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Comparison 3: Bitingly-sharp Zeiss 35/2 Biogon vs Leica 35/2 Summicron
I really wanted to show off the Leica 35/2 Summicron-M ASPH. But for landscape shooting, it’s apparently just not going to happen; the Zeiss 35/2 Biogon eclipses it. That makes some sense, the Leica 35/2 was designed for street shooting, and field curvature is the likely culprit. But it also shows once again that the zone of focus (DAP) is critical to making a sharp 18 megapixel image.
Compare and study these two images in full resolution (eg in Photoshop). Both were taken at f/5.6 and processed identically, with focus at the infinity stop. The magenta cast of the Leica 35/2 is consistent with other tests, neither good nor bad, just a side effect of default settings. Both images were processed at the default “Daylight” setting in Adobe Camera RAW 5.6 beta. For whatever reason, choosing “Daylight” sets tint to +10 when using ACR, and there it was left because it defaults there.
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Diglloyd Guide to LEICA contains in-depth coverage of Leica M system cameras and lenses, with additional coverage of Leica M Monochrom, Leica Q.
Special emphasis is placed on Leica M lenses and certain Zeiss ZM lenses.
- Make better images by learning how to get the best results right away.
- Save money by choosing the right lens for your needs the first time, particularly the Summilux/Summicron/Elmarit choice and/or Zeiss ZM.
- Make better images, a sort of “cheat sheet” saving yourself months or years of ad-hoc learning. Processing parameters are discussed and shown.
- Jaw-dropping image quality found nowhere else utilizing Retina-grade images up to full camera resolution, plus large crops [past 2 years or so].
- Real world examples with insights found nowhere else. Make sharper images just by understanding lens behavior you won’t read about elsewhere.
- Aperture series from wide open through stopped down, showing the full range of lens performance and bokeh.
- Optical quality analysis of field curvature, focus shift, sharpness, flare, distortion, and performance in the field.
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Zeiss ZM 35/2 Biogon
(not to scale)
