Paulus Posted April 9, 2012 Share #1 Posted April 9, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) Today I came across a 24 mm viewfinder which had the article number Leica 18696. Leica 18696 D-Lux 4 Brilliant Viewfinder | Overstock.com My question is, if this viewfinder is the same which Leica shows on his webside as article number: 12026 Leica Camera AG - Fotografie - LEICA SPIEGELSUCHER M für 18, 21 & 24 mm If anybody knows the answer I would really appreciate it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 Hi Paulus, Take a look here Are there different viewfinders 24mm?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Gosling Posted April 9, 2012 Share #2 Posted April 9, 2012 Paulus, They look different to me, so I expect that they are. The 18696 body appears to be made of two plastic shells clipped together, whereas the other ones definitely have metal bodies. I suspect the optics differ too. Marcus. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted April 9, 2012 Share #3 Posted April 9, 2012 The DLux one is a smallish plastic one with a slightly cramped view, the regular viewfinders are metal and offer a brighter and more generous image, but none come close to the Zeiss viewfinders, which are superior. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulus Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share #4 Posted April 9, 2012 The DLux one is a smallish plastic one with a slightly cramped view, the regular viewfinders are metal and offer a brighter and more generous image, but none come close to the Zeiss viewfinders, which are superior. Very much obliged Jaap! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertJRB Posted April 9, 2012 Share #5 Posted April 9, 2012 The first one is for the D-Lux compact camera. The second one for M body's with 24mm lens. The second one is made of metal, the first one is plastic. Don't know if the D-lux finder will work correctly. Offcourse you will be able to use it, but don't know if the "kadering" is correct. I myself went for a used plastic leica finder (as shown here, only in 24mm: Leica 21mm Finders) with is the previous version the present version. I paid about 300 dollar for it with is a lot less than the modern one from leica (700+ euro) and it works fine. The zeiss ones seems to be really good to, at least there a lot of good story's online. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenPatterson Posted April 9, 2012 Share #6 Posted April 9, 2012 ...but none come close to the Zeiss viewfinders, which are superior. In your opinion. I have owned both Zeiss and Leica (the latest metal version) and prefer the Leica. I feel the frame lines, which are only on the Leica versions, are an aid to composition and that the overall quality is superior to the Zeiss. However, the Zeiss is a very nice finder, and many members who wear glasses have expressed a preference for it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulus Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share #7 Posted April 9, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) In your opinion. I have owned both Zeiss and Leica (the latest metal version) and prefer the Leica. I feel the frame lines, which are only on the Leica versions, are an aid to composition and that the overall quality is superior to the Zeiss. However, the Zeiss is a very nice finder, and many members who wear glasses have expressed a preference for it. Thank you Stephen. Do you use the Leica viewfinder for the Super Elmar 21mm? Does it have some space left because of the frame lines? And how precise is it. At the moment I'm shooting with a 21-24-28 viewfinder ( Leica, made in Japan 12013), but the 21mm angle doesn't seem right. I keep seeing less in the viewfinder than appears in the picture.Only when I press my glasses very hard against the viewfinder, the view is right in comparison of what I get in the picture. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenPatterson Posted April 9, 2012 Share #8 Posted April 9, 2012 Thank you Stephen. Do you use the Leica viewfinder for the Super Elmar 21mm? Does it have some space left because of the frame lines? And how precise is it. At the moment I'm shooting with a 21-24-28 viewfinder ( Leica, made in Japan 12013), but the 21mm angle doesn't seem right. I keep seeing less in the viewfinder than appears in the picture. Yes, I use the Leica 21 external viewfinder, but I also recently purchased the Universal Viewfinder, lovingly referred to as the Frankenfinder. The Frankenfinder has the advantage of being able to adjust range for parallax, and also has a bubble level. I find myself using it more and more, but the small 21 is great for street photography when using the 21SEM. That's the combo I was using today, and it's fantastic. Both the small metal 21 vf and the universal vf have space beyond the frame lines, which help with composition IMHO. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
adan Posted April 9, 2012 Share #9 Posted April 9, 2012 Note that the D-Lux finder is formatted for a 4:3 sensor format, not the 3:2 Leica M format. Which probably explains the "cramped" quality jaap mentions. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulus Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share #10 Posted April 9, 2012 Yes, I use the Leica 21 external viewfinder, but I also recently purchased the Universal Viewfinder, lovingly referred to as the Frankenfinder. The Frankenfinder has the advantage of being able to adjust range for parallax, and also has a bubble level. I find myself using it more and more, but the small 21 is great for street photography when using the 21SEM. That's the combo I was using today, and it's fantastic. Both the small metal 21 vf and the universal vf have space beyond the frame lines, which help with composition IMHO. If you refer to this one: Leica Camera AG - Fotografie - LEICA UNIVERSAL WEITWINKELSUCHER M I can imagine they gave it the nickname Frankenfinder ( or isn't' it a nickname ?). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted April 9, 2012 Share #11 Posted April 9, 2012 The Zeiss ones gather more light, which makes them better for my use as I tend to use the Summilux 24 indoors and in the evening. the frame lines are less of a concern for me, as I have yet to see any optical viewfinder system that is consistently correct for shooting “to the line” Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gberger Posted April 9, 2012 Share #12 Posted April 9, 2012 Before my eyes "went South" due to macular degeneration, I shot quite a few trannies with the Leica 24/2.8 using the Zeiss 25/28 finder and the Leica 24mm built for the 24mm lens. . For some reason, using the 25mm lines in the Zeiss finder gave results that, to me, were equal, on projection, to using the dedicated Leica finder. BTW: You can purchase diopter correction lenses for the Zeiss finders that are the same ones used for the Zeiss Ikon body. Just my two cents. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom0511 Posted April 10, 2012 Share #13 Posted April 10, 2012 I use the D-Lux 24mm viewfinder and dont find it cramped. I think it is mainly a different housing, but the optics of the D-Lux finder are very good. I never realized the side ratio difference, but maybe that means that it is not as acccurate. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted April 10, 2012 Share #14 Posted April 10, 2012 It is not a bad finder at all, Tom, it is all comparative, the standard Leica finders are a bit more generously designed, but as the DLux is a small camera, that is no more than logical. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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