jst226 Loc: Philly

Fotodiox claims that their Pronto lens adapter enables auto-focusing using contract detection on manual-focus Leica M mount lenses on Sony A7 series cameras with contrast detection. With Sony's IBIS, this appears to be an interesting application. Any comments? I found that adapting these older Leica M/R lenses to my old Canon 20d (8.2 mp) produces very different results than from my Canon L lenses, a more old Leica film look (if that makes any sense). I plan to buy a new Sony A7R5 because of my investment in Canon L and Leica lenses.

kymarto Loc: Portland OR and Milan Italy

I don't know about Fotodiox, but Techart makes MF lens adapters that auto focus, and they are highly reputed.

JDefebaugh

I have used many Leica M and R lenses (mostly M) on Sony and Canon bodies. I used either the Novoflex adapter or the last generation Techart autofocus adapter. The Techart worked very well, particularly in good light or with fast lens opened up. Techart recently released a new version of its adapter which is supposed to be even better. Many of my best shots have come on Leica M glass adapted to a mirrorless body.

jst226 Loc: Philly

Have you noticed a difference using Leica lenses shooting B&W with Sony or Canons compared to other lenses?

kymarto Loc: Portland OR and Milan Italy

I have about 130 lenses of various kinds and brands, including Leitz, Zeiss, Meyer, Schneider, Dallmeyer, Angenieux, etc., etc. Leitz lenses are of high quality, to be sure, and perform very well, but older Leitz lenses suffer from the same aberrations as other lenses of similar optical design, though they are often the best of their type. But vintage lenses, including Leitz, do have specific character when used at or near maximum aperture because the old optical designs give a very different bokeh modern lenses. And their craftsmanship is superb.

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

I use Leica, Zeiss and Voigtlander M mount lenses from 28mm to 135mm on an A7 II and they work fine. They are all manual focus (easy to focus on the A7) prime lenses. They can't be autofocused but you can use focus peaking and zoom in for details. I use Metabones adapters.

My 50mm Summicron Rapid (f/2) was made in 1965 and it's one of the best lenses I own. It also works well on a Z7.

JDefebaugh

Yes on differences between Leica lenses and other lenses on Sony and Canon bodies. Not on every shot—for example a well lit scene shot at f8 you might not notice a big difference; perhaps subtle color differences. But photos shot wide open or close to it IMHO usually render differently (nicer) with Leica lenses; often it’s better subject separation. Especially b&w.

kymarto Loc: Portland OR and Milan Italy

Just for fun, I am attaching some photos taken with different "normal" rangefinder lenses of the era mounted on a Sony digital camera, all at their maximum aperture. There are lenses from Leica, Leotax, Kodak, Voigtlaender, Canon, Canter, Highkor, and Ares. Can anyone tell which is the Leica lens?

#1

(Download)

#2

(Download)

#3

(Download)

#4

(Download)

#5

(Download)

#6

(Download)

#7

(Download)

#8

(Download)

#9

(Download)

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

Excellent demonstration since they are all well exposed and developed. Being unfamiliar with the locations, it's almost impossible to even come close to the focal lengths used.

I can't really see a difference in the areas within the DOF but there is some variation in the bokeh.

There is only one chance in nine of picking the Leica. I will send you my guess via PM to save myself any embarrassment.

BushDog Loc: San Antonio, TX

All beautiful images, kymarto 👍🏽
I’ll take a guess at which is the Leica, actually I’ll take two guesses #1 or #9.
I’ll be watching to see how wrong I was 😉

kymarto Loc: Portland OR and Milan Italy

OK, here is the list

#1 Canon 50mm f0.95. The famous "dream lens" for the Canon 7 rangefinder camera

#2 Aires Coral 4.5cm f1.5. A lens for the Aires V rangefinder camera. On the lens head was removable, the shutter and focusing mechanism were fixed on the body.

3 Leotax Leonon 5cm f2. A Leica thread mount lens for Japanese rangefinder camera from the 1950s.

4. Canon 50mm f1.2. Also compatible with Leica rangefinders.

5. Leitz Summitar 5cm f2. The second generation "normal" lens for Leica thread mount rangefinders, from the 50s, after the Summar and before the Summicron.

6. Voigtländer Nokton Prominent 50mm f1.5. A lens for the Prominent system, like the Ares, a camera with fixed shutter and focusing mount.

7.Kodak Ektar 47mm f2. A fixed lens that was mounted on the Kodak Retina IIb folding 35mm camera from Germany. The lens was so highly reputed that it was made in Leica mount for an American rangefinder camera, the Kardon, developed as an alternative to the Leica for the US Army during WW2

8. Canter S 45mm f1.9. A lens from the fixed lens Beauty rangefinder from Japan, using very high quality lanthanum glass.

9. Okaya Highkor 40mm f1.8. Again adapted from an obsolete Japanese fixed rangefinder camera, the Lord SL, notable for being very wide for a normal lens on a relatively cheap camera.

The point of the exercise was to show that while Leica lenses are top quality, there are other lenses of similar design that are very good and very similar in rendering.

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

It's almost impossible to identify the lens manufacturer from these images. What these tests show very clearly is that the quality of the in-focus areas are as good as any modern lens for the same focal length.

Even if one of the scenes had been taken with each lens as you have done elsewhere the differences are very subtle. They don't appear in the in-focus part of the image but in the bokeh, beyond the DOF.

Very little is said about the quality of the bokeh of a lens in lens reviews other than to mention that the aperture wide open is round and that onece it begins to close down the shape of the blade edges might affect the image differently.

Lens scoring from DxOMark for the 40mm Voigtlander Ultron is fairly typical:



These qualities are measurable. They are more applicable to landscape images where corner-to-corner performance is usually the goal.

But bokeh is not quantifiable. Its most important contribution is to minimize distractions and draw our attention to the quality of the subject.