Canon 35mm f/2 resolution test

Leica, Lenses

An excellent wide angle lens.

For an index of all Leica-related articles click here.



On the Leica M10. I added the red indexing dome.
The top plate label reminds me to turn on GPS on the iPhone!

When I first profiled the Canon 35mm f/2 LTM lens attached to my Leica M3 film camera I wrote: “After running a roll of Kodak Ektar 100 through it I can confirm that the lens is sharp and a delight to use. The only thing I miss is an infinity lock which would make it easier to mount and remove the small optic. The only modifications I made were the addition of the requisite LTM-to-M bayonet adapter, a protective, multicoated UV filter and a red indexing dome (extremely useful).”

Here are the test images taken at all apertures from f/2 down to f/22 – I used a 6-bit coded LTM-to-M adapter for in camera correction of color aberration, coded to be the 35mm Summicron-M pre-ASPH. The code is ‘000110’, where ‘1’ denotes a black paint filled pit:



Test images from f/2 to f/22.

These are SOOC.

You can view all 8 images in medium size by clicking here.

To view full size 22mb originals click here. It’s a large file so be patient when downloading. You can zoom in on these to your heart’s content.

Conclusions?

  • No flare at any aperture
  • At f/2 the whole frame is usable and will easily make a large print with excellent resolution, with micro contrast from the center to half way out
  • At f/4 the resolution is high across the frame
  • Peak definition is reached at f/8 but there’s very little to choose between f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6 and f/8
  • I can see no diffraction at the smallest apertures
  • No meaningful color fringing at any aperture – that’s the 6-bit coding doing its magic
  • Amazingly, LRc includes a lens correction profile for this optic. It corrects very minor barrel distortion. I expect that you would only want to use it in architectural photos and the like.

By the way, disregard the f-stop data in the EXIF information. The M10, even with a 6-bit coded adapter does a very poor job of estimating the aperture used. (There is no electrical or mechanical link between the lens’s aperture setting and the camera, so Leica estimates the aperture based on the shutter speed and ISO used). Go by the file names, moving the decimal point in the last three digits one place to the left to see the aperture used. So, for example ‘220’ means f/22.

A special lens with the caveat being that you will likely have to buy from Japan on eBay, the source of most listings, and you have to disregard all the nonsense about ‘Ex+++’ and ‘Mint’ sellers there seem to revel in. Any mention of ‘tiny fungus’, ‘minor balsam separation’ or ‘cleaning scratches’ means you should move on. These are 50 years old lenses so it takes diligence to find a clean one. ‘Tiny dusts’ (sic) are usually OK but you want a smoothly rotating focus collar and well defined click stops. Ask before paying to get the seller on the record with eBay. Don’t worry if the listing states ‘No returns’. If you have the seller’s responses on the record and they are clearly fraudulent, eBay will refund you. I know, having been there. I paid $331 for mine with tax and shipping, plus $16 for the correct Fotodiox Pro 6-bit adapter. I explain how to fill in the coding pits for best results here. Add a few pennies for the red indexing dome and $8 for a multi-coated 40mm UV filter (strange size) and my total outlay was $365.

If you can get a good one and do not fancy paying Leica’s ridiculous prices, new or used, the 35mm f/2 Canon LTM, which is very compact on the Leica M body, is recommended. For many, the author included, 35mm is the ‘standard’ lens on the Leica M body for street snappers.

A Leica M shoulder bag

Cameras, Leica

Small, unobtrusive, cheap.

For an index of all Leica-related articles click here.

After the camera’s shoulder strap – and most vary from useless to down right dangerous – few accessories are more important than a carrying bag, if you propose taking more than just the camera and one lens on a photo outing. You can easily spend hundreds of dollars on a camera bag and it will almost certainly come with an aura (and labels) proclaiming ‘steal me now’.

Well, there is one born every minute.

Now that my small Leica M10 outfit is complete, meaning 21, 35, 50 and 90mm lenses, it was time to find a suitable shoulder bag to carry this hardware around. A little research discloses that the perfect Leica M outfit camera bag can be had for pennies. The dictates for the ideal shoulder bag are that it should hold a Leica M with, say, three or more lenses, one of those on the body. It should therefore have two dividers, be some 8″ long, 6″ tall to accommodate the M vertically and 4″ across for a like reason. Closure should be with a velcro flap like the one on the Thinktank.

Amazon lists over 30,000 bags (!) and the closest I could come to the specifications above is the oddly named Besnfoto. It has only one velcro divider but I have a bunch of these – so many years, so many bags – and unfortunately it does have a zippered cover underneath the outside velcro flap, but that can be left unzipped in use. Not a big issue. For the paranoid there’s a Velcro ‘anti-theft’ belt latch, illustrated below.

And did I mention anonymity? The color must be drab grey or green and the Besnfoto comes in either. Forget fancy leather and forget anything which says ‘Billingham’. Come to think of it, any label on the outside is just a bad idea. Quite the dumbest camera bag I have ever seen came from the Red Dot company. Notice anything? These were bought by the same people who like to park their BMWs with the car keys in the ignition and the doors unlocked in south central LA. But, you know, German cow full grain leather, grass fed, no antibiotics:



An invitation to theft.
The ‘legs’ are pure Schwabian silver.

Mind you, the Besnfoto is not much smarter in stock trim:



The loud label says ‘foto’ on it.
Yes, the ruler is a German Staedtler.

And they really do not want you removing that label as it’s both stitched and riveted. Whose idea was that? A few seconds’ work with pliers and a sharp blade and the label was gone. I can attest to the quality of the stitching:



No more advertising. I rather like the moth eaten look.

