Tag Archives: Leica 19mm

Zion, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands and Arches National Park (Color)

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A typical photospread. No need to add much text, as there are are plenty of more wordy places to learn about Zion, Canyonlands and Arches National Park.  I didn’t even include a map (seems odd for a guy that makes maps for a living).

Cameras used; Leica M240 with Leica-R 19mm, and Fuji X-Ti with Fujinon 14mm

 

Zion National Park

Capitol Reef National Park

Canyonlands National Park

Arches National Park

Zion, Canyonlands and Arches National Park (B&W)

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It has been ages since I’ve posted –

It has been ages since I’ve had a vacation and

It has been ages since I’ve actually used a camera.

January 2023.

Yes – I am one of those people that still use a real camera instead of taking pictures with a cell phone. This vacation I brought 3 cameras; GoPro, Fuji X-T1 and a Leica M240. Add chargers, extra lenses (14mm Fuji, 8mm Samyang, and 24mm Leica and 19mm Leica)…it all adds up to a ton of gear. Wait, Leica M240 and Leica 19mm ??. Leica M240 is a rangefinder camera and the 19mm Leica lens is for SLR-type cameras !. Who does that ?.  The Leica 19mm has a Leitax adapter (to Nikon – and compatible with my D700 and D850) and with a Nikon – Leica L/M adapter.  This was supposed to be the final voyage for that Leica lens. It was dropped years ago and bent. No broken glass. Sent to Leica for repair and re-built – sort of.  The ring with the serial number was lost when it was dropped, so Leica gave it a new serial number. A unicorn lens !.  Since then, fungus has developed in the lens showing up as lens flare on the top of photo. My work-around is to hold the camera upside down.  A bit weird – though works !.

 

Zion National Park

So, on this trip I had 3 cameras. Each night the task of copying the images to a computer and then to an external hard drive for backup. In contrast, my travelling partner had her photos on her phone. With WiFi at the hotel her images were backed up to Google. Her posts to social media were quick and easy. Ugh. For me, copying the photos to the computer took ages and them more time to back them up. I also shoot in RAW format and the images are at least 25Mb.  And – with the Leica, it is manual focus too….More delays during the hikes.

All that complaining aside, I really enjoy using the old Leica camera and lenses.  There is something very different with those lenses. My Nikon lenses are crystal clear and sharp, auto focus, and light weight (carbon fibre instead of brass). The Leicas, designed in the 1970’s are…Not. That said, the Leica lenses have a certain character, the pictures have a look that is quite distinctive than modern state of the art lenses, and I like the feel of using them.  Similarly to a woodworker using hand tools instead of power tools, or a gardener using a shovel instead of a power tiller.

All the photos are in Black & White. Why ?. Although the colours are spectacular, the tone and patterns in B&W are more obvious. And, B&W is more old school, back when everyone had manual focus lenses. ;>

Zion National Park

Virgin River, Zion National Park, Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Canyonlands National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

 

Arches National Park

Petroglyphys. Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Delicate Arch. Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Delicate Arch. Arches Nati0nal Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Delicate Arch. Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Delicate Arch. Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Delicate Arch. Arches National Park. Leica M240 + Leica -R 19mm

Metabones Speedbooster – Leica-R Lenses on Nikon and Fuji-X Cameras

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Testing out Leica R 19mm f/2.8 (version 1) and Leica R 35mm f/2.8 lenses on a Nikon D700 and Fuji-X cameras (X-E1 and X-PRO1)

On the Fuji-X cameras, I also compared the Leica R Elmarit (19mm and 35mm) with a regular adapter (a simple tube with the appropriate lens mounts), and with a Metabones Speedbooster. The Metabones Speedbooster is a unique adapter that uses the full image circle of a full frame lens on a cropped sensor (APS-C) as used on the Fuji-X series. I won’t get into the specifics about the Speedbooster since there are tons of website and blogs describing how it works.

Note: There is no Metabones Speedbooster Leica R to Fuji-X adapter. The Leica R lenses were modified with a Leitax (Leica-R to Nikon) adapter. See www.leitax.com/leica-lens-for-nikon-cameras.html for more info on the Leitax adapter. Although Leitax does make Leica-R to Fuji-X, I used the Leitax (Leica R to Nikon G) adapter to allow the Leica R lenses to be used on my Nikon D700.

