Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/03/04
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]At 07:48 PM 3/4/02 -0800, you wrote: >I'm looking for a macro lens for my M6 to be attached >with the visoflex III and bellow. > >Can someone recommend me a good performer within the >Leica stable ? The 3.5/65 Elmar is pretty good and also allows infinity focus. Many of the lens heads will fit on a Bellows II, ranging from that of the 2/5cm Summicron (rigid and DR) to the 5/40cm Telyt, though the latter seems to be more than a little overkill! Finally, there are a slew of true macro lenses, generally either microscope objectives or duplicating lenses reworked. The prizes here are the Carl Zeiss Luminars and the Leitz/Leica Photars -- and a truncated range of Photars are still in production, though Zeiss Winkel in Gottingen flooded the Luminar market so thoroughly a decade or more back that they took these lenses out of production. There are also a number of Macro Nikkors (VERY rare and QUITE expensive when you find them, thanks to the Nikon collectors), Carl Zeiss Jena Mikrotars, Bausch & Lomb Micro-Tessars, and Leitz Micro-Summars and Milars. Most true macro lenses come in Royal Microscope Society screw-thread, the so-called "Royal Screw". This was adopted in 1862 for microscope objectives and is 0.7965" (20.1mm) x 36 t.p.i. To fit this to a Bellows II, you will need an Edmund Scientific 52301 adapter or the like -- this fits the Royal Screw to T-Mount. And, since the later Bellows I and all Bellows II use a thread-mount in 42mm by 0.75mm, the same standard later selected by Tamron for their T-Mount, this adapter can be fitted with some adapters to the Bellows. Or you can use an LTM T-Mount screwing into one of the LTM adapters, of which Leitz made quite a variety. For getting started, the 3.5/65 Elmar is the way to go -- used only on the Visoflex, this really isn't a "Macro" lens, as it only focuses down to 0.33mm (13.2"), but extension tubes and the Bellows can be added to spice things up a bit. There are two versions of the Elmar -- the first one is extremely good, rather common, and relatively inexpensive, while the later version is even better optically, but is not common and costs substantially more, barring a lucky hit on e-Bay or the like. Marc msmall@roanoke.infi.net FAX: +276/343-7315 Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir! - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html