Trying to decide on the "best" wide angle lens for me.

solamnus · November 16, 2021

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So had both my Leica M4 and the M240 for a while now, and been adding a 50 cron to my 35 voigtlander Ultron and 75 heliar. Im trying to sell my 75mm as i feel the FLs i use the most are 50 and one wide angle lens. So i have been looking at maybe selling the 35 voigtländer, and adding either a new 35 or even better a 28mm.

My budget is around 1500 EU at the most right now, and i have been looking at the 28 Elmarit and almost bit the bullet and bought one today, but thought id read up a little more and see what suggestions turns up before i finally decide. There is only one Elmarit out currently on the used market here, its the First version ASPH with the plastic hood.

When i was looking at comparisons between the versions i did not find the version 2 that much different so the version 1 would be fin for me, a metal hood would be cool, but thats not a deal breaker for me.

So what characteristics are important for me? Well, im not one to go after the best optical quality when it comes to sharpness etc, and id rather have a lens being fine optically but that give a nice rendering or character instead.

At the same time a compact lens would be nice, so that was one of the pros that made me look at the elmar it for example.

I would use my wide angle for street shooting, and also landscape and nature the most i think. And documenting stuff in general. While a nice bokeh would be nice im happy if it give ok pokey for a bit of isolation if i would want it. But its not the most important facet for me or what would ne the nr one priority with this lens.

I was a bit spoiled by the leica Q as i loved the ability to get nice bokeh on the 28 there. But most of all i liked the Fl 28 and its ability to get a little bit more in the view than a 35 would give me

I would be fine with a voigtländer wide angle, if it has great character or quality too.

Any good suggestions around those needs?

/martin.

November 16, 2021

Hi solamnus,

Take a look here Trying to decide on the "best" wide angle lens for me.. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!

AndreasG · November 16, 2021

Buy the Elmarit 28 ASPH V1, you will be happy with it! For many years with film and now a digital Leica 28mm has become my favourite focal length and around 80% of my photos I shoot with the 28 Elmarit ASPH V1, it is indeed a great lens (although small in size) with terrific resolution and contrast. I also bought it used, it is one of the best lenses for Leica that relative little money can buy.

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

solamnus · November 16, 2021

36 minutes ago, AndreasG said:

Buy the Elmarit 28 ASPH V1, you will be happy with it! For many years with film and now a digital Leica 28mm has become my favourite focal length and around 80% of my photos I shoot with the 28 Elmarit ASPH V1, it is indeed a great lens (although small in size) with terrific resolution and contrast. I also bought it used, it is one of the best lenses for Leica that relative little money can buy.

It is the one i through reviews and recommendations i am most keen on for sure right now Sure a summilux would be awesome , but considering my budget thats not going to happen right now hehe. Sot it really seems like the best solution currently. Thank you for your advice and input:)

/Martin.

Edited November 16, 2021 by solamnus

a.noctilux · November 17, 2021

Hello Martin,

you would not find another lens which has quality of Elmarit-M 28mm asph. in so tiny package.

I do use other 28mm ( various openings f/2, 2.8, 3.5, 5.6) of course as I have them for years, but when I bought this 2.8/28mm, I use it a lot, never been upset by the output,

even used wide open.

Some examples, here on Monochrom(+ Elmarit-M 28mm asph. "I" )

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/318090-m246-replacing-film/?do=findComment&comment=4142815

pippy · November 17, 2021

I'm another who would recommend the v1 Elmarit unhesitatingly. Fantastic lens.

Before I bought mine I had the use of a v2 which belongs to a friend and could carry out a direct comparison between the pair. For my needs there was absolutely no visible difference in IQ. From what has been written I see that the v2 has marginally improved corner performance wide open and a slight change to the design which tweaks field-curvature mildly in comparison to the v1 but that's about it. If you shoot double-page spreads of broadsheet newspapers taped to a flat wall then you may notice a difference. For 'real world' shooting you can pretty much accept that they render in exactly the same way. For my preferences it was the much smaller hood of the v1 which was the deciding factor.

The whole package of lens and hood really is tiny and also very light. It is also supremely sharp at pretty much all apertures. Diffraction kicks-in at f16 but even then the results are hardly shoddy.

