The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

On a positive note: Just bought one

Nitnaros

Member
Just purchased a used, mint DMR.

So folks like myself see still value there, and there is a used market for those who want to sell. Not such a bad situation for the owners who have been hanging in there for a while....

Regards,
Peter
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Peter congrats. I still love the DMR and do miss it sometimes. It is a great tool and should last you a long time with great images coming out of it.
 

Nitnaros

Member
Thanks, Guy.

I am looking forward to showing some images soon (still need a camera and one or two primes :))...).

This forum will for sure be helpful; I enjoy the "Leica R" section.

That said, if Leica indeed announces a MF kit, I'll take a hard look. My Hassy 503cw/Aptus17 is a great teaser to show what digital MF can deliver.

Peter
 

cmb_

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Nice move Peter, so it looks like you will not need to demo mine to see if you like it!
 

Nitnaros

Member
Yeah, I jumped, since the offer was good.

The jump is not that large, since I have other gear that meets my image making needs.

This purchase is really about "satisfaction" in terms of the tactile and ergonomic feeling, the "process" of shooting, rather than final IQ or similar. If its only about IQ, I would buy a P25 for my Hassy503cw.
The weight, hmm, but I have been using a 1D-II with 70-200/2.8 IS and 580EXII, so it can't shock me. And I most likely stick to primes.

The other tendency I experience is to shoot more at higher ISO's and using the grain/noise as element. I am absolutely not convinced that D3 noise-free-ness, is what I need or want.

So we'll see....

My other speculation is that lenses will get significantly cheaper in the short term.

I still need a R8 or better R9, mint, and one or two lenses to get really going.

PS
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Peter look for a 280 F4 . happens to be a brilliant lens and also the 180 f2 BIG or the 2.8 version. The 19mm is a gem and so is the 28mm plus others as well. But if you need help deciding let us know.
 

EH21

Member
Peter,
Congrats on your DMR. Being on the fence about whether to sell or not, its nice to see someone buying...kind of bolsters me up. Everyone will have their own favorites on th lenses and I think that's because they are all good and your choices will depend on what you shoot. However that said the 100 apo just seems to sing on the DMR, as does the 80 lux. The modern zooms are actually all very good. I like the zooms because with the 10mpix of the DMR its nice to do the cropping by framing with the zoom rather than cropping in post - saves pixels. Also you can zoom all the way in for critical focus then back off to do your framing. Both the 35-70/4 and 35-70/2.8 have very useful macro ranges so that makes them very versatile lenses. A lot of people praise the 28mm lens 2nd version and it's worthy, but I found the 24mm to be better mated to the DMR in a lot of circumstances. Actually it has lower macro contrast than the 28mm but at least on the DMR plenty sharp and the lower contrast means you can record higher contrast scenes more easily with one shot. The same is true for a number of the older lenses which perform quite well on the DMR.

Good luck with it!
Eric
 

dfarkas

Workshop Member
My vote for lenses (and my kit for a long time which fit nicely into a not-too big or heavy shoulder bag):

19 f/2.8
28 f/2.8
35 f/2
60 Macro
90 f/2 APO
180 f/2.8 APO
2X APO Extender (double duty for either 90 or 180)

Others will likely mention some other standout lenses:
100 APO Macro
180 f/2 APO
280 f/4 APO
80 f/1.4

I also really like the 105-280 f/4.2.

Good luck with the DMR. It has produced some of my favorite images to date.

David
 

doug

Well-known member
Congrats, Peter! THe DMR has been fantastically productive for me, I hope it does the same for you.
 

robmac

Well-known member
Agree on lens prices in S/T, so may be good timing on your part. If the budget permitted I'd have one in my cabinet as well. Love the lower-ISO IQ and the ergonomics. The lenses are, in many cases, unparalleled.

The lenses mentioned above are all stellar with the 60 macro (come F4+) one of the best bargains out there in Leica land.
 

Nitnaros

Member
Thanks folks for the comments;

Still looking for a camera; that's too funny, have a d-back, but no camera yet.

