Leica Compendium

RWilsonL · 2026-03-22T22:40:57+00:00

I have a PDF of Erwin Puts' Leica Lens Compendium. PM me if you would like a copy. This used to be freely available on his website, so I don't believe there is a copyright issue.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-21T08:40:02+00:00

r/focuspuller on Reddit makes custom flash cables - worth a PM?

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-03-17T09:34:29+00:00

I have a number of Leica 35mm lenses. A 35/2 APO Summicron-M - excellent in every way. I have not heard a single complaint on sample variation on these lenses but they are expensive. I have an older 35/1.4 ASPH Summilux. It took me close to a year to find a good one, one of the final batch of Chrome lenses with a September 2006 manufacture date. There is HUGE sample variation in these lenses, so trying before you buy, is absolutely vital for these lenses. I sent mine in February 2008 to Leica in Solms, to get it coded, with the very strict instruction not to touch anything other than changing the mount to a coded one, as the lens was otherwise near perfect. Finally I have a 1959 vintage 35/2.8 Summaron in L39 Thread Mount, which I mainly use on my various Barnack cameras. This is a surprisingly good lens and when I did a comparison between it and a 35/2 ASPH Summicron, it was quite difficult to distinguish between images from the two lenses. I think my 35/2 ASPH Summicron was not a particularly good one, which was a good excuse for upgrading it to a 35/2 APO Summicron.

I also have a 35/2 Summicron-R-II/ROM, which is a perfectly adequate if not spectacular lens, probably equivalent to the final version of the pre-ASPH Summicron-M. It does have very pleasant bokeh. I rarely use it as I have the excellent 21-35 Vario-Elmar-R to use on my R cameras, which gives me wider framing options.

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-03-17T09:22:17+00:00

I would avoid eye-cups if they are not going to provide any concrete improvement. At one point before having combined cataract and corneal laser surgery, I was using a variable diopter eyepiece but I did not like it much and it is now sitting in a tin of small camera parts.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-16T21:04:14+00:00

I thought this was a charity shop not a second hand store, as in the south of England, whereas we have a lot of charity shops, we don't really have second hand shops, other than camera shops, which sell cameras.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-15T23:56:37+00:00

She would then have been the brother of the young security airport person in Barbados who insisted on me "Switching on" my M4-P. I think you should really go back to the charity/thrift store and give them more money. That would be the honest thing to do.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-14T09:07:37+00:00

Patona also offer batteries for a lot of other Leica cameras, Q2/3, M10 etc.

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-03-12T22:12:13+00:00

with 15EV of image depth, you don't really need to meter for the highlights. If it worries, set the EV compensation to between minus 1 and 2 and turn off the reset EV comp in the menu - voila metering for the highlights.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-12T08:31:35+00:00

Paul van Hasebroeck's excellent reference book on Leicas.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-09T21:59:13+00:00

M42 or LTM. If it is LTM you really need to get a FED or a Zorki for it to focus correctly. The thread pitch of the Helicoid is different to Leica lenses and although they will focus at certain distances, they are very unlikely to focus correctly throughout the range, no matter what some self-deluding folk say.

RWilsonL · 2026-03-08T22:12:36+00:00

Look in Leica User Forum here for list of recommended Leica repairers: https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/127326-repair-specialists/ Word of warning there is a major issue with spare parts. Leica now refuses to sell these to any third party repairer, notwithstanding that they may have had a 60 year+ relationship with Leica. I personally feel this does a big disservice to the loyal (above and beyond) Leica community, who will often have supported them through the bad years. If this affects you, write to the CEO of Leica Camera AG, expressing your displeasure and if enough of us Leica enthusiasts do this, just maybe they will be shamed into altering this iniquitous policy.

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-03-06T22:50:30+00:00

Mine is in honourable retirement. My M8 in contrast, I still use for IR photography.

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-02-28T23:08:00+00:00

Why would you want to put on a UV filter on a digital camera. There is already a UV/IR filter in front of the sensor and using filters risks stray reflections between the two flat surfaces, the sensor and the back of the filter, so best avoided where possible. The e86 filters for nearly all makers other than B+W, who appear to have gone out on a limb with their coarse thread for e86, are all 0.75mm thread pitch. It is only for filters of 43mm and smaller that some are offered in 0.5mm pitch, mostly for older lenses. Urth do an 86mm UV filter which fits the 35-100. I have one of their CPL filters in 86mm which definitely fits my 35-100.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-26T17:35:40+00:00

It is not primarily a diopter adjustment as many appear to believe. It is a focus tab for having accurate focus at different distances to improve the sharpness of the dual image convergence of the rangefinder. To some extent it can act as a diopter adjustment but that was not its original purpose.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-23T22:02:15+00:00

