1950's collapsible Summicron vs. Canon Serenar

[guido_cruz]

Hi everyone. For any of you interested, I compared these two lenses. I'd like to hear your comments.

Thanks,
Guido

http://web.me.com/cruzdann/Leitz_vs_Canon/Summicron_vs._Serenar.html

[LeicaTom]

Fun test! Glad to see you do it! :)

How clean is the Summicron? No fogging?

I think BOTH lenses would fair better with hoods.....but I shoot my Canon f1.8 all the time without one
(I still have to find one, I know the results will be even better with one on)

I could have said the Canon lens would be better .......I`m a big fan of the f1.8 and also an advocate for the performance of the f1.5, it`s funny that so many so-called photographer`s at another German website, freak out just when they see another company`s lenses on a vintage Leica, they take it for face value that Leitz was/is better than anything Canon made at that time, but the truth of the matter was the Japanese glass was as good or even better in the 1950`s as the Leitz glass was/is

Yellow and Green filters would improve performance of both lenses for sure as well.......

I even think that the Summicron`s Grandfather the Summar performs better under some circumstances then the Summicron itself

I wish I could do a Summar/Summitar and early Summicron test to see how they all three compare

The Summicron honestly didn`t improve untill the 1970`s - that`s in my personal experience of using them
(I do love my 1992 version - at f16 it is razorblade sharp!)

The "Radioactive" early Cron is a novelty and more "hype" then it really was.....

The Canon f1.8 is a real beauty and also a talked down lens just as the Summar from Leitz was/is, but many new photographers are finding there was a reason that so many good photos were taken in Japan and Korea by the GI`s in the 1950`s while the f1.8 was the standard lens that Canon built it`s empire on :)

Happy Shooting!

Tom

[rxmd]

To be honest I'm not sure how much of a difference a hood would really make, since the source of the flare is in the frame 100%. Hoods obviously don't protect against this, only against stray light coming in from the side.

[ferider]

Thanks for doing that test.

I am not a Leitz lens fanatic - I love my Canon lenses.

But those Summicron pictures don't look right. Check against haze
and for proper collimation.

Best,

Roland.

[payasam]

As Roland says. I used a Serenar 50/1.8 for 17 years and was entirely satisfied with it. I had the round hood made for it. There was also a rectangular one, I believe.

[Morca007]

Very nice little test, showed the differences well.

The cron certainly bleeds the light, while the serenar looks much more modern.

[HuubL]

I bet the cron has internal haze. A hood would not make any difference here. Both lenses seem more or less equally sharp, but that doesn't surprise me at this F. Anyhow, the Serenar is widely recognized as a very capable lens!