Steve Spencer
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 p.1 #11 · Do you prefer softer lenses on Digital M bodies? | |
Pindy wrote:
Thank you all for your replies, and RustyBug thanks for the thoughtful considerations. You describe a rich, promising world where so many desires can be catered for but for the money to make it happen! In the past, I essentially subsisted on one 35 Summilux ASPH (ver 1) and with the exception of renting a couple times, stuck with the one and made it work. I loved the look of that lens, so I will likely look to more correction than less.
The other fact is that I have to start somewhere. I've decided that I'll begin with 28mm and it'll be either a used 28 Summilux (more than anything I require a lens for indoor, low-lit environments) or perhaps the Voigtländer Nokton f/1.5. I will add lenses as funds become available, including smaller, slower ones for outdoor pursuits.
TO THAT POINT OF NON-LEICA LENSES, let me put it to the group:
Is it a bother to have a lens like a CV or Thypoch not register metadata? I installed and tried out Lenstagger, and it works fine, but it creates extra steps. I am very beguiled by the idea of a $999 lens that performs similarly to a Leica one I could buy for around $4,500 used. I've searched here for this topic and consensus, well... there doesn't seem to be one. One camp says "Yes, it bugged me and I have replaced everything with Leica glass" and the other camp says "No, I've got literally thousands of dollars left over and I'm holidaying in the Maldives as we speak with my CV arsenal."
6-bit coding a lens just fits some other lens' corrections over yours and is never gonna be perfect. But maybe I start by laying out out the least cash and seeing how it goes.
...Show more →
I will try to offer my perspective on the issue of using CV and Thypoch lenses. When I had a Leica M10, at one point I had the CV 28 f/2 II and the CV 90 f/2.8 APO. They were both very good lenses. Eventually, however, I replaced them with the Leica M 28 cron Asph v. I, and the Leica M 90 Elmarit-M. For me part of the reason to do that was I could get the profile automatically added to DNG file if I shot with these lenses as they were 6-bit coded. I also got the right EXIF data, which I saw as a nice feature.
That said, I am not sure I would have made these switches if not for a few other benefits I saw in moving to all Leica lenses in my typical kit (my other lenses were the 21 SEM, the 35 lux Asph v. 1; and the 50 lux Asph, v. 1). I saw moving from the CV 90 APO to the 90 Elmarit-M as a pretty lateral move. There was not much difference in price at that time. The advantage of the CV was that it was smaller, but the advantage of the Elmarit-M was not only in getting EXIF and the profile automatically added the Elmarit-M has a little stronger performance in the mid-zone. I was basically trading a for a lens that was a little bigger, but had a little better performance with out really much difference in cost.
The CV 28 f/2 II was a different issue. I liked that lens, but the vignetting was pretty extreme wide open, and I saw moving to the 28 cron Asph as a fairly minor, but clear upgrade. For this upgrade there was a moderate cost (about $1,200 if I remember correctly). I was willing to spend it at the time, but I doubt I would be now with a different financial situation.
I can also say that at this point, I would not choose the 28 lux Asph over the CV 28 f/1.5 (the price difference is too big and the performance is too close, IMO). Neither would I choose the 50 lux Asph over the Thypoch 50 f/1.4, nor I believe the 90 cron AA over the new CV 90 f/2 APO (still a bit to see in Fred's review, but I think I have seen enough). In these cases the performance and even the ergonomics with the CV lenses are too close, IMO, to justify the extra cost of the Leica lenses, but that is a pretty personal decision and in the long run there is no guarantees as I think it is likely the Leica lenses will hold there value better than the CV and Thypoch lenses.
Another issue that favored going all Leica lenses, was that my typical 4 lens kit of 21 SEM, 28 cron Asph, 50 lux Asph, and 90 Elmarit-M all shared the same filter size, which I appreciated and let me shed a bit of the weight I had added by moving to all Leica.
I think only you can decide if it is worth going all Leica. Keep in mind that at least with the Voigtlander lenses and I suspect in time with the Thypoch lenses as well that you can add the profile after opening the file in Adobobe software if you use that. It was not a hassle (or at least I didn't find it one) adding the profile as it was just one step. I never 6-bit coded the Voigtlander lenses, but I suspect you could code them so the EXIF data is recorded, but then not have the profile be automatically applied or if it is automatically applied, override it by applying the proper Voigtlander profile when you import the files into Lightroom or Photoshop.
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