I also own this lens, i waited only a month to get it though! I bring it everywhere on my M11. The glow and the rainbow at 1.4 are magical. Very much like a painting. Stopped down i don’t see a difference with modern ASPH but I’m no expert. Gorgeous, tiny, and unique images. Couldn’t be happier
ive shot around 20 rolls with my film mp and this lens, and its by far my favorite lens i own now. it just renders really soft and glowy when you want to and can provide modern sharp clinical results too at smaller apertures, all while being in a tiny form factor! Hope you enjoy yours!
Same experience here. Have Both new summiluxes (50 & 35) but the Steel rim is about creating images like in the old days ✨👌🏼 What is important though is the type light you are working with. This is an old lens design which means light “breaks” differently. When subjects are further aways on a sunny day (light behind you) with some haze you may indeed wind up with images that are too soft. But, when you use it right you will get images that are indeed magical. Thats fun. Getting good at something. Master a technique and building up experience. Craftsmanship operating you gear is much more fun than holding an A1 with GM 50 f1.2 shooting 20 images a second all being sharp on the iris by just pushing a button. 🤓
I own the 35mm Summilux v2 Pre-ASPH which is the lens that followed the original steel rim (v1). The pre-ASPH is aka as the glow lens. I love this lens.
Love mine. I have had it since august but I was on a waiting list forever too. Its fantastic on film and digital. I would say at f2.8 its almost the same as my sumicron v4 35mm
thanks Great first impression review! You should try the voigtlander 50mm 1.5 heliar classic this is my carracter lens to complet my 35mm summilux v2 and i love it.
Hi Alex, thanks for sharing the insightful review and the joy. I hope you’ll acquire the Noctilux 50mm f1.2. Its rendering reminds me of how you described the Steel Rim here. Using it wide open feels like a journey through time, and by f4, it exhibits a contemporary clinical sharpness. It’s been a joy for my photography.
Thx, Alex! Great review! And big thanks for sample files. Wish only if you could put more files in it ☺ And by the way , you are in a great physical shape! 👏At some point you have to show front double biceps 🤗
I also have a Sony 35mm 1.4 GM as well as a VM 35mm Ultron II. Both are a little bit too perfect sometimes, and this lens is exactly what I’m looking for.
Hi Thanks for the video and great pictures. As you like 50mm lenses try the Leica Summarit 50mm 1.5, for me it has great glow and better retro vintage look than the re issue noctilux 50 F1.2 Regards.
Ah yes, tha leica glow. I think it's a marketing language for simply unsharp wide open. I also owned couple of these vintage leica glasses. The voigtlander Vintage line has these glowing lenses too. Also, great photos, like your compositions.
It is only Leica can turn an imperfection of the lenses to become a character. Once again proof, modern users place to much emphasis on the technical perfection over the art of photography .
I have the same 35mm Steel Rim. I was struck how the build feels like a vintage lens. Like vintage new old stock. Did you have an issue with the wobbly aperture ring? Let’s see this bad boy on the Silver SL2-S!
@@ABarrera If you could keep only one lens, either the Steel Rim or the newest 35 Summilux FLE, which one? Also, I'm looking forward to your 50 Noctilux Re-issue Review. Please post soon :) You might have just planted that seed in my mind.
Judging from online samples, the 50 1.2 character appears to be very different - very soft with little central sharpness wide open, lots of swirl, and no glow. If you want a 50mm with glow, you may want to try the Light Lens Lab 50mm f/2 "Speed Panchro II", which at f/2 and mid to long distance has wonderful glow but stopped down has high IQ across the frame. I've had both the Steel Rim reissue and the 35 1.4 pre-ASPH v2 (the version after the original Steel Rim), and the SPII replica is very close in rendering to them both.
While the LLL Panchro is great wide open and does get very sharp stopped down it also gets quite a bit of internal flare when stopped down even with the hood. I was surprised by this, asked LLL as well as on various forums and told this is just how the design works. Mine went back. and I will be content with the LLL Elcan which is great.
@@anthonymiller8979 With the sun behind me, f/8 is fine. It's a lens meant for wide open stopped down to f/5.6. I recently took a trip and shot about 95% of the shots with the SPII stopped down, about 5% wide open. And regardless of subject type or distance, it was the f/2 shots that were the keepers. Love the LLL Elcan, too, but at f/2 only the center is sharp - if your subject's eyes are too far off center, they are going to be soft.
