My CL and 23mm F2 Summicron

[AdamMark]

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My CL and 23mm F2 Summicron

I today set up my new camera and lens.  My thoughts compared to previous cameras ie Fuji XT2 and 23mm F1.4 and a brief flirtation with the X100V are as follows, in my opinion of course.  Most things are subjective.  I wonder if you agree :

• Build quality of the Leica CL and its lens is superior
• Handling of the Leica is better.  Pure quality and that viewfinder is great.
• Images from the Leica seem to have that certain something which differentiates them from the crowd.  I can see it in the DNG files.  Probably the colours and the micro contrast of the lens ? And that sensor ?
• The Fuji lens seems sharper particularly to the edge of the frame ( have to view it at 200% on my MacBook Pro 2015 to see it ) however the Leica images seems to have more “bite” more depth, if you like.  I assume thats micro contrast at play here ?
• Although the Fuji lens seems “sharper” I’ve come to the conclusion that sharpness isn’t everything and colour rendering and micro contrast is more important.  It seems that is that special recipe which produces the most pleasing images.

Kind regards,

Adam

 

[M.piras]

Perfectly aligned to your last definition. A colleague of mine use Fuji xt4 and even if is very good camera (better than Sony in opinion) it’s like less “expressive” (this doesn’t mean it’sa bad camera!) i found on Leica the best instruments to express my creativity and some lenses let me express better than other. When i tested xt4 i had to set in post production a mask to bring the image slightly out of focus to join the emotivity i wanted to express.

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[SoCalLeicanator]

I have zero experience with Fuji other than flickr browsing so my opinion likely isn't worth much.

To me the Fuji images might be sharper but they look hyper processed while my CL images look more "natural" and have more "3D POP" for lack of a better word.  The FUJI might be sharper than the f2 23mm but I don't think it holds a candle to the 11-23.  That said, I prefer the 23 over 11-23 for many applications, especially shooting people.  IMO that is where the 23 really shines.

[jaapv]

Flickr is awash in horribly overprocessed and oversharpened images...

[PDP]

I had the X100F and I was happy for quite a while, then the frustration starts:

- colors are always quite pink, only b&w was superior

- the EVF was un-precise

- I was lost in menu of the camara, one wrong click and I found myself nowhere

- the raw-material was often a surprise, hhmm how to say…well if you take a picture with a Leica you get what you did, a defined result made by a perfect tool, with the Fuji I received what Japanese engineers expect I would like to receive

- correction of my correction: I correct exposure by lets say minus 1, nothing happens, than -2, perhaps a bit of a correction…

At the end I gave up and send the camera to my oldest son for baby pictures.

You will enjoy the CL, I am pretty sure.

[tommonego@gmail.com]

I bought the CL to use some M glass I had, my 25 f3.5 Canon was too slow for a "normal" lens so I bought the 23 Summicron, just a very nice lens, light yet well built. This year I bought an 11-23 Super Vario Elmar which is a spectacular lens, so it gets used more than the 23 but the 23 is still better at f2-f4. When i first had the CL I was photographing an event another photographer had a Fuji, with a fixed 23mm. We switched camera for a time, She said she wanted my camera, I said i did too 🙂. Admittedly I only took a few photos on the Fuji, but I didn't like the feel vs the CL.

[Camaro5]

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On 7/10/2021 at 12:29 AM, jaapv said:

Flickr is awash in horribly overprocessed and oversharpened images...

With the CL & all the TL lenses I've really dialed back on how much processing they need.  I never really over-processed too much but probably did over-sharpen a little.  Now it's just bare minimum with a little here and there, and that's about it.  

[crt]

My experiences with a Leica X2 and a fuji (XT-1, and now XT-4) are similar to those in much of the above comment. While the Fuji seems 'sharper' , the Leica images are more natural-looking. Using in-camera menu to reduce preset jpg sharpening level in the fuji was not a great success. For me, I prefer the Leica for all-round pics but the fuji is useful for tele and wider angle shots. Portraits with the fuji seem flat and tonally less alive than those from the X2. Wish I could bring myself to acquire a CL. Re the CL, pics on the net are commonly preferable to the near-drab results seen in many Q2 pics. Just my subjective 2 dollars worth.

[jaapv]

Welcome!  I think you are seeing a difference in interest in processing raw files here. Q users are more prone to prefer convenience, CL users are more of a type to push their camera during raw postprocesing (to put an unjustifiable generalization :lol )

[cpclee]

On 7/12/2021 at 1:50 AM, Camaro5 said:

With the CL & all the TL lenses I've really dialed back on how much processing they need.  I never really over-processed too much but probably did over-sharpen a little.  Now it's just bare minimum with a little here and there, and that's about it.  

With CL or SL files, I've found minimal to no sharpening is often good and sharpening is really only needed when you have a bit of misfocus or motion blur.

[SoCalLeicanator]

On 11/29/2021 at 5:37 AM, jaapv said:

Welcome!  I think you are seeing a difference in interest in processing raw files here. Q users are more prone to prefer convenience, CL users are more of a type to push their camera during raw postprocesing (to put an unjustifiable generalization :lol )

Easy Now! 😉  I have both and like the CL Jpegs the Q2 Jpegs are abysmal.  That said, I DO go ahead and tweak my DNGs minimally and there the Q2 shots are just plain stunning.  With the CL perhaps abandoned, I'd better learn to love that Q2.  I ain't ever going SONY (too complicated for me), Canon/Nikon (too big) or Fuji (too processed).

[Shawn30]

Wait until you see the 2 APO lenses, and the 35 f1.4