LLL got competition

[Ecar]

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There's also the Peace Optics Atelier 35/1.4 that claims to be a faithful reproduction of the Steel Rim. Little information seems to be available for the time being, but it's probably only a matter of time. This is becoming a crowded field...

[Bart D]

the more the merrier 😃

Strange that some get a lot of publicity worldwide, like LLL and Funleader-Aritzlab, while Artralab and this Peace Optics remain mainly quiet 🤔
Optimists could assume the latter are more focused on engineering than on marketing 🙄

 

 

[FrozenInTime]

7 hours ago, Ecar said:

There's also the Peace Optics Atelier 35/1.4 that claims to be a faithful reproduction of the Steel Rim. Little information seems to be available for the time being, but it's probably only a matter of time. This is becoming a crowded field...

This one seems like a good practical implementation : 0.7m MFD, E41 filter and a OLLUX ( that fits with the filter in place ? )

https://www.instagram.com/p/DE2YIhmvo8q/?img_index=1

[SonnarGauss]

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1. Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f1.4 mark 1

2. MS Optics Apollon 36mm f1.3

3. Artizlab (Funleader) Classic 35mm f1.4

4. Peace Lens Optics 35mm f1.4 (V1 clone)

1. Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f2.0 (black)

2. Voigtlander Color-Skopar 35mm f2.5

3. Voigtlander Nokton Classic 40mm f1.4

4. Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f1.4 mark 1

5. Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f1.5

6. Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f1.2 mark 

7. MS Optics Apollon 36mm f1.3

8. Artizlab (Funleader) Classic 35mm f1.4

9. Peace Lens Optics 35mm f1.4

10. Voigtlander Ultron 35mm f2.0 (silver)

All lenses using standard Voigtlander backcaps

Photo with 90mm lens for uniformity 

All lenses aligned on floorboards

All lenses at infinity (smallest possible dimensions) and widest aperture 

All lenses aligned with zero marker

 

[pippy]

On 2/5/2025 at 1:20 PM, FrozenInTime said:

This one seems like a good practical implementation : 0.7m MFD, E41 filter and a OLLUX ( that fits with the filter in place ? )

https://www.instagram.com/p/DE2YIhmvo8q/?img_index=1

There were more snaps of this lens back on post #13. It does look good;

On 1/22/2025 at 9:59 AM, yorda@ said:

It’s getting out of hand 

https://www.artralab.hk/products/artralab-similar-steel-rim-35mm-f1-4-full-frame-m-mount
 

And 

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Philip.

[SonnarGauss]

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I find the Peace Lens Optics 35mm is better suited for digital due to it's sometimes unpredictable performance in contrasty lighting conditions. The aperture and focus rings are quite loose, giving it more of a genuine vintage (slightly cheaper) feel. The 0.7m MFD is extremely helpful. The character is beautiful and delicate.

In contrast, the Artizlab 35mm is slightly better behaved in difficult lighting conditions, and works well on film. The feeling is slightly more premium, with firmer focus detents and stiffer focus. The infinity lock can be disengaged with an incredibly light touch, which means it gets in the way far less often. The 1m MFD can be frustrating at times, but with film it has a positive influence on focus accuracy. If the MFD were 0.7 instead of 1.0, this lens could have been incredible. The elongated bokeh in the corners can be weird. 

Altogether I'm loving both lenses, but may do some experiments when time allows to compare with MS Optics Apollon 36mm f1.3 and Nokton Classic 35mm mk1

Curious if the Artralab Similar would add anything beyond what these 10x 35mm above can produce 

[sinjun]

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Thanks! If you have time I'd be interested to know whether the Peace Lens Optics and Artizlab are accurately rangefinder coupled - e.g. whether there is any back or front focus. Also what centre sharpness is like compared with the Nokton Classic.

[SonnarGauss]

3 hours ago, sinjun said:

Thanks! If you have time I'd be interested to know whether the Peace Lens Optics and Artizlab are accurately rangefinder coupled - e.g. whether there is any back or front focus. Also what centre sharpness is like compared with the Nokton Classic.

I haven't found any issues at all with rangefinder calibration on either lens thus far. I can informally check center sharpness a little later

[TomB_tx]

BTW, i checked my Artizlab 35 focus with Live View and found infinity is sharpest at an indicated ~35 ft. on the scale. The RF agrees with the scale, so focus by RF is quite off at longer distances. My Summicrons, Summarits and other 1.4/1.5 lenses are fine on the same camera the Artizlab is off to DAG.

[Bart D]

The ARTRALAB SIMILAR ( Steel Rim ) 35mm F1.4 is removed from their website 🤔

[Tobi-S.]

Am 9.2.2025 um 19:51 schrieb Bart D:

The ARTRALAB SIMILAR ( Steel Rim ) 35mm F1.4 is removed from their website 🤔

Yes, there is some issues going on. They try to fix and then put the lenses back online. 

But the Artralab 35mm f1.4 Similar is quite promising when it works correctly. 
Here some samples taken with my M9P on the weekend. 

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[agfa100]

ArtraLab 35mm f 1.4 the first one I got would not focus between 6M to INF. I got in touch with them and they were very good about sending a will call tag to return the lens. A week later I got a replacement lens that works fine here are a couple of test shots at f 1.4 and min focus. I have a friend with a M3 steel rim and he feels this is sharper, I know I am happy with these results. I used a Sony a9 body to shoot these pic's.

