Eugene Richard's Leitz lenses are.....

While at another photographer's workshop at Santa Fe I was impressed

by Eugene Richard's work. The content, of course, but also that his

B and W images were superb. Biting sharpness, nice tonality combined

with a most appealing contrast. Classic Leica subject matter,

approach and results...or so I thought.

 

Nope. Olympus SLRs with Zuiko lenses. Hmmm.

Many Zuikoholics (I believe the term was coined by members of the longstanding OM Mailing List in preference to Zuikophile or similar monikers) have long maintained that Zuikos are generally quite comparable to Leitz lenses, both the best performers and the pedestrian types.

 

The bokeh is certainly comparable - that's readily apparent even in jpegs. While scientifically conducted tests seem to show that some of the better Leica lenses outperform most OM system lenses, Gary Reese's tests show very comparable performance from the 50/2 and 90/2 Zuiko macros which, naturally, are priced accordingly.

 

And the 35-80/2.8 Zuiko was considered a good enough performer that Sinar included it as a standard lens option on one of its digital system cameras. (Another optional lens included a Nikkor zoom, tho' I forget the model.)

 

The OM SLRs (at least the "pro" or number 1-4 series) have long been referred to as the Leicas of the SLR world for their compact size, quiet shutters and other features lacking in Leica's own SLRs.

 

Personally, I tend to regard Leicas as the overpriced OMs of the rangefinder world.

 

Okay, joke...cool your torches. ;>

You have to realize that Maitani was a great admirer of Leica. His design goal was an SLR system that had the ergonomic advantages of a Leica. I have long felt that, at least with respect to all the lenses 100mm and shorter, Olympus had striven to deliver similar size and performance of Leica optics.

Leica still has nothing to touch the OM 21F3.5 and 50F1.2, in terms of both compactness and performance in either it's M or R range. I feel that the Zuiko 28F2.0 and 100F2.0 lenses were the real conceptual precursors to the Leica 28 M Summicron and 90 APO lenses. If Olympus could get that kind of from an slr lens, why couldn't Leitz!

In 1986, I changed my Nikon FM to an OM-1 with 2.0/40 and 2.8/100. The Nikon with Nikkor 1.8/50 was nice, but both the zooms I had where scrap and not sharp. The Nikon service in Germany was expencive and dull. With the OM-1, I could use the lighter and cheaper Zuiko lens. I can tell you that my slides have improved 100% since the swap. The OM's meter system is easier to use, the narrow meter of the FM was nothing for me. The Zuiko lens helped, too.

 

Although Leica's are very nice and a Photogs dream, I did never expect to make a big step from Olympus to Leica. Subsequently, I added a Hasselblad to my gear. I still have and use the Olympus because I like the ergonomics of the body and the lens. All my Zuiko lens are build to a fine standard, none of the body and the lens needed a service, ever. The only thing I have done so far is to adjust a 2.8/24 Zuiko (2nd hand), which had a little slack in the focusing. The job was easy.

On the topic of Eugene Richards, does anyone know how he lit the shots in "Cocaine Blue, Cocaine True"? They are as dazzling as they are disturbing, many shot in squalid apartments in housing projects. If he used flash, it's the most judicious and skillful use of it I've ever seen. Does anyone know?

I haven't seen Eugene' works. I have some latest Leica M (Asph) lenses. I am always amazed at their low light and wide open performance. I also use my tripod with the OM system if possible. Hardly any head-to-head comparison between these two systems. So far so good.