Them Germans! They sure know how to craft some decent quality glass. And by decent I mean “holy sh** this glass is nice!”
As I’m sure most of you know this german quality of craft from the hands of Leica doesn’t exactly come cheap, but every once in a while you luck out, and something presents itself at a fraction of the regular pricing. A bargain.
That is how I got my pristine 1983 Summicron-M 90mm f/2.
The Summicron-M 90mm f/2 was replaced in 1998 by the APO-Summicron-M 90mm f/2. By many considered as one of the best lenses ever produced, it will set you back a kidney and a half. But the version I have is the one designed just before the mighty APO.
Produced between 1980-1998 in a couple different mechanical iterations, these “version II” all share the same optics as well as the same 11 blade aperture diaphragm. There are differences in weight and filtersize. Mine is the 55mm filtersize, weighing in at 485g. The lens was manufactured in Canada.
On the APS-C Fujifilm X-series this lens correlates to a 135mm FOV. So a very tight crop, well-suited for headshots. On the full-frame sensors, it will behave more like a shoulder-headshot lens.
Build
Leica. Need I say more. Their build is in an entirely different league. Take a look at all the other vintage lenses that I have reviewed on this website over the years, Take note of all the times I said something was “built like a tank”, “has great aperture clicks”, “has smooth focussing”. No matter how great all these lenses have felt in hand, none has ever come close to the feeling of this lens. It’s as close to perfection as it gets. Focus throw is long since its a tele, but it really is buttery smooth. The aperture blades are curved in a such a way that you get almost perfectly smooth specular highlights at any f-stop. The heft is just right, and the glas coating is spot on.
It has a slide out hood, that even after 31 years still folds out buttery smooth, and is tight and not wiggly or loose by any measure. Extraordinary!
There really isn’t anything bad to say about the build of this. It’s a true A+
Optics and Image Quality
Its a 5 element in 4 groups classic tele design. Designed by Walter Mandler, its a true classic design. You can get all the dirty technical details at all the Leica aficionado websites around the web.
Image quality. Yeah, lets talk about that for a bit……
HOLY SH**BALLS!
Yeah, its that good. I have never used a lens with a 30+ year old design that can deliver this kind of sharpness and detail. Its is incredible. The micro detail is amazing. It is pin sharp at f/2, and at f/5.6 you get maximum sharpness. Even though you have sharpness it tends to render the smaller specks and wrinkles in the skin in a very flattering and minute way. It looks really great! It has a crazy narrow DOF with a relative of 45 (90/2). You will notice focus jump if the subject inhales deeply if photographed at minimum focusdistance.
What really makes this lens sing is the fall off into blurry background. It does this in a way that mostly reminds me of medium format portrait setups. It looks great. It has the warm color cast characteristic of the Leica lenses, unlike the cooler color cast of the typical Zeiss lenses. This is something I like since the Fujifilm has this warmer cast as well.
I could go on for days about how great the IQ is from this lens. It really is some of the best in class. I guess you can partly justify the price tag.
Samples
Shot using the Sony A7 and the Fujifilm X-T1 the files have been processed using LR 5.7. These are by no means straight out of cam jpegs. Well, actually a couple of the Fujifilm ones are. I will note this in the image captions.
They reflect the shooting conditions under which I have used this lens over the last couple of weeks. Not just a portrait lens, it’s surprisingly diverse, gives great reach, and it can even be used for indoor sports 😀
Conclusion
The Leica Summicron-M 90mm f/2 is a relatively expensive lens, but unlike the newest APO iteration, the lens can be found used at reasonable prices, usually selling for around $1000-1200. But if you completely luck out like me and find an absolute bargain at just $500 I can wholeheartedly advise you to buy this gem of a lens. Its build is unmatched, and the image quality delivers very flattering yet sharp portraits. On APS-C you get the great 135mm FOV look for head shots, and it might just hold you over until you can buy Fujifilms own XF 90mm f/2. It looks right at home on the rangefinder styled X-Pro1.
This lens has quickly found its way into my small 3 prime carry-round setup. It’s among the best money can buy!
What are the other two lenses from your small 3 lens setup?
The XF 23 and XF35. Then I pack the X100T with the WCL attached. Great reach in that combination. Plus it all fits in the ONA Bowery bag 😉
How did you connect to X mount ? Metabone?
Thanks
Chris
Hi Chris
I use a metabones M-FE on the sony, and the Fujifilm M-FX for the X-T1
/J
Thanks !
