than it’s excellent image quality, the smaller size can also cause some issues for some. For example, there were a couple of times when I had accidentally put my left finger in front of the lens on more than one occasion, even with the metal lens hood on. The shorter barrel also make the lens feel cramped when you’re focusing compared to the larger Summicron and I say larger in a very minimal sense because in practice, the difference is immaterial. I think the Summicron hits the perfect balance between size and weight.

For the sake of comparison, I could only find the ASPH I versions of the Summicron and Elmarit – http://www.camerasize.com

Image Quality

You really can’t find a fault with this lens as this is easily one of the best 28mm lenses I’ve ever used, even compared to what Sony and Fuji has to offer in such a compact lens. This shouldn’t be surprising considering the cost of this lens, but at least it can back up the expensive price tag that this lens demands and you can be assured, the Summicron 28mm ASPH II performs flawlessly.

f/8 | 1/90 | ISO 200

Improved Optics

Wide open, it is tack sharp in the center and corner to corner performance is also very sharp. Obviously, stopping down improves sharpness just a bit, but I feel that this lens performs very well even at wider apertures where the corners continue to stay tamed. While I don’t own the older ASPH I version of this lens, I’ve seen enough side to side performance comparisons to see that there are improvements across the aperture range with the newer ASPH II, mostly in the corners. This is even more noticeable if you shoot with a higher resolution body like the SL2 or the new M10-R as the older ASPH I just doesn’t have the same resolving power as the ASPH II.

The lens handles flares relatively well

You can get some nice bokeh with smooth fall off

The lens also has excellent micro-contrast wide open

“…the older ASPH I just doesn’t have the same resolving power as the ASPH II.”

  Sibling Rivalry

If you want to compare Summicron ASPH II to the slower Elmarit 28mm ASPH II sibling, stopped down at f/4 or more, the difference in sharpness between the two is almost negligible, however I feel that the Elmarit ASPH II retains more contrast across its apertures compared to the more cinematic Summicron ASPH II. Depending on how you like your lens to render and if you can afford it, I can see a time a place to owning both lenses as they both have their own characters.

For example, I can definitely see myself owning the smaller Elmarit ASPH II on a Monochrom body due to the monochrome sensor’s ability to read more light than your conventional color sensor, therefore you’re not losing much with the slower lens as shooting f/2.8. The Elmarit’s strong affinity for contrast will also add a bit more pop to your monochrome images and the smaller size make it a compact weapon for street photography.

f/8 | 1/250 | ISO 100

Momo napping

Stormy Night

Quarantine Life

Cinematic

The Summicron has a beautiful way of rendering its images, especially if you shoot wide open, with a very cinematic look and fantastic levels of micro-contrast that give the images the 3D pop that fast Leica lenses are known for. While the colors are bit more muted compared to some of the slower lenses, the Summicron has a very beautiful way of rendering its separation between the subject and the background in such a way where it’ll satisfy those that want a bit more bokeh. There are lenses that blow the Summicron away in these regards, like the more exotic Summilux 28mm, but for what it is, the Summicron hit just the perfect compromise between its siblings.

f/2 | 1/2000 | ISO 200

f/4 | 1/180 | ISO 200

f/8 | 1/750 | ISO 800

“…very cinematic look and fantastic levels of micro-contrast that give the images the 3D pop that fast Leica lenses are known for.”

User Experience

This is of course, my favorite part of the review as this covers the intangibles that you wouldn’t get from looking at boring MTF charts and brick walls, but how this lens make you feel. Does it inspire you to grab this lens on your next weekend outing? Does feel great to use when you see something and bring it up to you eye?

Balance

While people may prefer the smaller and lighter Elmarit, I personally prefer the faster and bigger Summicron. If you think about it and compare the two lenses, you’re really not giving up much by going with the bigger Summicron. The faster version feels more balanced hanging on your neck and the slightly longer barrel length make it more comfortable to use than the more cramped Elmarit. Your miles may vary, but when I hear people’s justification as to why they prefer the Elmarit size and weight over the Summicron, I can’t help but think they’re just justifying their cheaper purchase without ever using the Summicron. It’s the same people that justify their claims that there is no difference in sharpness between the ASPH I and ASPH II lenses: there IS a difference but they refuse to be pragmatic about it.

Summicron vs. Elmarit

Weight (w/ Hood): 288g vs. 211g

Difference in pocket change to buy a soda

Size (w/Hood): 54mm vs. 49.4mm

Width of a No.2 pencil

In the real world, will you notice these differences in your pocket?

The bottom line: the Summicron is more comfortable to use and the weight (288g vs. 211g) and size difference (54mm vs. 49.4mm) is not enough to justify choosing one over the other, even more useless when you compare the two without their metal lens hoods. We just need to be honest with ourselves and admit that we didn’t want to spend the money on the Summicron.

Think about it.

Lets say you were holding both the Summicron and the Elmarit mounted on your M camera, therefore seeing the practical size and weight difference between the two lenses.

Then I said that both lenses cost the same – which would you choose?

The answer is obvious.

  “…there is no other lens that hit all the checkboxes with just the right compromises.”

  In Summary

Since its original introduction in 2000, the lens had proven itself as the “go to” lens for documentary photography, but it wasn’t until the end of the decade where the focal length became popular for street photographers, mostly due to the popularity of smartphone cameras which mostly use the 28mm equivalent focal length. While its true that 28mm pioneers like Garry Winogrand used this focal length for street photography, but it wasn’t until the popularity of smartphone cameras where the 28mm gained its resurgence in the past decade.

While most people are not comfortable with using 28mm on their cameras, you can’t argue with its utility on how it draws the scene. Whether its taking a photo of your kids picking apples, but want to show the forest instead of just the tree, or if you’re doing street photography and you need to get closer to be a part of the scene rather than an observer – the 28mm focal length had established itself in these situations. While the Summicron 28mm ASPH II, may not be the most economical choice for Leica users, there is no other lens that hit all the checkboxes with just the right compromises. To hit the point home, if we used the same price/weight/size scenario against the sexier Summilux 28mm, I would still pick the Summicron over the Summilux any day of the week.

Sexy Pair

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[eafl id=”6200″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 APSH II” text=”Leica Summicron-M 28mm F/2 ASPH II”]

Review: Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II (11672) This was an interesting review for me as I’ve felt like I could push this lens back in my extensive backlog of review drafts I’ve compiled since the start of the pandemic, but the Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH II had unintentionally pushed itself to the front of the line to this finished review.

[cosmotographer]

Introduction

Something that I had missed this year was going on an annual trip with Amy and to say that we had cabin fever would be an understatement as most of our travel plans this year were cancelled due to COVID, but that didn’t stop us to plan and scheme a safe trip somewhere. While Amy and I had made plans in the past, most of our trips were canceled at the last minute due to COVID (I’m looking at you Rehoboth Beach), therefore we never really had a chance to go anywhere other than little day trips.

The same thing almost happened to our trip to Asheville, North Carolina.

I’ve been researching a good amount on the current state of affairs in this small mountain town through Reddit and their official website. Apparently the locals were pretty vocal about their displeasure of tourists that completely ignored wearing their face masks around town and after seeing it in person over the weekend, I have to agree that Asheville has issues with people following safety protocols and I’ll get to that later in the essay. Despite the negative feedbacks I’ve received from the locals, Amy and I decided against canceling another trip and we were fully committed as we drove for seven hours deep inside the Blue Ridge Mountains. After spending a couple of days in town, I’m happy to say that it was worth the trip.

Asheville, North Carolina

I vividly remember visiting the little mountain town back in August 2015 during a bachelor’s party trip and it was one of most underrated trips I’ve ever been on. The gorgeous scenery deep within the Blue Ridge Mountains, the amazing food and the hole in the wall shops bring life and charm to this mostly touristy town (services industry). Downtown is a comparatively small town with only a population of just over 90,000 people, but the region itself has over 424,000 residents as of 2010 and currently the third largest city in the state, behind Wilmington and Charlotte.

Downtown Asheville

Downtown

Most of the energy and vibes is of course, downtown, but the interesting thing about downtown Asheville was that everything was within 1-2 mile from the center of town, therefore everything was relatively easy to  walk to. From the shops to the bustling micro-breweries all over the perimeter of downtown, you could leave your hotel room or AirBNB and you could find something within a stone throw away. We strategically stayed at the famous Cambria hotel in the middle of downtown, which proved to be a wise choice as there were several occasions when Amy and I had to go back to our hotel room to either use the restroom, take a break and recharge before our next adventure.

Cambria Hotel Lobby

One of many tourists

One of many street vendors. This one was outside our hotel.

  What their official site and travel brochures do not tell you, however, is that there is a large number of poverty in the town as small as Asheville. You can walk for blocks and every block has a homeless person sitting in front of an empty store that was hit hard due to the lack of foot traffic from tourists as COVID had hit this town pretty hard.

Public benches were mostly occupied

Despite the hardships of the town folks, their attitude showed anything but negativity as the natives of the town were some of the nicest people we’ve ever met. We were always greeted with a friendly smile and hospitality that you would expect in the South.

A friendly stranger we had met during breakfast at our hotel.