The steel rim is nice, but a step towards modern compared to the original pre asph 35mm. The original true vintage pre asph is cheaper and imho better from a character perspective wide open. Also interestingly, for a matching 50mm in terms of beautiful glow, the cheap canon 50mm f1.2 ltm is great!
I like this guy. Nice energy. Not super crazy and stuff.
I also own this lens, i waited only a month to get it though! I bring it everywhere on my M11. The glow and the rainbow at 1.4 are magical. Very much like a painting. Stopped down i don’t see a difference with modern ASPH but I’m no expert. Gorgeous, tiny, and unique images. Couldn’t be happier
ive shot around 20 rolls with my film mp and this lens, and its by far my favorite lens i own now. it just renders really soft and glowy when you want to and can provide modern sharp clinical results too at smaller apertures, all while being in a tiny form factor! Hope you enjoy yours!
Same experience here. Have
Both new summiluxes (50 & 35) but the
Steel rim is about creating images like in the old days ✨👌🏼
What is important though is the type light you are working with. This is an old lens design which means light “breaks” differently. When subjects are further aways on a sunny day (light behind you) with some haze you may indeed wind up with images that are too soft. But, when you use it right you will get images that are indeed magical. Thats fun. Getting good at something. Master a technique and building up experience. Craftsmanship operating you gear is much more fun than holding an A1 with GM 50 f1.2 shooting 20 images a second all being sharp on the iris by just pushing a button. 🤓
Yooo this lens is wild !
you should try some vintage 50s if you are into 50mm. The summicron ridgid is awesome and honestly the summarit 50 1.5 is really fun.
I own the 35mm Summilux v2 Pre-ASPH which is the lens that followed the original steel rim (v1). The pre-ASPH is aka as the glow lens. I love this lens.
Thanks!
You bet!
Love mine. I have had it since august but I was on a waiting list forever too. Its fantastic on film and digital. I would say at f2.8 its almost the same as my sumicron v4 35mm
thanks Great first impression review! You should try the voigtlander 50mm 1.5 heliar classic this is my carracter lens to complet my 35mm summilux v2 and i love it.
I will have to check it out! Thanks for the recommendation
Definitely my go to lens, and yeah i agree with every point you mentioned bout the lens.. i have it for the last year or so since it was released
Very interesting video. Thank you.
Hi Alex, thanks for sharing the insightful review and the joy. I hope you’ll acquire the Noctilux 50mm f1.2. Its rendering reminds me of how you described the Steel Rim here. Using it wide open feels like a journey through time, and by f4, it exhibits a contemporary clinical sharpness. It’s been a joy for my photography.
Thanks for doing this review! Which version is this? Where can we purchase them?
Try the Zeiss 50mm 1.5 sonnar, it has the same look wide open and it’s a ‘reissue’ from the same era
Gorgeous images
Voigtlander 50 1.2 nokton has pretty much the same affect at 1.2 and gets super sharp closed down
The smile in your face says it all ❤
The 35mm summilux V2 also performs similar to both the original and remake steel rim. Just have to deal with the series 7 filters on the v2
Btw. I really dig your positivity.
Terrific ... got one yesterday and was worried about some of the nay sayers. Thanks! I do look forward to using it.
I hope you love it as much as I do.
And now 3 months later?
Thx, Alex! Great review! And big thanks for sample files. Wish only if you could put more files in it ☺ And by the way , you are in a great physical shape! 👏At some point you have to show front double biceps 🤗
Do you always use the hood with the reissue? Is there a noticeable difference in image quality/contrast hood vs no hood? Thx!
I have never used the hood actually.
Thx! I just got this lens as well, and I’m diggin the size so much can’t bring myself to put the hood on either!
Excellent review and insight. These reissues are quite fun. Now the real question, did you get the new swatch x blancpain?
I was able to snag the Artic and Pacific versions today 🙌🏼
@@ABarrera how’d you get two? My closest store isn’t on the list for this one but they have moon swatch. I guess they switch it up
I also have a Sony 35mm 1.4 GM as well as a VM 35mm Ultron II. Both are a little bit too perfect sometimes, and this lens is exactly what I’m looking for.
whoa I love the images came out from 35mm Summilux
You should try the Voigtlander 50mm f/1.2. It has magical rendering as well. I never want to take it off.
