If you had to choose....

[forbar]

I'm going to have to sell one of my M8 lenses to pay for the DSLR that I've just purchased. I've mentioned in a previous post that focusing is an issue for me...so that being said, which of the 3 would you let go of? 75 cron, 35 summilux, or 28 cron?

Keep in mind, I have no plans to upgrade to an M9, and the DSLR came with a 24-105 zoom. (I love the size and feel of the M8 and don't want to ever give it up...but I needed some AF in my life; that plus the fact that my daughter is getting married soon and I plan to use the 5D II's video capabilities for the wedding ).

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

Barbara

 

[wattsy]

Of the three, I'd lose the 75 - particularly if you are sticking with the M8. The other two are lenses that at some point down the line you will regret selling. You have to look at the increasing cost of buying a lens back to realise that selling is not something you want to do lightly.

 

[Stuart Richardson]

If you were using film or the M9, I would definitely say the 28, but the 28 is one of the best lenses for the M8. Do you have any other lenses? I would probably recommend selling the 75 cron and buying the voigtlander 75/2.5 -- that way you still wind up with an excellent 75mm lens, as well as the vast majority of the cash you would get by selling the 75mm summicron. Longer lenses don't need coding, so all you need is a screwmount to m mount adapter and a UV/IR filter for it (or a 43mm to 46mm stepping ring...then you can use the filter from your 28 or 35...).

 

[forbar]

Thank you Stuart and wattsy. No, I have no other lenses for the M8 but those 3.

 

[zoz63]

75

 

[otumay]

75 cron, undoubtedly.
Osman

 

[glenerrolrd]

Barbara

The 28/2 you just have to keep. Its a 37mm FOV on the which makes it close to the perfect "body cap" on the M8 and if you ever move to the M9 ..its the perfect wide angle. The 35/1.4 is your fast standard lens on an M8 ..you could argue that not enough different from the 28mm but these are the two lenses that most M users never want to sell.

The 75 is a perfect 100MM fov on the M8 but you can use your 5D for the long end . Another option on the M8 thats popular is to sell the 35 lux and buy a preasph 50 1.4 . Then you have a 37mm FOV and a 67MM FOV excellent balance and they pair nicely together on an M8. The preasph gives you that nice smooth bokeh wide open and is killer sharp at 5.6.

For the wedding ..take your iPhone. I was the Father of the Bride last Sat and I got the vows and the kiss from the expensive seats without getting caught! Good luck I am still worn out .

 

[Paratom]

I only can tell that the 28crom was one of my favs on the M8. I would definatly keep that lens.
Regarding 35 and 75 mm it depends-what do you use more often? How often do you use f1.4? I would consider to keep the 28 and replace the 35/1.4 and the 75/2.0 with a 50/1.4

 

[rayyan]

I would loose the 35/1.4; The 28/2 and the 75/2 would be considered by many
to be an unbeatable combination. I travel often with this combo.

If you want to keep only one; I would keep the 35/1.4

With the 5D II you are ok for low light, I think. I am on the dark side ( for cameras that is )

Best regards.

 

[Leicadoc]

Lose the 75 cron.

 

[forbar]

Is it the 75 (well 97 on the M8) focal length that folks are unhappy with or the lens itself?

Thanks for everyone's thoughts.

Barbara

 

[khiromu]

28 and 35 seem very close in focal length to me. So I would lose one of these assuming you are using three lenses equally. But if one of the three lenses gets less usage, then lose that one.

 

[Per Ofverbeck]

Is it the 75 (well 97 on the M8) focal length that folks are unhappy with or the lens itself?

Thanks for everyone's thoughts.

Barbara

Optically, the 75/2 has to be one of the best lenses in the entire Leica lineup. So, I doubt anyone is unhappy with that.

But even the best lens has to fit into a personal setup. And it´s quite close to both the 50 and the 90, so if you have either, the 75 may not fit in.

Personally (and now I´m talking M9, since that´s what I have), I decided the 35 was to be the first one. A very useful FOV, and also the widest one for which I can see the entire finder frame with my glasses on. After that, I soon found out, using my old lenses from the ´60:es, that 50 was too close to the 35, and 90 was too narrow. So, 75 it was to get a 2 lens setup, and I´m extremely happy with it. Only drawback is that the 75 frame on the M9 is quite difficult to use, but that´s possible to learn.

But such things are personal. Other people will end up with other lenses, and it´s actually impossible to find a "bad" Leica lens in the current line.

 

[Mango]

On the M8,
75mm = 100
35mm = 46
28mm = 37

Sell the 35mm and the 75mm. People are willing to pay a premium for both these lenses at the moment. Replace them with a 50mm Summicron or Summilux. 50mm = 67.

Just IMO, a 28mm and a 50mm will give you more versatility and focal length separation, as well as low light capability.

 

[GrahamWelland]

I would loose the 35/1.4; The 28/2 and the 75/2 would be considered by many
to be an unbeatable combination. I travel often with this combo.

If you want to keep only one; I would keep the 35/1.4

I'd agree 100% with this too. The 28/75 is a great general M8 combo and I seldom missed a 50 equivalent with it (35). When I travelled with a single lens the 35 was a great fit and worthy compromise for general shooting too.

You probably need to think about what lenses you use the most and then decide which baby to sacrifice

 

[PeterA]

On an M8 the combo is 21/28/50/70
On an M9 the combo is 24/35/50/90

Chances are you will one day go (full frame - M9) if you ditch 28 and 70 you get your DSLR thing and have a head start on the M9 body - leaving you with a nice 35lux to build from. No easy decision.

Good Luck

 

[John Black]

I'd look at the M8 pictures and try to figure out which lens you used most, and which was used least. You may also want to consider how you plan to use the 5D2 in tandem with the M8. The Canon 24-105L IS is good "swiss army knife" lens, capable of covering a a large range, but the lens rendering lacks character. Using the 24-105L for general shots and the 75/2 APO for portraits would be my choice (but this is depends on how and what you like to shoot).

 

[aprillove20]

I think 28 is one of the best lenses for the M8.

 

[exile]

Very tricky decision.
I have say that I could never sell those lenses to buy a dSLR, but I only use RF now and I'm sure you have your reasons.

The answer lies in how you will use the M and how you will use your dSLR so that they copmlement each other.
The SLR will be extremely good for closeups and portraits if you buy a short-tele macro lens (like a 90 or 100mmm f/2.8 or f/2), so the close focus and focal length of the 75 is not that important. So although it is a really world class lens, I would sell the 75 cron because your dSLR system will be able to compensate more than in other focal ranges.

Where your dSLR cannot compete is the small form factor of the M.
There will be days when you want to carry just the M and one or two lenses.
Before you sell the 28 or the 35, you need to decide whether you best enjoy a 35mm or 50mm field of view. Again, both are fantastic lenses. The 28 cron is perhaps the best single lens solution for the M8 and it is smaller than the 35 lux, so that fits nicely with the idea that the M8 is the compact system. True, the 35 lux is a stop faster, but you may feel that the dSLR is the system you want to use in low light anyway, depending on which dSLR you want to buy.

So, personally, I would sell the 35 lux and the 75 cron. Buy a CV15/4.5 and a second hand 50mm with closest focus ability of 0.7m and no slower than f/2.
That would give me a very small three lens set that can be taken out together in an ever-ready case and two pockets. I would get an effective 21mm f/4.5, 35mm f/2 (with top optical quality) and a fast 70mm suitable for unintimidating street portraits. Not bad.