One of many street performers

The Food Scene

It wouldn’t be much of a Amy and Tae adventure if we didn’t talk about the food and drinks of every place that we visit, and if you love both, then Asheville has your covered as the town is absolutely loaded with independent restaurants and breweries to keep you (and your stomach) busy. From small coffee shops, donut, bagels, biscuits and gravy to candy stores, there is no shortage of weight gaining opportunities that await.

Vortex Donuts

This small street alone has 8 restaurants like a little European town

Detour: Twin Leaf Brewery

After a seven hour drive from home, Amy and I were famished and thirsty for drinks. We walked down toward the Southern Slope of downtown Asheville and noticed that there were no shortages of breweries within half a miles from our hotel. Unfortunately due to COVID, all the breweries were at half capacity, therefore there were long lines for those thirsty customers that need to sip on some delicious sweet nectar from the gods.

The first one that we had visited was Twin Leaf Brewery, located…well pretty much next to all the other breweries on the street that span for several blocks.

The thing about breweries in general, is that they all do the same thing, but you go in for what makes them original. Otherwise, they’re just glorified bars with overpriced beers. I’m please to say that Asheville had some of the best beers I’ve ever had and if you’re a beer lover, a couple of days in town is not enough to visit every brewery that the town has to offer.

Twin Leaf Brewery

Twin Leaf Brewery

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Twin Leaf Brewery was actually a our “holding pattern” brewery as Amy and I had reservations at the Wicked Weed Funkatorium across the street for dinner, but we do plan on return to Twin Leaf Brewery again.

Wicked Weed Brewery

Our neighbors at our dinner table

A great way to celebrate the end Day One of our trip

He loved to hang with us

Looking Glass Falls

Looking Glass Falls is one numerous waterfalls you can visit in the Blue Ridge Mountains and it also happens to be one of the most popular in North Carolina. As it’s less than an hour drive from downtown Asheville, it’s also one of the most accessible since it doesn’t require a long hike to reach the falls. Located deep inside the Pigsah National Forest, the name “Looking Glass” comes from Looking Glass Rock, where water freezes on its sides in the winter and then glistens in the sunlight like a mirror or looking glass, which I’ve only seen in photos but I don’t doubt that it’s beautiful to see during the winter season.

Looking Glass Falls

Unfortunately, not a single person was practicing social distancing and some weren’t even wearing masks.

Being the designated photographer, this was a tricky shot to pull off

Behind the Scenes

To take advantage of the drive out here and to take photos of this beautiful scenery, I took a lot of risk carrying my [eafl id=”6182″ name=”Leica M10-P” text=”Leica M10-P”] paired with the [eafl id=”5270″ name=”Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH FLE” text=”Summilux-M 35mm FLE”] through the slippery rocks. I eventually took my shoes off completely and left them on one of the river rocks while I stowed Amy’s hiking shoes securely onto my backpack. I then trekked barefoot through the shallow (albeit cold) waters to find a composition that didn’t have random people in the frame.

This was quite nerve wracking when you have over $14,000 worth of camera gear slung across your neck with a 30 pound backpack loaded with miscellaneous travel gear.

I know Leica cameras are legendary for their robust gear, but I would still take the fall (pun intended) and sacrifice getting wet over dunking my camera in the water, or worse, fall on the rocks.

Amy was able to take this shot after precariously handing my camera to her – very rarely do I get my photo taken

The part of the falls was very packed with tourists and locals alike and if I had to do it all over again, I would go earlier in the day when there are less people because the one wooden staircase leading down to the waterfall was very narrow. This made it a little tricky to navigate between the crowd, whom were completely not aware of their surrounding and most were not wearing masks.

Food and Shopping

I was actually pretty impressed that we didn’t do a lot of shopping as I had expected during our stay, but then again, food and beer takes precedence over anything else – that is something both Amy and I agree on when we visit new places. What was charming about the food scene was that while the food and beer were excellent (I don’t think we actually had less than ‘excellent’ dishes), but the people at these establishments mimic what I said earlier about the culture in this town and how everyone is so friendly.

Amy’s sexy Lavender Lemonade Cocktail

One specific restaurant of note is Tupelo Honey, located downtown (I wasn’t kidding when everything was within walking distance downtown). They consider themselves a revival of southern food with food made from scratch using simple ingredients sourced from local farms that is in season.

Simply put: the food was incredible.

Right away we ordered the Crispy Brussel, an appetizer topped with topped with fresh herbs, lemon zest & chopped bacon, served with garlic buttermilk ranch dipping sauce. After my first bite, I was floored that it wasn’t seasoned with truffle oil because it tasted just like it. We then continued our fat-assery by ordering their famous fried chicken, which were brined for over 18 hours with honey sprinkled with their signature “bee dust”.

It was also quite incredible and probably the best fried chicken I’ve ever had.

Unfortunately I didn’t take photos of the food, but I did share them on my Instagram stories (I was distracted from shoveling my face). There are additional photos and videos on there not mentioned in this blog, so be sure to follow.

Asheville had some beautiful small shops

Rabbit Rabbit Brewery

Rabbit Rabbit Brewery

Zen Ink

One of many coffee shops

Most shops were dog friendly

The Biltmore Estate

One of the major cornerstones in Asheville’s history is the old country home of the Vanderbilt family, built by George Vanderbilt. George Vanderbilt first visits Asheville in 1887, where he considered the area as a possible location for his future country home. A second visit to the Blue Ridge Mountains with his mother in 1888 sealed the deal for him, therefore he begins purchasing land for what will become Biltmore.

In 1889, the construction of the Biltmore House begins and Vanderbilt’s construction of the 250-room French Renaissance chateau is a true marvel, the largest undertaking in residential architecture. Over a six-year period, an entire community of craftsmen comes together to create what was known as the largest privately owned estate in the country.

The Biltmore House

It wasn’t until 1895 when George Vanderbilt officially opens  the house to friends and family. The finished home contains over four acres of floor space, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, and 65 fireplaces.

After George Vanderbilt passed away in 1914 at the age of 51, his wife Edith continued his husband’s love for philanthropy and sold approximately 87,000 acres of the estate to the United States Forest Service for less than $5 an acre.

The Front Lawn

It wasn’t until 1930 when both George Vanderbilt’s daughter, Cornelia and her husband John Cecil, opened the Biltmore House to the public to help increase tourism during the Great Depression, therefore generating income to preserve the estate.

The “Backyard” that the Vanderbilt family owned

Trivia

1942 – During World War II, the house stored priceless works from the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

1971 – William Cecil (son of Cornelia and John Cecil), plants his first vines at the Biltmore and creates his first successful wine. It wasn’t until 1983, that the Biltmore Estate Wine Company was established and opened to the public in 1985.

One of many priceless marble busts on the estate

Gorgeous overgrown vines in the Italian Garden

Amy taking in the scenery

Underground Wine Cellar

More marble statues around the estate

On one of the balconies of the house

Traveling During COVID

It doesn’t take a genius to know that it can be risky to travel during COVID, but what we’ve witnessed in Asheville gave us a new perspective that there are people that seriously just doesn’t care to protect themselves or others. I’ve lost count on how many people on the streets of downtown Asheville would completely ignore their face masks and I’m going to assume that most of them are tourists, therefore I feel that the anger the locals have against tourists are justified as they not only endanger themselves, but the economy that depends on tourism. The town itself was hit pretty hard as unemployment and shop were shutdown due to the reduction of tourism. All it takes is another spike in cases for the town to shut down again and we as individuals need to take responsibility of our safety and others.

Despite these issues, it didn’t deter us from enjoying ourselves and wearing face masks or social distancing was not an inconvenience for us as we were still able to enjoy most of what the town had to offer. If you readers are close to the East Coast and want to take a weekend trip somewhere, I highly recommend this beautiful town known as the “Paris of the South” and take in what Asheville has to offer.

Equipment Used (Affiliate Links)

[eafl id=”6182″ name=”Leica M10-P” text=”Leica M10-P”]

Leica M-D (Typ 262)

[eafl id=”5270″ name=”Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH FLE” text=”Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH FLE”]

[eafl id=”5634″ name=”Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH” text=”Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH”]

[eafl id=”6200″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 APSH II” text=”Leica Summicron-M 28mm F/2 ASPH II”]

Asheville, North Carolina – Traveling Socially Distant Introduction Something that I had missed this year was going on an annual trip with Amy and to say that we had cabin fever would be an understatement as most of our travel plans this year were cancelled due to COVID, but that didn't stop us to plan and scheme a safe trip somewhere.

[cosmotographer]

Weekend with the Summicron 28mm ASPH II

Weekend with the Summicron 28mm ASPH II

It’s always motivating to write a new post when you get a new lens, particularly the Leica Summicron 28mm ASPH II. While it’s been a long time since I’ve updated this site with anything interesting as the whole pandemic of 2020 had changed the way I lived my life since starting quarantine, it felt really good to type something up without a planned review or from a long draft.

As months passed…

[cosmotographer]

If I had to pick one of the most enigmatic lenses in the Leica M mount ecosystem, it would have to be this little gem: the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8. A lot of rangefinder shooters that are familiar with this lens will claim it as the sharpest 35mm lens you can get on the Leica M mount while others may say that they prefer the bigger (and faster) Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2. Despite its relatively slower lens dilation compared to its bigger brother, I would still recommended the tiny C-Biogon over any other 35mm lens for those looking for a compact powerhouse. However, with the recent introduction of the Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 in the past year, does this lens still relevant in the current crop of excellent sub-$1000 35mm lenses?

