The best of Leica R lenses for M systems?

[onasj]

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In the early stages of my Leicaphilia disease, back when I purchased lenses solely because I "needed" them, I began with a 50, then a 28 and 90.  All good, right?

Then came the 35 and 75, the ultrawides and the 135, then Noctiluxes, then larger-aperture and smaller-sized versions of the most common focal lengths because some days I need to travel light, then the Macro Elmar 9/4, then ultra-small versions of the most common focal lengths (50/2.8, 28, 2.8), because some days one needs to travel ultralight, right?

But even in these advanced stages of Leicaphilia disease, there are gaps in Leica's excellent M lens lineup.  

Longer telephotos and macro lenses with higher magnification ratios than 1:2 are examples of these gaps.  So I was thrilled to discover, thanks to some of the suggestions in this forum, that some of these gaps can be filled by some outstanding Leica R lenses (and an R-to-M adapter).

After more than a year of searching, I'm fortunate to have found these Leica R lenses: 100/2.8 macro (plus Elpro 1:1 magnifier lens), 180/2.8 APO v2 (11357), 280/4 APO, and 1.4x APO teleconverter and 2.0x APO teleconverters.  All three are large but optically superb.  I was shocked to find that the 280/4 + 1.4x teleconverter + 2.0x teleconverter, resulting in a 784 mm f/11 lens equivalent, can take some quite decent photos, even handheld, especially with an a7riv sensor (which has IBIS).  One example of a tight crop, taken with this setup from very far away, is attached.  Makes me even more hungry for Leica's upcoming high-resolution M10-R, which I'm hopeful will have comparable performance as the a7riii/iv sensors.

Are there any other R lenses that fill gaps in the M lineup?  I'm aware of the PC (shiftable) Super Angulon lens, but it doesn't look to be optically that great, and I have medium format tilt/shift cameras already.  

Then again, when does need dictate decision-making once infected with Leicaphilia?

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Edited June 24, 2020 by onasj

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[wizard]

They are working on a vaccine like mad just now, but wait, that is meant to fight the Covid-19 virus, so I guess there is no hope for you at this point .

[farnz]

Well, R tele-zooms go far beyond the M line up of course.  If your Leicaphillia has reached chronic levels then you might consider the APO-Telyt-R Modul system where combinations of two lens heads and three modular lens bodies make up the following six modular lenses:

• 800/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/2.8 APO-Telyt-R
• 280/2.8 APO-Telyt-R

Pete.

[jaapv]

7 minutes ago, farnz said:

Well, R tele-zooms go far beyond the M line up of course.  If your Leicaphillia has reached chronic levels then you might consider the APO-Telyt-R Modul system where combinations of two lens heads and three modular lens bodies make up the following six modular lenses:

• 800/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/2.8 APO-Telyt-R
• 280/2.8 APO-Telyt-R

Pete.

MR-Telyt 500/8.0

[onasj]

21 minutes ago, farnz said:

Well, R tele-zooms go far beyond the M line up of course.  If your Leicaphillia has reached chronic levels then you might consider the APO-Telyt-R Modul system where combinations of two lens heads and three modular lens bodies make up the following six modular lenses:

• 800/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/5.6 APO-Telyt-R
• 560/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/4 APO-Telyt-R
• 400/2.8 APO-Telyt-R
• 280/2.8 APO-Telyt-R

Pete.

Longer telephoto lenses may well be the next "need", but I'm trying to balance practicality as well, as I don't see myself dragging the modular APO-Telyt-R system anywhere.  But who knows where the disease will lead me.

[farnz]

Just trying to create spaces for your Leicaphillia to nestle into. 😇

Pete.

[Guest JMF]

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1 hour ago, onasj said:

In the early stages of my Leicaphilia disease, back when I purchased lenses solely because I "needed" them, I began with a 50, then a 28 and 90.  All good, right?

