Leica Noctilux-M 75/1.25: Extravagant Anachronism, or One of the Greatest Manual Focus Lenses Ever?

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[@ronbaselice7839]

Every time you post a Leica gear video I kick myself for selling my kit......I used Leica professionally for about 15years until the newspaper I was working for stopped insuring and paying for repairs. But I can live vicariously through you, lol,

[@3BMEP]

I understand. 😉

[@garydmorris]

Recently I purchased a new 75mm Summarit f2.4 lens for my M10. I have owned the 75 APO Summicron M lens in the past. I also took a number of test shots with the 75 Noct. For the money and image quality the 75 Summarit is hands down the best value. My 2¢. I highly recommend this lens, if you can find one. Summarits today are selling used for as much as they sold for new before being discontinued.

[@christopherbgriffith]

Just to throw it out there, the Voigtlander 75mm f/1.5 Nokton will also get you in that focal range and DOF for

[@johnkasianowicz6536]

I’ve had 3 Voigtländer VM lenses (15 Heliar, 21 Color Skopar, 35 Nokton Classic, sold them all) and have some Leica M glass (WATE 16-18-21, Summilux 35 FLE 1, Summarit 75, Noctilux 75, APO Macro-Elmar 90, Thambar 90, APO Telyt 135). The Leica glass is better, but I can’t say whether it’s worth the significantly greater prices. However, I’d bet that the Leica Noctilux 75 is far superior (IQ-wise) compared to the Voigtländer 75 mm f/1.5 Nokton. The Noctilux 75 is bitingly sharp, but not clinical. It’s very easy to focus., even wide open at night. I do like Voigtländer (they provide a different look than the modern Leica lenses) and will soon purchase two of their APO-Lanthars (35 & 50) and APO-Skopar (90).

[@owensagness43]

Well done... I use the Leica 80mm 1.4 R lens with adapter on my M10... Way less than this but compares very favorably to the 50mm f1 Noct

[@TucsonBillD]

I have a problem... my name is on the list for the new 35mm APO-Summicron M. I don’t need you telling me about the 75 Noctilux now...

[@3BMEP]

😜

[@imagesbirds5066]

Wow! Some gorgeous and amazing street photography included!

[@3BMEP]

🙏🏻🖖🏻

[@robertstacy8438]

Why does Leica do what it does? Because it can and that's good enough for me.

[@chrisjames1924]

It's a sound investment. How much will my fuji 56 1.2 be worth 15 years from now? And will it even be usable or serviceable? Leica requires a huge outlay but it's heirloom quality stuff that will outlast everyone alive today.

[@tedbahas]

Nice video as usual!! I also like the wireless one you did with MKE200. BTW the hair is really got some height these days.

[@3BMEP]

What can I say, Ted? I’m just electrifying! 😉😎

[@manuzach]

The sticker shock explains the hair

[@victorcarmelo8606]

@@3BMEP you are in good company Hugh, Einstein had almost identical haircut, not sure if he was a great photographer though!!

[@niikaiwells]

Hugh gotta be my favorite snake oil salesman.. I swear he could talk me out my draws and sell them back to me at triple the price.. love it lol ✊🏽

[@marcusoutdoors4999]

Superb. BTW... the shallow depth of field video with Einstein hair was genius

[@GavinCatoPhotography]

This lens was 20% off on special in Australia recently - prob about 11k usd equivalent. I was sooooo close to getting it. Maybe next time.

[@yakattac78]

I saw this comment 3 days ago... next minute, one is on itd way to me! Cant wait!

[@andrewchisholm3665]

If only i could afford it but my disability benefit won't reach that far. Mind you i have just bought a 7 Artisans 35mm 0.95 manual focus lens for my Nikon Z5, yes I know it's a DX lens but hey its a Z mount. So far so good and it is making me slow down even more when I use it especially as I am very partially sighted

[@3BMEP]

Hey - if it works for you, who are ANY of us to take umbrage? ENJOY!

[@andrewchisholm3665]

@@3BMEP yep it works and makes me think back to when i first started photography with my tank built Zenith

[@heikkiseppa5742]

Thank you for another illuminating discussion ! Could you, please try out the Summilux-M 90mm f1.5. It has been available since 2019, but very little has been heard about it.

[@3BMEP]

See my first look of the M10 M.

[@oliverrandl7578]

Great video. I simply love it. Well written and well performed. A fine review for a special lens. A minor detail: Perhaps next time try to choose the frame such that Hugh's remarkable hairdo is entirely visible. As it is, the "haircut" is somewhat irritating.

[@rumporridge1]

If I can own 2 motorcycles guess I can own a Notilux Hugh. One day indeed.

[@clintjohnson5914]

I feel like the #1 BEST photo accessory for 2021 should be a little sound chip that ,,,every time you open your camera bag would play Hugh's voice saying,, "Slow down,,,, see with intent,,,see what's really in front of you. See what's important." Salient advice if you're shooting Leica or even a Pentax k1000.

