Shooting the NEW LEICA SUMMILUX 90mm f/1.5 ASPH on the LEICA M10 Monochrom | Portraits & Street 

Thanks Erik!

Thanks for the nice comment :)

Thank you Pat.

Thanks Roberto.

Thx!

Hey, thx!

Between 1.5 and 5.6, depending on how much I wanted to separate foreground and background. Thanks for positive comments.

On Leica rangefinders I switch between optical rangefinder and Visoflex, latter mentioned mainly for "live exposure preview" in more difficult light situations, less due to problems with sharpness. Rangefinder focussing is very precise and also gives you that "original" feeling of taking a photo :) Thanks for your positive comment.

Thanks Vlad. I do own the Leica M Mono model 246 and did plan for a comparison but did not find the time yet. Will see if I can accelerate the review.

mathphotographer awesome! Looking forward to it! Thanks Matt

thx

I have not had the 75mm Noctilux in use yet, sorry. When I get it, I will comment back to you.

thx

Done, watch my most recent video.

Hi Joel, when I was a student, my camera was an old used one and I nevertheless enjoyed it :) Thanks a lot for your kind and nice comments. When you say "street photography at home", the cities are open again post-COVID, just go out and shoot. There is always something interesting to see and shoot, no matter where you are. I will post a video in summer on "story telling with photography", will provide lots of tips, maybe it helps.

@@mathphotographer thanks a lot for the tip. I am very fortunate to have been able to play my cards right and purchase a second hand M10 and 3 great lenses. I have my camera with me at all times. I will definitely go out and shoot more in the streets this summer! I can't wait for that upcoming video too!

Spot-on comment, I use an original Leica protector. Using a cheap protector or cheap UV filter will kill the performance of the expensive optic.

@@mathphotographer what do you mean by "an original Leica protector"? Are you talking about the plastic lens cap?

Interested in the same question. I shoot M10M w/75 Noct regularly and took a few 90 Lux test shots at the Leica Store but would be interested in more comparisons.

I did not shoot the Noctilux 75mm yet so cannot compare. I guess it is equally nice. If I am not mistaken, Matt Granger has a good review on RU-vid where he explores the 75mm Noctilux. He does not compare it with my lens but what he says about the Noctilux 75mm sounds very promising. You will love your M10 Mono when you have it in your hands, a fantastic camera!

Used as is, no recalibration.

I sometimes switch between optical rangefinder and electronic viewfinder to get "live exposure preview". That's likely what you've seen. In some of my Leica videos I actually show the electronic viewfinder during unboxing the gear for later use. In general I prefer optical rangefinder but if the light gets difficult, the electronic viewfinder on hot shoe helps a lot.

@@mathphotographer OH I didn't mean the hotshoe EVF, I meant the OVF at 2:28 seems to have something added to it which made me curious :)

Hard to say, I personally think the lens has a special character but is it really necessary to have it in addition to a 90mm f/2 which you already have? Likely not if you are not after that extra quantum of quality many people might not even see in a photo if you show it around. If "Upgrading" means selling the current lens and getting the new lens, then it is a question of whether you want to allow yourself such costly luxury. I personally love the lens and do not regret to have spent the money for it. If people do not have a 90mm at all, then this one is clearly a desirable premium lens. Best wishes for your decision.

@@mathphotographer Thanks for the reply. As one who uses the M10 and M6 to shoot with wide-angles more than telephotos, I think I will pass on replacing my 90mm f/2 with the 90mm f/1.5.

What do you mean by "focus shift"? If your question is whether the lens is well calibrated w.r.t. its distance scale, the answer is yes. Otherwise focus shift is typically only discussed in the context of autofocus lenses (front focus, back focus) and this lens has no autofocus, focus is taken manually.

@@mathphotographer Focus shift is a phenomenon when focussing a lens wide open and then closing down to actually take the image. Setting the distance, focussing at f2 and taking the image at f4. The actual point focus of many prime lenses moves then to the front or back of the actual point of focus.

