SUMMICRON R 35mm (Typ-I)

Not called the legendary nine-elements.

A review and Photo example of the SUMMICRON R 35mm F2 (Typ-I).

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Gallery

Sample photo taken with the LEICA SL Typ601.

Review

Overview
Usage
Add info

1．Overview

The Summicron-R 35mm I-type was released in 1970 and is a Leica R-mount lens with a focal length of 35mm. Approximately 11,000 units were produced.

The lens is made up of 9 elements in 7 groups, weighs 500g, and has 8 aperture blades.

The I-type lens introduced here is available in 1-cam, 2-cam, and 3-cam versions.
The square hood 12509 can accommodate a Series 7 filter and is also equipped with a rotating mechanism for PL filters. The hood 12509 is the same as that of the Elmarit-R 28mm (first generation) and Elmarit-R 35mm (second generation).

2．Usage

The image is rough around the edges because the lens is an old design.
Compared to the sharpness in the center, the resolution in the corners is clearly lower. This lens is best suited to scenes that make the most of the subject near the center. If you want to get a uniform image across the entire 35mm format, it is better to use a modern lens.

Though the image is old, the front lens is greatly curved, which makes you want to own it.

When you remove the hood, the lens has a tapered tip (also called a taper) with a hood fixing pin, and has a design similar to the Summilux-R 50mm (first generation), Elmarit-R 28mm (first generation), and Elmarit-R 35mm (second generation).

The R lenses of this era have a unique shape with bumps and grooves that differ in style from mass-produced industrial designs, and are as good in design as the Elmarit-R 19mm (first generation), Elmarit-R 24mm, and Super-Angulon 21mm F3.4 and F4.

The lens I own is a 3-cam modified with a ROM terminal, and it is a rare lens because it is not often seen on eBay. I bought it on consignment at a yellow shop with a cross on it in Ginza.

3．Add info.

HASSELBLAD X2D

Even in 35mm format, the peripheral areas are soft, so when used with the medium-format digital camera HASSELBLAD X2D, which has a larger sensor size, the vignetting is not so noticeable, but the roughness in the corners becomes more noticeable.

M mount SUMMICRON

The first M-mount Summicron has a famous nickname, such as the legendary 8-element lens, but the first R-mount Summicron has no nickname or legend. The lens barrel, which was obviously more expensive than the Type II, stimulates the desire to own it, but it is only popular among a small number of R-mount enthusiasts, which is probably one of the reasons why it is difficult to come up with a nickname.

New R-Mount Summicron 35mm

The successor Type II (new model) Summicron-R 35mm had a more compact lens barrel, fewer lens elements, was lighter in weight, and had fewer aperture blades, making it less expensive than the Type I.
This Type II was released in 1976, at the same time as the LEICA R3, and the lens barrel design adopted the modern design of Leica R lenses to match the LEICA R3 and later cameras.

Similar Lenses

The original R-mount Summicron 35mm had a lens configuration of 9 elements in 7 groups, and a similar lens with 9 elements in 7 groups was the DISTAGON 35mm F2, released by COSINA for Carl ZEISS brand SLR cameras.

The DISTAGON 35mm F2 was released in 2006 in Nikon F mount and M42 mount without a built-in CPU, and shortly thereafter in Pentax K mount.

In 2010, the Nikon F and Canon EF were released with the same lens configuration but with a built-in CPU.
In 2016, the Nikon F and Canon EF were released with the same lens configuration, but with a new exterior and brand name changed to MILVUS, and with a built-in CPU.

The lens configuration diagram for the old Summicron is shown on page 51 of the Quarterly Classic Camera No. 17 “Special Feature: Leica SLR R Lenses vs. M Lenses”, and if you compare them, you will see that the Summicron R 35mm (Old) has lenses scattered throughout the entire lens barrel, while the Distagon (now Milvus) 35mm F2 has lenses concentrated in the rear lens, making them completely different. However, it is interesting to note that they look the same just by looking at the letters.

DISTAGON 35mm F2 – Diagram taken from Zeiss official PDF

Specification

Lens name	SUMMICRON R 35mm(Typ-I)	SUMMICRON R 35mm(Typ-II)	DISTAGON 35mm
focal length(mm)	35	35	35
Maximum aperture	2	2	2
Minimum aperture	16	16	22
Lead blade	8	6	9
Lens configuration	9element in 7group	6element in 6group	9element in 7group
Minimum distance(m)	0.3	0.3	0.3
Lens length(mm)	61.5	57.5	72(Nikon-F)
Lens max diameter(mm)	66	66	63.4(Nikon-F)
Lens hood	12509	Build in	Bayonet type cylindrical hood
Filter diameter(mm)	Series 7(or E48)	55	58
Weight(g)	508 (with hood and Filter 569)	430	240
Lens mount	LEICA R	LEICA R	NIKON-F
Production numbers	11,316	29,839	–
Release date	1970	1976	2006