Inspiringly-beautiful images. Very-useable close-up focusing. Beautifully-built...mine's 21 years old & feels like new. I even quite like the "heaviness"...it helps camera-shake. Not that expensive s/h (in Leica-terms!)

None 4 me!

Only recently put together a Leica R set-up, based around a R6.2. Of all the lenses (28mm f2.8, 50mm f2.0 & 180mm f3.4), this one stands out. It just sucks the light in. The colours are gorgeous. It's sharp, but the out-of-field stuff's lovely and soft. The short-tele + the close-focusing make it a practical quick close-up lens. Somehow I just see good pictures with this one, and the prints never disappoint.

Similar Products Used:

Contax G2 80mm f2.8

Built like a tank and very good optics.

Heavy for a 90 f2, but worth the weight.

I just sold every piece of Canon EOS equipment I owned to get into the Leica system. VERY impressed with my 90mm f2. It has the smoothest transitions I have ever seen. I also have an older 250mm f4 Telyt which is also nice, but the 90 is my new best friend..

Customer Service

I hear good things... haven''t needed them yet.-

Similar Products Used:

Cannon EOS 100 f2, Nikon AF 85 f1.8 (I knew it was built cheap, but I didn''t realize how much until Leitz showed up. It was sharp, though.)

High f-speed of f/2 ! Bright viefinder with it, excellent portrait-lens, high resolution, good contrast, very good colors, it is a very good working-horse for many years and many years to come you can rely on. And the prices on the used-market are very good.

Not as sharp as the newer APO-lenses but unbeatable in it''s class.

I got this lens used in a near mint condition. I also use a Leica R8 with 4/35-70 and 2.8/70-180, but this lens with an Elmarit 2.8/35 and my Leica R8 is the lightest combination to go for when hiking or traveling cities. Also in areas with a high crime rate. Nobody pays attention to a photographer with an "old style" manual chrome-colored camera with 2 short lenses. You don''t need a backpack or camera bag for that. If I use my R8 with winder and the Vario-Apo-Elmarit 2.8/70-180 which is expensive as a good used car, I always get attention, also from those people that shouldnt ! The optical performance of the SUmmicron 90 is very good. Not as good as those of newer APO-lenses. But still nearly on par with. Veiling flare is nearly non-existent and when shooting portraits, the lens is sharp an soft ant the same time. Nobody likes portraits with an ultra-sharp Apo-Macro-Elmarit 2.8/100 ! The Summicron 90 is a lens which optical design hasn''t been changed for 30 years. And it is a good companion an working-horse for most of my work.

Customer Service

Great ! Fast and friendly. Unbeatable compared to Canon or Nikon

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-70/2.8 L USM, Canon EF 80-200/2.8 L, Leica Vario-Elmar 4/35-70 Asph and Vario-Apo-Elmarit 70-180/2.8

Solid construction, rich colors, excellent detail, negligible flare.

It's heavy!

At full aperture this lens does not have the mind-boggling sharpness of the 100 APO-Macro but the rich, clean colors, excellent detail, lack of flare and especially the smooth out-of-focus area make this a superb portrait lens. I bought this lens used 20 years ago and has needed service once, for a sticky aperture control ring.

Customer Service

n/a

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 85mm f/1.8

Construction, richness of colours, sharpness

Can't think of much here

I have never tried the Leica 80mm /1,4, but I wouldn't think the extra f-stop is worth the bucks...the 90mm /2 also focuses down to 0,7m, while 80mm "only" goes down to 1m.
The bottom line for me is that is a really superb portrait lens!

Customer Service

No.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS 85mm /1,8 USM

Sharpness
Contrast
Build Quality

None

I gave up shooting SLR's a number of years ago in favor of the M series Leica. Low light, wide angle subjects comprise most of my imagery, but I've always disliked the compositional problems of rangefinders with tele lenses. Up till now I've put up with these problems to gain the advantage of the Leica glass.
A couple of months ago I tried this lens on an R3 body and fell in love with it. Again, though my use of the tele lens is minimal, I now feel confident that framing will be dead accurate (sometimes hard to judge with the rangefinders small 90mm framelines), and that the image will have the sharpness I demand.

Customer Service

The best

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 105
Olympus 100mm F2.0