Some National Forests in California Closed for Fire Concerns to Reopen Thursday Sept 16, Inyo National Forest soon OPEN

re: Where to Photograph in a State Largely Veiled in Smoke?
re: National Forest Service Closes All Southwest Region National Forests in California
re: Alternative to Closed California National Forests: Yosemite Day Pass System

Some of the National Forests in California are reopening two days prior to the end of the order, as of 00:00 Thursday September 16. So you are good to go on Thursday.

Hooray! That means I can visit my favorite places in the Eastern Sierra and White Mountains, both in the Inyo National Forest.

Other more southerly national forests remain closed and the closure is extended to Sept 22.

Forest Service Ending Regional Closure Order Two Days Early; Five Forests to Remain Closed Under Local Orders

VALLEJO, Calif., — Sept. 14, 2021. The USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region will end the regional closure order affecting National Forests in California at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, Sept. 15, two days prior to the original end date of Sept. 17. However, forest-wide closures will remain in place and be extended until midnight on September 22nd on the Los Padres, Angeles, San Bernardino, and Cleveland National Forests in Southern California due to local weather and fire factors, as well as a temporary strain on firefighting resources supporting large fires in other areas of the state.

In addition to the four National Forests that will remain closed in Southern California, some National Forest System lands throughout the state will be closed under local closure orders in areas of ongoing wildfires to ensure public safety. This includes the Eldorado National Forest in Northern California, which has a forest closure order until Sept. 30. Fire restrictions also remain in place across all National Forests in California to prevent new fire starts. Please refer to the local National Forest that you plan to visit to obtain specific information on closures and restrictions.

...

Never made sense for Inyo National Forest.

Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL: Veiling Flare, Ghosting Flare, Ray Flare

Another flaring disaster in the APO-Summicron-SL line. The results are beautiful when the front lens element is shaded. Otherwise, they are piss-poor.

Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL Examples: Flare

Includes pairs of images, with and without shading the front lens element (lens hood always attached).

In my opinion, the Leica APO-Summicron-SL line needs to be recalled, with the design fixed to address the piss-poor flare performance. The ray flare with the 50/2 APO-SL looks like an outright obvious design defect, just for starters.

Severe flare with Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH

f5.6 @ 1/250 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-13 09:13:13
LEICA SL2 + Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH

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Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL Examples: Backyard

These examples at f/2 (mostly) were shot handheld with IBIS on the Leica SL2.

Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL Examples: Backyard

Includes images up to full camera resolution.

Performance is about a lot more than sharpness—it includes bokeh, correction for secondary color, distortion, etc. The combined effect is what counts, and the 50/2 APO-SL delivers the good.

Along with its 35mm sibling, the Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH is a spectacular performer with apparently zero or near-zero distortion. Get yours today!

Two-tone pumpkin, first light

f2 @ 1/640 sec handheld IBIS=on, ISO 100; 2021-09-13 09:30:49
LEICA SL2 + Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH RAW: +10 Clarity

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Leica SL2 Multi-Shot High-Res Mode vs Adobe Camera Raw Super Resolution Mode: Pumpkin Vines

re: Workflow for Multi-Shot High-Res Mode Images in Adobe Camera Raw

I’ve extended this page about the Leica SL2 multi-shot high-res mode to include a comparison with many crops to Adobe Camera Raw Super Resolution Mode.

Leica SL2 Multi-Shot High-Res Mode vs ACR Super Resolution Mode

Both Multi-Shot High-Res mode and Adobe Camera Raw Super Resolution Mode have significant image quality flaws, which I detail/show. And when I went looking, I found some very serious flaws in ACR SuperRes mode in other images—ugly stuff that would preclude its use.

I’m disappointed in the Leica SL2 implementation of multi-shot high-res mode because it appears to be the crappy Mode1 style of the Panasonic S1R, which generates lots of motion artifacts when there is subject motion. The result is the opposite of what you want in MultiShot mode: ugly color artifacts, double images, staircasing, etc.

