M8 Photos

@mingkookoo, really like your wide views and your BW processing ;-)

I am sucked a bit by the Hasselblad XPAN bug lately, and while pondering about this, experimenting with double frame aspect ratio panoramas with the M9 (cropping).
I find this quite an interesting experiment with the digital Leicas.

@Rod, the Nikkor 105 looks really great! I have an almost mint copy residing in storage, since I bought it together with a Canon 100/2 LTM - I love the Canon for it's fantastic handling and pinsharp performance. Somehow, the Nikkor is a sleeper for me (mainly the awkward handling is the cause, the images are wonderful, especially wide open).
 
Thanks menos and mingkookoo.

Like the bottle shot Mark.

@menos, I've been wondering about the Canon 100/2. The extra 2/3 stop would be nice in a lot of situations. Do you have some images posted with it?
 
rodl said:
Thanks menos and mingkookoo.

Like the bottle shot Mark.

@menos, I've been wondering about the Canon 100/2. The extra 2/3 stop would be nice in a lot of situations. Do you have some images posted with it?
Click to expand...

Rod, my main reason, why I preferred the Canon 100/2 over the Nikkor 105/2.5 from day one (I had both lenses in the shop, compared, picked the Canon, but ran to the shop the next day, to also get the Nikkor, as I found out, that it was a bargain 🙂) was two fold:

1) the Canon is a much, much better user by Todays standards for me.
It is without lens hood already very modern, contrasty sharp looking - right from f2 (!!!)
It is a rather compact and by feel much lighter and easier handling lens than the Nikkor.
It equals about to a latest pre ASPH 90/2 Leica M lens, which I also have - of course with a much longer focus throw (which is not necessarily a bad thing by the way).

2) I was in the need of a longer, fast lens for low light tele photo.
I planned, to pick up such lens, to complement my APO-Telyt in Le Mans, but ended up not taking the Canon with me (a wrong decision, as I found out later)

I have not shot much with the Canon yet, just picking up speed, using it more and more - it is easy enough, to slip in the bag. I have mine coded as a 90/2 ASPH, to easily recognize it.

Here are a few early shots on flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=52593619@N02&q=canon

I like this Canon for - a smooth rendered background, even at rather large subject distance due to the focal length and rather fast aperture:

The detail for this half century old lens is amazing right from wide open on (seems sharper than my sample of the Nikkor)

The Nikkor possibly is a better "beauty shot lens", as it might not expose all the details ;-)

If you can find a 100/2 run and grab it! I have a really nice, spot on user, but will definitely grab a mint, complete copy, the moment, I see a nice deal.
 
Dirk, based on your shots and commentary, I'll keep my eyes open. Interesting that the Canon is smaller than the Nikkor. In pictures, it looks larger. I bought the Nikkor after reading Dante Stella's review and asking Brian Sweeney about it. Unfortunately, Dante doesn't review the Canon 100/2 just the Canon 100/3.5. I'm sure the 3.5 is a very good lens but just too slow for much of what I shoot. Thanks for the review and the examples. Love the portrait of the man.
 
Thanks Rod - it is actually a 1:1 crop of a bigger picture ;-)
I will continue, to use the Canon - somehow, it interests me more at the moment, than te Leica 90/2 pre ASPH ;-)
 
@ Dirk: thanks and I had the Hasselblad XPAN bug last month also but than I thought maybe I should just try either cropping or doing 2 horizontal shots and stitching them together and save the $$ for a good condition 2nd hand M9 next year 😀

You guys with your alt lens are killing me, Canon 100/2, Nikkor-P 105/2.5, CV 75/1.8 and 2.5 . . . 🙂

@ Mark Schretlen and JayM: lovely shots
 
@menos - from those Canon 100/2 shots, it looks like you have a winner of a lens. I've always struggled with focus using longer fast RF lenses wide open. The 90/2.8 seems to work best for me.

Using a Elmarit-M 90/2.8 (at about f/5.6) ...

original.jpg
 
@mingkookoo
the redundancies are not normal for me (although I live for a while with several 35mm, several 50s and several 90s, now that I think about it).

I just can't get over it, to sell any of them - they all overlap somehow, give different imaging and all that ;-)

Nevertheless, I always end up with using mostly the 50/1 + 35/1.4 ASPH and some third lens in the bag.

I plan, to start checking possibilities, to sell some over the next weeks.
My first candidates are my two least used lenses: 35/2 ASPH and 50/1.4 ASPH. I know already, that I surely will regret this later 😕

Please no inquiries - I will only sell local, as the Chinese Customs are a pita to deal with, sending goods around.
When I got my decision through, I might put a local buyers only advert here in the classifieds.

