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!

SL 90-280 image stabilization rocks!

Godfrey

Well-known member
I sold off a good bit of gear, including both of my long R telephoto lenses, to acquire the APO-Vario-Elmarit-SL 90-280 lens with the notion that its image stabilization would net more usage and better results for me than the long R lenses did. I haven't yet made any exposures worth of the name "photograph" with it, I'm still just experimenting to learn it and become accustomed to its size and weight.

I remain astonished with how effective the image stabilization actually is!

The following is a simple, casually made hand-held test snap at 1/50 second - image data directly out of camera as JPEGs.



Full frame downsized to 1200x800, above.
100% detail @ 1200x800 pixels, below



Leica SL + APO-Vario-Elmarit-SL 90-280mm f/2.8-f/4
ISO 3200 + f/4 + 1/50 sec, hand-held

JPEG directly out of camera. IPTC data added with LR6.9.
Click either image to download full resolution image.

To be clear, that exposure is about six times longer than I would even consider shooting a non-stabilized 280mm telephoto at, and likely 12x longer than I actually would. I find its detailing and lack of camera motion absolutely remarkable for that long a hand-held exposure. This is exactly what I was hoping for... so I'm pretty darn pleased. Not to mention that the lens is otherwise a light-year ahead of my old R lenses with respect to overall performance from wide-open to f/16. :D

G
 

Godfrey

Well-known member
You're welcome, thank you all for looking and commenting.
After my first more-serious outing with the lens, I feel very good about the effort to acquire it.

I have a project or two in mind that it will prove a useful tool. What remains really is to decide how best to transport it while in use while keeping it ready and safe from damage because it is a larger, heavier piece of equipment than I've become used to carrying about. I am thinking that some form of holster is appropriate, but I dislike the usual big, long holster bags that would fit it. I have a couple ideas about this that I'm going to explore.

For transit carrying, a fitted insert for my Pelican 1510 rollaway case or a good backpack is needed. It fits nicely in the Tenba Cooper 13DSLR bag for storage and carrying in the car trunk, along with the 24-90mm and 15mm lenses and the SL body, but the bag is too heavy to carry for more than a short distance when filled that way (17-18 lbs). I need to hunt up the company that does the custom Pelican inserts and see if they have suitable templates for this gear; if not, I'll have to make one.

Fun fun fun... :)
G
 

doug

Well-known member
.... I find its detailing and lack of camera motion absolutely remarkable for that long a hand-held exposure. This is exactly what I was hoping for... so I'm pretty darn pleased. Not to mention that the lens is otherwise a light-year ahead of my old R lenses with respect to overall performance from wide-open to f/16. :D
Agreed, this is a spectacular lens. Have fun with it!
 
Top