Pumpkin and Vines

f8 @ 1/5 sec Multi-Shot HighRes, ISO 100; 2021-09-09 19:10:39
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
RAW: +20 Whites, +10 Clarity, USM {6,50,0}, SmartSharpen{30,0.7,20,0}

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Alternative to Closed California National Forests: Yosemite Day Pass System

re: National Forest Service Closes All Southwest Region National Forests in California

Unicorn Peak, Yosemite

UPDATE, September 14 2021: now mostly open, see Forest Service Ending Regional Closure Order Two Days Early; Five Forests to Remain Closed Under Local Orders

...

The weather has turned beautiful and the air is crystal-clear here and in the Eastern Sierra. Or at least very good (varies a little). Most beautiful time of the year, IMO.

From mid-September on, the Eastern Sierra offers its world-class charms, what with advancing season turning aspen golden and scub blueberries bright red, and the wonderful slanting light of autumn and the generally favorable temperature range. But you can’t go there* this year! Except for Yosemite.

I have long loved shooting in the Eastern Sierra from late September through mid November, but with the national forest closures, it cannot be done unless and until the closures are lifted. Nor can I plan for a trip to leave on the day the bureaucrats make up their minds to open or close for another two weeks (closure ends Sept 17, but might be extended).

* The mid and southern national forests in California are closed to all recreational use through September 17. At the time I wrote this, it’s unknown if the closures will be extended (presumably into October), or whether the order will lapse.

Workaround — Yosemite

I found a workaround to the national forest closures: vising the high country within Yosemite National Park itself, which is not affected by the forest closures—Yosemite is managed by the National Park Service, not the National Forest Service—entirely different management entities.

While normally I visit just outside the park in wilderness areas abutting it, the park itself is a great location, albeit usually overcrowded, which is why over the past decade I have increasingly avoided the park itself until mid/late October. But with the restricted number of day use entries, most of which will end up in Yosemite Valley, people and traffic should be very light—a bonus!

Yosemite day pass system

The Yosemite day-use entry pass system at recreation.gov allows purchasing a 3 day entry pass. The pass is good for a vehicle, whether it be yourself or half a dozen of your friends/family. Cyclists need no pass as I understand it, so pedal on in if you can. Which I might do on this next weekend, parking near the entrance.

Plan in advance since Fri/Sat/Sun go very fast upon “release”. Multiple passes can be purchased abutting each other in dates, covering a week or more.

I did not snag a pass for the weekend of Sept 18/19, but I have my entry through the park covered on Sept 17, as well as the entire next week, and I plan on fleshing that out some more once the passes are released for purchase.

If visiting more than one 2/3 day period, I recommend purchasing an annual pass ($80), or the lifetime pass if you are 62 or older. With the annual/lifetime pass, the day-use fee drops to just $2 for three days— $0.67 per day.

Recreation.gov: Yosemite day-use pass reservations

Infrared Leakage to 850nm with Leica SL2?

re: Infrared Contamination: Good Color Gone Bad
re: infrared

I was chatting with Graham Clark of Breakthrough Photography (terrific filters and polarizers) and we got on about their new “Black Magic” filter, which solves the infrared pollution problem seen on certain video cameras, and does so without loss of T-stop. For a camera that leaks infrared and thus captures it, the results can range from subtle to seriously yucky with an awful magenta cast and degraded sharpness too.

Leica cameras have had various infrared pollution issues over the years (the Leica M8 was so bad it made a decent infrared camera, unmodified), so I wondered if the Leica SL2 might have an issue. Flipping on my Hooga Health infrared panel 850nm LEDs, I found that indeed the Leica SL2 passes 850nm light, as shown.

850nm light is WAY beyond the appropriate infrared cutoff of 720nm, used by all the Japanese camera brands in their sensor cover glass filter stack. My speculation is that the Leica SL2 (and other models) pass more infrared because of the much thinner sensor cover glass sandwich.

Using the Breakthrough Photography Black Magic filter almost entirely eliminates the infrared leakage at 850nm. The filter is designed for complete blockage of both UV and infrared at 720nm and beyond—I’ll share a spectral transmission graph soon.

Spectral transmission for Breakthrough Photography “Black Magic” filter
Full visible light transmission with no color cast, complete sharp cut of UV and IR

I confirmed this finding both with images on the SL2 as well as with the naked eye also—I can plainly see the 850nm lights by naked eye as much brighter and more red than shown below*, but I can barely seen them when viewed through the filter.

