You can only choose one lens…

The choosing is difficult. And made more difficult by some wonderful lenses being very rare. An example would be the original Canadian Elcan made for the US Army. Few of them survive and those that do command some real bucks. Yes, LLL has made an honorific replica which is a fine lens. But this is not so for all those lovely rare lenses, some heavily coveted. I am safe in assuming, I think, that the Leica lenses will be valued here. The Sonnars are also wonderful lenses. I have a few that are really good. I have three disparate ones; a '43 CZJ f/1.5, a '57 Jupiter 8 and a recent Skyllaney Bertele Sonnar. They all have their charms. A rare, common and very rare. All shoot well but none the same.

So, just among the Sonnars I am at a loss. For me it is like asking a mother to name a favorite child.
 
It's probably 20 years since I shot with the Contax G series, but that 45mm was probably the most amazing lens I've ever had on a 35mm camera, bar none. I'm still astonished when I look at images I made with that lens!

Agree. I sold mine in 2023 after someone made me an irresistible offer for it. Still kicking myself...
 
Agree. I sold mine in 2023 after someone made me an irresistible offer for it. Still kicking myself...
The only problem with the lens is that you had to use it on the G series. I had two G1's which were great. Like a fool, I traded them for G2's. Endless problems, under warranty, that kept recurring. I ditched the whole system out of frustration.
 
The only problem with the lens is that you had to use it on the G series. I had two G1's which were great. Like a fool, I traded them for G2's. Endless problems, under warranty, that kept recurring. I ditched the whole system out of frustration.
There are adapters for mirrorless (some with autofocus) and there are also adapters to make it M mount.........
 
Put another vote down for the Summar. I bloody love that lens - small, surprisingly sharp, and full of character.
 
50 mm summicron v5. Classic for all intents and purposes 😁
My second one and done lens. Third would be the Elmarit 28 asph. But Distagon 35 is just mmmmwah! (Note: I have not tried any Summilux or Summicron 35s, so I cannot say if any of them would equal my love for the Distagon.)
 
The only problem with the lens is that you had to use it on the G series. I had two G1's which were great. Like a fool, I traded them for G2's. Endless problems, under warranty, that kept recurring. I ditched the whole system out of frustration.

Sadly, like just about everybody who bought into the G series. At times I've thought the 'G' in the G1 stands for aGgravation...

The G1 and G2 were classic one-trick pony kits. In almost everybody's experience those cameras often notoriously malfunctioned even during the warranty period. As good (and I admit it, they are good) as the G Zeiss lenses are, they don't adapt well to digital use even with an (expensive) adaptors. I know several who went digital with the lenses, all complained about peripheral problems - fringing, odd colors, wayward exposures. it seems the G Zeiss lenses were not designed for 21st century digital camera use.

As for the cameras, well, Both my G1s work perfectly but one occasionally won't rewind a film. I've worked out a way to do it by hand, but I have to take a black film loading bag with me in case my emergency steps fail in the bush or wherever I am. Not a good way to go about picture-making.

Recently I lucked into a find for repairing G1s. Someone in Singapore still does them (or at least did mid-2024), but as expected will offer no guarantee on the work, no spare parts being available. Thanks for nothing, Contax.

I still have two G1s and four lenses (21-28-35-90). I could have sold out a few years ago for good money, but instead I opted to dump the one lens I should have kept, the 45. My mistake.

Now and then I unfreeze a couple of rolls of old 35mm film and take a G1 out for an airing. If only to keep it alive and reduce the pile of unloved films in my fridge. I find the images I make with film are much like those I do with digital, but at higher cost when I factor in film processing and scanning. My G1s are now so old, inevitably I worry about if and when the camera will cark on me while I'm focusing it at some pretty landscape. Which is all I seem to be using them for these days.
 
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I’ve never had issues with color etc. as you describe with the 45 on digital. I find it a great performer. I had an AF adapter for Sony and it was a pleasure to use.

The 28 being an RF lens with a deep rear element will definitely be a challenge on digital just like other similar non-retrofocus wides.
 
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