So Many M 50's... Shooting with three of Them, Part 1

[Rodenmg]

Absolutely, I'm trying to make up my mind which to keep. I just spent quite a bit of money having the older ASPH refurbished by Leica so hate to let go of it so soon. But the newer version is like you stated.

When the older one was off at Leica and I was shooting with the newer one I could swear the newer one was more clinical and sharper than the older one which had more character and charm. Now I'm seeing their performance nearly identical. I think Leica screwed me and took some of that charm out of my lens and I want it back.

 

[Rodenmg]

Ninja Star bokeh balls.

Yep, the ASPH has the strongest Kung Fu.

The Newer CF and the Noct aren't perfect but noticeably smoother. Makes me wonder why Leica doesn't used curved aperture blades?

As a wacky-bokeh lover (or is that wacky bokeh-lover?) I like the Ninja Stars and other odd OOF shapes. The post-WWII Zeiss 50mm Sonnars do the same thing. Unfortunately it looks coolest at the apertures where focus shift is also most obvious. There are even claims Zeiss went with the star shape to reduce focus shift effects…

-Dave-

Looking at the shape of the aperture blades I think it's intentional by design. I can see why you like the stars. They can look pretty cool if you don't zoom in too close.

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... Mike
... https://www.flickr.com/photos/198581502@N02/