Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/12/31

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Subject: [Leica] 75mm off the deep end?
From: "David W. Almy" <dalmy@mindspring.com>
Date: Wed, 31 Dec 1997 14:15:35 -0500

All,

The recent 75 1.4 Summilux M thread got me to thinking, "Just how good might
that lens be?" Erwin certainly thinks its the bee's knees. But pawing down
through the lens test archive, I came across the Popular Photography August 94
review of the summilux (the only other one available, BTW), as well as another
review of a lens I already have, the Nikkor 80-200 2.8 zoom.

Here's the rub. The performance of both lenses at 2.8 is the same, with the
zoom tested at 80mm (both got a "C+"). How can this be? How can a single focal
length Leica lens, two stops down from max (presumably improving performance
significantly), equal the performance of a big zoom lens wide open? Shouldn't
the Leica blow away the zoom? How can this be?

Some ideas...

1) Pop Photo's lens testing procedures are out-of-whack
2) They tested the worst sample available of the 75 and the best sample
available of the zoom
3) The challenge of making a 75 1.4 at all necessarily includes optical
compromises, degrading potential performance at 2.8 in a lens of that speed

Realizing that this isn't an apples-to-apples comparison in an infinite sense,
but concerned that two pictures taken by both lenses at 2.8 under the same
conditions would be indistinguishable, I'm longing for someone to tell me I'm
dead wrong.

So, tell me.

To quoth Roger, "Shields up!"

David W. Almy
Annapolis, Maryland