by Jim McGee
These are very nice, tack sharp lenses. As stated in the text their focus is smooth and well damped. They have a reassuringly heavy solid feel. Images were of the quality that you would expect from a lens in this price range. One noticeable drawback to their design however was their inability to close focus. Several times I wasn’t able to frame images as tightly as I’d have liked for this reason. The resulting image was certainly sharp enough to allow for cropping but I’d have preferred to have been able to crop in-camera.
On the plus side both lenses had clear, easily read depth of field scales etched into their bodies with measurements in both feet and meters. This made it easy to pre-focus based on distance for moving subjects so that only a quick touch-up was needed when tracking the subject. The aperture rings had a softer feel than I’ve experienced with current Nikon or older lens designs from other manufactures. Those designs all felt as if the aperture ring snapped into place with each setting. The Leica lenses have a smoother feel while still retaining positive feedback. Lens mounts are all metal and should stand up to a lifetime of use by the serious amateur and professional alike.
Images from both these lenses were tack sharp - even when shooting wide open as with this shot. Leica M6 TTL, 90mm f2.8 Elmarit-M on Fuji Provia 400f
