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Lens questions from a new M8 owner


Steve C

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I am not yet an owner of an M8, but I will be ordering one next week.

My Questions.

I have the following lenses that I have been using on my M6 and M7:

Elmarit 21mm 2.8

Summilux 35mm 1.4

Summilux 50mm 1.4

Tri Elmar 25-35-50 4.0

Should I get them 6 bit coded. If not all which ones?

Is an IR filter a good idea for all/some of the lenses?

I have A UVa filter E46 for the 50 and 35 mm lenses does this have any effect on the IR problem?

One last question. What is the general opinion on the Wide angle Tri Elmar?

As you can tell this is my first post. And even though I have been a Leica film user for years please assume I know very little. As an example what is cyan drift? Ok, I slipped in one more question.

Any input would be a great help.

Steve

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If you do a little searching on this forum you will find many posts about which lenses SHOULD be coded and which are a personal choice, IE coding not need for correction.

 

I myself have either bought new coded lenses or had my older uncoded lenses coded.

It up to you but you SHOULD have all your present lenses coded

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You should have the 21mm and the Tri-Elmar coded, because of the following: All lenses should have IR cut filters because they keep black synthetic fabrics from turning an ecclesiastical purple. Common UVa filters do NOT address the IR problem, they work at the other end of the spectrum. The wide angle of acceptance of lenses of 28 mm or shorter does cause color vignetting with IR cut filters, which is computed away by the camera (along with ordinary vignetting) but the camera can do this only if it 'knows' which lens is mounted. With longer lenses this is no big issue (not even with 35mm according to my experience, contrary to what Leica say).

 

It is said that Leica branded filters work better for these wide angles than the B+W brand – that's somewhat marginal though. B+W work fine from 35mm up and are somewhat less expensive and more available – they say there are degrees even in Hell ...

 

The Wide Tri-Elmar is an excellent lens, but for some strong linear distorsion (c. 3% barrel) at 16mm, but people seem to accept that sort of thing in zooms ... So if you can live with 1:4 as the maximum aperture, and if the huge and fiddly 'frankenfinder' is your thing, it could be an option. Many people prefer the Cosina/Voigtländer 15 mm in spite of its inability to take filters without some home surgery. There is also a price difference, to say the least, to compensate for an occasional touch of Papist Purple.

 

The old man from the Age of the Yellow Filter

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I am not yet an owner of an M8, but I will be ordering one next week.

My Questions.

I have the following lenses that I have been using on my M6 and M7:

Elmarit 21mm 2.8

Summilux 35mm 1.4

Summilux 50mm 1.4

Tri Elmar 25-35-50 4.0

Should I get them 6 bit coded. If not all which ones?

Is an IR filter a good idea for all/some of the lenses?

I have A UVa filter E46 for the 50 and 35 mm lenses does this have any effect on the IR problem?

One last question. What is the general opinion on the Wide angle Tri Elmar?

As you can tell this is my first post. And even though I have been a Leica film user for years please assume I know very little. As an example what is cyan drift? Ok, I slipped in one more question.

Any input would be a great help.

Steve

 

Welcome to the forum, and I hope you get your M8. I would buy IR-cut filters for all lenses as per the above statement as you don't want black fabrics turning out magenta. If you have the money and the time to send lenses off for coding, do so, but I use a sharpie to hand code my lenses. I use the CV 15mm without any IR filter at all, and for my phototgraphy, I have not noticed a problem. The WATE seems to be a good lens, saves switching lenses, and I wouldn't mind the f/4 slowness. I personally would not fool with the "frankenfinder" as that defeats (for me) the purpose of a small unobstrusive camera! Are you really going to adjust the viewfinder framing everytime you zoom the lens? I hope your subject doesn't move then! I would use the CV 21mm finder and guess the framing using that, and double check the picture I just took with the rear LCD. lenses wider than 35mm.