These images illustrate the different ‘looks’ with different cameras, and the different field of view between the different adapters.

Since the settings on my X-PRO1 and X-E1 differ, I have included sample photos from both. None of the images have been edited, other than default setting in Lightroom.

Compare Leica R 19mm f/2.8 (Manual Focus)

From left to right Leica 19mm on Nikon D700, Fuji X-PRO1, and Fuji X-E1. Both X-PRO1 and X-E1 had the regular adapter. See info below. Click on the image to Enlarge.

 

Leica-R 19mm on X-PRO1 with regular adapter (left), and Metabones Speedbooster (right). Click on the image to Enlarge.

 

Leica-R 19mm on X-E1 with Metabones Speedbooster (left) and regular adapter (right). Click on the image to Enlarge.

Compare Leica R 35mm f/2.8 (Manual Focus)

From left to right Leica 35mm on Nikon D700, Fuji X-PRO1, and Fuji X-E1. Click on the image to Enlarge.

Leica-R 35mm on X-E1 with Metabones Speedbooster (left) and XPRO1 with Metabones Speedbooster (right). Click on the image to Enlarge.

Leica-R 35mm on X-PRO1 with regular adapter (left) and X-E1 with regular adapter (right). Click on the image to Enlarge.

 

Compare Fuji-X 35mm f/1.4 on X-PRO1 and X-E1 (Auto Focus)

Fuji-X 35mm f/1.4 on X-PRO1 (left) and on X-E1 (right). Click to Enlarge.

Compared to using the Leica R lenses on a Fuji-X camera, the Fuji-X 35mm f/1.4 definitely has the auto focus advantage. Will I keep using manual focus Leica R lenses on the X-PRO1, and X-E1 ?. Even with the zoom function on the ‘M’ setting, it is still a challenge to focus and I certainly don’t recommend using a manual focus lens on a Fuji-X camera if the subject is moving.  Using Leica R lenses on the Nikon D700 is much easier thanks to the super large view finder and also has focus confirmation making manual focus relatively easy.

Reviewing the photos taken with the regular adapter and the Metabones Speedbooster, the images appear sharper and have more contrast with the Speedbooster. The Metabones Speedbooster isn’t cheap, then again, neither are Leica R lenses, so you get what you pay for.  According to the previous owner, the Speedbooster that I purchased was defective since it did not focus at infinity, and it would have cost too much $ to send the Speedbooster back to have it adjusted.  There is a real easy fix to the infinity problem with Metabones Speedboosters.

1) Loosen the small screw on the rear of the adapter.  2) Take note where the lens element is in its rotation. 3) Turn the lens element to move it closer or further from the film plane. 4) Tighten the screw. 5) Check infinity focus. 6) Repeat until happy.

17628b17b36fb81e3280b585f61828Photo and instructions from

fredfred27 November 2013 (http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/5770/metabones-lens-speed-booster-adapter-focal-reducer/p25)

See also the instructions on the Metabones webpage (http://www.metabones.com/article/of/infinity-adjustment-speed-booster-only)

Although not shown here, I’ve also been testing the Metabones Speedbooster with my other Leitax adapted Leica-R lenses, including the 19mm f/2.8 Elmarit Version 1, 35mm f/2.8 Elmarit (version ?), Leica 80-20mm f/4 ROM, 90mm f/2.0 Summicron, and 135mm f/2.8 Elmarit.   All work fine, and are easy to focus. The 35mm Elmarit did have a problem with infinity focus that was not related to the screw adjustment in the Speedbooster, instead, a small metal flange in the lens was hitting the glass on the Speedbooster. Having taken the back end off the Leica-R lenses swap out the original Leica-R lens mount and attaching a Leitax Nikon lens mount it was an easy task to once again open up the back of the Leica-35mm lens and wrap up the lens with tape and tissue, then carefully file down the small piece of metal flange. The while process only took a few minutes.

Will I keep the Metabones Speedbooster ?, right now I am undecided.