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Best all round portrait lens for R system with breaking the Bank


RvN

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Hi Guys,

 

Thinking of getting an R6 as compliment of my M system. 

 

If i want two lenses: i am thinking of  28mm and 60mm.

 

60 mm is just a bit longer than 50 and shorter than 90mm. I like that. Was thinking it would be an ideal allround lens with an extra focus on Portraits. Is the 60mm a good lens for portraits? Does it have nice enough fall-of and out of focus.

 

Any samples would be appreciated. If i missed some lens i should consider please let me know. (i think 90mm is to long) so if a specific 50mm is better. Let me know.

 

Suggestions about 28mm and which versions are also appreciated. I know nothing about the R system so help is appreciated.

Edited by RvN
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Some months ago I took the plunge into the R system with the purchase of an R5. After reading / gaining info from quite a few sources I bought the 60mm Macro Elmarit-R and have found it to be a very versatile lens.  However - portraiture is not something I do and probably the nearest to it is this one:-

 

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Some of the R lenses had variations produced which were much improved over earlier versions, and, of course, there are compatibilities/incompatibilities among R bodies, so you will need to do some research to determine which lenses will work with your body. Karen Nakamura has a nice chart on her website which should help you out.http://www.photoethnography.com/equipment.html . Also Doug Herr at www.wildlightphoto.com has interesting comparative info on R lenses. You do need to contact him to gain access to this info though.

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Hi,

I use 35 Summicron, 50 Lux and 60 but for portraiture I use the 90 Summicron. I like the way it renders...and with 35 Summicron (both Mandler designs)it is a good combination. But I also think about the 80 Summilux.

Michael

Edited by michaelm3
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I don't do much portraiture at all, but 90 is of course the conventionally preferred focal length. What I can say is that the 90/2 Apo Aspherical is a lens which I find a bit too ruthlessly sharp and unforgiving in this role. I'm sure James' suggestion of an Elmarit 90/2.8 is an excellent suggestion. 

 

I've kind of bodged the issue on those few occasions when I've been asked to do a portrait, and purely in terms of the lenses I've got to hand, and rather idiosyncratically, I've used a 50/2 with a 2x apo extender, to give the focal length without the ruthlessness. I could also have tried my 100/2.8 I suppose, but haven't yet done so.

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On a side note i just handled a R3 and R4 yesterday and the R4 had much more shutter lag. Reading about it i come across some mentioning about shutter lag on the R6(.2) also..

 

If the R6 would have the shutter lag of the r4 I experienced i would not want to buy it. Not sure if the specific camera needed a cla. 

 

Can any of the users confirm the shutter is nice and responsive and can compare with the M system or is it there a real lag to be expected (even if CLAed recently) with the R6(.2)??  (Maybe even, should i look for F3/fm3a and have te R-glass converted)

Edited by RvN
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I would go for a 90 Cron (pre-ASPH !) rather than buy the 60 Macro Elmarit. Both are relatively inexpensive and can be found at comparable prices.

 

Although I do like the 60 very much as multi-purpose prime lens that is usually always attached to one of my R bodies, it is outshined (literally) by the 90 cron when shooting portraits. The 90 is a bit less sharp and gives the portrait a certain "shine" so that the results are more pleasing (at least to my eye). It you can dig a little bit deeper ($$) go for the 80 lux for prtraits.

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Can any of the users confirm the shutter is nice and responsive and can compare with the M system or is it there a real lag to be expected (even if CLAed recently) with the R6(.2)??  (Maybe even, should i look for F3/fm3a and have te R-glass converted)

 

 

If you buy an FM3a (I have one) you should not convert glass, but just use the Nikon Ai-S lenses, they are really really good actually and they are still being made and can be bought brand new from Nikon.

 

I have the:

50mm 1:1.2 Ai-S

28mm 1:2.8 Ai-S

28mm 1:2.0 Ai-S

85mm 1:1.4 Ai-S

20mm 1:2.8 Ai-S

 

All really good lenses. 

 

The 28mm 1:2.8 Ai-S has floating elements which makes it focus all the way to 15 or 20 cm with great clarity and detail! 

The 28mm 1:2.0 Ai-S has floating elements too but not as good as the 2.8 but it's a great lens and has a lovely creamy bokeh for such a wide angle lens.