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I generally don't use the filters and have had none of my lenses coded. I am not insensitive to the IR-induced color anomalies, but they really don't bother me that much. There never has been any such thing as "accurate" color rendition, whether with film emulsions, digital sensors, monitors, printers, human vision, etc. You are entitled to two free filters with the M8, so choose the sizes that make the most sense for the lenses you own. You'll have plenty of time to explore the uncorrected M8 while you wait for the filters to be delivered, then you can explore the effects of the filters. They do work as advertised to eliminate the shifted colors of fabric dyes and live foliage. The coding currently provides two benefits, the first is that the lens focal length is recorded in the EXIF information for each image, something I would find useful but not worth the effort. The second is post-exposure correction for vignetting, both normal (without filter) and cyan drift(cyan-shifted vignetting caused by the IR cutoff filters). This correction is only as good as the algorithms in the firmware, and unlike the IR compensation provided by the filters, can be performed just as well in post processing. To me, the filters are more important than the lens coding, and even then not essential.

 

A lot depends on your intended use of the camera, and your tolerance for color shifts. If you intend to shoot black and white, the filters may not be much of an issue. For color, it depends a lot on your subject matter.

 

My recommendation would be to take it one step at a time and wait until you identify a problem before trying to solve it. I know others will disagree and only use coded lenses, with filters, all the time. Nothing wrong with that approach but it isn't the only one.

 

As for the wide angle Tri-Elmar, it isn't for me. If you like your 25-35-50 then maybe you will like it. I much prefer the faster, lighter, and more compact prime lenses.

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I also have the 21/2.8 as well as the 28/2.8, 35/2, 50/1.4 and ordered UV/IR filters for all of them - and basically decided to leave them on all the time when going out with the M8. You probably don't need an IR filter that badly with a wide angle lens like the 21/2.8, but I prefer not to have to think about changing the setting in the menu. On coding, you definitely need it for the 21/2.8, because even the (weak) IR filter on the sensor of the M8 creates a cyan drift, which the software can only correct if the lens is coded. But again, I decided to have all my old lenses coded for the same reason. But it may just be me - I tend to forget to change the settings when switching lenses.

 

Regarding the WATE: If you have a 21/2.8, check it out first on the M8, as it actually feels quite wide. I decided not to buy the WATE because of all the hassle with the large viewfinder that comes with it (the "Frankenfinder"), the need to change menu settings when changing the focal length of the WATE, etc. Therefore, I use my MP with the 21/2.8 (with a Zeiss 21 finder) for the occasional super-wide angle shots. Others may have different needs, of course.

 

Wolfgang

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Thank you for the replies they have been most helpful.

I will use my 21 mm lens to see if I need any thing wider.

I understand you can not enter the lens data manually if you do not have them coded.

What has been the recent turn around for coding from Leica US? I am taking an

rather long trip to Europe and I don't want to be without the lenses.

Does Leica still offer free coding for two lenses as well as free filters?

Steve

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I believe two free filters still come with the purchase of a new M8 for the original purchaser. The two free lense codings came with purchase of a new lens as long as it is purchased by June 30. Better hurry on that one. In the USA, the lens must be a USA imported one.

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Thank you for the replies they have been most helpful.

I will use my 21 mm lens to see if I need any thing wider.

I understand you can not enter the lens data manually if you do not have them coded.

What has been the recent turn around for coding from Leica US? I am taking an

rather long trip to Europe and I don't want to be without the lenses.

Does Leica still offer free coding for two lenses as well as free filters?

Steve

 

Good luck with your new gear and welcome. Turnaround time for Leica US is a bit unpredictable. I had sent in a Tri Elmar (28-35-50) and it came back in about 5 weeks. My 50mm 'cron is coming up on six weeks waiting. All my lenses up to 50mm are (or will be) coded: 12mm Heliar, WATE, 35mm 'cron, TriElmar, and 50 'cron. I have not bothered with the 75mm VC or the 90mm Macro Elmar. My advice is (1) to see what you get without filters and then decide which you want to code; (2) do not send lenses to NJ that you need back by a date certain (as for a trip); you can't bank on it. Oh, and getting filters takes time too, so it truly does not make sense to try to get all this done before a trip that is less that many months away.

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Thank you for the replies they have been most helpful.

I will use my 21 mm lens to see if I need any thing wider.

I understand you can not enter the lens data manually if you do not have them coded.

What has been the recent turn around for coding from Leica US? I am taking an

rather long trip to Europe and I don't want to be without the lenses.

Does Leica still offer free coding for two lenses as well as free filters?

Steve

 

Why don't you ask Leica Solms. I have a sneaking suspicion that if asked nicely and if they have the mount in stock, they'll do a "coded while you wait" lens conversion. As long as you are in Europe anyway....

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