guy_mancuso

here this thread you can see the bokeh from 35,50 and 90mm lenses in a comparsion with

The new Summarits against the 35 cron version IV, 50 lux and the 90 cron. These are 1500 or

less the new Summarits and they are very nice lenses also. this test shows many things but

bokeh can be seen in every one.

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=120

You can get very very nice bokeh using the M8. No problem there and you don't have to

have a 75 lux to do it , i just did a long tests on the 75 Summarits and even at 2.5 it has

nice bokeh . The 50 lux in many flavors pre and asph gives nice bokeh. I use the M8

system professionally every day so it can be done. Yes i have some limitations no question

but if your sitting on Leica M lenses than you also sitting on some of the best glass ever

made too. Don't ignore that either. I think you need to read some stuff on the M8 and

lenses that you can use. Now the d300 looks great and I almost just bought one myself

but i did just buy a 5D for certain things. I have a Oly 24 shift lens made into a R mount

that i don't want to give up so I had to get a Canon to use it with adapter and I bought a

200 for a Runway gig that will pay for the whole purchase so i will use it for certain things

and it will sit because i really love the M8 warts and all and that is because the bottom line

for me is image. So i really don't care about the bells and whistles of some of these new

computer style camera's. Although many folks do and the 5D and d300 represent some of

the latest technolgies so don't overlook them. Honestly do your homework and you have

to think in terms of system and what YOUR needs are. The M8 has a 90 macro , maybe not

as ideal working as a 5D and a macro lens but this stuff can be done. Word of caution you

get a M8 you the photographer have to work the camera, there is no auto anything and if

you lazy don't buy one

Here read a couple threads here and it may help somewhat give you some better ideas on

the M8 and glass

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=382

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=278

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=159

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36

Just some stuff to read and look at with images

Harvey if you have the 25mm than i would go right to 18mm. i had the 21mm and 24mm and

there just to darn close. You would feel it is a waste and to be honest it's like a two step

difference in feet power. The 18mm will add a different prespective than the 21mm also.

Little more drama, but the 18mm has some contrast so need to be slightly careful

Have to agree with Bill those few degrees can mean a lot . Also too the zeiss 18 is very

clinical looking in look, very sharp and lots of snap to it. My leica 21mm Asph has a different

look more smoother in tone a lot like the 28 cron which i love to death. I actually switched

things around down in the very wide went with a 12mm CV , 18 zeiss and than the leica

21mm and i actually like that combo now.

Robin happen to passing by and about questions on the Zeiss 18 I happen to have this and

had the mount converted so i can code it for the WATE and use IR filters . Here is some info

on it if your interested in looking. The lens is extremely sharp on center

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15

Hmmm. Interesting and some very wrong comments here also. Thanks for those that

actually know the facts. let's clear the air first. I have a very close relationship with leica

but only after the purchases of the M8. I was also asked to be a beta tester and sign a NDA

which in reality i am not even supposed to say i am a beta tester but leica decided if i was

more comfortable being out there in public and saying i was it was okay with them. i do

NOT recieve any money from Leica for anything. I did just join leica on there Leica / Porche

Acadimie tour in Germany in which i did tour the factory and also had meetings with leica

which i had in the past at PMA. First off there really nice folks and really enjoy there

company. Now i did own the DMR and was in love with that system and what it could do , i

wanted to try the M8 system becuase we all hear the Leica m lenses are better than the R

lenses , well there right and after all the growing pains of the M8 inluding 2 SDS situations

i persoanlly had i stuck it out with the M8's and they have been a joy to use and the files

are very similar to the DMR but with better micro detail so i completely switched to the M8

and use it today with 2 M8's and 10 lenses as my primary commercial shooting rig. Yes it

has it's limitations on the long side and tilt and shift lenses and if i need a DSLR than i can

always rent one if I have the need which i have not so far.

Now i use the system because it works and works better than almost anything out there if

it said Kobalt for a camera name i would be using that. i just simply will use the best there

is and the name is meaningless but i also like owning leica for what it is and the people

behind it. Now i have been very focal about this system and worked really hard to get

everyone that owned a M8 to get working around it's initial issues and problems , if that

make me some internet whatever was described i could care less, i make no money from

the internet but i do like helping folks and getting them shooting so if i took on a

customer advocate role than that is my choice , love it or hate it makes no difference to

me. Like my work or not is also in the same category unless your paying me i could care

less what you think of what i shoot, my clients think better of me and pay me well to shoot

and at the end of the day that is the bottom line.

