GAS GAS: Please Share your Latest Desires Big and Small

I saw a F/S on a thinktank retrospective 10.

It's larger and could be a cool option for Nikon gear. My Billingham is a bit cramped with the Df and the larger lenses.

But why am I looking at these shoulder bags when I have a perfectly good backpack also!

But it's not huge money. I bought the Retro 7 brand new back in the day, sold it for 60 € loss. Now this one here is for 60€ and looks pretty unused to me.

Gas never dies.

PS. Kind of feels like a cute idea to have a different bag for different cameras, although I don't appreciate the hassle with having to ensure I carry the extra bits and bobs for each bag separately.
 
So, not having had a large monitor to work on since I left the then employer in 2010, I have had somewhat of a ride over the last weeks.

Bought an Asus Proart 27 and got it delivered and up and running last week, and a SpyderX early this week, the Proart didnt live long in the study. I have slung out quite a lot of gear over the same period of time, and when Son# 2 was in dire need of a monitor, he got the Proart and I ordered a Benq SW2700PT last evening, turned out I was a bit quick on the trigger, so cancelled the PT and ordered a SW2700C for about $60 more than the PT today, yah to weekend sales.

Along with the SpyderX and the Canon Pro200 that is on order but late, I think I have a very proper set-up for post processing in the pipeline.

Possibly also the option to run an A-rgb process, from capture to output. Wondering how that fares, contra the S-rgb, and if it has any perks.
 
With two Nikkor 135 mm lenses and a 105 mm lens for my Df I still want to expand my 135mm selection by a lens.

This time for Leica M. Maybe the goggled Elmarit 135/2.8.

After a Nikon frenzy the pendulum is swinging back towards Leica and "M is my love" line of thinking.
 
With two Nikkor 135 mm lenses and a 105 mm lens for my Df I still want to expand my 135mm selection by a lens.

This time for Leica M. Maybe the goggled Elmarit 135/2.8.

After a Nikon frenzy the pendulum is swinging back towards Leica and "M is my love" line of thinking.
Will be interesting to see how you go. Not sure I fancy getting used to focusing that long a focal length on a RF but would be grateful for some tips.
 
Will be interesting to see how you go. Not sure I fancy getting used to focusing that long a focal length on a RF but would be grateful for some tips.
I wonder this myself. The long lenses have a long throw so they're not for the fastest action anyway. At the same time goggles and magnifier optics help a lot. Goggled lenses have some usability related issues: they don't fit that comfortably in a bag when not in use, and so on.

Many urge to consider the slower f/4 Tele-Elmars instead of the goggled f/2.8 for a variety of reasons. I might choose the same route because I own the 1.4x magnifier already. Then again, goggles plus the 1.4x magnifier might be a killer setup.

I read that the goggles offer a 1.5x magnified view (you use 90mm framelines to frame 135mm) and together with the magnifier they prove a formidable 2.1x magnification. Add in my MP240's .68 viewfinder the view is 1.428x. Not too shabby. Nikon with its 0.7 viewfinder offers 1.89x magnification (assuming 50mm as the baseline) so it is still ahead.

Good thing these lenses aren't super expensive among Leica lenses.
 
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Will be interesting to see how you go. Not sure I fancy getting used to focusing that long a focal length on a RF but would be grateful for some tips.
I acquired a Tele-Elmar 135 f/4 recently (the second of the earlier versions, not the modern style lens - the optics are the same) and find that while it certainly isn't an action lens, focusing it isn't harder than with the Elmarit-M 90mm f/2.8. It's not what I'd call "a breeze", but it can be done with a sufficiently high success rate.

However, it's about the biggest and heaviest lens I'd accept on an M body. The goggled 135mm f/2.8 is noticably bigger and heavier - and not Leica's best effort. The 135mm f/4 offers really nice IQ - so much so that I'd actually suggest to choose it over its faster sibling.

I found this article to quite accurately portray the merits of the Tele-Elmar:


Of course, the pinnacle of RF 135mm lenses is the current APO-Telyt - but that cost an arm and a leg used, with both kidneys thrown in new. For lens that, realistically, will not see an awful lot of use (while I do like it, it'll not become part of my travel kit, for instance), I wouldn't want to pay that kind of money. If I were a portrait and documentary guy, things would probably look different (even if I personally prefer shorter focal lengths for portraiture - but scenic stuff can definitely profit from optical compression).

M.
 
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I bought the 1.4 magnifier for M last year but never quite got around to get the lenses to go with it, 90 or 135mm.

And now I decided to get these focal lengths for Nikon instead. Cheaper of course, and nice lenses in their own right. But the Leica bug lingers.
 
It’s the Tele Elmarit that gets my attention, for its classical rendering as much as anything else but as Matt alludes, how often am I actually going to use it. Still subjects only and probably not as effective as the many many similar FL lenses of great quality available for my DSLR. I can see myself trying one, but it’s not a priority, my mindset towards RF camera really only goes from 15mm - 50mm.
 
My latest desire is for clarity in my future.
It might be time for me to make a pivot in my pro photo business.

I’m thinking of dropping all my options except portraiture, and then switching my portraiture options to a more niche offering like environmental / fantasy portraiture.

I know what I’d love to do, and now that the weather is getting nicer, I might setup some TFP shoots to get some samples down and figure out the workflow.

I’m really more interested in this and continuing my photojournalism site than anything else.

been praying and thinking long and hard on this lately.

hope to have some clarity on it soon.
 
Clarity would be so good. Sadly things usually clear up for me only in increments, when I buy something new to learn things about myself.

