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Which lens should i buy

Thank you, Paul. I will try take a look after the new year.
Regards,
Ken
 
Ken: I believe you have made the correct choice(s). It is entirely likely that you will not "need" to purchase any other lenses for your Leica M series camera unless you enjoy collecting with the opportunity to experiment. Don't be surprised if you start to look for some other lenses on Ebay, for once afflicted, the Leica virus is hard to cure. Indeed, the 75mm lens has an interesting niche...but so does the 135....well, you get the drift Ken! Erwin states that the 28Asph and the 135Apo are about the pinnacle of current Leica design...

Continued bests, and let us know how you are doing.
 
Dear Dr. Puritz,
Thank you for your kind words. I absolutely agree with you on the Leica virus. Meanwhile, I will have to try control my buying impulse or else my wife would definitely kill me!
happy.gif

Regards,
Ken
 
I don't understand why 21 and 24mm lenses are so popular even with novice photographers. Those lenses are quite demanding and one must have excellent eyes to consistently make good shots with them. They are hard to control. Everything is in the picture! Some are true masters of wide angle - like Eugene Richards. But, I - a mere mortal - feel so short to use them properly. Three months ago I met Abbas, a famous magnum photographer who uses Leica M system exclusively for his b& w shots. He told me that the first couple of years one must discipline his eyes with standard lenses and move very very slowly to wide angles. I've been using a 35mm summicron for a long time and looking at the results I know I still need time to perfect it. I see a lot of photography students with 21mm lenses on their cameras. It must be very frustrating for many of them. Happy snaps. Murat
 
I agree with Murat. I've owned a 21 in the past. You tend to get gimmicky with that lens if you are not careful. If I had to choose two wide angles for the M system they would be a 24 and 35. 35 would be my first choice. It's THE lens to have in your M system.
 
This topic which I as a photographer have experienced as well reminds me of the philosoper Lao Tzu's words; "You try to fit the world into boxes, but what if you put the world into the world?" meaning, instead of dividing the parts, strive to realize the unity of the whole. So what are good sized boxes to use to packaging the world?
In a trip through Mexico I kept wishing for a wide angle in addition to the 50mm I had. When I returned and was looking through the negs, I forgot about the wide angle. If it wasn't there, I did not think about it.
None the less, in the work that I am doing a loaned Nikon with 24mm lens is proving invaluable. I couldn't record some of the situations otherways. My goal is the 28mm f2 and another leica .58 (with Motor : ) because I feel i am actually getting closer than need be in order to fill the frame.
I think that some people, particularly the Czechs use wide angles particularly well, but too many others rely upon their sensationalism to make "creative" pictures, forgetting about content.
I suppose if I had one lens I would have the 35 or 28, but I have grown up with the fifty and don't see replacing it.
I like the 90 f2, but have found a 135 lens more useful, particularly for speakers and head shots while in the field. When I can I would like a 135 2.8 with goggles to replace my canon set up.
While some people can afford every lens, there is a beauty to simplicity. Avoiding clutter brings on elegance. Just my thoughts.
ps. here's some recent pics;
http://f15.nycimc.org/gallery/garthliebhabernyc1
 
I like my 135/2.8 Elmarit with the "goggles". It's bigger, heavier, and not as sharp as the Tele- Elmar it replaced, but it also replaced my SL2 body with it's 180/2.8 Elmarit, which was quite heavy. Get a .72 body with a 35 Summicron. One of the older ones are fine. In fact, get a used M2 body. The flare free rangefinder is such a pleasure to use. As for the motor drive, forget it! Heavy, just something else to carry. You already came "from the factory" with a functioning thumb. Use it.
 
Hello all,
I'm considering purchase of a wide angle lens: either 24mm or 28mm. My question is: how close is a picture in a 24mm attached viewfinder close to that in .72 M6TTL? (understand that maximum frames are for 35mm but there is some more space available). If it is far off then 28mm is an option to consider. I simply hate to carry additional attachements.
Cheers!
Dan
 
Thanks for the thoughts on the 135 2.8 I hear you about the motor drive except that in heavy action the rewind would be nice and shooting direct people shots to grab a quick second frame would help avoid blinking eyes. Also for vertical shots. It may sound bizarre to you also, but the other day I got bad tendonitis in my thumb in six hours of constant shooting. It is the new Leica motor wind that I have my eye on, not the old clumsy ones.
 
Hi Garth,

I like what you have to say about the lenes and keeping it simple and uncluttered. I need clarification and this isn't a challenge, it's just I need to know more about what makes some images made with wide angle lenses seem to be made using "sentationalism" to make "creative" pictures. Is this a matter of using gadgets, "creative filters", etc? Thanks in advance for explaining. I'm always learning more about photography as the years go by. That's one of the reasons I really like photography.

Be happy, be in the moment, Cathy in Atlanta
 
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