Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/03/29
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]For sale new boxed 2002 production Kobalux 28mm f2.8 lenses with SM to M adapter, hood and caps. Black finish. Three lenses available $330 each shipped US. International orders welcome though international shipping does cost more. I accept PayPal (my id is mak@teleport.com) Most of today's contemporary 28mm lenses are of retrofocus design, meaning long barrels and big front elements. This defeats one fundamental quality of rangefinder cameras: that they should be compact and unobtrusive. This is especially true with the Leica thread mount cameras like the III, which take on unpocketable dimensions when combined with a large 28mm lens. With a symmetrical design composed of six multicoated lens elements in four groups, the Kobalux 28mm lens is the most compact wideangle lens in production ‹ if not in history. But don't be fooled by its small size. It handles quickly and confidently, with a crescent-shaped focusing that tab makes getting tack-sharp pictures a snap. And its strong all-metal construction inspires confidence. What do the critics say about the Kobalux 28mm optical formula? Roger Hicks of British Journal of Photography measured 68lp/mm at f/3.5 and more than 80lp/mm at f/5.6, past the maximum capabilities of most films and certainly better than any output system can carry to finished product. He concluded that "Unbelievably good... flatly superior to the earlier Leica lenses... and while the 28mm [f/3.5] may be slower than the [Leica] Elmarit-M [f/2.8] it is disputable whether its performance is one whit inferior." (November 6, 1996). - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html