In this review, we’ll go over why this lens is still relevant today in 2020 and despite it’s slower f/2.8 aperture, why the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm is still a contender and should be considered in your camera bag.

Compact Size

Introduction

Zeiss’ optical formula for the Biogon series of lenses are some of the oldest designs in the history of optics, dating back to 1934 by the famed designer Ludwig Bertele, designed specifically for wide-angle lenses like the 35mm. While the Biogon formula itself can have different variations of designs, what they do have in common is that they’re almost always wide-angles. The largely symmetrical Biogon optical design affords the lens to stay relatively compact, which is difficult to do considering most wide-angle lenses are large by design.

Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM

This is a very small 35mm lens for M-mount rangefinder and definitely one of the smallest aspherical 35mm lenses you can buy for the M mount as it’s smaller than the Summicron ASPH. Despite being priced on the budget end compared to its faster siblings, it still retains the same build quality and wait for it, probably the sharpest of all of Zeiss’ ZM catalog of lenses.

Compact Powerhouse

When you first handle this lens in your hands, you can tell that it still follows the same German engineering philosophy: you do not question the basic values, but try to improve on the existing systems and do this on the highest possible level. This philosophy shows on Leica M mount lenses and the Zeiss is no exception. The solid build quality with its finely machined aluminum body, the aperture ring that click with authority every 1/3 stop and beautifully smooth focus throws.

“Improving on a 35mm lens design with modest aperture would not be considered a worthy goal for Japanese optical companies that focus on innovative specifications. But German engineering is focused on precision, top quality and merit to be injected in proven designs.“ -Erwin Puts

Finely machined ribs

Build & Design

The overall looks and feel of the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm is similar to what you would get from other ZM lenses: excellent build quality and minimalistic lines, with a subtle focusing nub to keep the overall design aesthetics tidy. It’s a gorgeous little lens regardless if you get the silver or black, but I wished the brass hood mount matched the black body instead of the default chrome.

The subtle details you’ll find like the chromed brass lens mount, the laser etched cuts on knurling all around and the clearly defined numbers give you a sense of quality made, precision product that you would expect from a German company.

Solid Clicks

Looking through the glass, you can see 10 aperture blades as you click through the aperture ring with its solid clicks and excellent machined grips on the sides of the ring. While I love the overall clicky feel, the ring feels hollow between each click as you can feel the lock up reverberate throughout the body of the lens. It’s not a cheap feeling or anything, but it definitely doesn’t feel as refined or dampened like the comparable Leica equivalent. It’s the same feeling as you would get from a Voigtlander lens, as it feels tactile but there is really no weight behind those aperture clicks.

If I can attempt to explain this as an analogy, the Zeiss feels like a ratchet wrench while the Leica feels like a torque wrench. The ratchet wrench has a resistance controlled by a single metal switch inside that clicks against the teeth of the gear inside, while the more complicated torque wrench has a more dampened feedback.

It’s smooth and the clicks have a very deliberate feel which give a satisfying sense of tactile feel and control, which anyone can appreciate.

Smooth as Butter

The focus ring is smooth – smoother (and shorter) than most of the Leica lenses I’ve used, especially the floating lens elements (FLE) Leica lenses as they exhibit rough spots due to their optical design. That was something I really didn’t like about the Summilux-M 35mm FLE (11663), one of the many reasons why I prefer the handling of the Summicron lenses over the Summilux. It has a very nice dampened, yet weighted feel that I really like.

Nub

The focusing nub on the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm is nothing new as all ZM lenses have this same design. I’m personally not the biggest fan of this design as I find it just as easy to lose track of your focus because the tab is too subdued to feel for it, especially with gloves on. I’ll even say that it’s worst than the Voigtlander Ultron 35mm’s pinhead design, but your miles may vary. It’s more of a comfort issue rather than a grip issue.

Focusing Nub and Aperture Ring

Image Quality

I’m going to put this out there right away.

The Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm is the sharpest 35mm lens I have ever used. Full stop.

I will also add that this lens is a technically perfect lens with very little chromatic aberrations, low distortion and no flaring. Faster and more expensive lenses can’t touch the C-Biogon in these regards. With its compact size and weight, you can’t get any sharper than this while at the absolute limits of its size. It’s literally the Hattori Hanzo of 35mm lenses, especially stopped down – so sharp that it cuts the edges of your subject.

Modern Looks

The lens renders a very clean, modern output with loads of contrast which is favorable for film shooter that want a bit more punch to their film images. The out of focus or the bokeh is smooth and not distracting, which is rare for a “slower” lens and while it’s not as pleasing as the Leica Summicron, it holds it own and worth a look if you desire a compact lens.

f/4 | 1/45 | ISO 640

Ideal for Landscape Travelers

If you’re a travel photographer that love the 35mm focal length, compact size and occasionally shoot landscapes, there is no other lens I recommend more than the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm. Zeiss was able to pack 7 elements into this tiny lens where it’s typical for most lenses this size to use only 5 elements. It’s an impressive technical achievement, but this also the C-Biogon’s double-edged sword. While the overall image quality is second to none, its rendering is somewhat clinical and if you’re someone that prefer some “flaws” in your images, this lens is not for you.

f/2 | 1/3000 | ISO 200

Cool to the Eyes

Another inherent attribute of Zeiss lenses is that they’re known to render more on the cooler side compared to Leica and Voigtlander lenses. It’s mostly due to the T* coatings and with digital cameras, give the images a more contrasty look. Therefore I recommend this for film shooters as it will give their images a bit more pop.

Speaking of pop, the micro-contrast that you get from this lens is excellent and something you would expect from a Zeiss lens. Plenty of tonality from your subject, that give the subject a subtle three dimensional pop. It’s subtle, but it’s there with the right lighting conditions, but no where near as obvious as the Zeiss Distagon 35mm f/1.4 ZM from what I’ve seen.

f/9.5 | 1/125 | ISO 200

User Experience

The compact body of the C-Biogon give the Leica M user the benefit of a subtle and lightweight kit, that you can confidently carry as your only lens. The balance is fantastic and it’s overall short length doesn’t block the viewfinder at all, unless you opt for the optional lens hood.

Tiny to a Fault

When you bring the camera up to your eyes to take a shot, you’ll immediately notice the downfall of the focusing nub, especially if you’re spoiled by the focusing tab from both Leica and Voigtlander equivalents. Your left hand will feel a little cramped as you’re trying to focus while half of your fingers are cupping the body and the lens, something that people with bigger mitts will not be fond of.

Smooth Operator

When you use your thumb and your index finger (or your middle finger) to focus, you will immediately feel the buttery smooth throws on the focus ring as there is very little over-travel or stiffness. I’m not sure what it is about Zeiss and Voigtlander lenses, but their focus throws have been more consistent over longer periods of time than the Leica equivalents. I believe it may have to do something with the lubricants that they use for the helicoid, but I love how the C-Biogon feels between your focusing fingers.

Superb Build Quality

In Summary

The Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 is a special lens as it’s compact size, incredible performance and build quality leaves its mark among Leica M enthusiasts as one of the top picks among its other rivals, like the Summarit-M 35mm and even the Summicron. The lens produces some of the sharpest images I’ve ever seen and even wide open, the corners perform at another level you won’t see anywhere else and it only gets better when you stop it down to f/4. Like a small body builder flexing his arms just a bit more to show off muscle you didn’t know existed, sort of like, “wait until you see what I can do.”

To pair with some of the amazing praises this lens had received, it also has some nagging issues. One of the issues I have with this lens is that the lens hood is optional. For a lens that costs over $900 new, I’m disappointed that the expensive metal round lens hood doesn’t come with the lens as standard. You can cushion some of the cost impact on your wallet by going for the cheaper Voigtlander LH-6 hood, as they’re exactly the same lens hood, but without the Zeiss tax added to it.

The odd 43mm filter size is also annoying, especially to those Leica owners that probably have a small collection of 39mm or 46mm filters of varying variety.

Other than these minor issues, the Zeiss C-Biogon is probably the best “do it all” lens in terms of weight, size and performance – but only if the slower f/2.8 doesn’t bother you. For example:

The Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm offers the perfect balance of size and weight relative to its high performance.

Build quality is excellent as expected from Zeiss and Cosina. I also prefer the overall lens aesthetic over the Voigtlander Ultron.

It is technically sharper than both the Summicron and the Ultron, almost clinically perfect.

I personally feel as though this is a great compact travel lens if you just want a one lens kit. For those of you that never had the chance to use this lens, I feel that it’s criminally underrated when everyone gets myopic on the more glamorous Leica offerings as this lens hangs (and beats) what the people at Wetzlar has to offer. If you’re like me and prefer a more minimalistic approach to gear, you’ll be hard pressed to find something as perfect as the C-Biogon.

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[eafl id=”5494″ name=”Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM” text=”Carl-Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM”]

[eafl id=”5833″ name=”Zeiss 35/50 Lens Hood” text=”Carl-Zeiss Lens Hood for 35/50mm Lenses”]

[eafl id=”5832″ name=”Voigtlander LH-6 Lens Hood” text=”Voigtlander LH-6 Lens Hood”]

Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM If I had to pick one of the most enigmatic lenses in the Leica M mount ecosystem, it would have to be this little gem: the Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8.

