LEITZ Summicron 5cm F2(Retractable)
Early Summicron retractable telescopes
A review and Photo example of the ELMAR M 50mm F2.8.
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Table of contents
Gallery
- Sample photo taken with the LEICA M8.2.
Review
1．Overview
The Summicron 5cm F2 is a 50mm standard lens released by Leica in 1951.
The lens consists of 7 elements in 6 groups, and has a minimum shooting distance of 1m, linked to the rangefinder of a Leica M camera.
The filter diameter is 39mm, and it uses a retractable lens barrel.
2．Usage
The lens I had was cheaply purchased, so it was a little scratched and cloudy.
I was able to enjoy the soft depiction at full aperture in samples 1, 2, and 4, and the neat depiction at a slightly stopped-down aperture in samples 3 and 5.
Also, the lens was not fixed in place loosely, so when adjusting the aperture, the lens would come out when retracting, which caused me to stop shooting. At first I panicked when it came out, wondering if it was broken, but after the second time, I was able to calm down and put it back in place and continue shooting. Lenses with a fixed barrel are better because this doesn’t happen as much.
The filter diameter of the Summicron has remained the same since the retractable type, E39, 39mm. Many hoods can be used, such as IROOA and ITDOO.
3．Add Info
The final form of the original 50mm lens, this long-lived lens has been in production to this day (2024) with changes to its exterior design.
The lens configuration is a Gaussian lens like its predecessor, the Summitar, but instead of the 7 elements in 4 groups that made extensive use of bonding, the Summitar has a 7 elements in 6 groups with fewer bonded surfaces, and this design refinement results in better image quality than the Summitar.
The original retractable lens configuration is the same as the silver fixed barrel, but the black fixed barrel has changed to a 6 elements in 4 groups configuration, and the latest M-mount Summicron 50mm has a similar configuration.
The first Summicron was manufactured in 250,000 units, and can be broadly divided into three types: the retractable type, the fixed barrel, and the fixed barrel + glasses. Retractable lenses were manufactured in parallel in both L39 and M39 mounts, and according to calculations from Leica Wiki, just over 50,000 L39 mount lenses were manufactured by 1955, and just under 50,000 M mount lenses by 1956. There are around 100,000 retractable lenses alone, so if you don’t mind the condition, you can find one if you look hard enough.
Specification
| Items | Hektor | Summar | Summitar | Summicron |
| Focal length | 5(cm) | ← | ← | ← |
| Max aperture | 2.5 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Min aperture | 18 | 12.5 | 12.5/16 | 16 |
| Leaf blade | 6 | 6/10 | 6 | 10/16 |
| Lens Construction | 6elements in 3groups | 6elements in 4groups | 7elements in 4groups | ← |
| Min distance(m) | 1.0 | ← | ← | ← |
| Lens length(mm) | 32 | – | – | – |
| レンズ最大径(mm) | 47 | 47.8 | 47.8 | 47 |
| Filter size(mm) | A36 | ← | 36.5 | 39 |
| Hood | FIKUS | FIKUS/SOOMP | SOOPD | SOOFM / IROOA / ITDOO |
| Weight(g) | 190 130 | 205 180 | 240 | – |
| Release date | 1930 | 1933 | 1938 | 1951 |
| Production number | 5,600 | 127,950 | 172,390 | 253,314 |
Reference links
- Leica Wiki Summicron 5cm F2
- Classic Camera Selection 19: How to Identify Leica Lenses (Asahi Sonorama) – Amazon Affiliate Link
- The book describes the specifications and the differences in specifications, but does not mention lens depiction.
- The appendix includes a diagram of the lens construction.
- Leica Lenses (Shashin Kogyosha) – Amazon Affiliate Link
- The Summicron retractable type is reviewed by Kazunori Kawata in P90
Update history
- 2024.06.06
Affiliate links
- Amazon Affiliate link / Leica lens
- Amazon Affiliate link / Leica digital
- Amazon Affiliate link / Leica camera body
- Amazon Affiliate link / Leica accessory
- Amazon Affiliate link / Leica book
