XCD lenses... wow.

[onasj]

My 907x-50c arrived, and while I'll post a more thorough review of this amazing little gem, what I found most remarkable is that pretty much all of the XCD lenses are optical masterpieces. I don't have an X1d, and have been waiting for the 907x before jumping into the XCD world.

Those who have seen my posts previously on the Leica User Forums, or the various PhotoRumors sites know I'm pretty geeky and exacting when it comes to image quality. I've written many test reports of some of the best lenses and sensors ever made, including Rodenstock HRs, Schneider blue rings for Phase One IQ3 and IQ4, Leica's flagship M lenses, Sony's GM lenses, etc.

But I don't think I've ever seen a set of lenses that were so uniformly excellent overall as these XCDs: 21/4, 30/3.5, 45/4P, 65/2.8, 80/1.9, 90/3.2, 120/3.5, 135/2.8 with or without 1.7x teleconverter. They are all quite outstanding in multiple ways—edge-to-edge sharpness, color, bokeh, low distortion, low CA, low coma, etc. Autofocus (especially after updating all the lenses' firmware to the current versions) was much better than I expected, with very high accuracy though speed is not going to set any records.

Thank you to Steve Hendrix at Capture Integration, who was able to get me nearly a full set of XCD lenses the day after I ordered them—a testament to Steve's excellent customer service.

 

[spb]

Thank you to Steve Hendrix at Capture Integration, who was able to get me nearly a full set of XCD lenses the day after I ordered them—a testament to Steve's excellent customer service.

That does sound exceptional service!

 

[tcdeveau]

Congrats!

I’ve enjoyed all the XCD lenses I’ve owned/used: 21/30/45/65/90.

I’m down to only the 21 and 90 at the moment and need to build up my collection some more, especially now that the 35-75 is readily available (which is also supposed to be awesome).

 

[Godfrey]

That's quite a set of lenses! A bit more than my pay grade can support all at once... eh! :shocked:

Anyway ... ... I bought the 907x and included the XCD 21 and XCD 45P with it. I'm delighted with both! I like using the camera with the XV Adapter using the Planar C 80mm f/2.8 and Makro-Planar CF 120mm f/4 as well, so I'll add either the XCD 80 or XCD 120 Macro next year.

It's a lovely kit. Hasselblad has met and exceeded my expectations with it. Perhaps, at some point, I'll add an X1D II body as well.

G

 

[spb]

That's quite a set of lenses! A bit more than my pay grade can support all at once... eh! :shocked:

Anyway ... ... I bought the 907x and included the XCD 21 and XCD 45P with it. I'm delighted with both! I like using the camera with the XV Adapter using the Planar C 80mm f/2.8 and Makro-Planar CF 120mm f/4 as well, so I'll add either the XCD 80 or XCD 120 Macro next year.

It's a lovely kit. Hasselblad has met and exceeded my expectations with it. Perhaps, at some point, I'll add an X1D II body as well.

G

That is good to hear Godfrey that you are so happy with it. I have 30mm and the 907+45mm when those arrive.

 

[Steve Hendrix]

That does sound exceptional service!

Thank you SPB and ONASJ!

I do have to say that when it comes to Hasselblad inventory/delivery, there is a little bit of luck involved, and perhaps some stars converging, when it comes to a haul of this magnititude.

 

[nameBrandon]

They are certainly amazing..! I've only got the 30/45P/90 myself but I'm amazed at the IQ. After my first experience with the original X1D and the 45P, I sold all of my Leica gear within a few weeks. There's no going back for me, once you get a taste of this IQ not much else is going to do.. I still have my Sony A9 around and a couple zoom for kid shots and when I need super-duper AF speed, but other than that I'm all in. I will say that part of the magic is definitely the sensor and whatever color science work they do there. I get some amazing results as well with the V-series lenses (as I'm sure you've noticed yourself).

 

[spb]

They are certainly amazing..! I've only got the 30/45P/90

These are the lenses I am going to keep for when my 907 Chrome arrives. For me neither

No going back

.

 

[Godfrey]

... After my first experience with the original X1D and the 45P, I sold all of my Leica gear within a few weeks. ...

I don't think I'll sell all of my Leica gear. After all, I use my Leica R lenses with the 907x as well, and I have all the right bits for macro and copy work in Leica R lenses, bellows, etc that do as well for my purposes on the 907x as they did on the R6.2 and do on the CL. And the CL is such a handy piece for day to day use...