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Edited February 15 by agfa100

[shirubadanieru]

To be honest, these makers, especially LLL, are making the lens remakes that Leica should be doing. Their approach is perfect:

- Keep the optical formula (including using similar / same glass when possible)

- Keep the lens body design and filter size

- Offer different finishes (silver / black paint / titanium)

- Improve coatings

- Improve MDF to 0.7m

LLL Summicron 50mm rigid and Summicron 35mm 8e remake is the perfect example of the above approach! 
 

That’s it, that’s literally all Leica has to do to make good reissues moving forward (I’m scared how their next reissue is going to look like after they butchered the steel rim both optically and body design wise, while not improving in functionality (even making it worse actually)). 

Edited February 16 by shirubadanieru

[Ernstk]

4 hours ago, shirubadanieru said:
 

That’s it, that’s literally all Leica has to do to make good reissues moving forward (I’m scared how their next reissue is going to look like after they butchered the steel rim both optically and body design wise, while not improving in functionality (even making it worse actually)). 

Can you share how they butchered the steel rim reissue optically?

[shirubadanieru]

4 hours ago, Ernstk said:

Can you share how they butchered the steel rim reissue optically?

It looks nothing like the original. It’s still an interesting lens though, if you never used the original I think you’d like it. More than that though is what they did & didn’t do with the body design and functionality. They turned probably their best ever lens design (alongside the rigid and Summilux 50 v1/v2 chrome) into that e46 thing.

Compare that with the remake done by the Chinese makers, perfect replica body design wise, no changes + with all the improvements you need (0.7m MDF).

Edited February 16 by shirubadanieru

[Ernstk]

35 minutes ago, shirubadanieru said:

It looks nothing like the original. It’s still an interesting lens though, if you never used the original I think you’d like it. More than that though is what they did & didn’t do with the body design and functionality. 

Thanks but I don't understand what you're saying.

You're referring only to how it looks and how the body design is. You haven't explained how they 'butchered it optically'?

(I have a v2 Summilux with infinity lock which I really like)

Edited February 16 by Ernstk

[shirubadanieru]

32 minutes ago, Ernstk said:

Thanks but I don't understand what you're saying.

You're referring only to how it looks and how the body design is. You haven't explained how they 'butchered it optically'?

(I have a v2 Summilux with infinity lock which I really like)

It looks nothing like the original rendering wise as well. The glow in the steel Rim and V2 as well is a dreamy highlight that looks beautiful and dreamy whereas the remake looks smudged and the rendering is different. With the remake I’d avoid using it at f1.4 whereas the original id use it at f1.4 the whole time for portraits. On top of that from f2.8 onwards it’s super sharp so it doesn’t have the same magic as the original SR or V2 at any aperture (to me, as this is all relative). To be honest I’d still be ok with that given the price difference between the original and remake, had they not done what they did with the body design and functionality (e46, 1m MFD, can’t use hood and filter at same time). 

Edited February 16 by shirubadanieru

[EricJangg]

On 2/7/2025 at 4:42 PM, TomB_tx said:

BTW, i checked my Artizlab 35 focus with Live View and found infinity is sharpest at an indicated ~35 ft. on the scale. The RF agrees with the scale, so focus by RF is quite off at longer distances. My Summicrons, Summarits and other 1.4/1.5 lenses are fine on the same camera the Artizlab is off to DAG.

I had the same issue with my Artizlab lens. Up to around 5 meters, the focus seems spot on, but beyond 10 meters, there's a noticeable amount of back focus. Is there any way to correct this without converting the lens into a floating element (FLE) design?

I’ve dealt with similar problems before—some older Summicrons I own were originally calibrated to focus accurately only at f/2.8 and smaller apertures. At f/2, they front focused. I ended up having them modified so they’re tack sharp wide open at f/2, rather than optimized for f/2.8 or f/4. One specific case was the 50mm Summicron V4, which I had adjusted and now performs beautifully.

I think Artizlab may have over-prioritized close focusing performance and neglected far distance focus, especially at wide apertures. That makes this lens hard to use on film cameras where live view isn’t available for focus checking.

I'll share a sample shot I took with the lens. In my opinion, the center sharpness is too intense compared to the glow and softness at the edges. The transition between the two feels awkward and unnatural.

Honestly, I’m starting to think of this lens like the Swatch MoonSwatch compared to the Omega Speedmaster (steel rim reissued)—it gives you a taste of the real thing, but in the end, it might just push you toward getting the actual deal (like a re-issued steel rim or Lux V2).

 

I downsized the photo a lot and comparison shot is shot at 1.4 and 4.0.

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[pippy]

3 hours ago, EricJangg said:

...I'll share a sample shot I took with the lens. In my opinion, the center sharpness is too intense compared to the glow and softness at the edges. The transition between the two feels awkward and unnatural...

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I'm confused.

In what respect did the difference between centre subject matter sharpness and background softness come as a surprise to you in any way? What were you expecting to see? A gentle fall-off from centre-to-background, somehow, when the element planes are some metres apart?

Am I missing something?............

Philip.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[TomB_tx]

4 hours ago, EricJangg said:

I had the same issue with my Artizlab lens. Up to around 5 meters, the focus seems spot on, but beyond 10 meters, there's a noticeable amount of back focus. Is there any way to correct this without converting the lens into a floating element (FLE) design?

DAG has had mine for about a month. I'll check with him and see when he might get to examining it (and the other two lenses I sent with it).