Recently, the trend amongst some Leica shooters has been to purchase vintage lenses and mount them on modern digital camera bodies.

There’s no doubt about the appeal of many of these old Leica lenses:  they offer an alternative visual fingerprint, are more compact, and may be had at a low purchase price as compared to their modern counterparts.

Given all this, why did I “buck the trend” and return the 1937 50mm Summar Collapsible f/2 I had in my possession last week, after only 24 hrs of use?

Because there’s always a trade-off.

In the case of the 50mm Summar, the problem is its jarring bokeh:

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More and more these days, I seek out lenses that help me to tell my story, not ones that (unpredictably) impose their own.

In the examples above, the lens is interfering with the visual narrative by drawing attention away from the (intended) subjects and onto its vertiginous background blur.

Admittedly, when conditions are right, the 50mm Summar performs acceptably — perhaps even admirably:

↑All images:  Leica M9 and Leitz (Leica) 50mm Summar Collapsible f/2 (1937).

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Even when this old 50mm Summar exhibits relatively tame bokeh, when I compare other aspects of its performance (including microcontrast) to, say, my 50mm Summilux ASPH, there’s just no contest.

—Peter.