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Question regarding the L mount and the Leica CL

peterb

Member
Has anyone posted shots taken with the Leica CL and one of Sigma's L mount Art lenses?

Just curious how the IQ and bokeh would be.

Thanks.
 

Godfrey

Well-known member

iiiNelson

Well-known member
Has anyone posted shots taken with the Leica CL and one of Sigma's L mount Art lenses?

Just curious how the IQ and bokeh would be.

Thanks.
I’ve used the Sigma 14-24/2.8, 35/1.2, 45/2.8, and several of the converted DSLR lenses on the S1R. Optically they’re all are what you’d expect from newer Sigma Art lenses. Mechanically, they aren’t as smooth to work with as native Panasonic or Leica lenses IMO. I haven’t used them on a CL but I don’t believe the motor are as strong in the smaller Leica cameras so I’d imagine the performance would be a little worse.
 

SrMphoto

Well-known member
I’ve used the Sigma 14-24/2.8, 35/1.2, 45/2.8, and several of the converted DSLR lenses on the S1R. Optically they’re all are what you’d expect from newer Sigma Art lenses. Mechanically, they aren’t as smooth to work with as native Panasonic or Leica lenses IMO. I haven’t used them on a CL but I don’t believe the motor are as strong in the smaller Leica cameras so I’d imagine the performance would be a little worse.
Isn't the motor (focusing) in the lenses and not in the camera?
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
Isn't the motor (focusing) in the lenses and not in the camera?
Well yes, you are correct and I probably shouldn’t have responded in a sleep deprived state without full explanation. In any case perhaps the issue is corrected in the newest firmware but I did read of several complaints in the past from TL/CL users trying out the newer Panasonic and Sigma lenses months ago. In essence the L-Mount spec was updated and the Panasonic S1/S1R were the first cameras released to the updated L-Mount spec. I believe the SL 601 and CL were updated shortly after release but the TL was not (this is where I had it most confused upon re-reading specifics of which bodies saw updates) I’m not sure of all of the changes to the spec but I do believe current draw was a part of it which is why some autofocusing and compatibility issues seemed to occur with some bodies. In any case it seems Leica issued firmware update for the CL and Sigma issued updates to its lenses so presumably everything is as good as can be expected.

Personally I’d stay away from the lenses that aren’t DG DN (Native Mirrorless designs) because the AF is unreliable on the Sigma DSLR conversion lenses from my experience trying them on the Panasonic S1R and some even on the Sony FE systems which typically have rock solid AF. IQ wise the Sigma lenses are solid IMO but they are on the larger side of things with the exception being the 45/2.8. The APS-C sigma trio has a good reputation as well (16/1.4, 30/1.4, and 56/1.4) and I think they are worth considering for APS-C. They aren’t as good as the Leica lenses but you can probably get all three for less than the price of one Leica lens... so maybe give them a try. Lots of examples of them on Flickr... though on various bodies.
 
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