[cosmotographer]

The Leica M10 Review

…yes I know it’s 2020 and it’s late

This review was a long time coming since I had originally planned on writing this review last Spring. It was during that time when I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to pick up a second-hand Leica M10 in black from a fellow forum member in exchange for two of my lenses at the time (Summilux 35mm FLE and the Summicron 50mm V5). Was it worth selling my M240 at the time and trading off two lenses for the M10?

Before I continue with this review, I should caveat by saying that this is my second M10 as I sold the first one during the first draft of this review last year after my trip from Miami and Key West. I had sold it over the summer because I didn’t feel the premium wasn’t worth it to me, therefore I had sold it off and picked up a mint silver chrome M-P 240 which I loved and took it several trips with me.

Fast forward to 2020, an opportunity had come up for an M10 while I was at the gym one morning. I was catching up on Leica things during a break (as you do) and I had found a silver chrome M10 for sale for a price that was hard to pass up. A price so good, that I had completely stopped working out and went into full-time stalker mode with the seller on securing the purchase via text message. After less than 5 minutes of communicating back and forth, we had agreed on a price and a successful transaction was made.

I said farewell my beloved M-P (Typ 240) as it sold in less than a day to a gentleman in Texas. You were the best iteration of the best value digital Leica M camera, but how does the M10 compare and do I still think it was worth the money to upgrade?

My first Leica M10 in black

“Minute changes like these is what legendary products need. Nothing drastic, but incremental improvements.”

Introduction

When the M10 was first introduced in January 2017, it was a cause for celebration as reviews sang their praises as the ‘best Leica yet’ while commenting on its new 24 megapixel sensor paired with the latest Maestro II processor, a bigger viewfinder magnification with better eye-relief, a body that is as slim as the M7 film camera, a new manual ISO dial and what is this?

They’ve removed video recording!

Nobody cared. Moving on.

Not only did Leica giveth and taketh away with the M10, but they had also made the camera significantly more simplified compared to its predecessor. Leica’s new devotion to minimalism that could be seen back in 2015 with the introduction of the Leica Q, transferred over to the M10 as the camera now has less buttons, removed any superfluous menu options which led to a more structured and cleaner menu system. They even changed the power switch so that it only does one thing now: On or Off. This is a big deal as the Leica Q had a problem with some users accidentally switching to “Continuous” as the power switch had the tendency to go full-auto. Minute changes like these is what legendary products need. Nothing drastic, but incremental improvements.

Look at every new iteration of the the Porsche 911. It’s not the same car, but just improved.

As the difference in technology between the M240 (2012) and the M10 (2017) span 5 years, the improvements of the M10 can be noticed instantly with its new slimmer profile when you pick it up for the first time. While the M240 wasn’t a big camera compared to other full-frame cameras, but if you compared Leica’s other rangefinders, the M240 was a thicc boy. After a few weeks of getting reacquainted with the M10 again, I felt that the M10 is just like any other Leica: it’s more than the sum of its parts and more about its evolution rather than revolution. That’s why, at least currently, it’s the best digital iteration of Leica’s fabled rangefinder (until the M11).

My new Leica M10 in silver chrome

“…it’s more than the sum of its parts and more about its evolution rather than revolution.”

Build & Design

The M10’s new slimmer body and lighter weight compared to the M240 was very obvious and noticeable to me. As your right thumb rub against the right corner of the body next to the exposure dial, you’ll also notice the new paint finish as Leica had decided to use matte/chrome treated paint compared to the previous “black paint” finish in the previous gens. I personally prefer the black paint finish as the lacquer paint would fade over time, showing the dull gold glow of the brass underneath. This brassing gave the camera a nice patina, like a worn leather jacket after years of use.

Brassing on a Leica M240

I believe that Leica did this intentionally to give the camera a more timeless look as the brassing would give the camera an aged look over time, but I feel that the patina brings out the character of the camera. With each worn paint on different parts of the body, there is a story that comes with it. The new chrome paint finish will not age as gracefully, as it will just dull over the time, losing its matte luster to just a shiny sheen of metal.

Leica M10 Cutaway | Courtesy of Leica Camera AG

Tough as Nails

Just because the M10 doesn’t brass like its predecessors, doesn’t the camera feels cheap. The components are still machined from solid brass and magnesium alloy chassis, holding in all the components in such a small body. Nothing about the build quality is different with the M10 and they are still built to same high standards. Don’t let the smaller size of the M10 fool you either as the weight between the M240 and the M10 are almost identical (1.46 lbs vs. 1.50 lbs).

Width: 33.7mm

Weight: 1.46 lbs

Leica may not openly advertise this, but the body is weather-sealed against light precipitation and dust.

Refined Shutter

The shutter sound is definitely quieter and more refined than the M240, but the feel is about the same. Half press locks the exposure and full press releases the shutter with a refined “click”. I can’t explain the sound, but it feels slightly muffled compared to the M240. It’s definitely quieter than the M9’s robo-sex doll shutter cock sound, but I kind of like that as that’s part of the M9’s many charms.

I can’t speak for the shutter feel on the M10-P or M10-D as I don’t have any experience with them yet, but they have the quietest mechanical curtain shutters. Maybe one day I’ll pick one up (actually I know I’ll have one in the future).

Diamonds are Forever

Most of the back panel is dominated by a 3-inch TFT LCD monitor which has 1,036,800 dots and can display 16 million colors in addition to providing 100% frame coverage during live view. The difference in resolution between the M240 and the M10 may not be noticeable, at least to me, but the difference in contrast is very apparent. It’s also years ahead of the M9, which is only useful for checking exposure as it has the same screen quality of a GameBoy.

The LCD glass screen itself deserves its own paragraph as it’s sporting the latest Gorilla Glass, specifically developed for this camera by Corning. While the glass feel strong and strudy, I personally question its durability compared to the Leica M-P’s (Typ 240) more robust and exotic sapphire glass. Something that Leica had also omitted from the M10-P and M10-D. This is a big difference as sapphire glass is borderline industructible by conventional means, which is why it’s used on high-end watches that can only be scratched by diamonds. I wouldn’t be surprised if the M10’s screen is very similar to the Leica Q.

Balanced

Lastly, the body feels more balanced due to better weight distribution between the front and rear of the body if you hold the camera up by just the strap with a lens attached. This is one of the major benefits of the M10’s slimmer body as it pairs perfectly with compact lenses like the Summicron 35mm ASPH or the Voigtlander Ultron 35mm. This may not seem like a big deal, but weight distribution is counts if you want to pull some weight off your left hand, relieving some pressure off your fingers as you focus.

Miami, Florida | M10 + Summicron 35mm ASPH

“…body is weather-sealed against light precipitation and dust”

User Experience

There is something to be said about the user experience of a thinner, faster, and more accurate Leica rangefinder, especially with its improved eye relief for people with glasses. Compared to the M240, there are some noticeable improvements.

Pin-Point Accuracy

The new viewfinder has a magnification of .73x compared to the M240’s .68x magnification. This may not seem much, but that is a big difference when you’re looking inside a tiny window and you’ll notice it right away when you’re focusing your lenses. It’s much easier to nail a sharp focus and with fast lenses, this is a big improvement. By just walking around with the Voigtlander Ultron 35/1.7 ASPH I had at the time, I noticed that I was nailing focus with very little to no micro-adjustments to get a sharp focus patch. That means there is one less thing to worry about on getting a sharp focus. The second one being the quality of your eye sight to see the patch clearly.

This new viewfinder can also be a double-edged sword for those that wear glasses as composing with 28mm or 36mm lenses will have a more difficult time to compose since the eye-relief, while is improved, it’s still not ideal for glasses.

New Viewfinder | Courtesy of Leica Camera AG

Simplified Menu System

Leica had released a firmware update in 2018, which introduced the Favorites Menu that was brought over from the Leica Q. A very handy upgrade since it no longer required you to dive into the 2.5 pages of menus to change something as simple as White Balance. These are mostly quality of life improvements and once you set up your menu settings, you will very rarely ever go back in terms of shooting experience as I have everything that I need on the body of the camera: ISO, Aperture, Shutter. The dials feels solid and tactile, as you would expect from a Leica.

Carry Spares

The battery life will be a hit for people as the Leica M10’s BP-SCL5  battery has 1300 mAh of charge, which is noticeably smaller than the M240’s 1600 mAh battery. The difference of 300 mAh may not seem much and you should be able to hit 300 photos on one battery if you don’t use Live View (or EVF), but this is a far cry from the M240’s BP-SCL2 battery as a single one of those guys would last me all weekend.

Thumbs Up

The exposure compensation dial is just where it needs to be like the M240, but the Leica M10 has a slight curvature on the left side of the dial that acts as a pseduo thumb rest. Doesn’t seem like much, but it makes a noticeable difference in ergonomics, especially on a slimmer body like the M10. I still ended up buying a OEM Leica thumb grip and I recommend it wholeheartedly as we all know that Leica cameras were built for Lego people.

Controls at your finger tips

“…you will very rarely ever go back in terms of shooting experience as I have everything that I need on the body of the camera.”

Big Brains

The MAESTRO II processor is quick and depending on the Read/Write speed of your SD card, it’s as quick as the Leica Q on writing those DNG files. It’s capable of taking 5 shots per second on continuous which is impressive for a M camera. 

