It is interesting that a lens speakers to us.. When I used M Leicas years ago my favorite was the 35 mm along with the 90mm. When I started to use SLR's more I found the 28mm worked for me. I do try to use all focal lengths and sometimes try to use a lens that is the least comfortable.
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Leica and Voigtlander M lenses on Lumix S cameras!
- Thread starter kdt
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Travis Butler
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Minolta is one of my top 3-4 lens families, but it’s been the zooms and the ‘normal’ primes. I like all of the 50/1.4s I’ve tried, love the 58/1.2, think the 50/2s are decent but not the ‘special’ lenses some people view them as. Love the 24-50/4, and the 35-70/3.5 macro is one of my absolute favorite lenses. But none of the 28s have grabbed me. The 24 is nice, but I like the OM Zuiko 24 better. The 100 macro is nice, but I like the 90mm Bokina better. And I’ve never warmed to any of the 135s.
xaviergut
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Perhaps Leica is trying to "protect" its Leica Q series cameras
Agreed on the 50's... I have the MC 50mm f1.4 and the MC 58mm f1.2. Both are excellent lenses. Hard to beat the character of the 1.2 but maybe the 1.4 is a bit sharper. I also have the MD 55mm f3.5 macro and the MD 100mm f4 macro. Both are fine lenses but I think the 100 stands out. The f4 is better than the earlier 3.5. These days for macro I am using an old Leica bellows II that was made for Visoflex lenses on M cameras. I have a 65mm Elmar, 90mm f4 Elmar, 135mm f2.8 Elmarit, 200mm f4 Telyt and a new addition of a 280mm f4.8 Telyt. All heads only on the Bellows II. Theses lenses have muti blade diaphrams so the circle of confusion is round. Beautiful focus roll off producing amazing Bokeh. My Dad had a few Olympus OM lenses and they were excellent on film. I have not tried any on a mirrorless camera but I would think they would be great. I have the MC 24mm f2.8 which I find is better optically than their 28mm lenes. That design was used by Leica in their line up for the SL. I don't have much experience with Minolta zooms.. Panasonic has made some very good zooms but I really like the discipline of using primes. I have the original 24 to 105 kit lens that came with my S1. Very good optical quality but the build is not great. I always had difficulty with focus shifting when looking up.
Can you blame me? I think this is something that needs attention. Perhaps it is through forums like this that manufacturers will listen to those that are using the equipment. Sorry if I am not a fanboy.
xaviergut
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Speaking of 28mm Lens, I just discover in YT this guy reviewing a Lumix S9 with a Ricoh 28mm f/2.8 LTM lens made for M39/LTM mount rangefinder cameras by Ricoh (I didn't know that this little lens exists):
kamerastore.com
... and a Voigtländer Brightline 28mm optical viewfinder:
Interesting stuff. Here the video:
Ricoh 28mm f2.8 GR - Lens
Manual focus wide-angle lens made for M39/LTM mount rangefinder cameras by Ricoh. It is the same lens from film-era Ricoh GR cameras, just put into a metal, manual mount. Metal body available in silver. Ricoh 28mm f2.8 GR Minimum focus distance: 0.7m Aperture blades: 10 Size: 33 x 50 mm Weight: 176g
kamerastore.com
... and a Voigtländer Brightline 28mm optical viewfinder:
Interesting stuff. Here the video:
Speaking of 28mm Lens, I just discover in YT this guy reviewing a Lumix S9 with a Ricoh 28mm f/2.8 LTM lens made for M39/LTM mount rangefinder cameras by Ricoh (I didn't know that this little lens exists):
Ricoh 28mm f2.8 GR - Lens
Manual focus wide-angle lens made for M39/LTM mount rangefinder cameras by Ricoh. It is the same lens from film-era Ricoh GR cameras, just put into a metal, manual mount. Metal body available in silver. Ricoh 28mm f2.8 GR Minimum focus distance: 0.7m Aperture blades: 10 Size: 33 x 50 mm Weight: 176g
... and a Voigtländer Brightline 28mm optical viewfinder:
Interesting stuff. Here the video:
That looks really interesting. A good sales job on the S9 as well: I looked for one on ebay and the prices are kind of crazy as they only made 3000 of them.
Here is what Ai says:
"The Ricoh GR 28mm f/2.8 refers to two distinct optical systems: a rare, limited-production manual focus lens for Leica Thread Mount (LTM/L39) released in 1997, and the fixed lens found in modern Ricoh GR digital cameras (GR, GR II, GR III, GR IV) which is a 28mm equivalent (actual 18.3mm) f/2.8 prime designed for APS-C sensors.
The LTM version is a unique collector's item, manufactured in only 3,000 units (2,000 silver, 1,000 black) with a full-frame format and 7 elements in 4 groups. It features a rangefinder coupling, a manual aperture ring, and a distinctive "dreamy" character with low contrast and significant vignetting, often praised for its film-like aesthetic. It includes a dedicated 28mm optical viewfinder and weighs 180g, though it is frequently sought after by Leica M users for its compact size and unique rendering."
Might be a great option for a blogger with "significant vignetting and a dreamy character". Hard to know if it would match a 28mm color Skopar at twice the price. I would like to test it on my S1R II as lenses can be questionable on different sensors. Hard to do with a rare item. I had high hopes for the 40mm Ultron classic I purchased but there are significant issues due to these lenses having a small exit pupil. Perhaps this lens will perform well. Hoping someone out there has done some lens tests using these M and LTM lenses on Lumix sensors. Sometimes flaws can be used to creative advantage.
Many thanks!