Re: [Leica] advice on 180mm lenses

["Tom Schofield" <tdschofield@email.msn.com>]

I thought that the first 2x extender and the 180 3.4 were, literally, made
for each other.  I had excellent results from that combination, and Brian
Bower recommends it in his books.

Tom Schofield

- ----- Original Message -----
From: <SthRosner@aol.com>
To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2001 10:54 AM
Subject: [Leica] advice on 180mm lenses


> Sorry for the sending error.
>
> I am getting back to some telephotography. For many years was using
280/4.8
> Telyt on Visoflex. Sold both 6-8 years ago. For SLR work, I have had an R6
> for some years and have been limited to the 135/2.8 Elmarit, occasionally
> with the 2X extender. I want a 180; it's a very useful focal length and,
with
> the extender, gives that much more reach, almost a 400mm.
>
> I cannot justify the new Apo-Elmarit at over $3,000, a bit less used, and
> wouldn't want the 180 Summicron; apart the price it's simply too heavy and
> bulky. The old 180/4 has a great weight/size advantage - important to me -
> and I could probably live with the f/8 extender speed - others live
> comfortably with the 400/6.8. My question has to do with the optical
quality
> of the f/4 compared with that of the 180/2.8 lenses, both alone and with
the
> extender. Given the constraints of purse, limiting me to these lenses,
> optical performance is what concerns me most.
>
> Incidentally, I had been considering the 180/3.4, a truly excellent lens,
but
> have heard that it does not perform well with either the normal
> (understandable) or the apo  extender (not quite so understandable).
>
> Help.       Seth     LaK 9