joakim wrote:
Does anyone in this thread has any experience with the Leica Vario-Elmar-R 21-35/3,5-4 ASPH? I'm primarily interested in it for landscape so the fact that it is a little slow doesn't bother me.
For me, the 21-35 is a perfect walkaround lens. It has very good first-impression rendering at all settings. With in focus subjects, I prefer it to my Elmarit 35 (latest model), which is sharper on center but that's rarely where my main subjects are placed. For the bulk of the image, the 21-35 is superior. On an APS-C sensor, there are few technical qualities to criticize; that's about the image circle of excellence with this lens at every setting.
That said, at the wide end the lens has quite strong aberrations in the corners. The focal plane pushes out and tangential sharpness just doesn't exist.
I don't mind that because few of my images (perhaps none) require corner-to-corner detail at infinity. The overall rendering--as you can see in Zhangyue's work--does the scene justice.
If you think of the 21-35 as an Elmar 31/3.9 that can also take acceptable pictures at 21mm, you will be happy. Wide open at 31mm and focus at 2m is where I reset my lens after taking a picture. If you're looking for an Elmar 21/3.5, like the Super Elmar M 21/3.4, that can zoom tighter, then you'll be disappointed. The Elmarit 19 would be your pick of the litter at that point.