Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/08/14
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Pascal,
>>I have never seen these BAS tests of R lenses. How did you obtain them?<<
>>What do they say about the Summilux 80 f1.4?<<
I got my copy of the "BAS REPORT Leica R-lenses test results" from Leica USA.
I'm sure you could get them from Leica Germany. They are excellent in that they
give a summary of optical performance & build quality of all the R-lenses; as
well as sharpness & brilliance diagrams, from the center thru the edges, at
various f-stops.
The Summilux 80 f1.4 looks like a real performer; however, at f1.4 both
sharpness & contrast "droop" relative to f4 & f8. As you may recall, I was
trying to get at it's f2 performance; per a Leica rep ( Leica USA ) it should be
a little sharper at f2 than the
90 f2 "cron". Interesting ;~)!
However, per the same Leica rep, the 90 f2 "cron" yields a beautiful
"plasticity" in portraits; interestingly enough, the BAS tests support this, in
that at f2, contrast performance is superior relative to the sharpness curve.
All of which leads to my inquiry of wondering what's the more optimal portrait
lens;
80mm f1.4, 90mm f2, 90mm f2.8 or the 100 f2.8 APO Macro. Taking into account
weight/balance, f2 & f2.8 performance characteristics, head & shoulders distance
, bokeh, & hand held in available light!
Help ;~)!
Tom D.