Leica lets me do it like most other DSLR manufacturers, where I can just use the joystick on the rear of the camera as is. Sony makes me have to go into the Fn menu and make a couple of selections first. And moving my focus points around was much easier on the SL. AF tracked him coming in, then stayed locked for the 3-5 image burst through the jump. I was able to get these images of a skater jumping a crate almost without really thinking about it. But I didn’t have that issue with the Leica. I’ve found that in really low light, noise can interfere with the peaking filter on the Sony. It was brighter when I needed it to be, with lower noise and higher resolution. The EVF was far more of a pleasure to use than the one in the a7RII. It took me a minute to figure out where the focus magnifier function was, but once I found that, quick and accurate focus was easy. In low light, I was able to focus the 90 Cron without much trouble, and even with the Noctilux wide open I was able to nail correct focus most of the time.
![50mm summicron on a7rii 50mm summicron on a7rii](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61zyWpJDx7L._AC_SL1000_.jpg)
And wow, there is so much to love! The EVF is by far the best I’ve ever used. So what changed? I had to get away from the a7RII to finally see what was so great about the Leica.
![50mm summicron on a7rii 50mm summicron on a7rii](https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/H808b5121adab4cdbb375d49806a955df2/7-35-F1-4.jpg)
And now? Now I love that camera! It’s my new favorite camera. And let’s not forget to mention the Sony is less than half the price of the Leica!īut I had to give the Leica a fair shake, so I took it home a third and fourth time by itself. There just wasn’t any reason for me to do much with the SL since the a7RII was everything I already needed, and at 42MP with great low light and AF performance. It’s bigger and bulkier, and the menus and buttons were hard to navigate at a glance. But every time I picked up the Leica, I just hated it. I had the Leica 24-90 and Sony 24-70, and M-mount adapters for both cameras (Leica here and Sony here) so I could use the 21mm f/1.4 Summilux, 50mm f/.95 Noctilux, 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron, and 90mm f/2 APO-Summicron for side by side comparisons. It doesn't feature a lock in the extended position, but nonetheless stays well in its place in the field.I took both the Sony and the Leica home together twice, with the same complement of lenses both times. The lens has a built-in telescopic hood that can be extended. The 8 aperture blades are straight (not rounded).Īs you can see in the product images above, the lens extends a little when focusing closer. The aperture ring features half stop clicks and, unlike on older Leica lenses, has no play. The focus path from infinity to MFD is roughly 90 degrees. The minimum focus distance is 0.7m, which matches the minimum distance the Leica M rangefinder is able to cover. The focus ring is nicely damped and works smoothly. It's an extremely solid, yet still very compact lens. Move the cursor over the text marks below to see the lens with the lens hood retracted or expandedĪs you can expect from a premium product, the build quality of the lens is excellent. In this review we'll have a look at how the lens performs on our test camera, the Leica M9. However, the barrel has been redesigned in 1994, replacing the clip-on hood with an integrated one. Since then, the lens has not changed internally, making it one of the oldest products in Leica's portfolio. The first version dates back to 1959, while the current product was introduced in 1979. The Summicron 50/2 as it is sold today is already the 4th generation. For the price of the Summicron, one could also buy ten 50mm f/1.8 SLR lenses with F or EF mount. Anyone familiar with the brand already knows that there is no such lens in Leica land, at least as long as we're talking about current products. There is a little difference compared to most other systems, though: usually a fast normal prime is also a really affordable lens.
![50mm summicron on a7rii 50mm summicron on a7rii](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71Fgpo8SfOL..jpg)
For Leica and the M system, this role is best played by the Summicron 50mm f/2 lens. Special thanks to Thomas Koch for providing the lens!Ī fast normal prime is a key lens in almost any system. Review by Markus Stamm, published July 2013