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Leitz Elmar 3.5/5cm Red Scale

The smallest Leica 50mm lens. If mounted it makes even your Leica M small and light, perfect for traveling.

You can find a good review and history at Ken Rockwell s website.

All pictures taken with Leica IIF (1/1000) from 1955 and Elmar 3.5/5cm red scale from 1954. B&W developed in Xtol. Scanned by meinfilmlab on Fuji Frontier.

This Elmar dates back to 1954 and has the better coating than previous versions. It is sharp across the field and good if you are looking for an overall lens. Also some refer to it as "Elmar III".

Delta 3200
Delta 3200

Although small and sharp, i find it lacks a little bit of character compared to a Summitar or Summar. That being said, i do not like it for portraits, but it is a great performer for landscape and cityscapes. 

Delta 3200
TX 400

It s slowness can be a problem sometimes. I was lucky and could switch to Delta 3200 and where fine again. But i actually prefer the Summitar for almost 2 stops more light.

HP 5
HP 5

Flair seems not to be a problem in my use and the original Leitz hood is small anyway. So it does not interfere with the compactness of a Barnack.

CHM 400
CHM 400

The later Elmar M and LTM 2.8/50m (1954-1961) is a better lens though. It is not as compact, but stopped down to f.5.6 - 8 it is as sharp as the Summicron 2/50 V4!

Elmar 2.8/50 with TX 400 red filter
Elmar 2.8/50 with TX 400 red filter
CHM 400
CHM 400

This is especially true when it comes to color negativ film. I find the Elmar 3.5 red scale not as good as the 2.8 version. The latter will give you more pleasing, natural colors, beautiful with Portra 160, Superia 200. Here you have some more impression, Elmar 2.8 and 3.5.

Thanks for stopping by and happy shooting.

Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
Elmar 2.8/50 with Superia 200
Elmar 2.8/50 with Superia 200
CHM 400
CHM 400
HP 5
HP 5
HP 5
HP 5
Delta 3200
Delta 3200
Delta 3200
Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
Elmar 2.8/50 with Portra 160
  • Leitz Summitar 2/5cm

    The Summitar 2/5cm is a fantastic high quality lens.

    Leica Summicron 2/35 V3

    This is a six element version (3) with 10 blades, produced 1971 - 1979. Still with the same number of glass elements than Version 2, brought some improvement in overall contrast.

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