I own the Leica version they're trying to copy and absolutely love it. The one thing I'd like to see improved is axial CA correction...if they could address that without altering the overall rendering, it would be ideal. That said, Mandler seems more focused on similar cosmetics than consistency in performance and rendering; at least their 35mm f/2 renders quite differently from the original, in my opinion.
Jorge Torralba wrote:
Unless i am photographing test patterns, which i do not, mtf are typically meaningless to me.
This is with the reissue released last December. Shot at 3.5 or f4. Not one thought of MTF went through my mind. I'm sure they have their purpose. But for real world use not that important.
Most well designed lenses will asymptotically reach great detail as they are stopped down.
Wide open it is advantageous to pre-visualise where character adds to an image, and the situations where under-corrected effects becomes a distraction. This requires taking sample images to stress them; comparing charted data reenforces the findings.
For the record, I use both a v3 and the reissue 11714.
The mechanical design, and the coatings on the reissue are very good, so even if you never use it at f/1.4, or care about the corners, or foreground, there are benefits to owning it.
Fred Miranda wrote:
I own the Leica version they're trying to copy and absolutely love it. The one thing I'd like to see improved is axial CA correction...if they could address that without altering the overall rendering, it would be ideal. That said, Mandler seems more focused on similar cosmetics than consistency in performance and rendering; at least their 35mm f/2 renders quite differently from the original, in my opinion.
Your opinion about Mandler 35mm is a sign of release as it means original 7-elements 35mm is still has its value in the heart of Leica’s fanboys.
With nowadays manufacturing ability, a perfect lens can be produced but not necessarily a perfect picture. I begin asking myself what kind of problem I want to solve before buying new photographic equipment.
Here's a quote from Mandler's Instagram page:
"To bring this legacy back to the hands of today’s photographers, we have meticulously refined it through four optical revisions..."
It indicates to me that it's not a faithful reproduction of the original in an optical sense (perhaps it is in a cosmetic and mechanical sense), but an attempt to "improve" on it.
If we look at the Mandler 35mm Summicron Type IV lens, we see that it is optically not in the same league as the original, but rather seems to be "inspired" by the Leica lens.
