Went out at lunch yesterday and had some fun with dark red filters on the MM.
Oh and Ron, I retract my statement about 60mm filters working well in the 21 lux. Did some more testing outside and although the vignetting is fixable in post, it's pretty severe.
First off, just wanted to comment on how many fantastic images there are on this thread from so many fantastic places and of all sorts of subject matter. Bravo! It seems theres a Leica for every situation.
Im a little late to the party as I just got my X1 the first of this year. Knowing what it excels at and not having unrealistic expectations has really turned this into an incredibly capable tool and a fun camera that I can have with me at all times. I love its small footprint and find it comes out with me most every time I leave this house.
I wanted to share a handful of photos from a variety of situations to show its still capable of producing gorgeous images despite newer competition.
Edward, love that painting like OFC rendering. I like those head shots with isolated background.
Gary, like both BW shots.
Allen, I like the kid with hat shot, nice composition.
Ryan, the 0.95 portrait is my favorite. I also like the #4 and #5 from 35cron set.
Weesin, I prefer BW also, it goes nicely with your clarity slider
cmr0385, nice set! Welcome to the thread.
Took some pics on Monday, drive all the way up to SF after work to join a concert.
I am not supposed to do so during concert but can’t help. Use discreet and soft setting, still kind of laud. I have to say a NEX with tilt screen is way more discreet than Leica nowdays. Prefocused before it start, The guard is around, I know I don’t have much time to focus during concert.
Gary Clennan wrote:
I see. I thought you had a pre-ASPH.... You don't have more than one - do you??
It is in my shopping list because I have 50lux R around the same age as PRE-ASPH, which I like a lot.
Michael, the 50 lux pre is definately a lens i'd like to own one of these days as well.
CMR, i like the shot of the couple, nice touch shooting it upwards perspective wise.
airfrog, i like how everyone in that shot is immerse in their own world.
wstam, i like the bw version better, but i dunno why.
Ryan, that last shot of your son is great. I keep stopping at the Nocti shots even before i read the text to see what it was taken with.
Edward, the sonnars rendering is definately unique, sometimes i would if i shouldn't have sold mine.
Gary, i like the black and white shots, i suspect the 2nd shot has a great amount of detail at bigger sizes.
Here is a random touristy shot that i did locally, i was testing my gear for an upcoming trip, so i played tourist.
35mm M-Hexanon somewhere around F2.8 i think - tried the ISO160 method, was skeptical, but it seems to work, this is with +2.3EV
Second one also with the M-Hexanon but wide open - grain and faux film look added in post
Hey guys, haven't had much in the queue to contribute lately... Lots of great stuff from everyone else though!
I got ahold of a loaner RX1 for a few days, along with a ZM 35/2 and plan to run a bit of a comparison between the two. I will also throw in the ZM35C and the CV35/1.2 II on the M9. Unfortunately I don't have any Leica M series 35mm lenses and Andrew isn't currently available to offer his vast inventory.
For the time being, here are a few snaps around the house just before it got dark. Sorry, these are handheld, so framing is only approximately similar and focus might be slightly different as well:
Tell me which is which. I'll make it easy for you with the first one!
After only a few images, my initial impression is RX1's Sonnar is it's slightly wider and definitely sharper wide open at very near distances where the ZM has a fair amount of SA. Distortion though is worse from the Sonnar:
The ZM feels like it has better background blur, or shallower depth of field. Not sure if some of it is due to slight focus mismatches though, as the ZM appears to slightly front focus on my M9. The Sonnar though has calmer background blur and a feeling of more roundness and form to out of focus objects.
Also just an FYI that the files have had minimum PP in LR. Primarily WB adjustment to get each set fairly close. Some might also have minor exposure and/or curves adjustments. No clarity, saturation, etc.
rscheffler wrote:
Hey guys, haven't had much in the queue to contribute lately... Lots of great stuff from everyone else though!
I got ahold of a loaner RX1 for a few days, along with a ZM 35/2 and plan to run a bit of a comparison between the two. I will also throw in the ZM35C and the CV35/1.2 II on the M9. Unfortunately I don't have any Leica M series 35mm lenses and Andrew isn't currently available to offer his vast inventory.
For the time being, here are a few snaps around the house just before it got dark. Sorry, these are handheld, so framing is only approximately similar and focus might be slightly different as well:
Tell me which is which. I'll make it easy for you with the first one!
The ZM feels like it has better background blur, or shallower depth of field. Not sure if some of it is due to slight focus mismatches though, as the ZM appears to slightly front focus on my M9. The Sonnar though has calmer background blur and a feeling of more roundness and form to out of focus objects.
Also just an FYI that the files have had minimum PP in LR. Primarily WB adjustment to get each set fairly close. Some might also have minor exposure and/or curves adjustments. No clarity, saturation, etc....Show more →
the first one (which i'm assuming is the zm) has terrible bokeh in these close up shots. for these types of shots i definitely prefer the second camera/lens. i await the landscape test where i expect things to be reversed (though whether that will be noticeable at internet sizes remains to be seen.
Ron, you could save me a lot of $$ if the 2nd one is not the RX1.
Some of the preference for the 2nd image in each set is down to greater colour control, realism and presence. See the trolley wheel in the last lot, top one is lost to strong blue hues and almost looks painted, the bottom one has that real world gun metal blue with lots of transitions corresponding with tonal changes. You can even see the depth showing behind the wheel and in the brickwork, but not in the first. The green shed is another example, the step rail, etc.
A lot of what is seen here looks to be camera processing rather than lens character. I could not live with the frenzied, segmented, contrasty bokeh and crude colours of the first in the set. The brickwork mortar bokeh looks like it is becoming detached from the wall. The other one looks very Sonnar to me, integrated bokeh uninterrupted by sharp edges. Even has better tonal separation inside the bokeh. And thanks so much for these...
Would enjoy any others you can post, at say f5.6 over short to medium distances.
Derek and Philip, yes, the second is the RX1. FWIW, I don't mind the bokeh of the ZM much of the time and as you can see in the stairs and car shots, it really depends on what's in the frame. Sometimes the differences are rather subtle. And when it's subtle, I sometimes prefer the stronger edges of the Biogon. But if I had to choose one of the two, I'd go for the Sonnar, just as I would probably pick the 50 Lux ASPH as my only 50mm, if I could have only one.
While the M9's sensor and colour handling likely isn't as great as the Sony's sensor, I'm not yet convinced the difference you see in the brickwork of the last set is not due more to the lens. The Sonnar seems to have better contrast and retention of shape, especially at close distances. The Biogon has a lot of SA at this distance, which affects the overall look. This image might not be a good comparison of sharpness because the ZM is probably slightly front focused, whereas the RX1 nailed the water nozzle.
I plan to do some proper on-tripod testing over the next couple days at various distances and through most of the aperture range. I'll write it up on my blog with links to full-rez files, just as I did with the 21mm lens comparison. There are a few other shots I didn't even bother posting because at web-rez the subtleties between each camera/lens was mostly lost after downsizing.