[@3BMEP]

🥰

[@streetphotography.globetro7744]

Tempting but a little bit narrow to work on the street, i prefer the noctilux 50mm.......this lenses are to keep them lifetime.

[@NPJensen]

What a wonderful looking lens. Completely beyond me financially, but that's fine. I have interesting lenses to work with already - like my Rodenstock Trinar Anastigmat 1:3.8 f=10,5cm (from 1937). It's the one "on deck" right now, and I'm really itching to take it out shooting. Lockdown is making it difficult though. Fortunately it won't be too long now. Good to see, I'm not the only one with longer hair than usual. I'm at "mane" classification myself, if you know what I mean.

[@3BMEP]

😊👍🏻😜

[@nelsonclub7722]

To all those people saying Hugh records his videos whilst inverted and then corrects them in post. This is not true. They are filmed in space.

[@3BMEP]

😜👨🏼‍🚀

[@jeffgrischow1734]

Great narrative, interesting comparisons, unique lens, wonderful street shots - another fabulous video! (I'm thinking "Streets of New York II"?)

[@3BMEP]

Hold that thought!

[@lensman5762]

I find it difficult to nail the focus of my 75mm F2 Apo-Summicron M despite usnig a 1.2X eyepiece on my M6 or M240. A range finder is just not accurate enough for critical focusing of a 75mm F1.2 lens. The same goes for all these new F1.2, F1.1 and F0.95 crazy stuff that Leica and others keep thrashing out.

[@ChipBeforePC]

Hugh... Truly Awesome Video...As usual... Thank you

[@3BMEP]

🙏🏻😊🖖🏻

[@MrBillboeing]

Leica Summarit 75mm f2.5 is an inexpensive (ish) excellent Leica lens.

[@TimofejNenarokov]

Rumor(leak) has it that Sigma will announce EVF for fp on 23 of March

[@CalMukumoto]

You make owning a Leica sound very appealing and financially worth the investment; my reptilian brain says yes, but the neomammalian part says, "Hold on there, Partner!"

[@3BMEP]

“Creative tension!” 😉

[@ishanawate1849]

Owww.. Hey Rick !

[@marrkzulunuz]

A DUI costs more. Statistically, more non-Leica enthusiasts will appropriate a comparable sum to DUI offenses INVOLUNTARILY. Nobody talks about this issue. I am planning for this lens through the buying and selling of stocks. Great Vid.

[@ccbphoto]

Nice work Hugh!

[@3BMEP]

Hey, Craig!

[@actionimagesphotography]

floating head, cool! :-)

[@VariTimo]

Don’t forget about the excellent Voigtländer 75mm f1.5 Nokton for Leica M. Only half a stop slower and optically still great by any measure. And the one thing the Voigtländers have gotten bafflingly close to Leica with, is color transmission. No other manufacturer I know off is making lenses that have as a profound effect on color saturation as Voigtländer and Leica.

[@3BMEP]

I’ll have to check it out!

[@VariTimo]

@@3BMEP Man I’ve really fallen in love with the glass Voigtländer has been making. I know that they supposedly weren’t so great when Cosina first started out making them. But their modern designs really rock. I have the 50mm f1.5 Nokton asph for Leica M and the 35mm f2 Ultron asph. The Ultron is so tiny and renders so lovely. All their aspherical lenses really hit the sweat spot for me, in that they’re nice, sharp modern lenses without any build in flaws. They retain sharpness without being overly crisp. But you’d never call them soft or vintage. I practically only shoot them on film but every time I stumble on my digital test shots. I’m flawed by the colors they produce. Suffice to say that they make film just look even more alive. I’m also shooting short films with my GH5s and I’ve realized that 25mm is not really a normal but more a shot portrait lens. At least for me. And after doing a lot of philosophical thinking about focal lengths. I’ve come to the conclusion that all the great cinematographers I admire are absolutely right and that a 21mm (40mm full frame equivalent) is a true standard lens. It’s a really good analog for the human perspective. Especially when your goal is to put the viewer in the room with the actors. Anyways, since there isn’t a 21mm cine lens that comes even close to match my Veydra Mini Primes I’ve decided to get the Voigtländer 21mm f1.4 Nokton and use that with a Leica M adapter and a 3D printed focus gear. I am planing on getting the aperture declicked at some point, but I’m not doing many iris pulls anyways since I use the amazing Vario ND by Heliopan.

[@johnkasianowicz6536]

@ Varotimo, I’ve tried several new Voigtländer VM lenses on my CL, SL2, and M11 this past Summer, including the Super Wide-Heliar 15 mm f/4.5, Color-Skopar 21 mm f/3.5, and Nokton Classic-M 35 mm f/1.4. They were all relatively low-cost (compared to Leica glass), but had aberrations (spherical, spherochromatism, lateral chromatic) that I didn’t want to deal with at that time. Leica’s Summilux-M 35 mm f/1.4 FLE version 1 worked far better than the Voigtländer Nokton Classic-M 35 mm f/1.4 (easier to focus, far fewer color aberrations, and sharper). I had also tested used versions of Leica’s 75 mm f/2.4 and 90 mm f/2.5. I kept the 75, sold the 90, and bought a new Leica Macro-Elmar-M 90 mm f/4 (great lens). I’ll give Voigtländer lenses another try soon, especially the APO-Lanthars. I’ll then branch out to the other designs again and accept the results simply as different renditions. While I was in Wetzlar, I tried the Leica Noctilux-M 75 mm f/1.25 on an M11 body. It was very challenging to use wide open, but the lens was so darn sharp, I quickly became smitten. I’ll buy one in 2023, primarily for use on a SL2.

