The Leica Summicron is a legend in the world of 35mm photography. The Leica 35 Summicron F2 – ASPH or Pre-ASPH – ( My review here) My #1 choice when money is no object – No compromises So below I will list my recommended 35mm lenses for your Leica M9 or Leica M film camera and I will break them down by speed, price and character! Hope you find it useful and an enjoyable read. So if you do find a cheap 35 that is not coded it may be worth buying it and self coding it with one of those self coding kits like this one. But it’s not really that bad with a 35, not like it is with a 21 or 24. On the M9, 35mm and wider lenses need to be coded or else you can get all kinds of issues like red edges and vignetting. Either a coded lens or a self coded lens. The one thing I would recommend for any and all M9 shooters is that your 35mm be coded. WHAT LENS TO BUY? This is a question that I can not answer for you as it depends on your budget, your needs, and your desires! Do you want a low cost lens? Do you want the best of the best? Do you want ONLY Leica? This is the question so many of you ask me. Maybe that is how I view the world? Ha ha. Summarit, Summicron, Summilux, or even a Voigtlander or Zeiss, the 35mm focal length always seems to bring me the best results. While going over all of my shots in the last 8 months my overall faves have been with a 35mm. On any M the 35mm frame lines seem like the most natural to compose with. A 50 will get you closer and make for a good short portrait lens but the 35 on an M just has something classical about it, and it seems to work well in 90% of all situations. Sure, the M9 and a 50 would also make for a great one lens kit but a 35mm lets you get more in the frame. After months of using various lenses on the M9 and film M cameras I have concluded that if you can only get ONE lens and one lens only, my opinion is that it should be a 35mm. So let’s say that you have committed on shelling out $7k for the camera. Sure, its just a sensor inside of an M body loaded with electronics but when you add a Leica lens to the camera it makes for one of the best digital tools I have ever used.

So let me discuss them here and share some photos with them as well.įirst, if you are shelling out the $7,000 and buying an M9 then congratulations! It’s a camera that will serve you well and while it is a VERY expensive camera it is also a special one in many ways. Nope, the single best lens depends on YOU and what you want to shoot! I do have a few “favorite” lenses in the focal length that I think is the best to start with.

One question that I get asked quite often (about 8-12 times per day on some days) is “If you could buy only one lens for the M9, what would it be?” Well, I wanted to write a post about this so I can just send the link to all of those who ask because the answer is not as easy as saying “Oh, the 50 Summilux”.

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