A Cold Wander Down the Back Alleys of Hastings

More photos from when I took the Leica out for a spin in the back alleys of Hastings on a properly cold day, and I gotta say—this camera just does not care about the weather. No drama, no fuss, just kept clicking away like it was made for this. And the battery? Absolute champ. I half expected it to drop dead halfway through, but it barely budged.

Wooden pallets stacked behind a chain-link fence with snow on top. — Stacks of wooden pallets with snow on top, enclosed behind a chain-link fence.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

The snow covered alleys were a nice bonus. Hastings Street is always that perfect mix of decay and amazing textures, but when you throw a fresh layer of snow on top, everything looks just a little more derelict and rundown.

Stacks of flattened cardboard on blue pallets with snow on top. — Stacks of flattened cardboard sit on blue pallets, covered in snow, against a gray brick wall.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

The usual graffiti and rusted-out metal had an extra contrast to it—bright whites against all that peeling paint and tagged-up walls. It made the fences, dumpsters, and boarded-up windows stand out as even more rundown and abandoned.

A white metal gate with a snow-covered driveway and brick walls. — A white metal gate with a snow-covered driveway, surrounded by brick walls.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

I think I’m really starting to get what makes the Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966” special. Some of these shots are starting to have that… something. That characteristic of old school lenses that’s hard to explain but easy to see.

Snow-covered utility box with red graffiti and various stickers on a street path. — A snow-covered utility box covered in graffiti and stickers, standing beside a snowy street path.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

People will talk about a lens’s quantifiable characteristics a lot when they describe if it is a “good lens” or not. But whether it is sharp or not and if it has a lot of vignette to it doesn’t describe the lens’ look as a whole. This lens… It’s got this slightly imperfect quality that when used in just the right way, it gets ‘that look” I think…

A white door with a red metal railing and graffiti on a gray brick wall. — White Door with Red Railings
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

I am finding that f/2.0 might be the magical spot for this lens. The lens sharpens up quite a bit as compared to f/1.2 or f/1.4 but it is still shallow enough to show that… something. I think this would shine on a camera with a higher resolution… Just a hunch.

A small brick building with a black door marked "2145," snow-covered ground, and a red graffiti face. — A small brick building with a black door labeled “2145,” a red graffiti face, and snow on the ground.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

Abandoned auto repair building with boarded windows, graffiti, and a snow-covered ground. — A boarded-up auto repair shop with graffiti on the walls and a snow-covered ground.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

Rusty metal post and chain-link fence with graffiti stickers and barbed wire — A rusted metal post and chain-link fence with graffiti stickers, barbed wire, and a blurred background.
**Camera**: Leica M-D (typ 262)
**Lens**: Light Lens Lab 50mm f/1.2 ASPH “1966”

Anyway, just a good day out with the camera, the cold.