Leica R Cine Conversion - aprox $8000 high quality 7 lens prime set in Canon EF

[Maz Mawlawi]

Does the barrel extend when focusing or is it all internal focus on those lenses?

 

[Greg M]

uh. this is nice, thanks. Despite incorrect, at least regarding elmarit 19 (I now have a type 2, 3-cam, sn 3040056, and it is made in 1992, not in 1980)

Does your 19mm look like the first or second image?
If it looks like the second image it was made before 1990

There are 3 variants of the Series I, yours is likely a series I lens. Series II (image on left) is a complete redesign beginning in 1991

 

[Greg M]

Does the barrel extend when focusing or is it all internal focus on those lenses?

extends

 

[Dave Blackham]

When we are discussing whats better about the look of a lens I wonder if we are pandering towards what seems to be popular as a look at the moment. If a your looking for the look of say a Cooke Panchro then perhaps its just best to use a vintage lens as its authentic, or if you want the look of a vintage Leica then its perfectly fine just to use a vintage lens for what it offers any many are perfectly good and offer a look which seems not to be obtainable in some modern lens sets. Just use the lenses for their own merits knowing what they have to offer. At one time we had a Spirit Telecine and looking at the rushes of some cameramen it was obvious at times that some stills lenses used for wildlife filming on S16mm had obvious coating inconsistencies. It was easy just to use a chart on the lens sets to bring the grade in to provide whats effectivly a base LUT for each lens to correct. Having tools such as Red Cine X it should be very easy these days to correct for inconsistencies.

 

[Alvise Tedesco]

Does your 19mm look like the first or second image?
If it looks like the second image it was made before 1990

There are 3 variants of the Series I, yours is likely a series I lens. Series II (image on left) is a complete redesign beginning in 1991

Thanks. It looks like I have to read more carefully those database infos on the web. I'm waiting for this lens http://www.ebay.it/itm/250920888073...X:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_6148wt_1202 (eventually returnable).

 

[Greg M]

Thanks. It looks like I have to read more carefully those database infos on the web. I'm waiting for this lens http://www.ebay.it/itm/250920888073...X:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_6148wt_1202 (eventually returnable).

Yes, that a Series I lens if from the early 80's

 

[Jeff Zueger]

Yes the primes do extend some. Here is a down and dirty comparison that shows how these lenses extend. Obviously not scientific and different models, depending on age may work differently.
I have 24mm Elmarit 2.8 SER#3102XXX, 35mm Elmarit 2.8 SER#3333XXX, 50mm 2 Summicron SER#3338XXX, 90mm Elmarit 2.8 SER#2335XXX, 135mm Elmarit 2.8 SER# 2306XXX

 

[Alvise Tedesco]

Yes, that a Series I lens if from the early 80's

..got confused... here says "version II"
http://www.pebbleplace.com/Personal/Leica_db.html

 

[Jeff Zueger]

More

 

[Jeff Zueger]

ANd the 135

 

[Greg M]

..got confused... here says "version II"
http://www.pebbleplace.com/Personal/Leica_db.html

Not sure what you are referring to, but Series II was a redesign. It has built in filters. It started around 1991. Its about double the price of the series I.
there are multiple variants within a series, but the formula remains the same. Series II means its a different formula or design of the actual lens.
There are two variants in Series II, one with ROM and one w/o ROM...thats the only difference.

BTW- Its important to understand that just because a lens has a ROM doesn't mean its a modern lens. The ROM can be added to older lenses.

 

[Alvise Tedesco]

Not sure what you are referring to

On the Leica R- Canon EF compatibility table there's a misleading tab that says "version (optical formula)". And every lens is catalogued either I or II. That is what lead me to think I was in front of a Series II.
But that's my fault, obviously.
I was just pretty excited after the sharp decision of putting together a Leica set...and completely forgot to take a couple of days just to START reading and learning where and what to look for..
Because, in fact, I really know nothing about Leicas. And maybe I'll discover, when I'll receive this older Elmarit 19 in a couple of days, that It has softer edges than my Tokina 11-16 or less character than my 80€ Nikkor 50 1.4..
For sure, I now see the good ones aren't cheap.

Thanks again

 

[Maz Mawlawi]

Thanks Jeff and Greg.

 

[Rob Castiglione]

Hi Alvise. I am going through exactly the same process right now and agree that it is a good idea to slow down. However, the impetus for getting on board the Leica R boat for me is that with so many 4K Scarlets about to be sold every second hand still lens on the planet is about to be purchased over the next year or so.

I am stuck at exactly the same point - the 19mm. I gather that because the Canon DSLR crowd want it so badly to give them a wide angle on their FF cameras, prices have gone up significantly. From what I have read of the 19mm first version it is an excellent lens with that specific Leica character. The second version (again only from reports) is supposed to be a more modern lens - sharper etc but maybe it lacks some of that delicious Leica feel? I am about to find out myself in a few days.

 

[Greg M]

On the Leica R- Canon EF compatibility table there's a misleading tab that says "version (optical formula)". And every lens is catalogued either I or II. That is what lead me to think I was in front of a Series II.
But that's my fault, obviously.