Then came the 35 and 75, the ultrawides and the 135, then Noctiluxes, then larger-aperture and smaller-sized versions of the most common focal lengths because some days I need to travel light, then the Macro Elmar 9/4, then ultra-small versions of the most common focal lengths (50/2.8, 28, 2.8), because some days one needs to travel ultralight, right?

But even in these advanced stages of Leicaphilia disease, there are gaps in Leica's excellent M lens lineup.  

Longer telephotos and macro lenses with higher magnification ratios than 1:2 are examples of these gaps.  So I was thrilled to discover, thanks to some of the suggestions in this forum, that some of these gaps can be filled by some outstanding Leica R lenses (and an R-to-M adapter).

After more than a year of searching, I'm fortunate to have found these Leica R lenses: 100/2.8 macro (plus Elpro 1:1 magnifier lens), 180/2.8 APO v2 (11357), 280/4 APO, and 1.4x APO teleconverter and 2.0x APO teleconverters.  All three are large but optically superb.  I was shocked to find that the 280/4 + 1.4x teleconverter + 2.0x teleconverter, resulting in a 784 mm f/11 lens equivalent, can take some quite decent photos, even handheld, especially with an a7riv sensor (which has IBIS).  One example of a tight crop, taken with this setup from very far away, is attached.  Makes me even more hungry for Leica's upcoming high-resolution M10-R, which I'm hopeful will have comparable performance as the a7riii/iv sensors.

Are there any other R lenses that fill gaps in the M lineup?  I'm aware of the PC (shiftable) Super Angulon lens, but it doesn't look to be optically that great, and I have medium format tilt/shift cameras already.  

Then again, when does need dictate decision-making once infected with Leicaphilia?

 

Hi, if you need incentives to go out shopping for more  Leica R glass, well... the 28 Elmarit R v2 and the 50 Summilux R v2 e60 have no direct match in the M line up, in my humble views 🙂

[newnew]

Why not chase a Super Elmar -R 15mm ? Looks like a great lens. Or it seems to have a 2.8 version @ 15K euros on the market.

 

Edited June 24, 2020 by newnew

[darylgo]

I’m not quite at the stage you’ve reached, but if I was I would go with Pete’s recommendation. Imagine all the fun you could have with two modules, three lenses, and your two converters. That’s a combined eighteen different setups, from 280mm to 2240mm.  Practicality aside it would be fun to pack these in a SUV and go shoot sunrises etc. 

Second recommendation is the 180mm Summicron.  I’ve always lusted after this lens and would have purchased it if Nikon and Canon didn’t make their superb 200mm f2 lenses that might be as good and could be adapted. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by darylgo

[scott kirkpatrick]

13 hours ago, newnew said:

Why not chase a Super Elmar -R 15mm ? Looks like a great lens. Or it seems to have a 2.8 version @ 15K euros on the market.

 

The 2.8 version is indeed a great lens.  Back before Leicaphilia returned to the market with the L-mount, it didn't cost 15K EUR, either.

[luigi bertolotti]

Just got an MR-Telyt 500 ... very good size compared to my old long Telyts 😎... tests yet to be made (at home 2 days ago...)

I have Apo Telyt 180, which with EVF is a very good item to use, as well as a Macro Elmar 100:  this one, indeed, not so different from the modern Macro Elmar 90... 

 

Edited June 25, 2020 by luigi bertolotti

[oldwino]

On 6/24/2020 at 10:02 AM, JMF said:

Hi, if you need incentives to go out shopping for more  Leica R glass, well... the 28 Elmarit R v2 and the 50 Summilux R v2 e60 have no direct match in the M line up, in my humble views 🙂

What makes the E60 Summilux different from the earlier E55 version?  There's a big jump in price.

[Guest JMF]

13 minutes ago, oldwino said:

What makes the E60 Summilux different from the earlier E55 version?  There's a big jump in price.

