Which lenses should I keep?

[jaz1943]

I just received my first leica, an m6. I have 4 lenses in my stable: a very sharp voigtlander 50mm f1.5 ASPH, a very sharp voigtlander 35mm f1.7 ultron, a so so voigtlander 35mm f2.5 color skopar, and pretty good voigtlander 21mm f4. I want to keep two of them. Help me make a decision. I am leaning towards the 50mm and the 35mm f1.7 ultron.

 

[Jeff Kubach]

I like wide angle lenses, so my choices are the 21 and the 35.

Jeff

 

[ruby.monkey]

What's your preferred focal length?

Personally I'd keep the 50mm, and replace all the rest with a 25 or 28mm - the 28mm f/3.5 Color Skopar being my favourite; or perhaps go the other way and grab a 90mm Summicron or screw-mount Nikon 85mm f/2.

 

[snapguy]

only you (shades of Roy Orbison)

Only you can decide which lenses to keep because you know how you work and we don't. Back in the days when prime lenses were, well, prime, I heartily disliked the 135mm lens. It was being touted by the cam mags and manufacturers as a sort-of- telephoto and sort-of portrait lens and I thought it was a dud for both. Then I went to the U. S Open Tennis ournament (then, in Forest Hills, NY) and found a perfect spot to get great photos with a 135. So ya never know. I'd keep all the lenses.

 

[trythis]

Yep. Keep em.

 

[250swb]

If any had to go I would prefer the 35mm f/2.5 Skopar over the Ultron, I can only think you consider it 'so-so' if it's faulty. But really, I'd keep them all, it may be over months or years, but sooner or later there will be a use for all of them.

Steve

 

[nsurit]

Well, the 35mm f3.5 is expendable. Anything else you will either learn to live with regret or replace the offed lens at a higher price in the future. Bill Barber

 

[NJH]

If one is happy with the performance of a lens and is using it at least some of the time then keep it. In your case you are clearly not happy with the 35 skopar so that would be gone. I don't think the brand or model should be anything to do with it, my best lens by a mile for example is my copy of the 28 Elmarit ASPH, it really is superlative. The internet favourites the ZM 50 Sonar probably my most disappointing lens and that other internet favourite the 50 Elmar-M a bit meh to be brutal, its cross frame performance doesn't look any better to the 50 ZM Planar I have the 'magical' rendering or bokeh I just don't see it. Therefore my advice is to complete ignore the opinions people give you about which lenses are good great or not and just keep the ones you are happy with, move on the ones you are not and try others. The M lens universe is enormous even buying and selling a few lenses a year it would take one very many years to get even half way round it.

 

[narsuitus]

Which lenses should I keep?

Based on my shooting style, I would keep all except the 35mm f/2.5.

I would also get a moderate telephoto such as a 90mm.

 

[jaz1943]

I'm keeping the 35mm f1.7 ultron and the 21mm f4 color skopar. Would like to keep them all but need to payoff the m6!

 

[Dr Croubie]

I can't say what you should do, but I'll say what I did.
I've got the 21/4, 40/1.4, 90/3.5, and recently added a Jupiter 50/2 because it was cheap.
I've always got my eye on either a 90/2 cron, 75/1.8 CV, or 75/1.4 summilux when I win the lottery.
Maybe one day I'll add a 28mm. But 35mm is too close to my current 40 so not going to bother.
I'd also love a 50/1.5 M-mount Nokton (apparently the LTMs aren't so good), but can't afford/justify it.

If I were you, unless you really really like the 35/2.5 for size (I'm presuming it's smaller than the Ultron), then ditch that and keep the other three.

As nice and as cheap as the CV lenses are, they don't actually come up for auction on the 'bay that often, maybe one of each every week or two (trust me, I'm constantly on the lookout for cheap ones). So if you ditch one and then decide you want it back, you may have to wait a while for a cheap one or pay a higher store/BIN/keh price.

 

[NJH]

Frequently available from outfits like Ffordes here in the UK. I don't even bother looking at ebay as the prices are often silly. I bought a 21/4 from those guys up in Scotland for £170, it looked rough but works fine, I also recently got a 75/2.5 from them for £220 or so. My god what a bargain that has turned out to be it matches my two modern Leica lenses for performance. Sorry if this sounds like an advert for them as I do have some issues with them but reliable bargainous provider of secondhand CV lenses is something they deliver on in spades.