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For anyone like me who is still interested in this lens but doesn't have one to hand, I have found these photographs a little more interesting than many of the other samples publicly available. You can also download the DNG files which helps get a sense what the lens is doing.

 

Personally, I still can't make my mind up whether this lens is likely to be a waste of money or an interesting photographic avenue to go down. Many of the photos just remind me of the annoying foggy look I get sometimes if I forget to wipe the lens on the back of my iPhone, others are just bad on almost any measure. Another reason for my hesitation is that I strongly suspect that if the same lens was made available by Cosina or Jupiter, I wouldn't be giving it any thoughts at all. However, the same could be said for the 28 Summaron-M which I took a punt on and which became my most used lens of last year.

Edited by wattsy
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Thambar..may only be a 50 to 100 shot lens..then you are tired of the look...and done with it..only to take it out once in a blue moon..like the 1950's sport car languishing in the garage..zoom zoom 3 x's a year...then...back to Toyota..or in this case..Asph..

Edited by tsleica
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Sure, it's a lens for very specific uses. If you buy it just because you're attracted by the effect, then you will get bored with it - it will play no part in most people's photography. You either have to recognise why and where you might need it, or you have to spend time working out how you want to use it.

At risk of repetition, this thread is where some of us are working through how to use the lens best and what it does in particular scenarios - it's not a best practice demo, and some of the lessons are being learned from scratch.

Aren't we lucky that Leica is willing to make unusual lenses for us? And that no one has to buy them if they don't want to?

Edited by LocalHero1953
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A few from the Botanic Gardens today.

 

M240 + Thambar, no filter, f2.2. Snowdrops bring out the Thambar halo effect at this aperture a bit too much.

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f/4. The background is a bit too busy for me, but the central snowdrops are better defined.

Edited by LocalHero1953
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M240 + Thambar, no filter, both at f/4

 

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For anyone like me who is still interested in this lens but doesn't have one to hand, I have found these photographs a little more interesting ...

I found the photos of the chap with the reflective sunglasses particularly interesting because you can see in the reflection that he's being photographed by someone in a bright blue animal 'onesie' who's with someone in a bright green dinosaur suit.  I'd love to know what that's all about.

 

There are some other good examples of what the Thambar can offer but other examples look like pictures I'm sure I could produce with a Noctilux and don't demonstrate the Thambar magic at all.  None of the portraits appear to show the magical 'old Thambar' soft focus look and left me wondering whether the EXIF data might have been erroneous.

 

Pete.

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It's an interesting lens but those effects I do like in it I can produce by other means. I would rather have it in one lens with the Thambar but at £5K I will give it a miss for now and stick with what I already do for those times I want it.

Edited by Paul J
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I found the photos of the chap with the reflective sunglasses particularly interesting because you can see in the reflection that he's being photographed by someone in a bright blue animal 'onesie' who's with someone in a bright green dinosaur suit.  I'd love to know what that's all about.

 

There are some other good examples of what the Thambar can offer but other examples look like pictures I'm sure I could produce with a Noctilux and don't demonstrate the Thambar magic at all.  None of the portraits appear to show the magical 'old Thambar' soft focus look and left me wondering whether the EXIF data might have been erroneous.

 

 

Yes, I guess it must be some fancy dress thing going on (the subject is presumably "the terminator")  :D. The EXIF is odd (states 28mm) but I presume that the firmware of the camera doesn't recognise the Thambar code.

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Thanks for these recent ones. I am thinking of using the Thambar for flowers (wild flowers rather than "garden" types  but these photos are nonetheless very interesting). The second strikes me as a successful photograph.

 

Just out of interest, Paul, does your M240 recognise the Thambar and, if so, does it apply any kind of correction?

 

M240 + Thambar, no filter, both at f/4

 

attachicon.gifM2406233.jpg

 

attachicon.gifM2406240.jpg

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Thanks for these recent ones. I am thinking of using the Thambar for flowers (wild flowers rather than "garden" types  but these photos are nonetheless very interesting). The second strikes me as a successful photograph.

 

Just out of interest, Paul, does your M240 recognise the Thambar and, if so, does it apply any kind of correction?

Thanks for your comments, Ian.

 

Not, it doesn't recognise the Thambar, but this is my fault - I keep forgetting to update to the firmware that came out in December - that was supposed to have the Thambar profile in it. The SL and CL both recognise it (with Leica's M-L adapter).

Edited by LocalHero1953
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I have now upgraded the firmware. The M240 recognises the Thambar and the EXIF records it.

Lightroom doesn't have a profile for a Thambar. I don't know how to tell if any corrections are baked in in-camera. I would guess that none are, since they made no corrections in the 1930s!

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I don't know how to tell if any corrections are baked in in-camera. I would guess that none are, since they made no corrections in the 1930s!

 

 

Yes, I'm sure you are right. I know it is a 90mm lens but I wondered if there might be any vignetting correction going on.

Edited by wattsy
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Yes, I'm sure you are right. I know it is a 90mm lens but I wondered if there might be any vignetting correction going on.

As vignette changes with aperture and Ms are oblivious to aperture, I would guess there is no in camera correction.

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