Now with regards to leica i am also helping them with firmware and upgrades and

suggestions to help them build better machines and tools for us and they do like my

suggestions and comments and such . i will continue to do that because i like having this

relationship and in the end it helps the end user, US. So if you want to piss on me for no

better reason than to do that than you have the problem , not me. But this place is a

absolute train wreck and some of you are guilty of causing that and it is a shame because i

remember when it was a nice place but it is only as good as it's members and if you guys

want to ride it into the wall than that is your choice but the issue is your not learning

anything and that is the real downfall of this place. All i see is bad info and misguided

comments. I personally would rather be positive and work the issues to make the tools we

use to be better and the photo industry to listen and make product of value to us the user.

Thanks and have a good day , no further comments are needed from me. Guy

I have had both and if i had to sway a vote optically which one will perform better than the

24mm is it. But depending on what body you are using it on comes into play . If the M8 than

you have a crop factor of 1.33 which is 21= 28 and 24 = 32. So depending on your need.

Also on a M8 if your talking M8 than 24mm you can see the framelines if you don't wear

glasses and 21mm you will want a 28mm external finder. Now if your talking film than a

different ballgame

IR contamination is there in all lighting conditions some worse than others for example

tungsten gives off the worst IR light . It also affects all colors although to a different

degree the effects of it are there pure and simple. Anyone telling you otherwise has no

clue what they are talking about. The Ir filters are there because the IR filteration is not

strong enough on the sensor cover plate and the reason for this it was a design decision

by leica because a stronger filter would have caused abberations. To counter that issue

they had to use a filter on the outside to get the IR cutting off the IR light to the sensor.

there is a level that needs to meet and the sensor glass was not enough to do that and the

result was a byproduct of magenta cast on synthetic blacks but it also effects other visable

light as well. Bottom line use the filters if you want accurate color, C1 has no effect here

on this . Also one should code your lenses from 35mm down because the IR filters the way

they are designed there is a angle cutoff , so as you get wider the cyan cast or drift gets

larger. 1.102 firmware has tackled that issue . So with the IR filters on and the On/IR filter

menu option employed and firmware 1.102 there is no longer a cyan cast and basically

your back to normal. now some will shoot without the filters and if so than turn the On/IR

filter off so it does not compensate for the filters.

Seriously as a beta tester for Leica firmware my advice code your lenses from at least

35mm down use the filters and get over with it. Also use leica only filters from 24mm

down. The leica filters are weaker than the B+W filters and you may still see a cyan cast in

your images from 24mm down. Remember the firmware is specifacally tuned to leica

filters and in the extreme wide area it will be noticed the most if not using the Leica filter.

you can use the B+W above 24mm but you may see a small color shift because again the B

+W filters are a little stronger but you can fine tune that. As far as raw converters c1 is

very good and probably the better one for noise at the higher ISO's but also Lightroom is

very nice and i been using that on lately. Only advice on LR is watch the magenta overall it

does tend to have a little extra in LR, C1 maybe a little warm for some taste but you can

adjust the kelvin a little and it is very nice.

I have been having some issues also with smearing. Breathing seems to be the best really

though. I had eraser marks on mine from fitting one into a adapter for the WATE and it was

tough to clean

Just found a M6 for sale

http://www.leicamarket.com/showproduct.php/product/36/cat/9/limit/recent/date/

1180381023

Roger hit many good points but part of the issue is the M8 sold more than there pre-

orders and it really comes down to supply and demand and at the moment there is a huge

demand and not enough supply. But not knowing exactly how well the M8 would do i

would bet Leica just stayed there normal course on lens building. If they built too much

than they would be sitting on it. Any modern manufacturing plant works much differntly

than in the past and do not stock pile anymore and inventory control is very tight. Of

course this good and bad for leica but from a revenue standpoint and cash flow they

rather have it this way than sitting on all there inventory. For that you can't blame them

but it . Also points of new owners that never had leica m systems it is also very true many

are new to the M system and that actually includes myself which came from canon , Nikon

and leica R DMR setups and i have 10 Leica lenses and yes i am a pig on that but most new

users if you average it all out most likely bought at least 2 new leica lenses. That is a

pretty big number. And if you look at e-bay nd used stores today there are very few

modern lenses out there in bulk. So new is the only way to go and even CV lenses are

becoming very hard to get new or used like the CV 15mm you just can't find one new or

used. Overall it is great for leica but hard on the consumer looking to make a purchase.

Hell it could be worse i guess

Peter you should registar and update , been a lot of color improvement in 1.102 that is worth

upgrading for.

