LEITZ XENON 5cm F1.5
Early large aperture standard lens
A review and photo examples of the LEITZ XENON L39 50mm F1.5.
Table of contents
Gallery
- 写真作例の撮影はLEICA M9
Review
1．Overview
According to the Leica Wiki, the Xenon 50mm F1.5 was a bright standard lens made by Schneider and released in 1935, the predecessor to the Summarit and Summilux.
Around 6,000 were produced between 1935 and 1939.
Only the L-mount version of the lens exists, so when using it with an M-type Leica, an M/L ring is attached.
The minimum shooting distance is 1m, the aperture has six blades, and there is a stopper at the infinity position of the lens similar to that of Elmar.
The exterior design differs depending on the year of manufacture, with early models having two bands on the focus ring and later models having three bands.
2．Usage
Xenon lenses are already 90 years old, and as of 2024, they are relatively rare even on the used market.
When I bought this lens, I had already reached the peak of my interest in Leica lenses, and I saw a used one at Kitamura Camera, and since it was not expensive considering how rare it was, I bought it.
It worked well with the Leica M9 I was using at the time, and I was able to focus on the desired position by using the double image alignment in the rangefinder at full aperture. The image is generally soft, probably because it is an old lens and has cloudiness and scratches.
There is little roughness in the background bokeh, and some people may like the melting feeling. There is also a rugby ball-shaped blur due to vignetting in the peripheral areas.
As for the focus ring, the lens I owned had a moderate stickiness and was easy to focus on, but this is also probably the result of an overhaul at some point.
3．Add Info.
Leica’s bright standard lenses were supplied with this Xenon for a short period of time, before moving on to the long-lasting Summilux. Then it was replaced by the first-generation Summilux.
I tried three generations of lenses, Xenon, Summilux, and Summilux, but I didn’t feel a big difference between the Xenon and Summilux. The Summilux lenses gave the most stable results, perhaps due to the better condition of the lenses.
Leica’s standard lenses include this bright standard lens series, the Summicron-led F2 lens series, and the F2.8 Elmar series. All of these are a matter of preference, so it’s best to try out the lens design and find the lens that gives you the image you like.
The Noctilux series is large and heavy, so it falls into the category of special lenses rather than standard lenses.
Specification
| Items | XENON | SUMMARIT | SUMMILUX 1st |
| Focal length(mm) | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Max aperture | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.4 |
| Min aperture | 9 | 16 | 16 |
| Lens Construction | 7 elements in 5 groups | 7 elements in 5 groups | 7 elements in 5 groups |
| Aperture blades | 6 | 15 | 16 |
| Min distance(m) | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Lens length(mm) | – | 43 | 52 |
| Lens Max diameter(mm) | 47 | 47 | 53 |
| Filter Size(mm) | A43/E41 | A43/E41 | A45/E43 |
| Lens hood | XIOOM | XOONS | XOOIM |
| Lens mount | L39 | L39/M | M |
| Weight (g) | 300 | 320 | 320 |
| Production numbers | 6,504 | 74,643 | 19,600 |
| Release date | 1935〜1939 | 1939〜1957 | 1958〜1961 |
Reference links
Update history
- 2025.1.4
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