I am hoping to get a Breakthrough Photography 'Black Magic' filter in 67mm before my trip so I can see whether cutting out infrared past 720nm makes a difference to Leica SL2 color rendition. Maybe, maybe not; it all will depend on the relative proportion of visible light vs infrared. But in sunlight, about half the energy is infrared (not sure how much of that is in the 720-1100nm range that a digital sensor responds to). So it could be that the SL2 cuts out 5 or 6 stops of infrared (or less or more) and that it might affect the color balance (and sharpness!) when more infrared is in the mix.

I cannot judge whether the leakage proven below is of sufficient degree to alter color rendition. But if the SL2 is leaky, then it is surely leaking from 720nm out to 850nm and likely way out to 1100nm. That cannot be good for color rendition in some conditions.

* Never stare at any intense lighting. While they don’t seem that bright to my eyes at 850nm, they are fairly powerful LEDs and won’t make your retinas happy—this is why blocking goggles are supplied.

Infrared pollution with Leica SL2 at 850nm

f2 @ 1/15 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-11 14:59:59
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH

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Turns out that the Sony A1 also leaks a little 850nm light, as shown below. It appears to be quite a lot less leakage than the Leica SL2.

Infrared light leakage at 850nm with Sony A1 at 850nm

f2 @ 1/20 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-11 15:54:27
Sony A1 + Sony FE 50mm f/1.2 GM RAW: LACA corrected

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First Look at Leica SL2 Multi-Shot High-Res Mode (Updated.v2 with comments)

re: Workflow for Multi-Shot High-Res Mode Images in Adobe Camera Raw

This page looks at multi-shot high-res mode (“HiRes” mode) of the Leica SL2.

Leica SL2 Multi-Shot High-Res Mode

Includes example image sizes up to 187 megapixels.

Triple jackass gold medal to Leica for the usability-destroying “Vibration Detected” warning.

Pumpkin and Vines

f8 @ 1/5 sec Multi-Shot HighRes, ISO 100; 2021-09-09 19:10:39
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
RAW: +20 Whites, +10 Clarity, USM {6,50,0}, SmartSharpen{30,0.7,20,0}

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Andrej K writes:

As a Leica SL2 user from the end of 2020 (being a current Nikon D850/Z 7II shooter and with Nikon for the last 20 years) I tried MS for a few times and just used it on a payed project a few weeks ago.

I'll keep it short - Adobe's new "Enhance" feature in Lightroom consistently gave me better results than MS! I also went with the enhanced version being the image that was given to my client. I made the shot with my SL2 at ISO 100 with the Sigma 65/2 (not perfect, but a nice lens indeed!) at f/8 and when comparing MS vs Enhanced images, the latter was way better; more detail, less moire, less color artifacts ... simply better in most if not all aspects. It was basically a landscape shot; a large grass field with forest-covered hills in the background with blue sky covered with white clouds - nothing special with some kind of weird textures ... a pretty basic shot, really.

Both features are giving results with the same 187 Mpix, so can be easily and fairly compared. Please, do try the comparison on your own, I'm sure you'll end up with similar results. Also beware the strong and destructive posterizing when using MS at ISO 50 - in most if not all cases impossible to be used on images including any significant part of the sky.

If you're interested, I can send you the files I'm talking about, but I'm sure you'll get the same results ... unless my copy of SL2 is somehow defective...

DIGLLOYD: valid concerns of course. And it is on my to-do list to look at Enhance Details for single-shot Leica SL2 files (I included one in the series above). Certainly if a shot looks better, then it is better. But let me point out some doubts about what is stated above.

Enhance Details has had pattern noise problems in the past, namely crosshatching pattern noise. I have documented unpleasant artifacts from Enhance Details with 3 or 4 different cameras over some years. However, I have not seen if it's an issue with the Leica SL2, and I have not rechecked to see if anything has been fixed in recent updates—Adobe had promised an improvement to me (privately) well over a year ago but said there might be a long delay. There is also Adobe Camera Raw SuperRes mode, which incorporates Enhance Details and does smart upscaling.