I have! It’s incredible and I would say comparable to the Summilux.
Brave move, I usually go for sharpness but it does look like a nice effect. I’m considering a chrome lens on my silver edition sl2.
Hi
Thanks for the video and great pictures.
As you like 50mm lenses try the Leica Summarit 50mm 1.5, for me it has great glow and better retro vintage look than the re issue noctilux 50 F1.2
Regards.
If you shoot it at f2, is it sharp as the 35 cron asph?
I would say you need to stop it down to 2.8 to start removing some of the glow.
@@ABarrera did you use the replacement hood?
Ah yes, tha leica glow. I think it's a marketing language for simply unsharp wide open. I also owned couple of these vintage leica glasses. The voigtlander Vintage line has these glowing lenses too. Also, great photos, like your compositions.
I am also a fan of Voigtlander. Which lenses would you recommend for vintage look? Thanks.
It is only Leica can turn an imperfection of the lenses to become a character. Once again proof, modern users place to much emphasis on the technical perfection over the art of photography .
great 🎉
I have the same 35mm Steel Rim. I was struck how the build feels like a vintage lens. Like vintage new old stock. Did you have an issue with the wobbly aperture ring? Let’s see this bad boy on the Silver SL2-S!
Silver SL2 should be in next week! I’ll make sure to pair them together 🙌🏼
I got my silver sl2 today next to my standard sl2s and my sl2s reporter. It really is a nice camera.
@@ABarrera If you could keep only one lens, either the Steel Rim or the newest 35 Summilux FLE, which one?
Also, I'm looking forward to your 50 Noctilux Re-issue Review. Please post soon :) You might have just planted that seed in my mind.
Interesting to see how the steel rim would look like with Sony body if you can make a video on it using the Techart adapter!
Funny you say that, I am working on a video covering something very similar.
I have such a picture, i looks great!
Hi Alex, is it the "re-issue" (2022) one?
Yes it is!
@@ABarrera Thanks! Got a new one :)
is the glow level on this equivalent to 20% diffusion on them mist filter?
Judging from online samples, the 50 1.2 character appears to be very different - very soft with little central sharpness wide open, lots of swirl, and no glow. If you want a 50mm with glow, you may want to try the Light Lens Lab 50mm f/2 "Speed Panchro II", which at f/2 and mid to long distance has wonderful glow but stopped down has high IQ across the frame. I've had both the Steel Rim reissue and the 35 1.4 pre-ASPH v2 (the version after the original Steel Rim), and the SPII replica is very close in rendering to them both.
This is what I am hearing about the 50mm Noct. Might have to try the Light Lens lab first.
While the LLL Panchro is great wide open and does get very sharp stopped down it also gets quite a bit of internal flare when stopped down even with the hood. I was surprised by this, asked LLL as well as on various forums and told this is just how the design works. Mine went back. and I will be content with the LLL Elcan which is great.
@@anthonymiller8979 With the sun behind me, f/8 is fine. It's a lens meant for wide open stopped down to f/5.6. I recently took a trip and shot about 95% of the shots with the SPII stopped down, about 5% wide open. And regardless of subject type or distance, it was the f/2 shots that were the keepers. Love the LLL Elcan, too, but at f/2 only the center is sharp - if your subject's eyes are too far off center, they are going to be soft.
I love the Steel Rim! I also have a 50mm Version 2 summilux. Less "glow" than the Steel Rim, but beautiful softness and bokeh. Try it out!
Coming through the glow with the first comment. Here for the premiere.
The Dropbox folder with image samples is empty.
Just fixed it! Sorry about that
oh dude, this lens is dope!
Truly a special lens!
If you live in Miami, I would love to shoot with you, m11p owner here, and looking for other street photographers
The steel rim is nice, but a step towards modern compared to the original pre asph 35mm. The original true vintage pre asph is cheaper and imho better from a character perspective wide open. Also interestingly, for a matching 50mm in terms of beautiful glow, the cheap canon 50mm f1.2 ltm is great!
Leica salesman
A video showing lens, yet all pictures are thumnbail sized vertical versions? 🤣 hardly can see anything.
Every good vintage lens has the characteristics you described. It’s nothing special but you talk like you just found the holy grail. It’s ridiculous.