Just about 3 months ago, I posted the unboxing video of this lens that I've bought used from an internet forum.  I was so excited, because of the endless praises it had received, with some even touted it to be the "best 50mm lens ever made".  Now that I've had ample time to use it almost everyday, I feel that I can finally make a judgement and share some of my thoughts on this lens.

There's an old saying: "Good, fast, or cheap -- pick any two."  While it may hold true for most things, I believe the 50'Lux could well be the exception to that rule.  Although it isn't exactly cheap, it is certainly affordable, or obtainable, if you really think you want it and willing to save for it.  With a max aperture of f/1.4, it definitely fulfills the name that it was given ("summi" = maximum, "lux" = light), and it's only bested by the Noctilux ("nocti" = night) in the Leica line of 50mm lenses.  Just how good is it?

Two posts in one day!  I just raised my head and saw this on the wall of the stairs... The sun light beamed down from the upstairs bathroom window and landed on the side of this silver frame, creating this interesting scene.  Had to shoot quickly before it moved.

My friend, jonoslack (Jonathan Slack), said something that got me thinking: "If a photograph is interesting, nobody cares if it's technically good. If a photograph isn't interesting, nobody cares at all."  Coincidentally, yesterday was Henri Cartier-Bresson's birthday and I wondered... when people viewed HCB's photographs, how many cared what gears he used, what aperture, and whether they had sharp focus or were they exposed properly?  It's not something I care about when an image strikes me.  How do I make my photos more "interesting"?  So I did a little experiment... while my son was writing his letters and numbers, I tried to take some photos of him with different angles, orientation, and focus points.

Or, some call it the "Thousand yard stare".  According to wikipedia, it is a phrase coined to describe the limp, unfocused gaze of a battle-weary warrior, but the symptom it describes may also be found among victims of other types of trauma.

Whatever it is called, I find it to be great when capturing portraits.  When done right, it can bring a boost of dignity to the subject, and a bit of mystery to make viewers wonder that the subject is thinking.

I caught this shot of my son last Saturday morning.  From the little "monster" backpack on his back, you can tell he was being his jovial self and playing around, but for just one second, he had this deep look, and I was lucky to have the camera ready in hand to take a quick snap.

Been a bit busy with work lately, but it's shots like this that reinforce that idea that I should at least take a few shots every day, because you'll never capture life's fleeting moments if the camera isn't even on!

Went out with friends and family last night, or I should say early this morning, to try to catch the show in the sky -- the annual Perseid Meteor Shower.  While it wasn't as spectacular as the Leonids that I saw about 10 years ago, we still saw a few "fireballs" that make the kids oooh and aaah.  Since we had two cars full of people and young kids, we didn't drive to far out of the city, but we were able to find a secluded spot on the side of a mountain pass to block out some of the lights from the city.

I set out to catch some falling stars with the M9, but didn't end up with any in my shots.  I did search online for some of the suggested settings for an event like this:

• wide angle lens (I brought the Zeiss 25mm Biogon)
• high ISO 1000 or above (I tried both 800 and 400 with the M9)
• fast aperture to let in the lights (I actually tried various apeture from f/2.8 to f/8)
• about 10-30 seconds of exposure time

I also found a hidden self-timer mode with the M9 which will allow me to expose it for as long as I want:

• in the menu, set the self-timer to 2 or 12 seconds and turn the camera power switch to the timer mode
• turn the shutter dial to "B" for bulb-mode
• press the shutter once to open the shutter, and in the viewfinder, you'll see a counter starts to count
• press the shutter lightly again to closer the shutter

What I've learned was that even for a 30 seconds exposure, you can easily see the stars' movement when viewing the files at 100%.  But since the meteors disappear so quickly, you pretty much have to be lucky to capture any with a short exposure time.  So... while I failed to catch any shooting stars... I still got a few nice captures of the night sky, and everyone had great fun :)

Luckily for me, and not so much for my wallet, at the same time of acquiring the 25mm Zeiss Biogon, I also found a pristine copy of the Leica 28mm Elmarit ASPH.  Since I've been wanting to try shooting with some wide angle lenses, there's no better way to start than with these two fine lenses!  The Elmarit arrived on my birth date, just in time for a weekend trip in Vegas, see gallery [HERE].

Of course, I don't think I will be keeping both as their focal length are too close and both have f/2.8 aperture.  However, I plan to take my time and not make a hasty decision.  I was originally tempted to do one of those "shoot out" type test where I would shoot the same subjects with both lenses and compare which one produces the image that I prefer.  I may still do that, but I feel it's too analytical and takes away the "enjoyment".  Instead, since I have them in hand, I want to really get to know each lens so the decision won't be based on images alone, but also on ergonomics, how they feel in actual use, and just my overall impression after using them for a few months.  So, this battle will be one of many to come... as I will bringing both lenses with me, giving both ample time of usage, and let the results speak for themselves.  It's a tough job, but somebody has to do it :)