Yes it can be confusing, and Ebay sellers only make it worse with inaccurate listings.
Erwin Puts can be your friend, he is arguably the most respected expert on the topic. Check this out:
http://imx.nl/photo/leica/lenses/lenses/lenses/page91.html The number on the far right is Leica's code for each model. This is the best reference for telling the lenses apart.

His guide to serial numbers:
http://imx.nl/photo/downloads/files/leicapocket_pod1.pdf


here is his review of the 19mm:
http://www.mazziol.it/various/Leica_Manuals/Leica/Leica R-Lens 19 - 24 mm.pdf

another comparison:
http://www.overgaard.dk/leica_19mm_elmarit-R_version-1.html

 

[Filip Vandoorne]

also very usefull information on the leica's on wikipedia - http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-wiki.en/index.php/19mm_f/2.8_Elmarit-R_II
and full overview http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-wiki.en/index.php/R_Lenses_x_Focal_Length

 

[Antoine Fabi]

Leica R's in Canon mount for Cinema - A work in progress

Why?

A good portion of my jobs involve traveling internationally and sometimes looking after my own gear - the epic's been a great help in this - I've been thinking up what an ideal set of lenses would be to complement it. The simple innovation of Red's locking mechanism on the Epic EF mount made using stills lenses viable for motion picture work - they can now takes the side loads that a follow focus will put out with out shifting or moving at the mount. Basically the goal was to get a bunch of essential lenses together, that were small enough and cheap enough that I could take them on the road, but would be capable of top quality images…. Budget was$6000 but I kind of blew that when I fell in love with the 19mm.

Why Leica's ?

The Leica R series, while not cheap are some of the best manual focus lenses in existence. Mechanically they are superb, most have a cine friendly 270 degrees of rotation on the barrels, optically the designs can be a bit classic, but they are assembled with great care. I knew my clients would be happy to see a leica lens on the camera, less so with Japanese glass. I went with the Summicron 35 and 50mm 90mm and not get the Summilux 1.4 versions -the 'lux's worked against the vision of small light and cheap, and I've already got 2 sets of high speed lenses in PL mount.

Leica discontinued the R line in 2009 leaving some bargain lenses out there…not made in huge quantities.

How.

I used Leitax adapters for the rears, and home brewed gears and fronts. In hindsight I probably should have just let the Ducloses do the work.


Budget:
19mm/2.8 $1900
24mm/2,8 $ 695
28mm/2,8 $490
35mm /2 $ 1100
50mm/2 $500
60mm/2.8 macro $750
90mm/2 $600

Lens Total $6035

Leitax adapters - 7 - $590
7 OPTech Canon rear caps $60
80mm caps - Orion Telescope $ .49 ea !

100 tooth m.8 gears $42.50 each
Metal for fronts - $20.

Duclos Gears / Fronts approx. $ $250 / lens

First impressions… The lenses are solid feeling, nice focus action, mechanically about as good as you can hope for in a set of stills lenses. The Leitax adapters work well, they are substantial chunks of stainless steel and fit precisely onto the back of the lenses. I would not have done this without the leitax's.

The images… the lenses look amazing on my 7d - very high resolution and very good contrast and color. they flare a bit if you hit them hard, but the flair characteristics is pretty nice…. they breathe a little, but it's pretty under control in most cases. There's a snappy resolution and a dimensional quality that I really like . I think the best way to describe it is that there is a very definite plane of focus - like zeiss but the transition from there to the defocused areas is very smooth… like cooke. Very low distortion across the board. Very low CA except the 90mm which ain't that great. Leica's are justifiably famous for making good images.

I'll post some Epic Images as soon as I get a hold of a Canon mount - anyone in LA with an Epic / Canon want to to do some lens testing ?

Matt Uhry
www.mattuhry.com

Very nice set Matt,

My curiosity, why did you choose Leica Rs over Zeiss ZFs ?

...just to hear your opinion....


Thanks!


Antoine

 

[Matt Uhry]

Very nice set Matt,

My curiosity, why did you choose Leica Rs over Zeiss ZFs ?

...just to hear your opinion....

I tried a few Leica's and liked what I saw. Also I wanted cine style focus rotation as opposed to ZF and Nikon AIS, I wanted a manual iris so ZE was out. Zeiss for Contax RTS were the other choice, they are nice too.

On the Leica Look -

As best as I can tell, without doing proper blind tests is that the Leica's have a special dimensional thing that happens I guess because of the high resolution, great contrast and smooth focus fall off. Subjects just seem to pop out in a rounded way, they shoot charts well too, but that's the thing that's awesome about them... Not really something you can measure. I should try to do a side by side and see it I've got red dot disease , but I am hampered by not having other high end lenses in Canon mount to test against.

Matt Uhry
www.mattuhry.com

 

[Antoine Fabi]

Hey thanks Matt for the fast reply!

Yeah..., the Leica look, i see it too

Each time i see a comparo, even when (rare cases but...) Leicas measure with less MTF, thee is still (and always) something special going on...

I have the exact same feeling with old Canon FDs (that i don't see with my new EF lenses), although they're less contrasty than Leicas ...bizarre...

Please keep us informed about your findings.

The Leica R route looks brilliant


Antoine

 

[Jeff Zueger]

Does anyone know is there any reason to steer away from the Made In Canada Leicas or are they of the same quality of the German made lenses? I'm guessing they might not be up to the specs of the German lenses, but I don't know and that is just a guess.