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Advice On Next Wide Angle Lens


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<p>I have an M6 Classic with 90, 50 and 35 mm leical lenses. I have found this kit to be very versatile and comfortable to travel with. I will be travelling to the American Southwest in September and have been told that some of the classic shots such as Horseshoe Bend need a wider angle lens. So I am considering purchasing one because I think that it would be useful in some of the European cities that I travel to and I have read that wide angle lenses can be good for landscapes as well. I am thinking about either a 24mm or a 21mm. I suspect that these might be of more limited use to me simply because I don't have any experience with them and because of that, I might consider the CV lenses as an option to the Leica versions. Can anyone help me with some advice?</p>
William D. Lester
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<p>I usually carried the same focal lengths, and often the 21 and 135 also. A soft compact, but not featherweight, case holds the four lenses not on the camera, a light meter, film, and a few accessories. A 24 seemed too close to the 35. The 21 got little use, but there were times when it was well worth the bother of bringing it along. Other photographers may find it more useful. In the open scenery of the great American west, longer lenses can reach out and grab many subjects that would be lost in a wide angle shot.</p>
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<p>Personally, I used the CV 21 f4 on an M8 (i.e. more like a 28mm) and an M4. I now have a 28mm on FF and that has overall been wide enough for me in most cases - though the new Leica 21 sounds tempting and almost affordable. It dpends on your personal style - 21 is quite wide for mine.</p>

<p>To get to the point, however, I had some weird issue with the CV lens, giving me a central dark spot on both slide and digital in bright sunlight/blue skies that no one could explain - so a bit of a caveat with the Voighlaender lens....</p>

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<p>The LTM CV 21 and 15 with M-Adaptor always seemed to be great for wider perspectives when traveling. They are compact and lightweight and do a great job capturing the landscape. The DOF of the 21 and 15 is greater than the 35mm.<br>

Try to borrow a 21 and/or 15 VF and try it out for a day to see if you like the perspective. I liked the 21 better since I already had the 90, 50, and 35. For me it is a great travel lense and works well in urban landscapes where there is no room to move back. I like the old 50 collapseable and 21 combination for travel because they are small and light.</p>

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<p>Since you are shooting film, there are two lenses that I would highly recommend for situations that call for a really wide wide. The first is the CV 15mm lens. It's a fantastic lens and is obviously great in situations where you want the widest lens you can get. It's relatively inexpensive and if you get the LTM version, you get a finder with it.</p>

<p>The other is the Zeiss ZM 21/4.5. 21mm is a pretty classic focal length as I understand it, and it should match up well with 35mm. More expensive than the CV 21/4 (which is also supposed to be good), but no distortion and it has tons of detail. It doesn't work great on digital, but on film it's hard to beat. Has a bit of vignetting. </p>

<p>I had the 15 before I got the 21. To be honest with you, I haven't been in any situations where I've chosen the 15 over the 21 recently. I really like the 21 and it makes for a great travel lens.</p>

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<p>I have 35, 50, 75 and 90mm, All ASPH except for the 50mm f2.8 M. I really use the 35 Lux ASPH a lot.<br>

For a truly wide angle I went with a 21mm f2.8 ASPH because 28mm is not that much different than 35mm and if purchasing wide, than 21 over 24, but there is not much difference. Anything wider in a Leica lens has some optical distortion and almost a stop slower, so for me the 21mm f2.8 ASPH was the choice.<br>

Now be aware that anything wider than a 28mm on an M6 requires an external finder and it must be a Leica/Leitz finder because these are offset to account for the fact that the M camera flash mount is NOT over the center line of the lens. If you use a finder such as the Zeiss 21mm, which I have and its very nice, you introduce a rotation about the vertical axis. Its there and noticeable on many types of shots.<br>

Second, you must focus, meter and then switch finders for composition, unless you are one of those that says 'Sunny 16' is good enough and you can guesstimate without using an external finder.<br>

Since I have M7's, they were a natural fit for the use of the 21mm, AUTO exposure with Zone focusing usually handles most outdoor situations. For indoor work, I have even built a rig with handle flash that has 21mm coverage.<br>

So if you purchase other than Leica lens, you need a Leica/Leitz finder of some vintage. The new ones (expensive) have M8 markings on them and until they eliminate these markings I will use my older plastic Lietz marked 21mm finder which works well.<br>

In short using Super wide angles on an M camera is more difficult than a SLR. I have had a 24mm f2.8 Nikkor for many many years, in fact I'm on my second now and its a great lens, easier to use with a SLR. For anything wider than 21mm, I would not chose an M camera and in fact 21mm may be pushing the bounds for me.-Dick</p>

 

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Depends on your style, but I've traveled to Europe a number of times, mostly to Germany, and never

found absolutely necessary to have a lens wider than 35mm. If you're already used to that angle of

vision, why look for anything wider? I also have an Elmarit 28mm (which is attached to one of my M6TTL

bodies, while the other has a 'lux 35mm) and at times it's a bit too wide.

 

I also have thought about the CV 21mm... but when I look at my photographs I see that I've gotten so

used to the 35mm field of view that anything wider would be a bit too much.

 

Not that I want to rain on your parade... By all means, buy what you want. I simply offered my

experience. Take care and enjoy shopping!

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<p>Dear Bill,<br>

I was at Horseshoe bend in Summer 2008 and found I needed a 19mm on my R8 to have any hope of getting all the bend in as I wanted it. That was getting perilously close to the edge too to lose the foreground. I guess 21mm will be close enough? I went very early in the morning too which is great as the sun gradually fills the canyon, giving a lot of scope for different lighting plus you miss out on the worst of heat - and in August it was very hot indeed come the middle of the day! I am guessing you are heading for antelope canyon too if you are out that way - have a fantastic trip.</p>

 

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