UPDATE: ACR SuperRes mode looks great on the pumpkin shot and in some ways better (as Andrej K stated), such as on the fine prickly hairs on the pumpkin vine.   However, a single-shot frame with SuperRes has notably more noise in some areas than with HiRes mode. OTOH, the noise actually looks good in some areas, spurious detail though it is. It makes me wonder if ACR SuperRes mode could be hand-tailored to HiRes captures, but only Enhance Details work, and I did not see any improvement on HiRes files.

UPDATE2: closer inspect reveals that both Multi-Shot High-Res mode and Adobe Camera Raw Super Resolution Mode have significant image quality flaws, which I detail/show. And when I went looking, I found some serious artifacting flaws in ACR SuperRes mode in other images—ugly stuff that would preclude its use because it looks very unnatural.

It’s clear that HiRes mode has strictly limited benefits in a depth of field zone half as deep as single-shot, and I'd agree that it has no advantage outside that narrow zone at f/8, a little more at f/5.6. So you have to find benefits that exceed single-shot mode + Enhanced Details.

HiRes mode seems to dull the image such as on surfaces catching the light. I don’t know if this is a diffraction dulling effect or a side-effect of the merging of the 8 frames—maybe both.

I have never seen moiré or color aliasing in HiRes mode on the Panasonic S1R at least, and that should be true on the Leica SL2 also. So the “less moiré, less color artifacts” comment seems nonsensical to me. I'd bet that the comment has something to do with motion artifacts, not moiré or color aliasing. And those definitely exist with the SL2 HiRes mode, though I hadn’t shown it yet. A HiRes DNG that shows moiré or color aliasing would be a surprise to me, but bring it on. BTW, Enhance Details is not always successful in removing all moiré.

UPDATE: I processed Andrej’s DNG files. There is no moiré or color aliasing. But there are ugly effects which are the result of subject motion. See my detailed analysis of MultiShot motion artifact problems with the Leica SL2.

Enhance Details absolutely cannot deliver the ultra-low noise of HiRes mode. Those 8 shots means sqrt(8) less noise ~2.8X less, equivalent to ISO 35 (vs ISO 100). OTOH, a little noise gives the perceptual effect of looking sharper.

Multi-shot and ISO 50

The Leica SL2 has incompetent metering in general (way too many blown-out items compared to my Sony A1). And at ISO 50 it meters a full stop slower when in fact ISO 50 is not a real ISO and has only 2/3 stop more latitude. If using ISO 50, always dial in -1/3 stop for auto metering. The SL2 makes matters far worse by at not having an RGB histogram, which would make it obvious that a color channel is blown out. That is critically important for my work in the outdoors; I check exposure with the RGB histogram just about ever shot to make sure I nailed it. IMO the SL2 fails as a professional camera if only because of the lack of the RGB histogram——it’s that important—unbelievably stupid design for real-world photography.

TESTED: with proper exposure, there is no issue in using ISO 50 with MultiShot on the Leica SL2.

Posterization at ISO 50 is due to exposure error, the proof of that shown below. Leica SL2 metering blows out the sky in MultiShot mode (probably due to the way the 8 frames are assembled), thus posterizing the result.

As shown below, the posterization is eliminated by dialing in -1/3 stop exposure compensation (shutter speed of 1/160 second instead of 1/125). A camera RGB histogram would show instantly that this area was blown-out, but the Leica SL2 doesn’t have one, making it an absurdity for professional use, IMO.

With the lack of an RGB histogram and the metering error, it is probably best to not use ISO 50 on the Leica SL2; it’s too hard to know if the image is blown out. No other mirrorless camera is this brain-dead.

Leica SL2 blue sky posterization in MultiShot mode with overexposure at ISO 50

f6.3 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 50; 2021-09-13 11:34:56
LEICA SL2 + Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH RAW: LACA corrected, distortion corrected

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Panasonic S1R on the Way, so I can Compare Lens Performance on the Leica SL2

re: Panasonic S1R vs Other Cameras for Landscape — Transition Camera for Zeiss Otus/Zeiss Milvus 'glass'?
re: Panasonic S1R vs Leica SL2: Sensor Cover Glass Thickness vs Performance for Leica M Lenses, L-Mount Lenses

The Leica SL2 vs Panasonic S1R are two cameras of the L-Mount alliance. There is also the 61-megapixel Sigma fp L and Sigma fp.