As far as bokeh is concerned it's a 28mm lens with a max. aperture of f2.8. There are not going to be many occasions (at least for me) where the 'quality' of bokeh is even going to be noticed let alone an important part of the overall image. As I almost never use mine at f2.8 the concept of Bokeh is purely academic.

You cannot really go wrong with either version. The metal hood of the v2 screws on and is more securely attached than the clip-on hood of the v1 but the v2 hood is also quite large which sort-of goes against the design ethos of the lens in the first place. Best of luck in the hunt!

Philip.

Edited November 17, 2021 by pippy

solamnus · November 17, 2021

10 hours ago, a.noctilux said:

Hello Martin,

you would not find another lens which has quality of Elmarit-M 28mm asph. in so tiny package.

I do use other 28mm ( various openings f/2, 2.8, 3.5, 5.6) of course as I have them for years, but when I bought this 2.8/28mm, I use it a lot, never been upset by the output,

even used wide open.

Some examples, here on Monochrom(+ Elmarit-M 28mm asph. "I" )

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/318090-m246-replacing-film/?do=findComment&comment=4142815

Thank you for the reply

Im starting to get very confident in that it is the right choice for my next lens.

Im holding on to my 35 f1,7 voigtländer as well so if i need like a environmental portrait with a little bokeh id use that or if i need the extra stops for an event etc. That way the applications i need the 28 for will be perfect for that, landscapes and street and just documenting in general seems so good for that.

solamnus · November 17, 2021

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2 hours ago, pippy said:

I'm another who would recommend the v1 Elmarit unhesitatingly. Fantastic lens.

Before I bought mine I had the use of a v2 which belongs to a friend and could carry out a direct comparison between the pair. For my needs there was absolutely no visible difference in IQ. From what has been written I see that the v2 has marginally improved corner performance wide open and a slight change to the design which tweaks field-curvature mildly in comparison to the v1 but that's about it. If you shoot double-page spreads of broadsheet newspapers taped to a flat wall then you may notice a difference. For 'real world' shooting you can pretty much accept that they render in exactly the same way. For my preferences it was the much smaller hood of the v1 which was the deciding factor.

The whole package of lens and hood really is tiny and also very light. It is also supremely sharp at pretty much all apertures. Diffraction kicks-in at f16 but even then the results are hardly shoddy.

As far as bokeh is concerned it's a 28mm lens with a max. aperture of f2.8. There are not going to be many occasions (at least for me) where the 'quality' of bokeh is even going to be noticed let alone an important part of the overall image. As I almost never use mine at f2.8 the concept of Bokeh is purely academic.

You cannot really go wrong with either version. The metal hood of the v2 screws on and is more securely attached than the clip-on hood of the v1 but the v2 hood is also quite large which sort-of goes against the design ethos of the lens in the first place. Best of luck in the hunt!

Philip.

Thanks a lot Philip Your experiences seem to mirror my thoughts about it in beforehand to a tee. And as i said in my other post, makes me even more sure its the lens for me for the applications i have been visualizing it in. I will hold on to my 35 Voigtlander for those extra situations i would need a little bokeh for an environmental portrait etc. Or the extra stops in darker events or so.

rsolomon · November 20, 2021

I recently bought an 21 SEM, I know that’s beyond your budget numbers but consider a 21, it’s really fun, it’s different, it is adding a significantly new tool to my bag. Currently have 21 / 35 / 75.

solamnus · November 23, 2021

Just to update and give feedback and also say thank you, i actually bought the Elmarit yesterday and got it here today by mail. It looks lovely and to be in great condition and so small looks greta on camera in my opinion . Have not been able to test it much, so looking forward to the weekend

Thank you for your input!

/regards Martin.

RayD28 · November 25, 2021

Great choice. It's amazing how much quality they put into such a small and light lens.

solamnus · November 26, 2021

On 11/25/2021 at 12:59 PM, RayD28 said:

Great choice. It's amazing how much quality they put into such a small and light lens.

Thank you yeh im very happy with the choice , i have not shot it more than once thus far, its so dark here now in sweden that only the weekends make it possible to see anything to shoot!

But today i ended work earlier and had 1 hour before the sun was gone, so shot some test shots just outside the house basically around the theme of the incoming winter

solamnus · November 26, 2021