paul levin Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 I had a G2 with 45 and 35 mm lenses. In my opinion the 45 just performed way better than the 35. The 45 g just a fantastic piece of glass especially when shooting color. I'd get the 45 and start saving for the 21mm. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charles_hess2 Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 To Nels...Canon G7? That wasn't what the poster was asking. The G7 is junk next to the Contax G and lenses, in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolly Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 I used all but two of the Contax lenses. But first I'd suggest the G2, and recommend that over the G1 because the autofocus is more refined from G1. Lots of people like the handling better on the G1. Slightly smaller size. But if you want to have a semi-automated camera set up, the G2 will give you very reliable AF, even in dimly lit settings like church interiors. Lots of people were bothered by the viewfinder being dim, having no brightlines-- neither bothered me. (Try the camera with different lenses before you buy it.) Easy to use auto exposure allows quick shifting from one f stop to another for changes in depth of field. Best glass is, in order, IMO: 45, 21, 90, 28, 35. The 35 is a good lens above f4. 45 would be your normal lense, or the 35. Only drawback to the 21 as your primary lens is that you might tire of that wide angle which is very dramatic but the more you look at that angle of view, photo after photo, the more tiresome it might get. All lenses are terrific for color, less good for BW. For the money you can't go wrong. (I switched reluctantly to Leica, after nine years with the G2, simply because I got into BW film and Leica lenses left open the possibility of moving to a digital body whereas Contax G is, sadly, a dead-end system.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_mccann Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 I have all but the 16 and the zoom G lenses, and I find all but the 35 to be top notch. I too started shooting Leica just over a year ago. It is the viewfinder that won me over. Still pondering the modification to G lens mounts to alter the viewfinder zooming to 100% for the 45 lens. Just chicken I guess. The 90 is sharper than my Leica 90. I shoot the 21 most, mainly because I don't have the $ for Leica wides. I'm a 50/35 shooter 95% of the time with the 21 making nearly all the rest. For that reason before I was shooting Leicas the 45 lived on the one body and the 90 or 21 lived on the other. I have just not been shooting much with the 90's at all anymore. I love the G2- I had a G1 years ago but I really disliked that I often found it had slipped into MF mode without my knowing- just made for too much fumbling. I have 2 G2's and will never sell them even tho I shoot 95% of the time with the Leicas theses days the G2's are really wonderful tools, and quite a value. You can't go wrong with the G system. I've printed 1620's off HP5 and FP4 negs shot with both the 90 and 45 that are sharp as can be. This spring and summer I'll be carrying the G2/28 or 45 combo everywhere with Kodachrome till the 10 rolls are gone. My 'summer of snaps' before the kids are too old to balk at getting caught on film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincent_desautels Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 I always bring only one lens when shooting with my G1, sometimes the 35/2, sometimes the 21/2.8. Even if the 45/2 is the sharpest of all, I prefer a wider angle of view, given the tiny viewfinder, and I find it risky to use the 45 at f:2 at close range because of focus errors. The 21/2.8 is a charm to use with AF and AE as you can only use the external viewfinder and its cross hair reticle and get an accurate focus. The camera has many drawbacks, but its handling is very good and the lenses are the best bargain you can get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elmarfudd Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 My G1 always had a 35mm Planar. I kept the camera because of that lens, but eventually sold it because of the camera. The lens however, was "better" than my V3 35mm summicron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincenzo_maielli Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 Hi, dear friend. I vote for the Planar 45 mm f/ 2.Ciao. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_amos Posted March 27, 2007 Share Posted March 27, 2007 MichelleA, in contrast to Archie's negative perceptions, I have to think that the people, including me, offering you advice from Leica M experience are mainly attempting to participate in the forum in a helpful way with regard to the admittedly subjective measure of the usefulness of various focal lengths in rangefinder photography. I also have to assume that Kevin's statements recommending the Zeiss Ikon system, which are completely off topic from your posted question, were similarly well-intentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george_shihanian Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 While I don't own my G2 system any longer, I did use every lens except the 16mm. I was wowed by the color and quality of the 45mm, and either that or the 35-70 zoom would be my choice if I could only take one lens along. What bothered me was the fact that my G2 would either fail to focus sometimes, or lock focus with the VF image looking slightly out of focus. Another quick press on the shutter button, and it would then focus correctly. Not a real big deal most times, but a very big deal sometimes. I much more enjoy the manual focusing of my Leica CL. The G series is really nothing more than a posh point and shoot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george_shihanian Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 One other thought, since you said you were tired of lugging the SLR gear around and want to bring something along on your daily adventures, you may also get tired of something as large as the G. A high end pocketable point and shoot may be a better choice for "daily adventures". Something like a Leica CM, Nikon 35Ti, Ricoh GR1 etc, or a simple Olympus Stylus or the manual Leica CL, or Olympus XA all give excellent images. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_spiers Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 "What bothered me was the fact that my G2 would either fail to focus sometimes" That's exactly why I got rid of mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.withheart.ca Posted March 28, 2007 Author Share Posted March 28, 2007 Thanks everyone for all your opinons and ideas! I look forward to researching some of the other cameras mentioned. I took a roll of film with the 35mm lens and am curious to see the results. But I'd love to see images from 45mm someday! Thanks again everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.withheart.ca Posted March 28, 2007 Author Share Posted March 28, 2007 OH my! The Bokeh on the 35mm drove me nutty!! I sadly returned the Contax G1 this afternoon. I'm having returners remorse a bit though and am tempted to march right back to the store and buy it back. It was a fun little camera. Only I think I would look around for a 45mm lens for it. But I found that the contax really wasn't that much smaller than my film nikon SLR with its 50mm lens attatched and I already own those. :) So sadly, it has gone back to be an orphan at my local photo store. What I really want is a tiny camera with a fast fixed 50mm lens and control over the exposure. Is there hope for me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asher Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 Wow- you're getting a little too hung up on the camera. There are many simple, small cameras that accept fast 50mm lenses. Leica is certainly a good option, but not the only one. I'm not sure why you need something much smaller than an M or a Nikon FM...<p>Perhaps before exchanging more gear, you might first try spending your money on a brick of film and shooting tons of frames with your Nikon SLR? What you seek may come to you much more readily after that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frank uhlig Posted March 29, 2007 Share Posted March 29, 2007 G2 focusing myths: with 30 + films through mine in 5 months, i have exactly one mysteriously misfocused picture. Not all that bad out of about 1,000 pics, right? Maybe I am just lucky, I have plenty of headshots taken at f/2.8 to f/4 with the 90mm lens that are tack on, even with speeds down to 1/4 or 1/8 sec (elbows braced on a table ...). One lens? Why this restriction. Put one on the camera and carry another in your pants' pocket. Or know what you will picture and go with either one. I think lenses are made to be plentiful and interchangeable. For in the woods adventures, take .... (you fill in); for in city, choose .... (fill in), for parties choose ...(your choice again). And the fill in might be 21mm or 28mm or Zoom, or 45mm or 90mm in any one of these ... positions. Determined by the mood of the day, the desire for width or detail .. As you can see, I cannot help, Michelle. You must choose and decide by yourself, I am afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george_shihanian Posted March 30, 2007 Share Posted March 30, 2007 Frank, you are indeed very lucky. I, and many many others had focusing problems especially with the 90mm lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now