More photos done with the APO-Summicron SL 1:2/50 ASPH. And, I actually bought another lens today...

While the APO Summicron 50 SL is big and heavy it's also a spectacular lens. Especially so when attached to the front of an SL2. But then photography isn't a sport for sissies. It's heavy but not as heavy as the Carl Zeiss 50mm f1.4 Milvus lens I had in the early part of 2024. A great lens in its own right but so front heavy it was uncomfortable to use for any extended length of time. If you want to use the 50 APO but can't handle the weight of a Leica SL there is always the option of using a Panasonic camera like the S5. The camera won't have the same color and performance characteristics but being part of the L mount alliance it will recognize the lens, transmit the correct profile and work flawlessly as regards AF and exposure. The S5 is half the weight of an SL2. 

I am currently planning a trip to West Texas. I haven't been for any length of time since 2010 when I thought of writing a book about road trips. A publisher signed up to do the book but we had a falling out over production specs, who was responsible for which part of marketing, etc. etc. and I ended up sending them back their advance and taking their number off my "Rolodex." 

The 2026 adventure would be very much just for fun. And since that's the case, and I'll have a car to serve as an extended camera bag, I'll take the SL2 camera and the 50mm and be stern with myself  so I don't bail on that selection this time around. A perfect "road trip combo."  More to come as soon as I know it. 

I've been playing with my Leica CL again this week. It's an inspiring, tiny, solid camera but what's been missing from my dedicated CL gear is a decent, normal focal length kit lens. A zoom for day-to-day use. I have any number of rangefinder lenses I can use with the camera as well as a little set of Sigma Contemporary prime lenses but I never really got along well with the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 lens I bought for the system. I sold that when I sold one of my redundant CLs last year. And I've missed the flexibility of a normal zoom lens. 

I've read so many good things about Leica's own little zoom, the 18-56mm, but I was hesitant to buy one because they seemed pricey back when the camera was still in production and, I was a little bit hesitant because of the slow maximum apertures at each end of the focal length range. Silly me. I have more than enough f1.4, fast primes to augment a zoom when the light goes dark, and I spend most of my time with cameras in full daylight. Why, all of a sudden was I thinking I'd be hobbled by a slow zoom for use at midday? No idea. 

Anyway, one came up for sale on Leica Store Miami's website this weekend and I liked the price so I thrashed a credit card once again. I guess the lens will arrive sometime in the middle of next week. The thing that pushed me over the edge was the realization (Thanks B!) that I could also use the lens on one of my SL2 cameras and the camera would automatically set itself to shoot in APS-C mode. And it would still provide 22 megapixels of great data. And the camera would also add IBIS to the mix. 

Adding a small and light zoom to the SL2 would certainly go a long way to cut down on both the size and weight of the complete package while delivering AF and full automation via all of the camera's features. Seems like a nice back-up to using the lens with just the CL. 

The Leica 18-56mm = 27-84mm in full frame speak. It has a 3.5 aperture at the 18mm end of the zoom ring and an f5.6 aperture at the long end of the zoom ring. Slow but not "deal-killer" slow. 

I'll give it a bit of a workout on arrival. Hope there are some mannequins around to strut their stuff, otherwise I'll have to resort to photographing real humans ---- and what's the challenge there?