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Elmarit 19mm on Canon 5D


echorec

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I used this combination before I got a R9/DMR and found it outstanding. A few things to consider....(1) find an adapter with the focus confirmation chip....since its a 19 on a full frame camera you get a wide view and lots of DOF ..making focusing somewhat difficult (2) the metering will be slightly off as you stop down and its not the same at every aperture . You will need to do some testing to develop the appropriate exposure compensation. I was happy with the resolution,color and contrast but the lens does have significant wave distortion ...so its not great for architecture .

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The old large 19mm from the 70s-80s is very similar in imaging to the M-mount 21mm from the same era. Very nice sharpness in the center even @ f/2.8, soft in the corners until f/5.6 or so, moderate overall contrast for a little extra dynamic range on slide film or digital, slight green-cyan tint (a bit less important for digital than it was for film, where it worked nicely to keep Velvia skies/clouds blue-cyan rather than blue-purple).

 

The big 19 works on Leicaflexes (in fact, was designed during the end of their era) so it has more mirror clearance. I hand-held one against the front of a 5D in a shop (no adapter available) and got no mirror hangups. It clearly had a bit less color fringing than the Canon 20mm f/2.8, and the corners, while soft, were a bit less streaky and smeared than with the Canon.

 

The only real knock against it is the size - one could serve dinner on that huge front element - and corner performance at wide apertures. A good documentary/journalism lens from f/2.8-4.5, but needs f/5.6 or smaller for the most even resolution across the whole frame on a full-frame camera (landscapes, architecture).

 

As Roger says, focusing any superwide on a plain screen is tough - might want to consider one of the third-party 5D focus screens that includes a split-image circle in the center of the frame. (BrightScreen, Haoda, etc.)

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I have lots of examples of using the 19 on a DMR here and I have found it to be an absolutely brilliant performer. The hood is essential, btw.

 

It won't snap into focus like it's longer brothers of course, but if you do stop it down a couple of notches, the d.o.f. is deep enough to take this.

 

My lighthouse shot here http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/landscape-travel/41810-lighthouse.html was taken with it only this week.

 

Here are some others:

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/landscape-travel/16091-durham-cathedral.html

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/landscape-travel/24948-incoming.html

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/nature-wildlife/9293-home-roost.html

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/landscape-travel/9303-tower.html (this is what happens when you don't use a hood...)

 

I'd be happy to show some 100% corner crops if you would find them of use.

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Thanks for your replies, very much appreciated. Looks like it´s time to locate one these. :)

 

Regarding focusing & metering: I already have several R-lenses and the adapter with focus confirmation and I am very happy with the results. I also got the EeS focusing screen which helps with focusing (but the finder image gets slightly darker).

 

Best regards,

 

Gunnar

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Regarding distortion ...it does exhibit some "wave" distortion (forgive me if thats not the appropriate terminology) where straight lines can be distorted. I never noticed this while shooting hundreds of travel images until I shot a very large square sign . I would not pick this lens if your primary use was architecture or an application where precise rendering on straight lines might be critical. I never saw it in normal shots of buildings. This lens really worked for me on the 5D and the size is fine on the 5D (I use a battery hand grip ) so its proportioned. I will try to look in my library for some examples.

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I have lots of examples of using the 19 on a DMR here and I have found it to be an absolutely brilliant performer. The hood is essential, btw.

 

I agree completely. I have used it quite a lot on the 5D, as I do not own the DMR ( the newer 19mm does not work with the 5D) and found it excellent pictorially. The same goes for Velvia on the R8/R9, where its lower contrast is beneficial with the high contrast and colour saturation of Velvia 50.

Teddy

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I believe you can use the newer 19 Elmarit on the 5d if you 1) mess with the back lens shroud or 2) shave the mirror on the 5d.

 

:)

 

Yes, it's not something I would do. But then again I'm useless with machining and tools in general. Maybe once my 5d is replaced by something else I'll give it a try (the 35 R lux doesn't work either; also seems to need the mirror shaved a bit).

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  • 1 year later...
Thanks for your replies, very much appreciated. Looks like it´s time to locate one these. :)

 

Regarding focusing & metering: I already have several R-lenses and the adapter with focus confirmation and I am very happy with the results. I also got the EeS focusing screen which helps with focusing (but the finder image gets slightly darker).

 

Best regards,

 

Gunnar

 

where can I buy (1) R-lenses-to- Canon adapter with focus confirmation and (2) EeS focusing screen? Many thanks in advance, David

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