SUMMILUX-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH.

New standard in portrait photography

Some lenses offer creative possibilities that go far beyond the usual and make images unmistakable. This 90mm Summilux lens enables portraits with a breathtakingly shallow depth of field, with a subject that is perfectly sharp on the one hand and a pleasant-looking background that has been blurred out on the other.

The optical design of the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. sets new standards: It achieves exorbitant optical performance even at the fully open aperture and, in combination with the slight telephoto focal length, enables not only outstanding portraits, but also available light photography and, thanks to the short close-up limit, also the highlighting of details with a unique design.

The optical design

The Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. is very elaborately constructed with 8 lenses, including two aspherical lenses made of special glass, in 6 groups. A floating element, which is only possible with great effort in such compact lenses, ensures that the extreme optical performance of the lens is maintained at all distance settings.

This extraordinary performance is also demonstrated by the MTF curves, which show the finest details and excellent detail contrast even at fully open aperture with almost no loss of performance right up to the edge at all shooting distances.

The shortest shooting distance of one meter, which is unusual for such a fast lens, enables an image scale of 1:8.8 and underlines the lens' excellent suitability for portraits. With its light intensity at this focal length, the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. fully exploits the possibilities of the M bayonet. Optically and in terms of design, it is closely related to the Noctilux-M 1:1.25/75 ASPH. and offers approximately the same extremely narrow depth of field, which is only around half as large as the Noctilux-M 1:0.95/50 ASPH.

The complex construction and special glass ensure that vignetting and distortion, which are almost unavoidable with very fast lenses, play practically no role. The built-in lens hood can be pulled out and locked in no time at all, which ensures optimal protection against stray light and reflections.

Perfection through Precision

It is not just special materials and lenses that ensure the unique performance of the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH., but also the particularly precise and sophisticated manufacturing. This guarantees not only the optical performance but also the durability and value of this special lens. The extremely soft focusing is one result of this craftsmanship, the wonderful and controllable bokeh, which requires extremely precise adjustment of the lenses, is another.

With its ability to create a three-dimensional image of subjects through an extremely small depth of field and at the same time to allow a certain distance through its focal length, the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. clearly stands out from the classic portrait focal lengths.

With its extremely shallow depth of field at a fully open aperture, the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. not only enables precise image control, but also places high demands on precise focusing, for which the Visoflex viewfinder on the Leica M serves well.

With the M-Adapter L, the Summilux-M 1:1.5/90 ASPH. also represents an attractive addition to the system for the Leica SL and Leica SL2.