@Mark
Nice use of a 90mm ;-) Shooting fast 90mm or longer really begs for spot on RF settings, good paired lens/body and good eye sight.
I think, the 90/2 Leica is one of the most difficult to nail focus (more difficult, than the 50/1 and 135/3.4 in my experience).

The 90/2.8 Elmarit-M is one of the nicest compact tele lenses, offered for Leica M. If you have one of those, hold on to it!

@PeterM
I always like your color shots - so rich!
This has like many of your photos so much going on, to explore - I like that!
 
@ menos: Nice collection of lens Dirk!! I'm sure you will be able to sell your lens in top $$ no problem 🙂 Nice pic over at DP forum(The wide cropped M9 shot)

@ peterm1: Nice color shot!

@ Mark Schretlen: I've only seen maybe 2 T-Birds since I've moved to Ontario. Nice Classic Car indeed, thanks for sharing.
 
@menos

Get the xpan. Don't crop your pictures. It's cheating.
I believe that if you can't compose on the spot, then it's wrong to do it later.
 
Jubb Jubb said:
@menos

Get the xpan. Don't crop your pictures. It's cheating.
I believe that if you can't compose on the spot, then it's wrong to do it later.
Click to expand...

Wrong? As in mortal sin, hellfire and damnation wrong? Or just not your way of doing things wrong? If you want to be a perfectionist, that's your business but spare the rest of us from the judgmental comments.
 
@ Jubb Jubb
Thanks for the input - I understand the reasoning behind your comment ;-) but it is in times unfortunately not that simple.
I would love, to have a XPan as an additional camera in the bag for the unique format and it's possibilities of telling stories or opening up visions, not possible with 24x36.
Unfortunately the momentary going rates and availability borders on crazy.
Actually, you can get an additional Leica body + Leica lens for the money, you pay these days for a XPan + 45mm ! (This is actually true, as I was surprised by M8 bodies for 1.500 EUR at the shops last weekend, while a Xpan + 45mm goes for almost 2.000 EUR - if you can find one, that is - Xpan I btw ;-) )

As nice, as the Xpan is, the current price is not worth it for me.

As for the cropping, I have a similar attitude with a more liberal way of working it.
I don't crop for composition in post.
I do crop though, when a slight correction renders the image more powerful - this has been done since photography is known and I do it, if necessary.
Many shots, I do with Leica M bodies in motorsports do actually NEED cropping, as the reach is very limited (shooting with a 135mm lens and crop further, if needed).

@ JSU and rodl
slowly - I guess, Jubb Jubb is kindly reminding me of the excellence of the Xpan, as he knows, that I am eagerly looking for one, momentary experimenting with crops.
I guess, he is good meaning and not teaching a morale lesson in not cropping pictures ;-)

Btw - as I experiment with cropping for Xpan format images, I do so in closest simulating the Xpan experience, meaning, when I see a potential image, i do grab a wider lens, stick it on the M9 and actually compose with the image format in mind.

I physically crop the image in post, but I indeed practically have it cropped already, while taking the shot, as I compose for the later crop in mind.

The M9 has a lot of megapixels for the rather small 13x19 print size, I mostly do - I often get away with this approach. With some work, I can also print as big as from a Xpan negative scan (good, sharp lens, higher shutter speeds, careful post processing).
There is another thing of convenience speaking for the M9 approach:

I do "scan" my 35mm negatives with a Nikon D3 + 60mm Micro-Nikkor lens on a light table (using macro tubes for higher magnification and stitching in Photoshop).
When using a M9 and the resolution suffices, that means less work, if going for Xpan and scanning film.
 
@menos
I understand your point. Frankly, how somebody wants to work is their business. Whether I like what they produce is my business. I'm not going to tell somebody else they're wrong just because they have a different approach. I expect the same courtesy. My second thought about Jubb Jubb's comment was that being that careful in composition probably means losing a lot of shots of opportunity. If you're a landscape shooter using a view camera ala Ansel Adams, then you probably can take the time to be that careful in composition. If you're a combat photographer, you do the best you can but you get the shot and crop if necessary. Most of us are somewhere in between.

On a separate note, after reading your comments and seeing your images with the Canon 100/2, I found one and got it yesterday. Crazy sharp wide open but it back focuses and I'm trying to get that fixed. I'll try to post a couple of examples later.
 
@rodl.
It is my personal belief. Sure, I didn't word it the best, and I didn't mean to sound like I'm "telling" you what to do, sorry about that.


@menos
thanks for the stick up! the xpan worked out to be reasonable price for me. waited a while I snapped it up at a bargain price in great condition. it is a real gem to own. if you ever get the chance to buy one, don't hesitate.
 
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