Compact and sharp.

I looked at the specifications the 35mm f/2 Canon LTM lens here.

After running a roll of Kodak Ektar 100 through it I can confirm that the lens is sharp and a delight to use. The only thing I miss is an infinity lock which would make it easier to mount and remove the small optic. The only modifications I made were the addition of the requisite LTM-to-M bayonet adapter, a protective, multicoated UV filter and a red indexing dome (extremely useful), all of which you can see below.

The 35mm Canon LTM f/2 on the M3.

In addition to being in ‘like new’ condition – hard to find for a lens which is over 5 decades old – mine came from Japan for a reasonable $35 shipping fee and arrived in just 4 days by FedEx. Amazing. If our government were so efficient the nation would have no debt, we would not be wasting a $trillion annually on losing wars, and the bad guys in Russia, NK and sundry other hell holes would have long been erased from the face of the earth. One can but dream.

While the M3 lacks a 35mm finder frame, I had no difficulty composing using the outer peripheries of the viewfinder image, which approximate the field of view of a 35mm lens. Handy. The only thing to remember is that you have the 35mm fitted as the 50mm frame in the M3 is visible at all times. To remind me I installed the 35mm/135mm version of the Fotodiox LTM-to-M adapter which shows the 135mm frame as an aide memoire.

Some snaps:

If you can find a good one the Canon 35 is a cheap substitute for the ridiculously priced Leica optic.

Is the lens sharper than the costlier 35mm f/3.5 Leitz Summaron RF? I don’t know as the Speedy Photo scans (see below) are not as good as they could be. So some comparative tests using the same scanning service are called for. More when I do those.

A note on scanning: The film was scanned on a Noritsu scanner by Speedy Photo in Tacoma. They are fast – mailed on Saturday (USPS Ground), scans on Dropbox the following Tuesday – but I cannot recommend them. The resolution – and this with TIFF scans – is poor, the images are underexposed 1 stop (my exposure measurement is with the known accurate Reflx meter you can see in the first image above) and the color balance is poor. It looks to me like their scanner or operator is in serious need of service/education. I will revert to using SharpPrints in Wisconsin who use the same scanner manufacturer. I have learned that if you avoid their free pre-paid label, which uses molasses slow USPS bulk mail, and order through their Film Developing Company site which uses regular USPS, the film should get there faster and I know their HQ JPG scans to be of excellent quality. Their very responsive person assured me that C41 color negative scans are posted within 24 hours of receipt and round trip shipping is a very fair $6.95. For some reason they insist on returning your negatives. Whatever. Next time I will try their TIFF scans to determine if there is a discernible difference compared with HQ JPGs. They told me TIFF scans take no longer to produce.