The 50mm 1:1.2 Ai-S is dreamy wide open but at F2 it's extremely sharp (the sharpest Nikon 50mm lens in the center) and it slow gets worse towards the edges, which you expect from a optical design like the lens has.

 

The other lenses 85 and 20 are nice but not special, which by no mean is a bad thing to be honest! They are just good. 

 

The Leica R lenses of the later era are usually more focused at quality across the whole field with better corners but lower peak performance in the centre, while the earlier R lenses are more focused at good quality in the centre and lower in the corner. The Nikon Ai-S lenses are the same: Great in the center a bit less so in the corners (until you stop down).

 

The R6.2 has not much shutter lag it's usually the piston in the camera that needs cleaning, ALL Leica R cameras except the R8/R9 exhibit this when bought second hand I have noticed, a CLA always fixes this. 

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If you buy an FM3a (I have one) you should not convert glass, but just use the Nikon Ai-S lenses, they are really really good actually and they are still being made and can be bought brand new from Nikon.

 

I have the:

50mm 1:1.2 Ai-S

28mm 1:2.8 Ai-S

28mm 1:2.0 Ai-S

85mm 1:1.4 Ai-S

20mm 1:2.8 Ai-S

 

All really good lenses. 

 

The 28mm 1:2.8 Ai-S has floating elements which makes it focus all the way to 15 or 20 cm with great clarity and detail! 

The 28mm 1:2.0 Ai-S has floating elements too but not as good as the 2.8 but it's a great lens and has a lovely creamy bokeh for such a wide angle lens.

The 50mm 1:1.2 Ai-S is dreamy wide open but at F2 it's extremely sharp (the sharpest Nikon 50mm lens in the center) and it slow gets worse towards the edges, which you expect from a optical design like the lens has.

 

The other lenses 85 and 20 are nice but not special, which by no mean is a bad thing to be honest! They are just good. 

 

The Leica R lenses of the later era are usually more focused at quality across the whole field with better corners but lower peak performance in the centre, while the earlier R lenses are more focused at good quality in the centre and lower in the corner. The Nikon Ai-S lenses are the same: Great in the center a bit less so in the corners (until you stop down).

 

The R6.2 has not much shutter lag it's usually the piston in the camera that needs cleaning, ALL Leica R cameras except the R8/R9 exhibit this when bought second hand I have noticed, a CLA always fixes this. 

 

HI Jip, Thanx very much.

 

CLA to clean pistons is expensive i hear. What would a complete CLA cost? And who does it (In NL, D?)

 

Any body know if the loudness of the shutter of R6 is much less than FM2?

Edited by RvN
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Hi Guys,

 

Thinking of getting an R6 as compliment of my M system. 

 

If i want two lenses: i am thinking of  28mm and 60mm.

 

60 mm is just a bit longer than 50 and shorter than 90mm. I like that. Was thinking it would be an ideal allround lens with an extra focus on Portraits. Is the 60mm a good lens for portraits? Does it have nice enough fall-of and out of focus.

 

Any samples would be appreciated. If i missed some lens i should consider please let me know. (i think 90mm is to long) so if a specific 50mm is better. Let me know.

 

Suggestions about 28mm and which versions are also appreciated. I know nothing about the R system so help is appreciated.

 

Hard to answer your question but for the most pleasant portraits I would choose a lens about 60mm

I think you know about the distortion of faces if you take a wideangle right ?

With the M the 90mm was for me the end of the line because the 135mm which I had too was a pain

to use.......

For my R I love(d) the Vario-Elmar 4,0/80-200 which is a amazing and extrem sharp lens with nice Bokeh

but unfortunately hard to get & a little expensive - compared to some M glass still a bargain !

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The R 60 is a terrific lens. I do not have any portraits to show you with it, but here are some shots which show its character. I use it on the SL 601 and the T. Macro is superb. Colors are excellent. 

 

Another portrait lens to consider is the R 80 1.4, albeit likely a bit more expensive than the 60mm.  The R 80 is a lens I'll likely never sell because of the uniqueness.

 

I had the 80-200 f4 and it was superb as well, but I recently sold it as I wanted the SL 90-280 for its longer length and AF capacity and image stabilization. 

 

If you decide to opt for the R 60, I am thinking of selling mine so send me a note. 

 

Rob

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Edited by ropo54
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More R 60 shots

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Edited by ropo54
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