Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2008/03/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Mark Rabiner <mark@rabinergroup.com> wrote: > You've got Canon and Nikon shooters shooting full frame. > But not Leica? > > To me that does not add up. The difference in angle of incidence between an SLR lens (which needs to clear the reflex mirror) and the RF lens, particularly a wide RF lens, is what causes the problems. The distance from the exit pupil of the M wides is much closer to the sensor than on the C or N SLR bodies, simply because of the geometry of the light-tight boxes. With existing commercially-available sensor technology, the angle of incidence resulting from the shorter exit pupil-to-sensor distance causes problems including light fall-off and uneven effectiveness of sensor cover glass filters (i.e., IR or UV blocking filters). It's theoretically possible to make a sensor with micro lenses that would compensate perfectly for the light fall-off for a particular exit pupil distance, but this would not fix the uneven UV/IR filtering nor would it work with other exit pupil distances. It's also possible to make lenses to fit the RF camera that have a much greater exit pupil distance, but these would be as large and heavy as a comparable SLR lens, blocking the viewfinder and generally defeating much of the purpose of using an RF camera. Leica has figured out a way to make the system work. It's not ideal but it allows the use of tiny superb lenses to make super-sharp and colorful pictures. Until sensor technology improves it's likely it's either the M8 or a much bigger dSLR. Doug Herr Sacramento http://www.wildlightphoto.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web.com - Microsoft? Exchange solutions from a leading provider - http://link.mail2web.com/Business/Exchange