CLICK TO VIEW: L-Mount System

Thanks to a generous reader, I will have use of a Panasonic S1R for 30 days, along with the Leica SL2. I aim to answer at least these two questions:

• Do Leica M lenses perform the same on the Leica SL2 as on the Panasonic S1R?
• Do Leica SL lenses perform the same on the Leica SL2 as on the Panasonic S1R?
• Is the Leica SL2 multi-shot high-res mode as effective with motion as the Panasonic S1R multi-shot high-res mode “Mode 2” (because Mode 1 is not so nice).

The L-Mount platform is far more attractive if we observe camera/lens interoperability, that is, no loss of optical performance on one versus the other. If not, it’s a marketing ploy—you’re de facto back to independent platforms.

AFAIK, the Panasonic S1R has no support for color shading correction with Leica M lenses (or EXIF support), but I at least hope that the sharpness matches. It might not. But that’s a big strike against the S1R if you plan on shooting M lenses.

And it might prove out that it’s just better or more compatible to use Leica SL lenses on the Leica SL2 only. And given the cost of the lenses, maybe that’s the wisest course anyway.

Still, the Panasonic S1R has a far lower price and IMO a better haptic/button/feature set. Setting aside its lack of M-lens support, it could be an attractive alternative to the Leica SL2 if Leica SL lenses work equally well.

It might also be useful to look at performance of the Leica 90mm f/2 APO-Summicron-R ASPH on the SL2/S1R (it has the same optical design as the M version). Ditto for the Leica 100mm f/2.8 APO-Macro-Elmarit-R ASPH. As time allows.

Sigma Releases Two More DG DN Contemporary Lenses for Sony mirrorless, Leica L-Mount

Sigma DG DN Contempory lenses are Sigma’s value line of lenses and might appeal to many shooters on a budget. All have pleasing bokeh and compact size and low weight. Available in Sony FE and L-Mount lens mounts, and so I wonder if the mount-specific lenses are tweaked for the differing sensor cover glass thickness.

Newly released are the Sigma 24mm f/2 DG DN Contemporary and Sigma 90mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary. Sigma has chosen to release 24mm lenses in both f/2 and and f/3.5 lens speeds—perhaps worth testing at some point; the f/3.5 ought to be ultra low distortion and very sharp by giving up 5/3 stop of lens speed, but perhaps not.

F/2 instead of f/1.4 is highly appealing in saving considerable weight and bulk since most of the time f/1.4 lens speed is only an awkward burden and hassle that also brings optical compromises (focus shift, field curvature, distortion all suck).

But Sigma’s f/2 “Contemporary” lineup is not aimed at best performance, but at economical pricing and pleasing image rendition.

With the exception of the world-class and extremely expensive Leica Summicron-SL ASPH designs, no manufacturer has yet targeted class-leading performance at modest lens speed.

What I’d rather see is f/2 and f/2.8 are additions to the Sigma DG DN Art lineup. Significantly better performance to the f/1.4 lineup should be readily achievable at the same price point, which for me would be far preferable to about-as-good performance for less money. I want to see as good or better sharpness, zero focus shift and very low distortion in an f/2 offering because those things have direct impacts on getting optimal results reliably.

Sigma DG DN Contemporary Lenses

Sigma Mirrorless wish list • Deals on Sigma

$639 Sigma 24mm f/2 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$549 Sigma 24mm f/3.5 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$799 SAVE $100 = 11.0% Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary in Lenses: Mirrorless	$639 Sigma 35mm f/2 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless
$549 Sigma 45mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$699 Sigma 65mm f/2 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$639 Sigma 90mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$899 SAVE $190 = 17.0% Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary in Lenses: DSLR

Sigma DG DN Art for Sony

Sigma Mirrorless wish list • Deals on Sigma

$1599 Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1299 SAVE $100 = 7.0% Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 DG DN Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1099 Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1399 Sigma 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1499 Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$899 Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG DN Art in Lenses: Mirrorless
$1399 Sigma 40mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$569 Sigma 70mm f/2.8 DG Macro Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1199 Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1599 Sigma 105mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$799 Sigma 105mm f/2.8 DG DN Macro Art in Lenses: Mirrorless	$999 Sigma 24-35mm f/2 DG HSM Art in Lenses: DSLR

Shootout: Leica 28/2 APO-Summicron-SL vs Leica 28/1.4 Summilux-M, Leica 28/2 Summicron-M, Sigma 28/1.4 DG HSM Art: Popcorn and Pumpkins (Leica SL2)

This 4-way shootout looks at optical performance of four 28mm lenses on the Leica SL2:

• Leica 28mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
• Leica 28mm f/2 Summicron-M ASPH
• Leica 28mm f/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH
• Sigma SL 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art

The four lenses differ hugely in behavior and performance.

