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New 35 Summilux – a concern


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Leica Mayfair has a sample of the new lens which one is allowed to take (mounted on camera!) a step or two outside their street door, which an assistant holds open for you to take a few pics. (This is apparently for insurance purposes.)

 

The weight of the lens in comfortable in the hand and on the M9; focus and aperture changes are smooth and it's a fine piece of engineering. It was a bright, sunny morning and obviously image quality is excellent. However, in these two similar shots the purple fringe running down the black lamp-post and the fringing to the lead dressing under the window and the frame itself against the glass [enlarged portions superimposed] are not what I would expect to see with a £3k+ lens. Comparison images I took a few minutes later with my own v4 Summicron don't have these artefacts.

 

FWIW the Mayfair store will add your name to a waiting list (four at present) but will not take a deposit (as it did when the M9 itself was announced), and so if the VAT is increased before supplies become available one would have to pay at the increased rate.

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And here's the v4 Summicron..... But they all look terrible here, so give a poor representation of the actual files!

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I am not sure purple fringe is due to the lens itself, or not to it alone. Sensor filters may contribute to the problem to a large extent.

 

Well, I did experience a similar fringing recently with a brand new 35 Summicron with some black metal rods against an extremely brightly lit background.

(Incidentally my as-new v4 turned up at a dealer's just a week after I'd shelled out £1850 for the ASPH. And I very much preferred the v4. Bad timing!)

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It is my impression that Leica's new ASPH designs often have more lateral chromatic aberration, and also very "hot" highlights - both of which can lead to purple fringes.

 

Which is not a criticism - they have improved performance in other ways, and optical design is alway a trade-off between different kinds of flaws.

 

I was investigating red-edge differences between my 1983 pre-ASPH 21 Elmarit, and the current 21 Elmarit ASPH, and noticed how much more green/magenta CA and contrast the 21 ASPH has (although it also shows better definition of the thinnest branches in these crops from the left edge of the frame).

 

(EXAMPLE: M9, f/5.6)

 

I've noticed the same with the 28 Elmarit-ASPH vs. my 28 Elmarit v.3 (also 1983 vintage) - the ASPH has better definition near the edges and corners, but also more lateral CA.

 

But as Ruben says - the optics of digital sensors (microlenses and the cover glass) can add their own effects. The OP's purple edges look fairly typical of strong highlight/shadow edges - amplified by a lens with strong edge contrast - in digital imaging.

 

Not to jump on the OP - but there is no such thing as a perfect lens. Not for $5,000 - not for $50,000. A 35 f/1.4 is a rather extreme optical design, especially fitted into the volume of the M lens. Compare its size - and its RELATIVE performance - to SLR 35 f/1.4s (Leica R, Canon - or if you really want some fun, the Nikkor AIS 35 f/1.4).

 

Then come back and let us know if the RELATIVE performance difference is worth the RELATIVE price difference. It is quite possible that it isn't - for any given photographer. Then again - maybe it is.

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I'm not sure, but that's probably well-within normal. This is from the previous (1994 design) Summilux at about f/1.7 (100% crop). This plant is not purple/magenta. For some images, the defringe setting in Adobe Camera Raw will help. Otherwise, it may require making a selection in Photoshop and desaturating the magenta.

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kinda going off topic, im coming down on monday and i am going to have a look round the shop, but, what is the boozer next door like?..serious question;)

I would have thought it was perfect if you had just dropped a few thou in the place next door.

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