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Comparison to Leica 100/2.8 APO, Nikon 105/2.8G (Mining Mill)
Over the years, I have received regular inquiries on which ~100mm lens is best for Nikon. While the Nikon 105mm f/2.8G has seen little interest, the Leica 100mm f/2.8 APO-Macro-Elmarit-R is the usual lens of interest. The Leica 100/2.8 APO has not been made since ~2009, so the used market is the only place to find one. Nonetheless, it offers us a perspective on just how good the Zeiss 100mm f/2 Makro-Planar is.
Field of view
The field of view differs for the three lenses:
- 95mm for Zeiss 100/2 Makro-Planar. It is thus at a disadvantage relative to the other two lenses with its wider field of view (same detail is smaller). It thus deserves a little “extra credit” when comparing actual pixels.
- 100mm for the Leica 100/2.8 APO. It has a slight magnification advantage over the Zeiss 100/2, and thus when “close”, the Zeiss should be considered to have a little extra merit.
- 105mm for the Nikon 105mm f/2.8G, obviously higher magnification, as expected. The magnified view should be discounted in terms of sharpness, since it is so much larger in comparison to the Zeiss 100/2.
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