Shootout: Leica 28/2 APO-Summicron-SL vs Leica 28/1.4 Summilux-M, Leica 28/2 Summicron-M, Sigma 28/1.4 DG HSM Art: Popcorn and Pumpkins

Includes images up to full camera resolution from f/1.4 to f/11, plus crops.

CLICK TO VIEW: 28mm Lenses for L-Mount

           

Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
Sigma 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art
Leica 28mm f/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH
Leica 28mm f/2 Summicron-M ASPH

Popcorn and Pumpkins

f2.8 @ 1/60 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-07 19:02:12
LEICA SL2 + Leica 28mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
RAW: LACA corrected, distortion corrected, +20 Whites, +10 Clarity

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Really Right Stuff L-Bracket for Leica SL2

Really Right Stuff loaned me the Really Right Stuff L-Bracket BSL2-LS for the Leica SL2.

Like its other offerings, the fit is perfect, with full battery compartment access too, and an adjustable “L” part which can also be quickly removed if desired. There is also a built-in (magnetically attached) allen wrench stowed in the bracket as with many other L brackets—great idea!

Leica SL2 with Really Right Stuff L-bracket

Leica SL2 with Really Right Stuff L-bracket

FOR SALE: Leica M Lenses, Zeiss Batis 18/2.8, Canon 5DsR, Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8

Most items with original box, lenses with lens caps, etc, except as noted. Clear and clean glass, known-good lens samples owned by Lloyd.

Local sale (San Francisco Bay Area) preferred so buyer can inspect lens, but can ship FedEx insured. Contact Lloyd.

Tait S writes (unsolicited):

Lloyd, the Canon 5ds R arrived today. It was well packed, arrived safely, and the contents of the package were as described. Thank you.

I want to share the condition of the camera with other potential buyers: When you rated this camera as excellent, you did not share what your scale is - "excellent" understates the condition compared to my experience elsewhere. I have purchased an E+ rated lens from bhphotovideo that was in worse condition than this. This camera arrived in better shape than any of my cameras have been in after even one weekend trip outdoors. Actually, with the very minor exception of a couple of hairline scratches on the top LCD readout, I can't tell it was used at all. The pricing of this camera was well below what it would sell for on ebay or other open market, and with confidence that I know the seller and that he has a reputation to maintain.

If you are ever selling anything I want in the future, I will buy with confidence the condition is at least as good as described, if not better. Thank you so much!

Canon

$950 Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro Photo Lens

$1225 Canon 5DsR excellent condition with box as shipped + Really Right Stuff L-bracket, + 2 extra batteries. SOLD

Leica M

M lenses include box and leather case as shipped by Leica.

• $2900 Leica 18mm f/3.8 Super Elmar-M ASPH — great lens, discontinued by Leica, optics perfect, super clean.
• $2550 Leica 24mm f/3.8 Elmar-M ASPH — great lens, discontinued by Leica, optics perfect, super clean.
• $2950 Leica 28mm f/2 Summicron-M ASPH — sells new for $5000, optics perfect, super clean.
• $3450 Leica 90mm f/2 APO-Summicron-R ASPH (same optical design as M version, can be used on Leica M or Leica SL2 with lens adapter). Optics perfect, super clean.
• $1650 Leica 100mm f/2.8 Elmarit-R ASPH (lacks matching rear cap, but protected). Good choice for macro lens on Leica SL2! Optics perfect, super clean.

