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35-70 R Lenses or Summicron


earleygallery

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James, there is the f2.8 one. I believe Ffordes have one for sale at the moment - though it may be a little more than you are prepared to pay :-)

 

There are 35-70s made in Japan and Germany - I believe the lens was designed in Japan - the German ones are more expensive though I believe optically they are the same.

 

I have a 35mm Elmarit that I bought off Doug Herr. A good lens and they aren't expensive.

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The original Minolta designed and built (1983-1988) 35-70 has a rotating lens head so not so good if using a polariser . The German built version (from 1988) has a fixed lens head. It is a fairly old zoom design but it is reasonably priced.

 

Have you considered the 28-90mm ? It is a far superior lens ... even better than Leica prime lenses within its focall lengths/apertures ... and there are a few bargain ex demo available if you search around.

 

Dunk

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Earl:

 

The latest 35-70mm f4 ROM is better than the 35mm Summicron. I did some comparisons a few years ago using slide film and 2/3 of the time I picked the slides from the zoom over the Summicron. The zoom is also sharp out to the corners.

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Earl:

 

The latest 35-70mm f4 ROM is better than the 35mm Summicron. I did some comparisons a few years ago using slide film and 2/3 of the time I picked the slides from the zoom over the Summicron. The zoom is also sharp out to the corners.

 

The 35/2 Summicron R has been in production since 1977 ... lens design has developed in heaps of leaps since then ...

 

dunk

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Hi James. The 35-70 stays on my R9 as a walk around camera most of the time and I love it, but I have only just bought a 28-90 as there are times when I need the extra focal length.I have no real experience with it yet. The 35-70 is nicely balanced on the R body and quite light to carry around. I have no experience with the 35mm.

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James,

 

there are three 35-70 zoom designs available:

 

3,5/35-70: Minolta design, two different housing (E60 and E67, latter is better)

2,8/35-70: Leica designed and built; brilliant, few hand-made samples, stellar price

4/35-70: Leica design, Kyocera made; excellent built and image quality, macro function.

 

I have had the 3,5/35-70 and have now the 4/35-70. I would strongly suggest the latter, which also is available quite at reasonable price.

 

Conrad

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James, if you can afford it, go for the 28-90mm. While it is substantially more expensive, it is a gorgeous lens, tack-sharp, contrasty, wonderful color rendition, almost immune to flare. This lens in fact made me buy my first (and only) Leica R camera, though I had previously sworn NOT to invest in yet another Leica system (I had and still have a complete Pentax LX outfit, so investing in another SLR system was a rather questionable act).

 

If it's got to be a 35-70, the latest version of this lens is a fine lens, though I heard some users report that it is more flare prone than other Leica lenses.

 

Regards,

 

Andy

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Having used the 28-90mm fore one year and a half (before it was stolen), I can confim what has been said about this lens: beautiful color rendition and sharpness though the whole zooming range.

 

Two drawbacks, though:

- difficult to focus at 90 because of the f 4.5 aperture, so no real use in concerts or night life

- distortion at 28mm difficult to accept for me because I am fond of architectural photography.

 

Because of these drawbacks, I will not buy another 28-90 in the future. I am still investing in R lenses becaue I am confident that there will be a R10.

 

Just my opinion...

 

Cheers

Gérard

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... and you just complete the 35-70 with a 19mm Elmarit and a 180mm Apo-Elmarit. With this set, you will cover 90% of all photographic situations. Don't forget that with the 28-90 and the DMR you actually shoot with a 38mm on the wide end.

 

But when the R10 comes out, with a real Full Format, you will have a better 35mm with the 35-70, and less distortion.

 

Gérard

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About a year ago I picked up a f3.5 35-70 as it would work on both my R8 and Leicaflex SL2 without modifications. My expectations were modest given all I had read, and to my surprise, th. e results have fully vindicated my choice. The rotating front element is a minor inconvenience when using a polarizer. Today the lens spends more time on my SL2 than any of the primes. I think you probably couldn't go wrong with any of the choices you mentioned, although the 2.8 would certainly eat a hole in your pocket.

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I rarely use my 35-70mm F/4.0 because it is F/4.0 and I prefer to work in almost dark.

 

But when I use it (outdoor) I'm amazed how easy it is to get very good pictures both at 35mm, 50mm and 70mm. The macro has also been handy a few times.

 

As pointed out, it feels like it was born to sit on the R8/R9 and it just works very well.

 

The price is a bargain.

 

However, I feel more *Leica" - you know what I mean - using a real 35mm F/2.0. Zoom is so practical it feels like cheating ;-)

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I would like to second Thorsten O. at this point. His comment is spot on ! The R 4/ 35- 70 mm is a perfect allround lens for me !

 

If it should be something (much) better but much bigger for you, go for the current R- 28/ 90 mm- Zoom. However, the less expensive lens will - most likely - do the job ...

 

 

 

Best

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  • 2 months later...

Resurrecting this thread - I saw all three examples today, Japanese and German 3.5's and the latest F4 version.

 

The f4 version is quite a large lens, and the front element rotates as you focus/zoom. The German 3.5 is more compact and has a fixed front element.

 

Finally the Japanese 3.5, which is substantially less money that the other two.......is the German lens more expensive simply because its German or is the image quality better for some reason?

 

I'm not sure what to do now.

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... the Japanese 3.5, which is substantially less money that the other two.......is the German lens more expensive simply because its German or is the image quality better for some reason?

 

The german f/3.5 vignettes less with filters its focussing helix is more robust and IIRC the front element does not rotate.

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Hi,

 

I purchased the 35-70 f4.0 after I bought the R8 about 10 years ago. I am still using this extensively with my DMR. It is a very good lens, sharp and contrasty. It is as good as my 50 'Cron-R. For some reasons, Leica did not indicate this lens has an aspherical element.

 

N.S.

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Whatever you decide, stay away from the 28-70 "Sigma" zoom. Excessive distortion, rotating head, so-so image quality. I bought one years ago before I knew better, and have regretted it ever since.

 

Guy

 

Your 28-70 is from the first series or from the second one whit different barrel and ROM?

I have one from the second series and I agree whit you when says distortion is high.

However the image quality is the better I know in zooms lenses in this range (28-70).

 

Best,

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