Leica is well known for its luxurious gear, lenses, cameras, and accessories, and the new Leica Noctilux-M 35mm f/1.2 ASPH carries this legacy with pride. The new lens, the fastest 35mm lens ever produced by Leica, is an impressive unit. But with an almost $10K price tag and solid competition, will this lens be more than a piece of optical jewelry? A thing of beauty purchased by the 1% mostly to show the brand name? Let’s dive in. The Leica Noctilux-M 35mm f/1.2 ASPH is a surprisingly compact, moderately wide, super-fast f/1.2 lens. As with most ultra-fast lenses, and like its rare Noctilux brethren, this lens carries a price premium over its f/1.4 siblings, and the price is indeed one of the most prominent traits of this lens. For this price, you will get the absolute pinnacle of German craftsmanship and optics, culminating in an exquisite piece, capable of beautiful rendering and, not unimportantly, looking beautiful on your camera. As an M-mount lens, this one is also highly adaptable, though I doubt many non-Leica purists will opt for this one, as the market offers some interesting alternatives. As with every Leica M lens, the Leica Noctilux-M 35mm f/1.2 ASPH features mechanical rangefinder coupling, ready to work on any M-mount camera ever made. But this lens also incorporates a rather rare feature for rangefinder lenses – a close focus option. You see, Leica rangefinders are limited to a minimum focus distance of 0.7m. This limit affects most M-mount lenses. A good...
Published By: CineD - 3 days ago