Zeiss Batis and Zeiss Loxia

• $650 Zeiss Batis 18mm f/2.8 Distagon. SOLD

View camera gear

All items with original box, lenses with lens caps, etc. Clear and clean glass, known-good lens samples owned by Lloyd

• Rodenstock 135mm f/5.6 APO-Sironar-S Copal shutter + Linhof Technikardan lens board $1050 PRISTINE
• Schneider 400mm f/5.6 APO-TELE-XENAR Copal shutter+ Linhof Technikardan lens board $1550 PRISTINE
• Schneider 150mm f/4 Tele-Xenar medium format lens (Pentacon)
• Carl Zeiss Jena 180mm f/2.8 MC Sonnar medium format lens (Pentacon 6 mount)

Four 28mm Lenses on Leica SL2: a Dumpster Fire and a Gem

A 4-way comparison at 28mm on the Leica SL2 is coming later today. The Leica SL2 ruined my first attempt with its error-prone spot-AF focusing (highly misleading cross regularly selects the background, be careful!). Worse, there appears to be no way to focus stopped down a bit with the SL2—a major design defect IMO.

• Leica 28mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
• Leica 28mm f/2 Summicron-M ASPH
• Leica 28mm f/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH
• Sigma SL 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art

Whatever the sharpness drawbacks from excessive distortion with the Leica 28mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH, it’s a gem by comparison, eclipsing the other three lenses, and the only really usable lens of the four. I’ll explain and show why in my comparison, saving you a ton of disappointment, for if you are going to shoot L-mount, you have to pay up.

The Zeiss Otus 28mm f/1.4 APO-Distagon might be interesting optically, but I don’t have the Leica R adapter SL for it, and it is impractical anyway (size, weight, awkward balance with adapter). And it is not going to match the 28/2 APO-SL.

28mm Lenses for L-Mount

L-Mount wish list • Deals on Panasonic

$6595 Leica SL2 Mirrorless in Cameras: Mirrorless	$3698 Panasonic Lumix DC-S1R Mirrorless in Cameras: Mirrorless	$2795 Leica 24-70mm f/2.8 Vario-Elmarit-SL ASPH. in Lenses: Mirrorless	$2198 Panasonic 24-70mm f/2.8 Lumix S PRO in Lenses: Mirrorless
$5195 Leica 28mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH in Lenses: Mirrorless	$1399 Sigma 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Lens for Leica L in Lenses: Mirrorless	$4995 Leica 28mm f/2 Summicron-M ASPH. in Lenses: Rangefinder	$7495 Leica 28mm f/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH. in Lenses: Rangefinder

“Could Not Establish a Secure Connection” — Fixed

Thanks to several readers lettting me know that they were unable to view this site last night and this morning. Please contact me if at any time the site connectivity is a problem—thanks!

The message about “Could Not Establish a Secure Connection” (or similar) in web browsers was actually erroneous as this site is always secure (https only).

The real problem was a server side crash that triggered a bug in my code that had been there for 10 years. A change in the B&H data feed triggered it, crashing the server repeatedly—now fixed.

Reader Question: Aggressive Monochrome Processing using Panasonic S1R vs Leica SL2

Anon subscriber writes:

Leica SL2

Hello, thank you for the precious work and information you provide us, there is really no one else that does it this way.

At the price of those equipment, details matters. Following the deception of the GFX-100s ( B&W with “hard processing”) I have been really impressed with this 35/2 APO-Summicron-SL. I have two questions:

1. Instead of the Leica SL2 camera, can we use instead the Panasonic S1R without any losses (sensor glass thickness thingy) as it financially makes more sense to me. I will shoot f2-f4 90% of the time.

2. How does such combo reacts to B&W conversion with “hard processing” in your opinion.

DIGLLOYD: if the sensor cover glass is the same effective thickness, then the Panasonic S1R and Leica SL2 should have identical capture quality for L-mount lenses. With a $2900 price difference and much more when batteries and accessories are considered, the money question is whether the SL2 adds anything worthwhile.

CLICK TO VIEW: L-Mount System

Panasonic S1R

No luck so far, but I hope to get ahold of a Panasonic S1R so I can directly compare the Leica SL2 to it, both for Leica M lenses and for native lens performance. See Panasonic S1R vs Leica SL2: Sensor Cover Glass Thickness vs Performance for Leica M Lenses, L-Mount Lenses.