Here is the interior with one additional divider added:



Leica M with 35mm lens at left, 50 and 90mm
lenses center and right. A small front pocket
allows storage of spare batteries and a charger.

I do not keep any front or rear lens caps on any of the lenses. The fronts are protected by UV filters and the rears are sufficiently recessed that they will not suffer abrasion damage. In this way the lenses are immediately ready for action when a swap is called for.

In use I have the nice, broad shoulder strap on the Besnfoto slung over my head and the bag hanging at my left hip bandolier style, with the camera with its Upstrap over the left shoulder an inch or two above the bag. It must not rest on the bag as that will induce slack in the camera strap prompting the camera and lens to go crashing to the ground. This approach – bag strap on the right shoulder, camera on the left – also distributes weight nicely.

The rear of the bag has a velcro strap for attachment to your belt on those occasions when the belt is actually accessible – a nice ‘anti theft’ feature’ – along with a small carrying handle. Note the broad shoulder strap:



Belt attachment.

What if you want to stash more lenses in that bag? Goodness knows, there’s lots of room given their small sizes. Well, Leica used to make a double sided ‘lens coupler’ for just this purpose, and it is abundantly available on eBay for pennies. It permits attachment of two lenses back-to-back and works for all Leica M mount lenses other than those with deeply protruding rear elements. And there’s no need to align the mounting index on the lens with the red line on the coupler. The lens will fit in any of the four positions dictated by the bayonet mount:



The Leica M lens coupler, code #14836.
A very handy storage tool for small lenses.

The rear element of the 21mm f/3.5 Color-Skopar does not protrude enough, even with the lens focused at infinity, to strike the rear element of any other lens fitted in the coupler. However, do not try this with the earlier 21mm Color-Skopar f/4 or any early Leitz ultra wide lenses like the 21mm Super Angulons (f/4 and f/3.4) or the 21mm f/2.8 Elmarit. All of those have deeply protruding rear elements and you really do not want to use them on digital Leica Ms in any case, as they perform poorly. Here it is in use:



The 21mm f/3.5 Color-Skopar and the 35mm f/2 Canon LTM
lenses fitted to the Leica M lens coupler.

Stacked and in the bag. And there’s still room for an energy bar and a bottle of water:



35mm on the camera, 21+50mm center, 90mm at right.

This bag will not provide heavy duty protection against knocks and falls. That is not its intent. Rather it is in keeping with the Leica ethos of “small camera, small lenses, easily carried”. The Besnfoto camera bag is recommended.

A cheap 21mm finder for the Leica

Leica, Lenses

Cheap and cheerful, it does the job.

For an index of all Leica-related articles click here.

Back in the day when I owned a 21mm f/2.8 Elmarit ASPH (they were affordable three decades ago) I used the genuine Leica 21mm finder. That ran some $250 back then and it was pretty awful, with heavy barrel distortion. Today you can spend $1000 on a new one or $400 on the Zeiss (Cosina) version. Reviews suggest that the Zeiss is every bit as awful but you leave with $600 in your pocketbook.

Used beater Leica finders can be found for $300. Voigtländer used to make a couple of versions – a clunky and ugly plastic one (also sold under the Ricoh label) and a rather elegant metal torpedo type which included frames for a 25mm lens and came with a satin chrome or black finish. It’s so-so by all accounts and used ones crop up occasionally for $150 or so.

Why am I writing this? Well, when I reviewed my recently acquired 21mm f/3.5 Voigtländer VM Color-Skopar lens I suggested I would use live view to chimp the rear LCD screen as a composition aid. Well, forget that. It’s a poor experience. You hold the Leica like an iPhone, looking like a real twit, and the display is seldom bright enough to see much in bright light even when set to maximum brightness. So I shopped around and came across this dirt cheap plastic finder which ran me $26.40 shipped from a US seller on eBay:



At that price it’s not a great risk to try.

It’s not going to win any prizes for looks but, amazingly, despite the high barrel distortion (what else is new?) it delineates the field of view of the 21mm lens accurately side to side and top to bottom. It’s also very bright, has no frame lines, defeated all my efforts to photograph an image through it and weighs just 5 grams/0.2 ounces. And it’s a nice tight fit in the M10’s accessory shoe and will not fall out even if nudged. There is no lock on the foot and none is needed. It’s also tiny and fits nicely in my shoulder bag. Sharpness drops off to the sides of the view but not enough to make composition difficult. It’s also set back too far in the accessory shoe meaning that you get a part of the camera’s top plate in the view, but it’s nothing you cannot work around. See below. And it beats chimping.



Tiny.

The finder protrudes slightly behind the top plate but that’s not an issue in use. Below I take a cutting tool to the foot to mount it further forward, to see less of the top plate of the camera in the view than anything else. Plus the protrusion offends my aesthetic senses.

I have no difficulty using it with eyeglasses and the plastic should preclude scratches to my eyewear.

Try it. You might like it.

Making a better fit:

The stock finder protrudes 1/4″ behind the top plate of the camera:



Stock fitting – 1/4 rear protrusion.



A piece of Scotch tape defines where to cut the base of the mounting shoe.



Diamond tipped cutting wheel on the Dremel tool.



Cut carefully, a bit at a time, from the base and the front,
alternating cuts until the two cuts meet. A small Nicholson file is
used to clean things up.



The improved fit. The finder fits tightly enough that the
1/4″ of the foot which has been removed is not missed.
You still see the camera’s top plate at the bottom of
the view, but less of it.



It’s always something. The devil is in the details.
A small white index line is added to show the shutter speed
selected. The finder obscures the stock index on the top plate.