[Leica] Photokina musings.

[jgovindaraj at eth.net (Jayanand Govindaraj)]

Don,
According to Stephen Gandy - $649.
Cheers
Jayanand

Don Dory wrote:

> First, I think that the upcoming wide angle vewfinder Voigtlander is a
> really big deal.  The usual wide angle lenses showing without an 
> accessory
> viewfinder will get me out of the Leica fold.  Price will be around 
> $900 if
> memory serves.
>
> Second, lets get real about the viewfinder for the new Tri-Elmar.  It 
> shows
> a very clear, very low distortion image with parallax compensation.  
> It has
> good eye relief.  It is smaller than a MR meter that a lot of folks used.
> No, it doesn't affect the balance of the camera, especially with the
> Tri-Elmar attached.  Please try before you complain.  The images I 
> took with
> the pre-production Tri-Elmar at 16-18-21 looked pretty good to me wide 
> open
> on my M6.  If it looks good full frame then it will look good on an M8.
>
> The folks at Leica were pretty sure that the shipping version of the
> firmware would come out on October 15th giving the good folks in Solms 
> time
> to check, verify, and upload to shipping cameras.  And, based on the many
> boxes of demo cameras sitting at the factory, they have a pretty good 
> idea
> of what needs to happen.
>
> I will echo others that the display of all the Leica goodies glued to 
> stands
> was great fun, was full all the time, and had some young folk looking 
> very
> interested.  Between halls Leica had a riser set up with a good 
> selection of
> cameras, lenses, and sport optics designed with a enough light and 
> space so
> that you could really come to terms with the equipment.
>
> Zeiss is doing some really nice things for the M mount.  I had a 
> chance to
> shoot with the Sonnar 1.5, the Biogon 21, and the Biogon 25.  I prefer 
> the
> 50 Summilux ASPH to the Sonnar 1.5, but the Sonnar does a really, really
> good job of imaging with a pretty flat field, good rendition of fine 
> detail,
> and good off center abilities.  I prefer the Summilux because it has 
> better
> really fine detail capture, better contrast, and does better at really 
> close
> distances; but you pay almost three times the price for that relatively
> small improvement.  The Biogon 21 is a winner and will probably find 
> its way
> into my bag as the 21 SA won't image well on a digital.
>
> I used the 25 Biogon extensively as a fellow LHSA member loaned me 
> his.  It
> is a very nice lens with good detail capture and I loved the 1/3 
> stops.  But
> just like the 50, the 24 ASPH has a little more contrast, better 
> capture of
> really fine detail, and a flatter field.  Again, not loads better, but
> noticeably better at a steep price.
>
> For the Pentax shooters out there, the new 10MP is a real winner.  Small
> changes to the controls but an improved finder and a very nice vertical
> grip.  With a price under $900 and acces to all those lovely lenses
> including the new Zeiss offerings it is mighty tempting.
>
> The new 50mm F1.2 Canon is an extremely well built lens that focus 
> quickly.
> Image quality through the viewfinder is very good and field flatness is
> quite good.  Finally Canon has a good 50mm both optically and 
> mechanically.
> Tina and Ted will love this lens as you can use 3200 ISO and 1.2.
>
> Sony is really building on the Alpha mount.  They were showing a good 
> 70-200
> F2.8 and a 300 F2.8 both of which cover full frame images.  The 300 
> was at
> least a re-design of the old Minolta lens.
>
> Olympus was showing an addition to their 4/3 system that was proportioned
> more like a film camera than the other E series.  If memory serves it was
> 10MP with a good viewfinder.  I am sorry to be so brief but the number of
> cameras was small and the line was long, boisterous, and quite rude.
>
> Rollei offered a new IR film that did not need to be loaded in the dark.
> Not as grainy as Kodak's but a similar response to filtration and a 
> similar
> tendency to halate.
>
> The real fun of walking all ten halls was seeing all the wierdness.  
> Strange
> ball heads, software to fix any ill, models dressed as space aliens 
> walking
> to break, tripods of all shapes, leg number, material, lock mechanism, 
> half
> a hall filled with telescopes, half a hall filled with inkjet paper
> manufacturers and more to fill a book.  Unlike others, I will probably go
> back for two days next time as the international efforts are a little 
> more
> entertaining than at PMA.
>
> Don
> don.dory@gmail.com
>
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