[@3BMEP]

That 75/1.25 is SICK good. But agreed: focusing wide open is a real challenge.

[@calvinchann1996]

Thanks for the review. Is this a lens that I’ll ever buy? No, but this doesn’t make me wish that they wouldn’t make it. Someone, well heeled, will buy them, but I do sometimes wish that Leica would make more things that people can buy, but that’s not their DNA. I’ve jumped from the Leica bus after their prices went beyond absurd, between the M9 and the M10. These days, I’ll “make do” with my Q2’s.

[@3BMEP]

I think you’ll be OK... 😉

[@BarryMaskell]

For the few theres the Noctilux for everyone else theres the Noctricron

[@TexpatOTG]

I had a Leica M years in 1968. I traded a Colt .45 Auto for it. I wouldn't buy any Leica camera or lens these days. I don't think anyone could tell the difference in quality it produces compared to competitors. If you are trying to make money with photography or video, it's important to keep your GAS in check. Businesses that are also art tend to be difficult to control.

[@3BMEP]

True enough - and a great, if brief, story. 😊

[@kruniacwei6404]

Well.,how eloquent and poetic was this?.

[@drthompson65]

Hugh - you will have me into divorce court yet. Love your videos and presentation style. Please keep producing these videos...

[@3BMEP]

🙏🏻😊🖖🏻

[@ronaldsand3000]

Honestly, I think the difference in the additional cost, weight and size between the equivalent Summicron, the achievable image quality difference makes absolutely no sense

[@3BMEP]

Then I’m sure that’s the right conclusion for you! 🖖🏻

[@peterlanz9953]

Amazing video as usual Hugh! But... what happened to your hair? Have you been in a wind tunnel? :-)

[@3BMEP]

1.21 gigawatts

[@peterlanz9953]

@@3BMEP 🤣🤣🤣

[@marrkzulunuz]

A DUI costs more...Just ask Phoenix Michel. My condolences to Officer Anastaios Tsakos.

[@BilBrown]

Waiting for that Sigma FP video :)

[@3BMEP]

😉😎

[@detectivejonesw]

Turns out it's not quite worth its weight in gold but it's in the same ball park

[@JennyDarukat]

When you said "dude, don't buy this lens" - I felt that. What a beautiful, ultra compact down payment on an apartment this lens is, though.. man. I'm considering to get some old Leica R glass on the used market at some point for adapted shooting, do you have any experience with any of those lenses? They're a lot more affordable than the M39/LTM stuff, so I feel like there would be some kind of asterisk, right? The build looks just as outstanding though.

[@3BMEP]

Jenny! 🥰

[@shlawchablaas]

I have a few R lenses, and I think the primary asterisks are manual focus, film era optical designs/coatings, and lack of rangefinder coupling. If you haven’t looked into it already, you may wish to know that some of the vario zooms are Sigma- or Minolta- designed and manufactured, with Leica coatings and quality control (so slightly better than the same lenses you could buy as Sigma or Minolta branded optics for significantly less, but only marginally). I highly recommend the 60mm Elmarit-R macro, would say the 135mm Elmarit is lovely as well, and hopefully will receive a 90mm Elmarit by the end of next week so will see how it performs (1st version, I have heard conflicting views as to which is preferable). Also, if you shoot film at all, I have to say the brightness and clarity of the R7’s viewfinder made me feel like my eyes were a decade younger. I hope some of this was helpful-I’m definitely still learning about R lenses as well, but what I’ve found so far has been really rewarding. Also Erwin Puts wrote a book on Leica R lenses that you can find as a pdf at L-camera-forum, it mostly covers the exotic lenses but has some interesting information.

[@kuzemchik]

shot on 75 Noctilux?

[@3BMEP]

Yep

[@kuzemchik]

@@3BMEP one day... one day...

[@martinaee]

I’mma go ahead and guess I can’t afford it anyway lol

[@ausdlk]

there is absolutely no justification for the ridiculously priced lens

[@rumporridge1]

No one is asking you to buy one dude.

[@victorcarmelo8606]

Yes there is, you earn your money, therefore you have the right to spend it how you like. Others, rightly, spend more then three times as much in a lifetime on booze, ciggies etc etc!!!

[@james-p]

@@victorcarmelo8606 Or, as a commenter above noted, a DUI ! So, don't drink and drive, and buy this lens. Works for me...

[@paulmorris4792]

Don't wear a black top next time, you look like a floating head! :) Great video thanks!

[@3BMEP]

😜