I agree it is a great camera for walk around , it has become my primary working tool. Love it

Jorge I was talking with Sean this morning and he got the 15mm to code. Here is the issue

you probably did have it coded and did not realize it. Check this out Sean discovered this

morning and i can confirm on my WATE if I have the ON/IR filter switch on in the menu than i

get the option in menu to pick 16,18,21 BUT if in the menu item you only turn the code ON

than the options DO NOT come up to pick 16,18,21. yes i quess it was orginally setup initial

because Leica may not have realized it needed the IR in the beginning, already reported this

to leica . but go back and make sure you have the ON/IR in the menu option and if the

settings come up your golden. Please let me know on this and certainly use the WATE code

On 6 bit coding they actually replace the rear mount on the lens than they need to calibrate

the lens again to get it into spec. So Stuarts descriptions sounds pretty accurate on what the

abbreviations mean

Also it has gotten a little better without the IR filters with regards to tungsten and synthetics

but you still should use the IR filters and really that is the bottom line on it. Mine are pretty

much glued on and never shoot without them in any light. But that's me and i never know

what i will run into on a paying gig so i just leave them on

We have had 2 official updates from 1.06 1.092 and 1.102 and each upgrade many fixes have

been worked on plus some added options like shutter and ISO on LCD review. There are

about 4 very minor bugs currently , none of them affect image quailty but more viewing

issues. They have been reported to leica by beta testers (me for one) and are being worked

on. But lately things have settled down very much and there seems to be some happy

campers out there. Also some feature improvemnets have been asked for , so hopefully Leica

will work on some of them to make the M8 just a little bit more user friendly. leica has been

pretty responsive in working on all the issues and also has communicated them pretty well.

There not perfect but they are trying and that is at least a good sign

Something funky going on go to the LUF forum and search this title

M8 Raw converters and profiles Version 1.102 and IR

May have messed that link up

http://www.leica-camera-user.com/leica-m8-forum/23123-m8-raw-converters-profiles-

version-1-a.html

A lot actually , been mostly a C1 user for years and the new 3.77 version has a much nicer

generic profile for the M8 than the previous one and it is designed around the use of the IR

filter. Also Lightroom i have been becoming pretty fond of. You may want to look at this

thread i started a couple days ago. i still need to test a facial studio shot to see how the skin

tones are coming up but things are really starting to look much better

http://www.leica-camera-user.com/leica-m8-forum/23123-m8-raw-converters-profiles-

version-1-a.html

You might be able to actually take the glass from the 60mm which will be smaller than 60mm

and try and find a 58mm filter that may fit it inside. i did this with a 62mm B+W and fit it in a

60mm for my 75 lux. My take some experimenting to get the right empty 58mm filter holder.

Some companies mount differntly .

Also agree with Roger it won't have the same transmission as the leica filter but there is no

cyan cast to deal with on the 50mm focal length , if anything you may just have a slight

global color change from a leica one which in raw is jsut a small tweak

I also am a big fan of the 50 lux and it's new focal length of 66mm, that focal length now is

something i really like on the M8. My least used lens is the 35mm lux which is a awesome

lens just don't like the 50mm focal length, never have.

SDHC does not currently work in the M8 , as far as future compatability it is hard to say since

the SD industry has been waffling around with a new compliant card. This feature has been

asked for but I believe Leica is waiting to see what happens . Although this is not confirmed

from them but was talked about. For now stick with just SD only cards and 4gb work fine. i

use Transcends myself the 150x 4gb cards and they work very well, there less than 50 dollars

at www.mydigitaldiscount.com . Also be careful buying SD cards from e-bay or some fuzzy

places there have been a lot of fake ones floating around. There cheap now and i recommend

going to a established business just to be safe

After trying several versions of lens setups including the 75mm cron . i decided what

worked best for me was a 50 lux , 75 lux and 90 apo which is very similar to the 75 cron

and i needed a fast long lens for certain jobs but the 75mm lux is the lens that has the

character to it and reason i switched to that and very similar thoughts on what Stuart

already mentioned. it's sort of like 2 lenses in one with nice character open or close to it

but a razor blade at around F4 . The 75mm cron is a great lens though and certainly is as

sharp as it can get and has nice weight , focusing and all that wonderful stuff . So you

really can't go wrong. maybe think of it as if you only want 1 lens above 50mm than the

75 cron is the one to get but if you want 2 for different things than maybe what i did

makes sense 75 lux and 90 apo.