dfarkas Posted October 27, 2011 Share #1 Posted October 27, 2011 Advertisement (gone after registration) Today Leica introduced the latest lens for the S2, the Elmarit-S 30mm f/2.8 ASPH. See full details here: Leica Introduces Elmarit-S 30mm f/2.8 ASPH David Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted October 27, 2011 Posted October 27, 2011 Hi dfarkas, Take a look here Leica introduces Elmarit-S 30mm f/2.8 ASPH. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Eastgreenlander Posted October 27, 2011 Share #2 Posted October 27, 2011 Great the lens line is expanding. But I sure could use it a little wider Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosuna Posted October 29, 2011 Share #3 Posted October 29, 2011 It is very similar to the 35mm Elmarit. I don't understand why this lens is a priority in the S system lens line. I would make more sense the 24mm, or the telephoto and zoom lenses... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfarkas Posted October 29, 2011 Author Share #4 Posted October 29, 2011 It is very similar to the 35mm Elmarit. I don't understand why this lens is a priority in the S system lens line. I would make more sense the 24mm, or the telephoto and zoom lenses... The 30mm made sense because the 24mm focal length (in 35mm equiv) is more popular than the 19mm. Also, given the design of the lens, the 30mm will be offered in a CS version, while the 24mm will be focal plane only. With a new system like the S-System, I think that building up the stable of lenses as quickly as possible is extremely important. After personally using the S2 for over a year now, the 35, 70, 120 and 180 haven't left me wanting too much more. Yes, there have been times that the 30 would have been extremely welcome, as would something between the 35 and the 70. In spite of my personal desire for more focal lengths, the S lenses offer such phenomenal imaging performance that I'd hate to see any quality scarified by rushing lenses to market. After my meeting yesterday with S2 product managers Stephan Shulz and Toni Felsner, I'm confident that they feel the same way. Of course Leica wants to have a comprehensive and complete system that covers a variety of shooting needs, but not at the expense of optical perfection. And, this takes time to do right. As far as the 30mm goes, I was extremely impressed. Barely bigger than the 35, it offers additional coverage, increased DOF with almost no additional distortion. Straight lines, sharp corners, etc. Par for the course for Leica S lenses, but not the norm for medium format wide angles. David Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplomley Posted October 31, 2011 Share #5 Posted October 31, 2011 24/35/75 or 21/28/50 equivalent for documentary/travel makes sense to me, and would nicely emulate the favourite focal lengths of many also using the M system. So where is the S-equivalent to a 35mm? IMHO, the zoom and 24mm should have been released before the 30mm, which for those that already purchased the 35mm is just filler. In the S system, the 24/35/70/120 would be a complete system for documentary, or for landscape, 24/30-90/120 Macro. I guess its a good sign Leica has not abandoned the system like they did the R. But I suppose its early days yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muscardino Posted October 31, 2011 Share #6 Posted October 31, 2011 When the S system was presented, in Photokina 2008, was announced the tilt/shift lens would be the 30 mm lens. With the launch of the Elmarit-S 30mm f/2.8 ASPH lens, this prediction isn’t achieved for the time being. The announce of Stefan Daniel, last week, about one tilt/shift lens to come in next years in the S system leave the doubt about the focal length of the tilt/shift lens. Would be a 35 mm lens equivalent to the PC Super Angulon lens of the R series or will be a 45 mm lens equivalent to the old PA Curtagon? Both lenses were built by Scheneider-Kreuznach manufacturer. Or, if this lens will be built by Leica, will be of 30 mm lens of completely new design? José Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosuna Posted November 3, 2011 Share #7 Posted November 3, 2011 Advertisement (gone after registration) There is no 50mm lens in the plan for the system, isn't? (50mm would provide the equivalent of 35mm in 24x35 format). Do the central shutter lenses have a shipping date? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplomley Posted November 3, 2011 Share #8 Posted November 3, 2011 50mm is the single lens I would use for street/documentary if I did not want to be burdened down by other optics. I'm pretty sure Leica has expertise in making the 50mm focal length, regardless of its image circle. And please make it fast...like f/2. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougg Posted November 4, 2011 Share #9 Posted November 4, 2011 I'd find a fast 50mm very useful on the S2. The frame/sensor diagonal is 54mm, so a 50mm lens has a 56.8° angle of view, same as 40mm on a 24x36 frame. I've been getting a taste of this, with adapted 45 and 55mm lenses from the Pentax 67 system... but they're both f/4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfarkas Posted November 4, 2011 Author Share #10 Posted November 4, 2011 Leica is aware of the desire for a 35mm equivalent focal length for the S2. In their words: "We are studying the possibility of such a lens" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest #12 Posted November 4, 2011 Share #11 Posted November 4, 2011 ... Do the central shutter lenses have a shipping date? +1 And what is the reason for the two-year delay? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pesto Posted December 5, 2011 Share #12 Posted December 5, 2011 What ever happened to the 350mm? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Rains Posted February 25, 2012 Share #13 Posted February 25, 2012 I have posted a mini-review and a sample full size image from the new 30mm on my website, it's a Jpeg but I believe it shows up the lens's fine detail abilities quite well. You can check it out here: 30mm Sample shot Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
janki Posted February 26, 2012 Share #14 Posted February 26, 2012 Thanks Nick! It is a pleasure to visit your website. I think we can now start talking about the Leica S2 camera as a reference in terms of digital wide-angle photography. It is when a digital camera system is tested by a focal length such as this, that a top quality system really differs, from a mediocre. For my own part, I can only hope that some of what we can see Leica has achieved with the S-system, also will appear in a future more consumer characterized product line. Regards! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephan_w Posted February 26, 2012 Share #15 Posted February 26, 2012 is the prism-viewfinder really adding more precision when focussing? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Rains Posted February 26, 2012 Share #16 Posted February 26, 2012 is the prism-viewfinder really adding more precision when focussing? Not really. In fact I find myself using the ground glass region with the 30mm, although the split prism is a help. It's hard to focus the 30mm, there is no sense of snapping into focus like there is the with the 70mm and longer. The 35mm was tricky but OK, and the AF worked fine. I have put in the firmware upgrade but have not had a chance to see if the AF has improved. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Rains Posted February 28, 2012 Share #17 Posted February 28, 2012 The firmware upgrade has improved the focus of the 30mm to the point where it is very accurate in most, but not all, circumstances. The inclusive nature of the lens means that the AF point covers a relatively large area of a subject and seems to have difficulty deciding which bit to focus on. This is particularly apparent when photographing narrow or small items against distant backgrounds eg a fence post or a railing. Oblique angled subjects fare badly too, the focus point tends to be a bit closer that you expect and at f2.8 this is quite obvious. Provide the AF point with an unequivocal focus plane and it's deadly accurate, but something a bit more challenging can pose problems. Focussing the 30mm by eye with the standard GG screen is easier than with the newer microprism screen - the microprisms are almost invisible when the subject is close to focus, an ironic drawback of such bright lenses. The split prism works fine and is accurate, if a bit hard to see. I turned the camera on it's side to manually focus on a horizontal railing and it nailed it each time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atanabe Posted March 7, 2012 Share #18 Posted March 7, 2012 Nick, Thank you for the info and introduction to the 30. Any issues with focusing at infinity? Does AF handle the small contrast area with this focal length? Thanks, Al Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Rains Posted March 7, 2012 Share #19 Posted March 7, 2012 Nick,Thank you for the info and introduction to the 30. Any issues with focusing at infinity? Does AF handle the small contrast area with this focal length? Thanks, Al No problems at all. The only problems I had were focussing on oblique surfaces and small items against distant backgrounds. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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