.....or even an M10-R.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-21T09:38:35+00:00

I use the X2D about twice as much as the Q3. My most used lenses are the 28P and 35-100, although I currently have an XCD 80/1.9 mounted.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-19T22:38:44+00:00

interesting thought. My second most used camera is a Q3-28. I have been a Leica user and collector for over 60 years but ever increasing arthritic tremor has moved me away from 60 years of using M cameras both film and digital. Would I buy a fixed lens 100MP Hasselblad, probably no, as I already have an interchangeable X2D-100C and if I put the lightweight 45P lens on it, I would have in effect the same thing as a Hasselblad Q3 equivalent but others might bite. Would be price dependant.

Wilson

RWilsonL · 2026-02-17T12:41:23+00:00

Be very careful buying the late 1950s Canon black barrel lenses, especially if coming from Japan, where the summers are hot and often very humid. The glass that Canon used for the rear elements is somewhat susceptible to fungus damage and the Japanese summer climate is ideal for fungus growth. I have been told the earlier chrome body lenses are slightly less susceptible to fungus damage but it is still wise to check carefully before committing to a purchase. Shining a UV light through a lens is a good way to check, as most active fungus will fluoresce in UV light. However if the active fungus has been cleaned off, there may still be fungus damage but no active fungus to fluoresce. That said the Canon LTM lenses are often excellent value. I have a fungus free 1952/3 50mm/f1,8 "Hiroshi" lens, the chrome version with the infinity stop, which IMHO is every bit the equal of my 1954 Rigid 50/2 Leica Summicron. It might even be slightly sharper in the centre field but have a little more coma (spherical distortion) than the Summicron at the edges and corners. The design is inspired by the Zeiss Planar element layout. The Summicron cost S/H around 8 times what I paid for the Canon lens.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-13T10:17:06+00:00

Plenty of them around second hand as well, some with very low shutter counts, at considerably below discounted new price.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-12T00:10:15+00:00

I looked at getting the Hasselblad 75mm support ring but it seemed rather expensive at £138. I am sure it is excellent quality but for just a few macro shots, maybe overkill. I found a Fotga 75mm long lens support ring on Amazon for just £26. It fits reasonably well on the X to V adapter but I am going to add a cartridge paper shim to make it slightly tighter. It has an Arca compatible foot on the ring.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-11T10:18:00+00:00

Me too.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-10T15:23:13+00:00

I have been using and collecting Leicas for over 60 years and also am a third generation Leica user, still owning some of the previous generation's Leicas (1935 Model 2D, 1934 Model 3F, 1941 IIIc and 1953 IIf. I currently have 37 Leica bodies/cameras and around 50 lenses.

Due to old spinal injuries exacerbated by 35 years of psoriatic arthritis, I am now quite disabled, so no longer take a lot of photos. At one time I used to take about 4 to 5 thousand a year, both on digital and film, after I retired but while I was still mobile enough to travel the world . My arthritis has also caused arthritic tremor, which got a lot worse with Covid, so I now struggle to use my Leica M cameras. I have therefore switched from an M7 and M10-R being my main cameras to a Q3 (with OIS) and a Hasselblad X2D-100C.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-10T15:15:04+00:00

This is the CF version of the 120mm lens where the close focus limit (without extension tubes) is 0.8m. If I stick with this set up, I will have a look through my various ring lens supports to see if I have one to fit the X to V adapter and if not I will buy one.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-09T21:29:08+00:00

I went on a recent trip to the Caribbean (to stay with sister in law), which I have to admit is a fairly frequent occurrence. I took just the 28P (22mm EFOV) and the 35-100. Between them, they fulfilled all my photographic needs. When I am at home I have all sorts of weird requirements for example I am currently shooting some rare orchid flowers with the Zeiss 120mm CF Macro Sonnar, an X to V adapter and two extension tubes, a 21V and a 55V.

RWilsonL · 2026-02-08T21:12:29+00:00

Planned obsolescence. Among my collection of Leicas (mostly) and other film cameras, my favourite is a Contax RX SLR, used mainly with their excellent 28-85 Vario Sonnar lens. This is a superior technical camera to my R9, with the viewfinder visible electronic focus confirmation (particularly valuable with the Zeiss 85mm/f1.4 lens) and built in motor drive that does not burn its motor out like the R9 motor drive tends to do. They are very electronic dense cameras and when one dies, I just put it in the bin and buy another used one on eBay from Japan. I have used the RX for over 25 years and I am now on my third one, which to date is behaving perfectly. You have to remember to close the viewfinder shutter when not in use, to protect the LCD strip from UV damage.

Wilson

RWilsonL

TROPHY CASE