Slipper :) Noted it in the infobox below the video with an asterisk.

Excellent question, have asked myself too the question you raise. But have not found any meaningful answer yet.

Yes Paul, agree. Today's Leica SL2 or also Sony A7R IV are certainly (besides sensor size and even shallower DoF based on sensor size) better than medium format some years ago. Having said that, nothing comes close to the image quality of my Phase One IQ4. This is currently my highest benchmark when I really need the last quantum of quality to be squeezed out for a client shooting.

I agree with you completely. To accurately focus any of Leica's Noctilux lenses wide open you absolutely have to use those lenses in combination with Leica's EVF (Electronic Viewfinder). Even WITH the EVF in use, such shots are frustratingly difficult.

I agree, it is difficult and requires concentration. I did shoot the Noctilux successfully at 0.95 with rangefinder focussing (without Visoflex / electronic viewfinder). I use the Visoflex - when I use it - mainly for "live exposure preview" in difficult light environment, not because of sharpness. But what maybe helps me and what you might missing: I use a diopter (magnification) glass (screwed right on the optical viewfinder) from Leica on my cameras. This enlarges/magnifies the rangefinder focussing elements and makes it easier to focus even with wide-open aperture.

Agree. I did not compare the two lenses (might do in the future) but guess they come close. You win a bit on the slightly wider aperture but 90mm tele "per se" gives you a lot of background blur and nice bokeh.

mathphotographer Worth comparing. The 90 APO renders beautifully and for £1500-1800 S/H. I wonder just how much more bokeh you’re going to get for your bucks. I suspect it’s marginal at best. Fractional stop advantage is negated by IBIS on SL2. I suspect many of us use the M glass on SL bodies.

Ok, deal :) Will compare the lenses next weeks and get back.

I fully agree that you can shoot fantastic images with a M4/3 sensor. Actually, a good photographer might get better images out of a M4/3 camera than an average photographer with a full frame camera. The photographer makes the image, not the camera. The reason why I am nevertheless shooting the much more expensive full and medium format cameras is that you have more options on DoF and in general on catching light. And the overall image impression is different from medium format to full frame and from full frame to M4/3. And I shoot for clients who want large prints. Packing 47MP on a M4/3 sensor will likely be more noisy if you shoot natively and not with the pixel shift as included in some M4/3 cameras. With my Phase One I shoot natively 150MP with low noise, impossible for a M4/3 sensor. But I do this because clients pay me for prints with 2m of side length. I think you can be perfectly happy with a good M4/3 camera, I had some in the past and only upgraded over the years due to client demand and even higher quality needs. Enjoy your Lumix, Panasonic makes terrific cameras. I shoot from time to time with the S1R, love it.

Hey, you are Making Good Videos on the technical stuff, but man your choice of music is mesmerizing bad. If you like give epidemicsound a shot and it will boost the music quality of your videos. Or if you don’t like, give us the Opportunity to kill one of the channels, so that we can enjoy your voice and put on some classical stuff or rock. Only for some of the videos. 🥳 thanxs

Hi Carsten, ich denke oft darüber nach, mal ein Video auf Deutsch zu machen. Allerdings spreche ich job-seitig nur Englisch und Englisch ist auch meine "Foto-Sprache", wenn Du verstehst, was ich meine. Viele Begriffe aus der Fotografie gehen mir auf Englisch leichter über die Lippen. Meine Viewer kommen ebenfalls mehrheitlich aus dem englischsprachigen Raum: USA, Australien, etc. Dazu kommt, dass meine Familie und mein Freundeskreis international ist. Einige Leute aus dem engen Freundes- und Familienkreis würden Deutsch "NullkommaNull" verstehen. Wäre aber echt schade, Wenn Du nicht mehr vorbeischauen würdest. Vielleicht mache ich auch mal ein Video auf Deutsch, extra für die Viewer, die wie Du lieber Deutsch hören. LG & Beste Wünsche - mathphotographer

???

mathphotographer Marxist, communist, anarchist, openly threatening free people on your streets.