Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/01/19
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hello LUGgers! I am looking to purchase a telephoto lens for wildlife photography, and am looking at the new 180mm f/2.8 APO. It weighs a lot less than the 70-180mm f/2.8 zoom and will take Cokin filters (the f/2 version would be nice, but I do landscape photography also). To complement this optic, I am also looking at the super telephoto range. I inevitably am drawn to the APO-Modul system, in particular the 280mm f/2.8 or 400mm f/4. This system would be superb, as the 280mm lens could be made into a 560mm f/5.6 with the longest focus module. With a 1.4 converter I would have an 800mm f/8. (about as slow as I would like to go to). Or I could have the 400mm f/4 and have a 2x converter for an 800mm f/8. For what I do, 560mm would be long enough, but 800mm would be a bonus. This is all well and good, but there is also the option of the older 280mm f/2.8 APO lens. This weighs nearly 1kg less than the Modul lens! I could attach a 2x converter to make a 560mm f/5.6 APO lens, and also use the 2x converter onto the 180mm lens. This setup would save rather a lot of money too – I have seen the 280/2.8 for sale for just under £2,000, rather than the £5,000+ for a new Modul lens. So, a few questions: 1. Is there any difference in optical quality between the new and older 280mm f/2.8 lenses? 2. Is there any difference between the 2x and 1.4x teleconverters? I have read about these items, but is the optical degradation noticeable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated – we are talking major purchases here! Simon Coates