Wow, it would be nice to see how it works on Sony.
…and why not the 56 f/1,2?
Hi Claudio.
The 56 is in the bag when the 90 summicron isn’t 😉
/J
Reblogged this on cameronstlaurent.
May I ask from where you were so fortunate to purchase this optic?
Hi Martin.
I was VERY quick to respond to a danish classifieds ad. I guess you can say I called dips. Another case of someone who might not have know what they were holding.
/J
Jonas, you should definitely make a post about your LR workflow, love the way your pictures look shining yet very natural.
Haha. I should, I guess. I have been asked about it a lot. Thank you very much for your kind compliments, as always.
/Jonas
Super nice rendering on the Summicron indeed. What a bargain you got for it too. Lovely photos. Which one in your opinion is easier to manually focus,the XT1 or the A7?
Yeah, it was a steal!
I find it a lot easier to focus on the X-T1. But I think its just from habit. I think that Sonys focus peaking is too strong. And if I tone it down to medium, it’s too faint. I find the focus peaking in the red color on the X-T1 to be just perfect for me.
Thank you for reading.
/J
Did you try a vintage wide-angle? Love your blog andyourphotod!
Thank you
Fantastic Blog
Good luck
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Loe your blog and your reviews! Great bargain and great shots! I also hae a Leica 90mm but only the Elmarit 4.0 but I find it a gem! Have you tried one or know it? I’m interested in your opinion ou does anyone tried it allready?
Thanks for a great blog!
I bought this lens for my NEX-7 and now use it on my a7r. It is indeed sharp, the build quality is top-notch, and it was a relative bargain. But it isn’t perfect. It does suffer from CA’s wide open (gone generally by 2.8 or maybe 3.5) and it’s susceptible to flare, more so than my Zeiss lenses. I’m glad you’re writing about it; the pre-ASPH 90mm Summicron-M is a gem, a good lens to get you started with classic Leica glass.
Interesting review. I plan to purchase this lens for my X-E2 as a compact robust tele lens of the famous brand. And a lens with a possibility to use it on FF cameras. And who knows maybe even Leica some time 🙂 Thanks.
The old M 42 Fujinon 1:2,8 – 100 mm performs better than this new XF 90 mm ( as the 100 x 150 cm prints proof ). It is said the Eskimo knows over a 40 different words for Snow. I never met an Eskime who knows all those 40 words and so it is the same with Leica optics. People talk about the so named quality; I have never seen it in the last 50 years. It is like the story by Hans Christian Andersen. The new clothes for the emperor; a fairy tale !
More than 80 years of professional high standard photography with Leica optics and YOU decide that it’s all a fairy tale??!!!!!!!
And why do you have to be so unpleasant and aggressive anyway…Frustration?? You remind me of a dutch person I used to know….
The eye is NOT sharp ! Even the Fujinon Zoom 18 – 55 mm is sharper; not to mention a print quality made with a Hasselblad 500 C/M a 150 mm Sonnar and a Agfa APX 25. It looks like your developer is outdated, because of the the grey whites and the grey blacks.
Did you just use the fujifilm adapter by Fuji?
Leitz optics are made in different quallity. Have you ever made a photograph with the Tambar ?
In the Thirties Leica was an amateur camera. And today ? Why do amateurs dream of Leicas ?
Ever drove a Porsche 911 ? It is like a Leica. No comfort after 1000 miles. No comfort after 1000 exp.
Own the same lens, since i shot with Leica M5 and CL.
I still have the two Leicas but i almost always shoot digital now, and if I had to shoot analog I’d rather use a 6×9 or large format.
This is a hell of a lens, in the same league of a Pentax-FA 77mm Limited or a Pentax-A Star 1.4/85mm, but with a different character.
Fortunately both the Summicron M 2/90mm and the Elmarit M 2.8/135mm with “spectacles” can be unscrewed from their original focusing barrel, and used on a short focusing helicoid for Visoflex. Leitz also made a Viso-to-R adapter, which can be leitaxed and used on modern digital cameras. Not just mirrorless, also DSLR with a much longer register.
Of all the 350-ish small format objectives I have, plus those I had in the past, it’s one of the best portrait lenses.
Wide open it sharp and smooth at the same time.
Great build, on par with the best manual focus objectives.
Considering it’s a rangefinder lens from the mid-eighties, it’s amazing…