The Noctilux is large, heavy, and very expensive. You might think at this price and given its manufacturer that it would be optically perfect, much like the new APO 50 mm lens. Read the booklet that comes with it and learn about light fall-off and vignetting toward the edges of the lens. And then remember that this is one of the best lenses around. Despite the scary terms like vignetting etc., this lens is very, very good, and allows handheld shots in very dim light that would require a tripod with most other cameras and lenses. And that's the main point here why you would spend $3500 USD over the cost of the optically superior APO lens because you can carry the 'M' camera with lens in a small bag that doesn't make you look like a photographer, meaning you can get into more places and capture more images (and more interesting images) than you would carrying the typical camera bag and/or tripod.
The Noctilux physically is extremely well built and has accurate markings for f-stops with 1/2 stop indents, feet and metres for zone focusing, and a depth of field scale for apertures 0.95, 2, 4, 8, 11, and 16. You apparently have to interpolate for apertures between those values. The lens has electronic sensors that identify it to modern or upgraded 'M' cameras, and most of the relevant information is recorded in the image EXIF data. What's puzzling is the lack of f-stop number in that EXIF data, or even in the image playback on the LCD screen (Monochrom camera I don't know exactly what's recorded with other Leica cameras). This lens is physically focused with some effort, and would never auto-focus on a camera equipped with such a facility.
While the Noctilux has exceptional low-light capabilities due to the lens quality and f0.95 maximum aperture, the depth of field in actual shooting situations can be almost hair-thin. Some thought has to be given to how that DOF plays out on the target image and its contents, since with multiple objects in the frame, some are likely to be out of focus unless arranged at equal distances from the lens. Zone focusing is even trickier, and most of my attempts thus far have resulted in soft focus images. For zone focusing success with the Noctilux, I'd recommend setting up objects at various distances, guessing how far each is from the camera, then measuring those distances. After some practice the user should be able to zone focus with reasonable success. The technique I employ most often is to determine visually where I'm going to shoot from, guess the distance from there to the subject and set the lens accordingly, go there and take a couple of shots, then move slightly back and forth while taking shots at those additional distances. I think that's a better method than trying to focus the rangefinder in dim light in situations where you want to be low-key.
One drawback to the very large footprint of the Noctilux is that it partly obscures the 'M' camera rangefinder, making some exposures difficult to compose or even focus accurately. The built-in lens hood is straight not flared and it extends out from the lens about 1/2 inch and locks with a short twist. Given the design of the lens and the advanced coatings it has, I doubt that most users would need more than the built-in lens hood. The filter thread diameter appears to be about 59 mm, but that's not an official measurement. A lens cap, back cap, and deluxe leather pouch are included with the lens along with a booklet, warranty, and QC card with the signature of the QC agent.
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