Wi-Fi is Lo-Fi

The built-in Wi-Fi feature is nice to have, but I doubt I’ll ever use it as my dedicated source of raw transfers since I prefer to use the SD card to transfer photos via iPad Pro or on the PC. The app itself is cumbersome and the transfer speeds are abysmally slow. To make matter worse, using the Wi-Fi feature absolutely destroys your battery life.

A Bakery in Richmond, VA | Leica M10 + Voigtlander 35/1.4 MC II

“…thumbs up grip is crazy expensive at $240 a pop”

Things I Don’t Like

Despite all these improvements, not everything is perfect with the M10. This may be the best digital Leica M camera to date, but there are a couple of issues I want to point out as they were noticeable that prevented the camera from winning over me completely.

Double Thumbs

The buttons on the back are big and easy to use, but it will take some time to get used to getting around the menu system if you’re coming from the M240…especially when you want to delete a photo.

You first have to press the “PLAY” button, which is one of the three primary buttons on the back, then press “MENU” to bring up the delete option since there is no dedicated delete button anymore. Then once you do that, you have to use the center button on the D-Pad to confirm your choice (what would be the INFO button on the M240). It’s not very intuitive but neither was the M240’s use of the “SET” button on the left. This is a minor issue as you’ll get use to it after a couple of days.

That ISO Dial

The new ISO dial on the left of side of the camera was one of the defining features of the M10 and while it is nice to have, I personally think it’s highly overrated. To change the ISO, you need to lift the switch up to unlock it (which surprisingly takes a bit of effort with your left fingers) and then turn the dial to your desired ISO settings, then press the dial back down until it snaps in to lock the ISO dial. I’m not of fan of this effort of using the ISO dial and practically impossible with gloves on.

I personally leave the dial unlocked and upright position while I’m shooting without the fear of accidentally bumping the dial to the wrong settings since theres enough resistance to stay in place. The constant adjustments to the ISO dial will require you to alter your grip a lot when it’s in locked position.

Also, good luck using the ISO dial in the dark as you can’t see anything. At least on the previous M240, you could easily manipulate the ISO on the LCD screen while turning the exposure compensation dial.

Overall, I think they just should have made the dial more tactile to reduce the chance of accidentally bumping the dial, a la Fujifilm X-Pro3. It’s a cool feature but I hated using it and I promise you that this feature will either be revised or removed in the next generation Leica M11 body.

The Options List

This should come to no surprise to anyone as Leica anything is expensive, but I want to point out that the accessories for the Leica M10 are noticeably more expensive than the M240. Par for the course, but here is the breakdown in costs for my recommended accessories.

Leica Thumb Grip – $240

Leica BP-SCL5 Batteries – $190 (however, cheaper than the M240 batteries)

Periscope

This is a WTF moment for me and for those that need GPS coordinates baked into their DNG files. If you want this feature, it’s only available if you use the optional Leica Visoflex EVF which costs a cool $600, which is odd to me. I never used or cared about this feature but it made me raise an eyebrow.

Image Quality

It’s strange to categorize the quality of the image output from a camera body, so I guess you can call this part the sensor’s characteristics.

The overall fidelity and tonality produced by the Leica M10 is excellent and while it may not win any DXO scores because Leica couldn’t give a shit about winning sensor awards, the overall output is absolutely beautiful. This is also very dependent on the type of glass you put in front of the sensor, but to keep things consistent, I’ve used both the 35mm and 50mm Summicron lenses to get a good reading on how the M10 likes to paint its pictures.

The M10’s DNG files have noticeable bump in saturation, and contrast straight out of camera when you upload them into Lightroom. Compared to the DNG files from the Leica Q, the output from the M10 is consistently more “colorful” with a hint of warmer tones. Another underrated improvement over its predecessor is the the white balance. How the M10 figures out its white balance is a big improvement as it is definitely more accurate compared to the M240’s yellowish tint.

The dynamic range is actually pretty good based on my experience in Lightroom. You can pull several stops on both highlights and shadows without destroying the file, and it should be satisfactory as long as you don’t expect Sony levels of dynamic range.

This doesn’t mean that you should be lazy on setting your exposure before taking the photo because a good baseline photo in RAW is much more preferable than trying to salvage your mistakes in post. A good rule of thumb is to underexpose my photos just a little bit to save the highlights during your tricky in/out lighting situations.

Expose for those highlights

This photo was heavily underexposed but the dynamic range headroom on the M10 allowed me to pull up the shadows while maintaining micro-contrast. The windows are actually looking inside the factory floor with the flood lights and not actually looking outside.

In Summary

What Leica had done here was to take a successful formula and make minor improvements to an already successful camera, but doing this also risked alienating fans. This is a known problem with any manufacturer that have a rabid fanbase with a long history (a la Porsche 911). When Leica developed the M10, it took some risks with some of these changes, but it’s easy to see that Leica went back to what they were very good and just made improvements to their existing core strengths. They understood who their base customers were and listened. It simplified the camera to its basics (it has three menu buttons for crying out loud) and took video out. While most DSLR and Mirrorless photographers will laugh at the idea of taking stuff out but charging the same price (if not more) for such a “low-tech” camera, this is not what Leica is about.

They cater to the niche and not the masses – something they’ve been doing for a long time and longer than any manufacturer.

M10 vs. M240

Now, some of you on the fence of purchasing a Leica M10 may be asking yourself if this camera was worth the upgrade over the M240?

Yes and No. Let me explain.

I came from a background of owning the following Leica cameras chronologically.

Leica M9 (Black),

Leica M9 (Steel Gray),

Leica M240 (Silver),

Leica M10 (Black),

Leica M-P 240 (Silver),

Leica M10 (Silver).

So I’ve been around the block and back and I feel as though I have some experience on this topic and for the most part, I would say no, it’s not worth the upgrade in my opinion. While the M10’s improvements are tangible, I don’t feel as though the incremental improvements are worth the premium. For example…

While the ISO dial is great, M240 owners can just as easily change their settings using the rear LCD and rear dial.

The improved viewfinder is wonderful and the magnification is great, but if you shoot between 35mm-50mm lenses, you won’t really notice it too much.

The battery life is worse on the M10.

The M240 is thicker than the M10, but I don’t think you’ll notice the difference when you’re out in the real world taking photos, especially if you use a thumb grip for both.

The improved LCD screen is nice, but I never looked at the M240’s screen and thought it was crap in 2020.

ISO Performance – if you’re not Batman and prowl the street at night often and don’t shoot a lot in low light, this is hard to justify.

This is how I feel after owning the two cameras (twice) back to back, but it’s ultimately up to you if you feel that it’s worth it to you. Otherwise, the M10 is the best digital M camera that you can get right now. With the predictable upgrades without changing the primary formula of what made the Leica M so great, it makes you wonder what the future holds for the next Leica M as we’re going to be due for an upgrade in 2022.

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[eafl id=”5679″ name=”Leica M10″ text=”Leica M10″]

[eafl id=”5419″ name=”M10 Battery” text=”Leica BP-SCL5 Battery”]

[eafl id=”5421″ name=”Leica M10 Thumb” text=”Leica M10 Thumb Grip”]

[eafl id=”5267″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH II” text=”Leica Summicron 35mm f/2 ASPH II”]

[eafl id=”5282″ name=”Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.4 MC II” text=”Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.4 MC II”]

[eafl id=”5285″ name=”Voigtlander Ultron 35 f/2 Vintage” text=”Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH”]

  I finally review the Leica M10 and wanted to share my experience and if it's worth the upgrade over the M240 The Leica M10 Review ...yes I know it's 2020 and it's late This review was a long time coming since I had originally planned on writing this review last Spring.

[cosmotographer]

Photo Credit: Stephen Gandy (CameraQuest)

The 35mm focal length is the most versatile focal length for any camera system and I’ve talked about this in depth in one of my reviews. It’s a great middle ground for general, street, travel photography and anything in-between due to its balanced field of view. It has a “wide” (but not too wide) field of view to capture your context with just enough distance and pull, while maintaining its composure relatively well when it comes to distortion. This “middle of the road” focal length make it an ideal choice for most people as the only focal length they really need, which explains why the 35mm had become ubiquitous as the “do it all” lens.

This new-ish lens by Voigtlander hits all the spots mentioned earlier, but it enters murky waters. This particular segment is challenging for most manufacturers as they have one major obstacle to overcome, which is the benchmark for all 35mm lenses: the Leica Summicron.

In this review, we will go over what might be Voigtlander’s most promising proposition and see if it has what it takes to take on the great lens of power.

Introduction

When the Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH was released in 2019, there was a lot hype surrounding this lens as people saw this as the second coming of an affordable 35mm f/2 lens since the Zeiss Biogon. A lens, they hoped, to compete against the Leica Summicron 35mm. Things were looking good as the lens had a more affordable starting price tag of $799.99 USD, therefore it wasn’t surprising that it quickly gained traction and popularity within the Leica community. This price point allowed Voigtlander to position itself comfortably cheaper than the Carl-Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2, and thousands cheaper than a new Summicron. This was more than enough of a reason for people to get excited and when initial reviews were released, people were shocked how well the lens punched above its weight.

People took notice and money was thrown at computer screens.