But there is a whole bunch of stuff in the closet that I no longer need/want/will use now that the Hasselblad system I have is digital capture capable. Selling some of it will fund the XCD 80 or 120 lens ...

fun fun fun ...!
G

 

[spb]

fun fun fun ...!
G

That's the important part, when it stops being fun ..... well we don't want to think of that!

 

[TimothyHyde]

I don't think I'll sell all of my Leica gear. After all, I use my Leica R lenses with the 907x as well, and I have all the right bits for macro and copy work in Leica R lenses, bellows, etc that do as well for my purposes on the 907x as they did on the R6.2 and do on the CL. And the CL is such a handy piece for day to day use...

But there is a whole bunch of stuff in the closet that I no longer need/want/will use now that the Hasselblad system I have is digital capture capable. Selling some of it will fund the XCD 80 or 120 lens ...

fun fun fun ...!
G

Exactly right. Life would be much more dreary without my Leica Ms (film, Monochrom, and color) regardless of how much as I rely on the X1Dii camera and lenses for important work.

 

[FloatingLens]

That's quite a set of lenses! A bit more than my pay grade can support all at once... eh! :shocked:

Anyway ... ... I bought the 907x and included the XCD 21 and XCD 45P with it. I'm delighted with both! I like using the camera with the XV Adapter using the Planar C 80mm f/2.8 and Makro-Planar CF 120mm f/4 as well, so I'll add either the XCD 80 or XCD 120 Macro next year.

Any particular insights into the XCD 21 performance? Can it double up as a „30“ in 135 crop mode? Is it too heavy on the 907X for walk around?

 

[Godfrey]

Simplistically, it's a very fine lens. A bit bulky for sure, but not so heavy as to be uncomfortable to carry. The performance is excellent, particularly when the lens correction profile provided by Phocus is applied, with very high rectilinearity and excellent detailing right out to the corners. I use it on the 907x with a square crop often as it provides much of the same look and feel that the SWC provides with a film back.

 

[Hausen]

I use the 21mm for my long exposure work. It can get a little funky on the edges in the skies depending on direction and intensity of the sun and how many filters I have stacked, but all in all it is an amazing lens considering how wide it is. I am a tripod guy and my kit is 21/45/120 and none of them are an issue balance wise on a tripod. I think it would be a cool lens on the street.

 

[yudafu2]

Very interesting. My impression after getting the 907x and a bunch of XCD lenses is very different. I have got the 21, 30, 45p, and the 90. I am a long term Leica S user and I still feel that the XCD lenses are not on par with the S lenses. The 90 was sharp and clear, but its drawing is not particularly elegant, especially for portraits. I strongly prefer the 120 APO on the S. The 30 is good, with some visible distortion, but not amazing. I think the 35mm Summarit-S again wins easily. The 21mm, omg, has so much distortion that make me doubt all the reviews that I read online---yes, you can correct the distortion with the lens profile, but the level of barrel distortion is astonishing. Given the slow speed in auto focus, I very much wish that the 21 and the 30 has the focus distance scale on them, but they do not. It limits their operation significantly. The only lens among the four that make me feel amazed is the 45p, which has the acuity level that is hard to imagine at this price and for this size.

I have also got the SL2 system with the 35mm SL and 50mm SL. These lenses are true technical marvels. The clarity level and the beauty of the bokeh are integrated so well that it is difficult to believe. I would say that the SL primes are superior to the S lenses by modern standard, and superior to the XCD lenses by a large margin.

I quickly sold the 90 and the 30, only keeping the 45p for size and performance (despite awful focusing) and the 21mm for the extreme wide angle.

Over all, I think these XCD lenses are compromises that prioritize clarity and acuity (they are very transparent in terms of color and drawing), but sacrifices distortion and bokeh. I would take S lenses over the XCD lenses all day long. In fact, I prefer using the CFVii with the 501, 203, and SWC, which have been with me for a long time. I love the drawing of the 80mm f2.8 C lens, the 110, the 50 FLE CF, and the 60 F3.5. These older lenses draws in a much more elegant way.The wide angle on the SWC is simply unparalled with almost no distortion.

That being said, I love the CFVii and the overall 907 experience, especially the color science, but XCD lenses are mostly not part of my appreciation.

