An excellent and flexible walkabout lens
Written: Aug 27 '02 (Updated Aug 27 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent performance, compact size, very convenient
Cons: Rather slow at f/4 max. aperture
The Bottom Line: This is as close as Leica gets to a zoom lens for the M system and is a most convenient lens for day time use.
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| ray_moth's Full Review: Leica Tri Elmar M 28-35-50mm f/4.0 Lens |
The Tri-Elmar offers three popular focal lengths in one lens. There is a rotating ring which has a click-stop for each of the three focal lengths. They are selected in a strange sequence, namely, 35mm - 50mm - 28mm but this is done to match the mechanical sequence in which the viewfinder framelines have been arranged in the M cameras for which it was developed.
The correct framelines are selected automatically for each focal length. There have been two versions of this lens and the current version is narrower, has rather more positive click-stops and has depth of field scales engraved on the barrel for each focal length. This DoF scale is a bit confusing at first and is not easy to read; nevertheless, its presence is an improvement on the previous version.
Some users have reported that the selection of framelines is a bit touchy, even with the current version, and it is sometimes necessary to give the selector ring an extra nudge to cause the correct framelines to pop into position. In my particular current version example, the 28mm position is sometimes like that but it's no big deal and I have found it easy to adapt to using this lens.
The Tri-Elmar is actually constructed like a zoom lens but in practice it cannot be used in that way. It is designed only to be used at the click-stop settings and Leica warns that trying intermediate settings of focal length will cause out of focus results.
As with most Leica optics, performance is excellent at the maximum aperture of f/4, with superb contrast and rendering of colours. Only marginal improvement can be achieved by stopping down to f/5.6 or f/8. Smallest aperture is f/22. Minimum focus distance is 1 metre.
Optimum performance, in terms of resolution, is obtained at the 50mm focal length but is still very good at 35mm. At 28mm, there is some slight barrel distortion, loss of detail and vignetting, which in most circumstances goes unnoticed and, in any case, can be overcome by stopping down to f/8.
For what it can do, the current version Tri-Elmar is quite compact, weighing only 340 grams with a length of 67.8mm and width of 55mm. The filter size is 49mm (previous version was 55mm). If filters are not used, there is no need to fit a lens hood and the Tri-Elmar is not supplied with one. This is because the front element is slightly recessed into the barrel, depending on the focal length selected. A circular lens hood does exist but it's rather expensive and I haven't bothered to purchase one.
It's probably true to say that most M users have considered buying the Tri-Elmar at some time. The two most common objections raised are its slow speed and the suspicion that it can't possibly be as good as prime lenses. To be honest, with its maximum aperture of f/4 it is really too slow for low available light photography. For that reason, I acquired a 50/1.4 Summilux for such use.
However, for daytime walk-about use, the Tri-Elmar has no rival. Being able to select focal length with just a twist of the selector ring is so much faster and more convenient than changing lenses and can make the difference between grabbing a shot and missing it. Also, in the range of apertures it offers, the Tri-Elmar is as good as any Leica prime lenses except for some of the most recent models.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
ray_moth
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Reviews written: 23
Trusted by: 3 members
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