Competition is always good right?

Classical yet sharp with amazing transitions. The bokeh is a little busy though.

@cosmotographer

@cosmotographer

“…they’ve also managed to create the smallest 35mm f/2 lens currently in production.”

Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH

Competing in this sacred segment may seem like an uphill challenge for the Voigtlander, but fortunately for them, its competitors had left a wide berth for improvement where the little Ultron could stand on its own. By choosing to position their new lens as the cheaper alternative without compromising image quality, they were able to squeeze in as a viable alternative to its other German (and Chinese) counterparts.

The 35mm f/2 Segment

The cheapest option: 7Artisans 35mm f/2

Image Quality: Excellent

Render Type: Modern

Build Quality: Good – need manual adjustments

Ergonomics: Good

Price: $289.00 USD

Made in China

The budget option: Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH

Image Quality: Excellent

Render Type: Classical tones and modern sharpness

Build Quality: Excellent

Ergonomics: Good

Price: [eafl id=”5285″ name=”Voigtlander Ultron 35 f/2 Vintage” text=”$799.99″] USD

Made in Japan

The premium option: Carl-Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2

Image Quality: Excellent but soft corners wide open at f/2

Render Type: Modern tones and cooler colors.

Build Quality: Excellent

Ergonomics: Ok

Price: [eafl id=”5495″ name=”Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2 ZM” text=”$1141.99″] USD

Made in Japan

The top shelf option: Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH

Image Quality: Excellent

Render Type: Classical tones and modern sharpness.

Build Quality: Excellent

Ergonomics: Excellent

Price: [eafl id=”5272″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879)” text=”$1999.99″] USD+ (Used)

Made in Germany

From the list of lenses above, Voigtlander’s only real rival would be its sister lens, the Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2, which is also manufactured by the same company that assembles the Voigtlanders: Cosina. Despite their manufacturing similarities, build quality and the strange 43mm filter size, their differences lie in their characters as the Zeiss had quirks of its own.

For example, while the more expensive Zeiss 35mm is a sharp lens, its corners were known to be muddy wide open and surprisingly not up to par with its slower (albeit excellent) brother, the C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ASPH. There is also the controversial “issue” that Zeiss lenses tend to render cool and clinical compared to the Voigtlander and even Leica, but this is a subjective matter as there are people that like the way the Zeiss draws images.

Very sharp | f/4.8 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

Sunset | f/3.4 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

Photo Credit: Stephen Gandy (CameraQuest)

“…keeping some of the quirks that hipsters like to call, ‘character’.”

Build & Design

During its original development, Voigtlander’s goal of the Ultron 35mm f/2 was to create a vintage looking lens that nods back to the 1950s when lenses were tiny and lightweight. They definitely achieved that and then some when they also added a modern aspherical element to bring the optical quality to 21st century standards, but maintaining some of the quirks that hipsters call, “character”. The aesthetics of the lens body may not be for everyone, and the chrome parts give off a retro Cadillac vibe, especially for those that prefer a more stealth look like the Summicron. Personally, I’m not be a fan of the design.

I am, however, impressed with its overall size and weight when I first held it in my hands.

This is truly a tiny and featherlight lens.

While the body is lightweight and compact at a mere 6 ounces, its packed tightly with an aspherical element as part of its 8 elements and 5 groups, which gives the lens more of a modern look with improved sharpness. Not only is this lens Summicron level sharp, but they’ve also retained the image quality that Voigtlander lenses are known for: classical rendering with a bit of softness added to it. It’s as if the lens designers went into Lightroom and just turned down the clarity level just a little bit. Not only do they squeeze out every optical performance in such a tiny lens, but they’ve also managed to create the smallest 35mm f/2 lens currently in production.

Photo Credit: Stephen Gandy (CameraQuest)

Welterweight Champ

Don’t let the size fool you as the lens is solidly built with an all aluminum construction, packed with glass, will surprise people with its $800 price tag ($700 new during Voigtlander’s sales). This is a very solid and durable lens. What most people don’t know is that the front filter ring and the focusing helicoid is made entirely from brass, similar to the Summicron. Another cool reason why the front filter ring is brass is that if you want to install a UV filter onto the lens, the brass mount prevents a softer metal like aluminum (common for cheap UV filters) from getting stuck. A Cosina* trademark that is consistent with all Voigtlander and Zeiss lenses. I personally recommend B+W Nano MRC 007 filters as they’re made of brass as well.

Nothing on this lens feels flimsy or cheap and if I had to compare the lens build quality to a Leica lens, it would be the slower, but lightweight Summarit-M 35mm and the [eafl id=”5494″ name=”Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8 ZM” text=”Zeiss C-Biogon 35mm f/2.8″]. Both extremely well built and solid lenses.

Weight: 6 ounces

Minimum Focus Distance (MFD): 0.58m

Build: Aluminum

Flare resistant and fantastic micro-contrast

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“…the Ultron as the lens itself is as modern as they come with a hint of classical rendering.”

Mechanically, it’s not as refined as the Summicron, or even the cheaper Summarit lenses, but they’re on par with the rest of the Zeiss lenses as they’re both assembled in the same factory, built to the same standards.

However, not everything is perfect and if I had to nitpick about a few things…

The focus tab is a small tiny pin, which is easy to miss due to its minuscule size. One of the few compromises to fit that “vintage” aesthetic that Voigtlander was going for. More form than function.

The silver finish on the aperture and focus rings showed some moderate wear pretty quickly and I don’t believe it’s coated with anything to protect the paint.

The [eafl id=”5567″ name=”Voigtlander LH-12 Lens Hood” text=”LH-12″] Lens Hood is very expensive and adds to the length of the lens significantly. I don’t recommend picking one up unless you’re very particular about it.

43mm Filter Size – not a big deal if you already own a few Zeiss lenses as they use the same filter size, but this is an awkward filter size.

Fantastic rendering | f/4 / 1/125 / ISO 200

“…modern as they come with a hint of classical rendering.”

Image Quality

Regardless of the high build quality mentioned earlier, the most important factor of a lens is its image quality and rest assured, this lens exceeds all expectations for this price point.

Beautiful rendering and micro-contrast | f/2 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

“It’s as if the lens designers went into Lightroom and just turned down the clarity level just a little bit.”

The images have a certain look to them and the way the images are rendered with this lens is typical Voigtlander: sharp, neutral colors, subtle micro-contrast and classical bokeh.

What was most surprising to me was how the images kind of remind me of the Leica Summicron 35mm ASPH that I reviewed here. The sharpness is on par but you will hear people on the internet saying that it’s sharper than the Summicron. It’s a possibility and the performance of this lens does show its merits, but side by side, any differences are immaterial in practical uses.

Stop pixel peeping. It’s a $700 lens.

The micro-contrast is also very good, but falls a little short to the Summicron, but overall  renders very similarly to the Leica. To be completely frank, I can honestly say that the Ultron is optically equal to the Summicron for the most part and for any shortfalls, it’s so small that it doesn’t matter.

What can be said, is that based on image quality alone, this lens beats out the Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2.

RAW | Another flare shot | f/5.6 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

User Experience

The handling of this lens is close to perfect, but the focusing knob is something that people have to get used to, especially if you’re used to the crescent shaped tabs like on the Summicron or the Nokton 35mm f/1.4. This is the only handling issue I have with this lens as the focusing knob is easy to miss when you’re about to take a photo. There is a good chance that you’ll forget where you left the focus if you had to take your hands off the camera. Otherwise, the focus throws are extremely smooth and fast, but accuracy can suffer due to the focusing knob. I’m definitely not a fan of this.

The aperture controls are set by two subtle, yet protruding metal tabs with machined serrations, where the user can easily manipulate the aperture just solely on feel thanks to its positive detents. I actually prefer the stiffer clicks on both Voigtlander and Zeiss aperture rings over Leica’s offering.

That being said, I wouldn’t consider this lens a handling demon like the Summicron or the Summarit for those quick focus hits.

In Summary

I would be lying to you if I said that I didn’t have my own prejudices towards this lens when it was first announced for the Leica M mount. This was not because I didn’t like Voigtlander (on the contrary), but because I didn’t believe there was a sub-$1000 lens that could match the Summicron’s superlative glass and user experience. This bias from my previous experiences with Voigtlander lenses set a low standard for me, because while Voigtlander made great lenses, they also came with a lot of compromises. What Voigtlander had accomplished this time, was that they were able to build one of the best 35mm f/2 lens you can buy and it demands your attention.

*Cosina is the parent company of Voigtlander and manufactures Zeiss ZM line of lenses for the Leica M mount in their factory in Japan.

If you’ve enjoyed this review and plan on making a purchase, please help out the site by using the affiliate links below as that helps the site to maintain its good relationship with its WordPress overlords and buy the writer a cup of coffee.

[eafl id=”5285″ name=”Voigtlander Ultron 35 f/2 Vintage” text=”Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH”]

Overpriced Lens Hood: [eafl id=”5567″ name=”Voigtlander LH-12 Lens Hood” text=”LH-12″]

[eafl id=”5272″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879)” text=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH”]

[eafl id=”5495″ name=”Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2 ZM” text=”Carl-Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2″]

Featured Image by Stephen Gandy at CameraQuest

Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f/2 ASPH – Summicron on a Budget Photo Credit: Stephen Gandy (CameraQuest) The 35mm focal length is the most versatile focal length for any camera system and I've talked about this in depth in one of my reviews.