I casually checked what Kameratori has in store now. The Leica M lens selection isn't what it used to be. I wonder if there's enough actually interesting stuff to break a 10k barrier. Only stuff that I'd seriously use for me.

35 Summilux pre-Asph...
35 Summicron II or III :)
50 Summilux pre-Asph
50 Summicron V :)
75 APO

no interesting 90 mms at this moment.

Can this all be nearly enough worth 10k? Let's sum it all...

9995 EUR

So obviously it's not. ;)

With shipping and handling it'd be an even 10k.
 
... Voïgtlander is good...
... but a Leica lens keeps its value! ;)


But indeed, seriously Cosina is my favorite Japanese* lens manufacturer right now. They do all these cool designs that don't have to be "perfect" by the measures of MTF charts, but instead they can have the character.

Voigtländer 35 f/1.4 Nokton for one example. The price of a new one is a fraction of the used Leica 35 Summilux and you still get shiny character goodiness.

The new Voigtländer 35 f/2 Ultron is a serious, serious competitor to Leica 35 Summicron.

The fifties, don't get me even started. I have mentioned more than once that between Summilux 50 f/1.4 Asph and Voigtländer Nokton 50/1.5 it was the Leica that I sold away.


If Cosina tackles the 28 f/1.4 challenge next and could produce a 28 without focus shift issues like the f/2 and f/1.9 lenses did, oh man.



*) or just perhaps the favorite overall. After all my outsider impression about Leica's current optical department, lead by Peter Karbe, is that they make the finest designs but ultimately might be not my preference.
 
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... but a Leica lens keeps its value! ;)

Also, my main lens that lives semi-permanently on my camera for the past few years is the Voigtlander 50mm f/1.2. I bought it for approx AUD$1200 when it was first released. I'd never sell this one either. It is an exceptionally fine lens.

If I ever bought my dream lens, the Summilux 50mm f/1.4, I'd still never sell the Voigtlander. I'd keep it as a backup 50.
 
To be honest, if I ever had a Leica lens, I'd never sell it so its value is moot.
You know, that's what I thought as well - until I discovered the Voigtländers ... As I found out, the f/1.2 Nokton is capable of holding its own against a Summicron V (which is smaller, but also slower), and the f/1.5 Nokton delivers, too (not on the level of any Leica lens, but very nicely in terms of overall IQ). Between the two, I'm pretty well served - the f/1.5 Nokton is quite small and light, too.

The Summicron V, the lens I thought I'd never sell, is in fact the only M mount lens I'm having doubt about keeping - after re-assessing most of the M mount glass I own. It's still a good lens, but clearly not as good as the hype tries to make it. If you really look into it, the magic smoke dissipates pretty quickly. For the price, it's adequate at best - and if it wasn't so small and well made, it could even be considered a rip-off. But I'm glad most people don't want to hear that - it'll make it possible to sell it without a loss. That said, if I keep it, I'll have it overhauled by Leica - maybe it *can* be made to perform better; however, I won't hold my breath.

M.
 
I think it's just me then but to my eye the 50mm Summicron is the gold standard of the Leica look: micro contrast, bokeh, everything. That's why I want one. Sadly it's just hard to justify getting one as I have a fantastic one for good light and for poor light I could do with more than f/2.
 
I think it's just me then but to my eye the 50mm Summicron is the gold standard of the Leica look: micro contrast, bokeh, everything. That's why I want one. Sadly it's just hard to justify getting one as I have a fantastic one for good light and for poor light I could do with more than f/2.
Or it may just be me or my sample. If it suits you: Fine by me. But I just don't see all that stuff the way it's advertised, I'm sorry to say.

I just tried again - I can't get mine to perform well wide open at short and middle distances (I can't check for further distances in any meaningful way - it's nighttime). Sharpness is lacking - though it may just be the case that it's backfocusing somewhat, but to tell the truth, I compared against the f/1.5 Nokton (the *lesser* of the two Noktons), and the Voigtländer was consistently sharper - even wide open at f/1.5, and just comparing the sharpness plane. What's more, my Elmar-M (50mm f/2.8, late second version - unassuming, yet very nice) does a much better job wide open than either the Summicron or the Nokton at f/2.8. Again, the Nokton still beats the Summicron. I didn't dig out other 50mm lenses, just quick and dirty ...

But I think it's best to bite the bullet and have it looked at by Leica. A couple of hours of driving - but a nice enough route ...

M.
 
Or it may just be me or my sample. If it suits you: Fine by me. But I just don't see all that stuff the way it's advertised, I'm sorry to say.

I just tried again - I can't get mine to perform well wide open at short and middle distances (I can't check for further distances in any meaningful way - it's nighttime). Sharpness is lacking - though it may just be the case that it's backfocusing somewhat, but to tell the truth, I compared against the f/1.5 Nokton (the *lesser* of the two Noktons), and the Voigtländer was consistently sharper - even wide open at f/1.5, and just comparing the sharpness plane. What's more, my Elmar-M (50mm f/2.8, late second version - unassuming, yet very nice) does a much better job wide open than either the Summicron or the Nokton at f/2.8. Again, the Nokton still beats the Summicron. I didn't dig out other 50mm lenses, just quick and dirty ...

But I think it's best to bite the bullet and have it looked at by Leica. A couple of hours of driving - but a nice enough route ...

M.
That’s the only thing that would hang in the back of my mind, does it need servicing. Alas this is what rangefinder owners have to do. Also, have you used it with a film camera?
 
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