Different designs altogether:

http://vintage-camera-lenses.com/summilux-r-50mm-1-4-leica-r/

[Keith (M)]

I quite like my 35mm Elmarit-R with its useful ability to focus down below 0.3m.  60mm Macro Elmarit-R (plus Macro Adaptor) for 1:1 captures.  For walk-about versatility and qualities on a par with prime lenses, the 21-35mm Vario Elmar-R takes some beating.

[Stef63]

On 6/24/2020 at 5:12 PM, onasj said:

Are there any other R lenses that fill gaps in the M lineup?  I'm aware of the PC (shiftable) Super Angulon lens, but it doesn't look to be optically that great, and I have medium format tilt/shift cameras already.  

Then again, when does need dictate decision-making once infected with Leicaphilia?

... and after the R there is LTM territory.   I would start to explore this thread.  The disease will become a life long lasting chronic illness.

BTW :  the hunt for decent LTM lenses is even more addicting

[Einst_Stein]

Not for this forum, but a good way to cure the LPD is SL2 + 90-280mm . Crop it.  CL + 90-280mm might work too. 

[Peter Zapp]

I treated acute Leicaphilia with bargain R-lenses and accessories rather than with the last Apo generation. They are good enough for playing around in my backyard or at my desk. The Apo 180/3,4, the (almost-Apo) 80-800/4, the 400/6,8 or the (stopped-down) Macro 100/4 are more usable than ever with digital's high-ISO capabilities, no regret about film and lab costs for blurred images. 

[mmx_2]

Elmarit 19 is a fantastic lens! Version 2 is very neat with built in filter turret, but first version is also a fine performer.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[mmx_2]

The 35-70 f4 is also worth looking into, it also has a very useful macro-mode. It's a good "summer lens". My own favourites from the R-line are:

Elmarit 19

35-70 f4

Macro Elmarit 60 (it's a bargain for the price! Very useful and a great performer, almost as good as the 100 but for much less money)

80-200f4

Apo-Elmarit 100

Apo-telyt 280 f4

I have all of the above (plus some more) and they are all seing some use on my M10. The 80-200 is usually with me when we visit the local zoo. The 100 and 60 I mostly use in our garden. The 280 is more for "planned photography". The performance is fantastic, but I believe you can find equal performers today for less money and also with AF. I rarely use mine because of the weight, but I'm always amazed by the image quality from it. The apo 280f4 and Apo 100 are among the highest resolving lenses ever made by Leica. The 280 was a true statement when it was introduces in 1993, and I know that Kodak used the Apo 100 to test film resolution.

Summilux 35 and 50 are both highly south after by film makers. Both are great performers, but I would say that the current asph-M 35 and 50 are better options for an M being rangefinder coupled and more compact size. I think you have a great kit with the apo 100, apo 180 and apo 280. I've thought about buying the apo 180 several times, but I already have several other lenses in that range so it's more for "fun" than an actual "need". If one pops up nearby at a reasonable price, I might consider it again :).

Otherwise I have only heard positive things about:

Elmarit 28 v2

Super-Elmarit 15

But of course for 28mm there are several as good options (and range finder coupled) for the M. The 15mm is unfortunaly quite expensive these days.

Below a few examples. First and last are with Apo-Macro Elmarit 100. The Rhinos are with 80-200plus Apo 2x at 400mm f11.

 

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[onasj]

Thanks, everyone!  I ended up acquiring a 500/8 MR as jaapv suggested.  What a quirky and fun lens!  Here's the first photo I took with it (handheld, on an a7riv so the IBIS could help).  Took more post-processing than usual, and the nearly-in-focus bokeh is... unique... to be sure.  But overall I'm pretty impressed with a sub-$1k, compact and light 500 mm lens!  Modern sensors and modern post-processing helps with the low light gathering (behaves like an f/9 or f/10 lens in terms of light that hits the sensor), and restores contrast, saturation, and sharpness.

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