Lenses:

- Thinking of the 100m macro; partly for the macro ability, partly to cover that medium-tele range. It should be really sharp (I guess), and it should also allow nice background separation at f2.8.
Hopefully that makes sense.

- Thinking about either 35 or 50 Lux; I have both on the M, and they are super. (M-35-lux image from yesterday attached).
Besides the obvious difference in focal length, are there any other thoughts regarding differences between those two -Bokeh? Contrast? Sharpness? Ease of focus?

- Wide-angle side undecided; the current 19mm interesting, ROM version would make sense; how about the 21mm/2.8 asph - any experience?

- Eric, thank you for your comments and pointers to the zooms; would be quite handy, but I am a bit concerned about the slower lenses in combo with the not so great ISO performance; plus zooms seem to confuse my previsualization a bit, having to consider all these 'choices' with respect to focal length...
--

Bye for now,
Peter
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Nice shot Peter. I highly recommend the 100mm. It is extremely sharp, but not harsh. It has great bokeh, and obviously it focuses very closely. It is my favorite lens in the 90-135mm focal length for any system (well, other than the 110/2 for hassie/rollei).
100mm:


For the 35/50 debate, while I prefer the angle of view of the 35mm on film, I think the 50mm f/1.4 E60 is the one to go for. It is compact, very sharp and has lovely bokeh. On the DMR it is a short telephoto like the 75/1.4 (50x1.37 is 68.5mm f/1.4). It is more compact and lighter than the 35/1.4 and a better performer.
50mm f/1.4 at 1.4 (on film)


To be honest though, I will agree with Eric (EH21), I mostly used the 28-90mm asph on the DMR -- it is very sharp, the bokeh is excellent, and the performance is outstanding. It is truly a replacement for the primes in all but speed.

28-90:




 

EH21

Member
Peter,
Yes the zooms take a bit more work but not necessarily slower as there is a 35-70/2.8 which I own (and it's on my DMR more than any other R lens except maybe the 80lux) and also a 70-180/2.8 apo. Optically I couldn't fault the 35-70/4 but my eyesight is crap and I couldn't reliably focus the f/4 in darker lighting. An aftermarket focusing screen might be something to consider.

btw - I have both a 50 lux (latest E60 version with ROM) and a 50 cron (also latest with ROM) and would be willing to sell you either one as I don't need both particularly since I mostly use my zoom in that range - also why I sold my 60mm macro.

Eric
 

dfarkas

Workshop Member
Guy,

I think you've gotten too caught up in this MFD thing and have forgotten all your old Leica tricks. :ROTFL:

The 50 lux-R and the 50 lux-M ASPH are distant third cousins, not twins. The 50 lux ASPH for M is the first major redesign of a 50mm in 50 years, taking head optics designer Peter Karbe over 10 years to perfect. The current 50 lux for R is quite a few years old, and while a very solid performer is nowhere near the newer ASPH M lens with floating element.

The 50 crons, on the other hand, are much more similiar, as are the 90 APOs.

David
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Hmmm seems like the same time. 1997 or so

11868
11856
11869 (T)
1.4/50mm Summilux-M
-
current
M46x0.75
built-in
-
14231
E46
11114
-
1.4/50mm Summilux-M
-
1966-1995
M43x0.5
12586
14037
14007
E43


R

11344-ROM
1:1,4/50mm Summilux-R

from 1997
built-in
14290
E60
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Erwin Puts talks about the difference in his article on the 50/1.4 ASPH. You can scroll down and read about it here too: http://www.imx.nl/photo/leica/lenses/lenses/lenses/page88.html

The Summilux-R E60 (from 1997) is significantly better than the pre-asph Summilux-M, and it is the best performing 50mm f/1.4 available other than the 50/1.4 ASPH. The ASPH is sharper, particularly in close with its floating element, but I think the 50/1.4 E60 is better overall, as it has a more pleasant character, while still having all the sharpness and flare resistance of the best modern designs.
 
P

pascal_meheut

Guest
If you are looking for lenses, I'll probably will sell some soon. At least the 15/2.8 asph and the 280/4, maybe also the 35/2, 135/2.8, 19/2.8 II, 180/2.8 Apo & extender...
 
Top