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Introduction

In this review, we will be reviewing the [eafl id=”5272″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879)” text=”Leica Summicron 35mm f/2 ASPH”] as one of my most in-depth reviews. I chose this lens because if I had to choose just one lens out of the plethora of lenses in the history of the Leica M mount, it would be the first aspherical version of the 35mm f/2 of the legendary Summicron line of lenses. It’s no surprise that the 35mm focal length is the most versatile lens, but on a Leica rangefinder, it pretty much defines the whole M mount system. It is, in my personal opinion, Leica’s best lens.

We’ll go over why.

The Summicron 35mm

You could say the 35mm focal length is one of the most popular focal lengths in any photographer’s bag, typical alongside the “nifty-fifty” 50mm. Doesn’t matter if you shoot Canon, Nikon, Sony or Olympus, these are the two most popular (and most recommended) focal lengths for any manufacturer. However, not all lenses are the same.

The Summicron comes in on its own like the Apple iPhone – Leica’s only comparative competitor is their previous model. This lens is legendary in its own right as it simply defines what Leica lenses are known for. Compact, sharp as hell, lightweight (relatively speaking) and famous ergonomics that is an obvious pairing for any Leica M rangefinder camera. As other phone manufacturers compare their latest flagship to the ubiquitous iPhone, the Summicron is the benchmark where all other lenses are judged by.

Leica’s Summicron is the Porsche 911 of the lens world.

This Review

When I was originally shopping around for this lens, particularly this aspherical version manufactured during 1990s until the mid 2000s, it was surprisingly difficult to find decent reviews on the second latest lens among the Summicron family. This is shocking because why is such a legendary lens so hard to find any decent reviews?

I think there are a few reasons for this.

The lens is so good that there is little to be said about it. This happens more often than not for any latest variation of any lens. Look at the [eafl id=”5282″ name=”Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.4 MC II” text=”Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.4 MC II”] – you’ll be hard pressed to find more than a handful of reviews on it.

The lens is overshadowed by its latest version, the [eafl id=”5267″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH II” text=”ASPH II”] (11673), but ironically also suffers from the first point above.

I have a lot of love for this lens and since passion make for an interesting review, I will break down how this lens competes in 2020 in a market saturated with other attractive propositions from other manufacturers, but convince you why the Summicron is my favorite.

Compact Power | Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH

Build and Design

The 35mm of Leica’s Summicron line of lenses have surprisingly have not changed much in terms of their raison d’être: keep it small, make sure that it’s sharp, and the ergonomics must be on point. With these values that date back all the way back when the first M mount was first conceived (almost 75 years ago), this ASPH version continues to carry that legacy as it remained the king of compact 35mm with an f/2 aperture for decades. 

History

The double gauss formula that dates back to the 1950s haven’t changed since the ASPH, but with the adaptation of computers and improvements with new manufacturing processes, the aspherical was born to prepare for the future that would follow after the Leica M6. The made in Germany, hand-made components paired with new production methods were further improved, albeit more complicated due to the addition of an aspherical element among its seven elements and five groups. The body is beautifully machined from a solid block of aluminum, as the brass internal helicoid help maintain its smooth focusing while keeping the overall body durable from normal wear and tear. Nothing feels cheap or flimsy here, but for almost $2,000 in today’s used market, it better not be.

Weight: 255g

Minimum Focus Distance (MFD): 0.7m

Build: Aluminum and Brass

Incredible Micro-Contrast | Leica M10 | f/2.0 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

No Compromise

If you’ve never handled this lens before (or any Leica lens for that matter) I highly recommend you hold one in your hands and try to maintain a poker face. I say this because every time I let someone handle one of these lenses for the first time, they would react with have one or more of the following:

“Holy shit, that’s heavy!”

“Wow, that’s solid!”

“I could kill someone with this!”

These lenses are not your typical plastic shells with bits of metal inside that you would typically get from other manufacturer’s top line of lenses. No, that’s not what you’ll find here. Leica lenses are manufactured at such incredibly high standards, that their expensive price tags almost seemed justified due to the amount of labor involved and how well made they are. These hand-made pieces of aluminum, brass and glass were built to outlive you, your car, your kids and your grandchildren. It’s not surprising that these things were built to last and passed down to your future generation or someone’s attic find for their next garage sale.

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From the Hood

If I had to find one major gripe about this lens is the lens hood.

My God is the lens hood crap.

I don’t know what the Germans were thinking when they designed the plastic hood back in the ’90s, but it’s a finicky thing. Brand new, they’re great as the two tiny metal prongs that attach to the outer rim by the front element is sturdy, which can only be attached and removed pinching two buttons on the side with your fingers. Seemed like a solid solution at first.

However…

If either the metal prongs on the lens plastic hood or if the metal rim of the lens show any type of wear, and I’m talking minuscule amount of wear like a dull sheen on the attachment points, it’s only a matter of time for that lens hood to pop off and ghost on you like a bad Tinder date. To make matters worst, this over-engineered and under-developed lens hood will cost you over $100 to replace. That’s an expensive Tinder date that just walked out on you.

To help fellow readers and sad Leica owners whom used Google to search for a replacement hood, let me help you out:

Leica Lens Hood for the 11879 Summicron (12526): Link

Leica Hood Cap for the Lens Hood: Good Luck

Leica E39 Front Lens Cap (14038): Link

I’ve gone through two copies of this lens within a year and both lens hoods were promptly taken off and stored away in their leatherette lens cases for storage into forever world. Future investments I can sell one day and buy myself an island or something. Fortunately, the lens does an effective job of suppressing flares without the lens hood on.

Image Quality

Ocean City | Leica M9 | f/8 / 1/3000 / ISO 160

It’s not out of the ordinary to say that the image quality you get from Leica lenses in general, especially their Summicrons, are nothing short of extraordinary and the [eafl id=”5272″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879)” text=”ASPH I”] is no exception. If you’ve ever used any of the older variations of this lens, you can tell that Leica was clearly learning from the past to get to where they are now.

Micro-Contrast is Real

The details are sharp with high contrast, with crisp details at the edges around your subject with dramatic fall-off wide open at f/2.0. The lens get even sharper stopped down at f/4.0, but f/5.6 is just the sweet spot to hit that perfect balance. It’s very easy to see very high levels of micro-contrast at the edges of your subject, exhibiting the “Leica look” due to high levels of fidelity and tonality that you can only get with these lenses paired with Leica’s proprietary sensor.

This is what it means to be an exceptional lens.

Classical and Modern | Leica M10 | f/2.0 / 1/180 / ISO 200

Note about Adapting Lenses: I can tell you first hand that you will not get the same rendering adapting M mount lenses to other sensors like the Sony A7 series. The addition of the filter stack (which Leica sensors lack) and without its processing, you won’t get the same look. Been there. Seen that.

An example of the “Leica Look” | Leica M10 | f/2.0 / 1/4000 / ISO 200

Another thing that I find interesting is how flat the field looks at wide open aperture. The images look sharp and while the corners still show a hint of vignetting and softness, it’s very impressive how the lens renders so well in such a small body.

However, the lens is not perfect as the lens can suffer a bit of coma on the corners, but this is immaterial and you won’t notice it in practical situations. Not a big deal, but just shows that the Summicron is still a piece of machinery made by mortals.

User Experience

In my opinion, this is the most important aspect of the lens as it’s primarily one of the main reasons why anyone shoots with a Leica: the overall user experience.

If you ever want to shoot an “ideal” Leica setup, pair any Leica rangefinder and this Summicron (or any 35mm Summicron for that matter). The solid weight in your hands with this compact lens, allow the focus tab to sit close to the body of the camera.

This is really close to perfect.

I can’t explain what it is, but when you curl left index finger and adjust the focus tab between your first and second knuckle.

The palm of your left hand rests under the base of the body while your right hand holds the right side of the body.

You can feel the smooth throws as you move the focus lever as you line up your rangefinder patch.

Everything just feels right.

Balance of classical and modern

Kitty

Micro-Contrast in the shadows

Inspiring Combo

It feels welcoming – inspiring even. It’s as if you’re holding a piece of art from the company that was responsible for famous black and white photos that you saw in your history books. You’ll know once you hold one in your hands.

The hefty weight of the lens sits comfortably, far back towards the body, therefore not throwing off the weight distribution of the body. The short overall length of the lens doesn’t invade your view inside the optical viewfinder, even with the hood on, as you can clearly see the 35mm framelines.

The focus feels buttery smooth. Like a freshly oiled gear moving freely, but enough resistance like stirring a bucket of water. The Leica [eafl id=”5270″ name=”Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH FLE” text=”Summilux 35mm FLE”] (11663) with its floating lens element can’t touch the focus throws on the Summicron as it feels inconsistent and heavy in comparison.

The aperture clicks into place with positive detents as your turn them between your left thumb and index finger, feeling the finely machined ribbed pattern at the front of the barrel. The resistance between each aperture click feels perfect, just enough so that you won’t accidentally bump your aperture. It doesn’t feel as tight as your typical M-Mount Zeiss lenses, but it’s good enough.