M-Mount lenses

Native-mount lenses aside, the capture-quality implications of micro lenses arise when M-mount lenses are used (the SL2 reportedly has micro lenses). As well (and this is a big one), the Leica SL2 supports lens corrections for Leica M-mount lenses, and AFAIK the S1R does not.

MTF on Mirrorless Cameras, Sensor Cover Glass
Ray angle

Monochrome potential

PDAF pixels are the presumed source of Fujifilm GFX100S style white stripes. Since the Panasonic S1R and Leica SL2 both lack on-sensor PDAF pixels for focusing, either/both should be excellent platforms for monochrome imagery versus most other mirrorless cameras. I hope to explore that question directly if/when the national forests reopen since I’ve found that mountain lighting is most provoking of striping problems.

My other concern about “hard”/aggressive monochrome processing is sensor bifurcation, which the S1R has, and the Leica SL2 surely also has since AFAIK no camera on the market today can be made in a single pas (full-frame 35mm sensors are etched in two halves). The Leica M10M shows sensor bifurcation and it affected a large number of my landscape images, to my great disappointment.

SHOOTOUT: Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH vs Zeiss ZM 35mm f/1.4 Distagon: Popcorn and Pumpkins (Leica SL2)

The Zeiss ZM 35mm f/1.4 Distagon is the finest M-Mount lens available for Leica M cameras. How does it fare against the Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH on the Leica SL2, fighting against the degrading effects of ray angle from sub-optimal sensor cover glass thickness?

SHOOTOUT: Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH vs Zeiss ZM 35mm f/1.4 Distagon: Popcorn and Pumpkins

Includes images up to full camera resolution from f/1.4 to f/11, plus crops.

CLICK TO VIEW: L-Mount System

Popcorn and Pumpkins

f2 @ 1/160 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-05 19:22:19
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH RAW: +20 Whites, +10 Clarity

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Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH Aperture Series: Fading Sunflowers (Leica SL2)

This aperture series evaluates the Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH from f/2 through f/11 on the 47-megapixel Leica SL2 using a subject that shows all sorts of out of focus shapes.

Its primary goal is to evaluate how out of focus shapes render relative to in-focus subject matter, and so comments upon sharpness, bokeh, focus shift, secondary color, and aperture breathing.

Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH Aperture Series: Fading Sunflowers

Includes images up to full camera resolution, plus crops.

Flare issues aside, this is the finest performance I have ever seen from a 35mm lens, in every respect. Get yours.

Fading Sunflowers

f2 @ 1/6 sec electronic shutter, ISO 100; 2021-09-04 19:39:20
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH
ENV: 70°F / 21°C
RAW: +20 Whites, +10 Clarity

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Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH: Severe Veiling Flare Problems

When Leica shipped the Leica 50mm f/2 APO-Summicron-M ASPH with massive flare problems, severe flare issues were evident to me in the first 5 minutes of usage. I stuck to my findings despite aggressive pushback from “experts” unable to use their own eyes. About four months later, Leica stopped the production line for multiple “improvements”. Leica later replaced my sample which was notably improved, if not ideal.

The results are beautiful when the front lens element is shaded. Otherwise, they are total garbage.

I show numerous examples of severe veiling flare, along with ghosting flare and arc flare.

Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH: Flare

Includes images up to full camera resolution with unshaded vs shaded results.

In my opinion, the Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL should be recalled, its flare handling problems fixed, and the lens replaced for all customers.

Toggle to compare unshaded to shaded.

Severe veiling flare and arc flare

f5.6 @ 1/80 sec, ISO 100; 2021-09-04 18:21:02
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH RAW: +10 Clarity

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Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH: Examples, Backyard (Leica SL2)

In the LMount section of diglloyd Mirrorless are examples with the Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH, shot handheld with IBIS on the Leica SL2.

Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summmicron-SL ASPH: Examples, Backyard

Includes images up to full camera resolution.

The Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH is a spectacular performer with apparently zero or near-zero distortion at a highly versatile focal length, which makes it the best lens to have for the SL system since all its MTF goodness needs no sharpness-robbing distortion correction. Get yours today!

Red tomatoes

f2 @ 1/50 sec handheld IBIS=on, ISO 100; 2021-09-04 19:08:48
LEICA SL2 + Leica 35mm f/2 APO-Summicron-SL ASPH RAW: +10 Clarity

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