 

[fmueller]

Thank you to Steve Hendrix at Capture Integration

+1

 

[nameBrandon]

Very interesting. My impression after getting the 907x and a bunch of XCD lenses is very different. I have got the 21, 30, 45p, and the 90. I am a long term Leica S user and I still feel that the XCD lenses are not on par with the S lenses. The 90 was sharp and clear, but its drawing is not particularly elegant, especially for portraits. I strongly prefer the 120 APO on the S. The 30 is good, with some visible distortion, but not amazing. I think the 35mm Summarit-S again wins easily. The 21mm, omg, has so much distortion that make me doubt all the reviews that I read online---yes, you can correct the distortion with the lens profile, but the level of barrel distortion is astonishing. Given the slow speed in auto focus, I very much wish that the 21 and the 30 has the focus distance scale on them, but they do not. It limits their operation significantly. The only lens among the four that make me feel amazed is the 45p, which has the acuity level that is hard to imagine at this price and for this size.

I quickly sold the 90 and the 30, only keeping the 45p for size and performance (despite awful focusing) and the 21mm for the extreme wide angle.

Over all, I think these XCD lenses are compromises that prioritize clarity and acuity (they are very transparent in terms of color and sharpness), but sacrifices distortion. I would take S lenses over the XCD lenses all day long. In fact, I prefer using the CFVii with the 501, 203, and SWC. The older lenses draws in a much more elegant way.

That being said, I love the CFVii and the overall 907 experience, especially the color science, but XCD lenses are mostly not part of my appreciation.

That's interesting, I've never thought the 30mm was spectacular but I've heard people rave about how amazing it is. It's good, sharp, but never really made my jaw drop. I have avoided the 21 precisely because of the distortion.. from the uncorrected sample images I've seen I would hesitate to ever put a human in the frame..

I agree again on the 45P, mind blowing given the size and price.

We'll have to disagree on the 90.. That is by far my favorite lens, especially for portraits.. but I've always preferred a clinical lens for capturing people as opposed to a "character" lens.

 

[FloatingLens]

That being said, I love the CFVii and the overall 907 experience, especially the color science, but XCD lenses are mostly not part of my appreciation.

Thanks for your unbiased opinion! Exactly the kind of feedback that I was looking for.

I am going to use the CFV II to harness the drawing of the V lenses you‘ve also mentioned, but I need a wide angle option.

Until now, without the opportunity to having used it, I was not aware that the 45p is such a great option. I thought the better overall package to be the 3,5/45.

 

[Paratom]

Very interesting. My impression after getting the 907x and a bunch of XCD lenses is very different. I have got the 21, 30, 45p, and the 90. I am a long term Leica S user and I still feel that the XCD lenses are not on par with the S lenses. The 90 was sharp and clear, but its drawing is not particularly elegant, especially for portraits. I strongly prefer the 120 APO on the S. The 30 is good, with some visible distortion, but not amazing. I think the 35mm Summarit-S again wins easily. The 21mm, omg, has so much distortion that make me doubt all the reviews that I read online---yes, you can correct the distortion with the lens profile, but the level of barrel distortion is astonishing. Given the slow speed in auto focus, I very much wish that the 21 and the 30 has the focus distance scale on them, but they do not. It limits their operation significantly. The only lens among the four that make me feel amazed is the 45p, which has the acuity level that is hard to imagine at this price and for this size.

I have also got the SL2 system with the 35mm SL and 50mm SL. These lenses are true technical marvels. The clarity level and the beauty of the bokeh are integrated so well that it is difficult to believe. I would say that the SL primes are superior to the S lenses by modern standard, and superior to the XCD lenses by a large margin.

I quickly sold the 90 and the 30, only keeping the 45p for size and performance (despite awful focusing) and the 21mm for the extreme wide angle.

Over all, I think these XCD lenses are compromises that prioritize clarity and acuity (they are very transparent in terms of color and drawing), but sacrifices distortion and bokeh. I would take S lenses over the XCD lenses all day long. In fact, I prefer using the CFVii with the 501, 203, and SWC, which have been with me for a long time. I love the drawing of the 80mm f2.8 C lens, the 110, the 50 FLE CF, and the 60 F3.5. These older lenses draws in a much more elegant way.The wide angle on the SWC is simply unparalled with almost no distortion.

That being said, I love the CFVii and the overall 907 experience, especially the color science, but XCD lenses are mostly not part of my appreciation.

I also use both, Leica S and xcd lenses, feel somewhat the same. The lenses are quite good, but I also generally prefer the rendering of the S lenses. On the other side - the S lenses are also much bigger and heavier.
At the moment I have started to use the xcd 35-75, and so far I like it. With the x1dII it is a relativly compact/portable and flexible combination.

 

[spb]

It is a very subjective topic when we talk of rendering.....