With this combination between the lens and a compact body like the [eafl id=”5266″ name=”Leica M10″ text=”Leica M10″] (or film M6 and M7), you have a one lens, one body solution. A lot of people call their Summicron 35mm as their “body cap”, meaning it’s pretty much stuck on their camera most of the time and you can clearly see why. If you’ve mastered focusing quickly at f/2.0, the short throws from this lens will make you feel like a master as there is very little overrun (meaning you won’t slip past your focus from overdriving the focus throw) thanks to its perfect resistance.

Conclusion

The Summicron 35mm ASPH is a superlative lens that does everything well, but not the best at any one category. In 2020, there are a plethora of lenses you can choose from within this focal length that are sharper, cheaper, lighter and a better lens hood. However, as someone who had been around the block a few times, I can assure you that the Summicron just hits all the right notes. There really isn’t any other lens out there that offers the balance and performance you get from this lens. Besides, how often do you hear people say, “one day I’ll get a Summicron”? Trust me, it’s worth getting and I recommend you save up for one because this is the one lens where all lenses, regardless of manufacturer, are still striving to match.

If you’ve enjoyed this review and plan on making a purchase, please help out the site by using the affiliate links below as that helps the site to maintain its good relationship with its WordPress overlords and buy the writer a cup of coffee.

[eafl id=”5272″ name=”Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879)” text=”Leica Summicron 35mm ASPH I”]

  Review: Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH (11879) – Balanced Perfection Introduction In this review, we will be reviewing the as one of my most in-depth reviews. I chose this lens because if I had to choose just one lens out of the plethora of lenses in the history of the Leica M mount, it would be the first aspherical version of the 35mm f/2 of the legendary Summicron line of lenses.

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Staycation - Alexandria, VA

Staycation – Alexandria, VA

I don’t think anything can top a staycation with a loved one if you both want to save time and money if both of you want to keep it low key and maximize your enjoyment of your mini-vacation while not tapping into your PTO bank.

This past weekend, that’s exactly what Amy and I did to celebrate Valentine’s Day a week early, therefore we were able to enjoy the discount prices from hotels during…

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Photo taken with the Leica Q

The Leica M camera system was really new to me when I first picked one up back in February 2018 with a mint, black Leica M9 – the first full-frame digital Leica had put into production almost a decade ago. I bought the camera from a member on an online forum with a used price that would make most photographers gawk in shock for a camera that was almost 10 years old at that point.

The Gateway Drug

However, after getting my feet wet with the Leica Q during a test drive at my local Leica Boutique store in DC (and soon buying one afterwards), the price of entry was something I was willing to pay to enter the legendary M family as the Q was my gateway drug. With their unique rangefinder experience, Leica cameras were also known for their legendary rendering from their glass paired with their proprietary sensor, which the photos have a more life-like and organic feel where the images have a three-dimensional look to them due to the high levels of micro-contrast that Leica is known for.

Photo taken with the Leica Q

To caveat, I’m not a wedding photographer by any means, but fortunate enough to be a guest to several weddings from my closest friends – affording me the opportunity to document these events of their lives.

Leica Q

Leica Q

Leica Q

Leica M9 + Summicron 50mm

One of the things that I had to get used to were some of the limitations of the camera (if you call it that). Using a Leica M rangefinder is a visceral experience that rely on the user’s technique and it responds to its will.

If you mess up the shot – it’s on you. Not the camera.

There is no autofocus to help you focus on the subject for you like a modern digital camera, which we all take for granted now, and the photographer also had to be cognizant of the other two settings such as the ISO and shutter speed. The three points of the exposure triangle.

Leica M10 + Summicron 35mm ASPH I

Leica M10 + Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5 ASPH

Leica M10 + Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5 ASPH

Leica M10 + Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5 ASPH

At first, these limitations were intimidating to me. I knew that the experience of shooting a rangefinder would be new to me, but knowing how quickly I can screw up a shot was something I had to shake off.

I compared it to driving a manual transmission car without any of the high-tech nannies. You are driving the car, not riding it. The car demands more from the driver to be in control. Same with the Leica.

What I didn’t realize was what was going to happen to me, was that using a Leica rangefinder made me feel more creative and more excited about capturing moments in life. I’m still trying to figure out why, but the camera inspires you to step out of your comfort zone with all the conveniences of modern camera technology and go back to the essentials.

Das Wesentliche as they say in German. Meaning “The Essentials.”

Leica M10 + Voigtlander 50mm f/1.5 ASPH

View inside the optical viewfinder. The outer lines represent the framelines of the lens you have attached. The extra space outside of those lines give the photographer the ability to see the subject before they walk into the frame, allowing you to compose however you want. The rectangular patch in the middle represent your focus patch. You focus until the two images merge into one until it’s in focus before you take the shot. This is even more important as depth of field is also controlled this way, therefore fast lenses require more attention. Photo Credit: Leica Cameras

Through my short journey with the Leica rangefinder experience with the M9, I’ve eventually upgraded to the M (Typ 240) and ultimately to the M10, the latest iteration of the M rangefinders. This goes to show that I’ve become comfortable shooting a rangefinder in most situations, but my ability to use the Leica in dynamic situations was ultimately tested in one situation: weddings.

Leica M10 + Voigtlander 50mm f/1.5 ASPH

Emotional intelligence also can be used to your advantage as you’re able to read the atmosphere, therefore you’ll be able to predict the shot. (Leica M10 + Voigtlander)

USING THE LEICA AT WEDDINGS

If you’re getting paid to do a wedding shoot, I would probably shy you away from using a Leica M rangefinder for several reasons:

It requires the user to focus manually and for weddings, this can be a very challenging affair as it’s very easy to lose important moments because you’ll spend time trying to focus when seconds count.

There is no dual memory card slot. It’s not really a big deal for me, but I know many wedding photographers like to backup their photos in case one of their memory cards fail. This can be disastrous.

Dynamic range is not the best compared to a Sony A7R series of cameras or the Nikon D850 with 3-6 stops of dynamic range, therefore you don’t have a lot of margin of error if you screw the exposure.

Leica M10 + Voigtlander 50mm

Leica M10 + Voigtlander 50mm

Leica M10 + Voigtlander 50mm

It would be an understatement if I told you I felt stressed in these situations where fast and accurate captures were key, especially in these fast paced environments. I’ve definitely missed a handful of moments that I would have easily captured with any other camera, to the extent where there were times when I wanted to give up and grab my Olympus camera with the 12-40 f/2.8 lens (24-70mm full-frame equivalent). But I only had my Leica with me and it forced me to work with what I had. These experiences with the Leica had taught me some important skills that any other digital camera wouldn’t demand of you.

It forced me to compose ahead of time and be smarter about my position before pressing the shutter button. The continuous shutter is slow and you’ll need to pre-focus your lens prior to the moment actually happening.

It forced me to be very selective on the photos I wanted to take. Any other camera would spoil me and let me cheat by spraying and praying with only 1-2 keepers out of 30 shots. It forced me to keep an eye out for moments that were worth capturing. Since I’ve been more conservative with my shots, I ended up only needing a 16 GB memory card compared to a 32-64GB memory when I had my old Sony A7II or Olympus E-M5 II. My number of keepers also noticeably went up after triaging them through Lightroom.

It forced me to be creative since I couldn’t rely on the conveniences of autofocus, framing (just crop it later), and insane bursts like 30 frames per second…because it didn’t have any of that. The Leica kept things honest and if you messed up, it’s all on you. It makes you work extra hard for every photo.

It taught me to be patient and learn to anticipate the moments, focus manually, frame up, and then only then, press the shutter after you had proactively created the scene. It truly made every photo intentional about which moments were truly worth capturing rather than deleting most of it later.

The Leica had taught me to be a better photographer by truly being the driver behind the three points of the exposure triangle (most people don’t even know what this is) and not just riding along. It’s very rewarding to learn how to envision the frame first and then taking the shot. It’s a fantastic learning experience where you get the shot you want on the first try, liberating you when you no longer need to shoot more than you need to because you already know what you want to do. The idea of shooting less while being more intentional of what I do. This is the true minimalism that I appreciate and the Leica kicked my ass to get me there.

Thank you for reading!

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    Shooting weddings with the Leica M10 The Leica M camera system was really new to me when I first picked one up back in February 2018 with a mint, black Leica M9 – the first full-frame digital Leica had put into production almost a decade ago.

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Walk down memory lane with the Olympus PEN-F

Walk down memory lane with the Olympus PEN-F

I’ve been through a couple of Olympus bodies already (the E-M10, E-M10 Mk II, E-M5 Mk II) and I’m proud to say that I’ve been a fan of Olympus after shooting with them for well over 3 years. I’ve been going through some of my photos from Flickr and forgot that I had a large arrangement of photos with the PEN-F that I never shared.

Here are some photos from a few years ago when I took it out for…

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Almost there - Fujifilm X-Pro 3

Almost there – Fujifilm X-Pro 3

When this was initially unveiled, I have to admit that I didn’t really pay much attention to the hype as I feel like I have a general understanding of Fujifilm cameras and none of the stand out features of their cameras never really interested me. I’ve been down that green road before with the X100F and the X70. Both excellent cameras in their own right, but not enough for me to actually settle…

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(by rodtrvn) | {Prints}

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by @zanthia

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The Pacific Ocean Coastline | Source | Facebook | Instagram

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Land and Sea By Nikk La | More

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