FYI: RARE tidbit on Leica R lenses

chip j · Jul 1, 2015

I have a friend I've known for 49 yrs (We were photographers in the Army together). He was a commercial photographer in Manhatten for a long time (a real New York Pro). He heard about this husband/wife couple who used Leica slrs in their professional work. They had the lenses modified by a repairman (who, I don't know)---he reshaped the aperture blades & did something else (what, I don't know)--the result was significantly sharper pictures! So I guess any Leica slr lens you can buy just doesn't live up to it's full potential.

Patrick Robert James · Jul 1, 2015

They probably have a deed to the Brooklyn bridge too.

Mustafa Umut Sarac · Jul 1, 2015

There are short ways to boost the contrast , I think they call overcorrected lens , I bet he moved one lens element forward or backward , nikon always uses that trick , contrast flies , sharpness flies and untrained eye falls in love but in reality all the pictıure turns in to a pig mud , like offset printer overused water and ink.

railwayman3 · Jul 1, 2015

chip j said:
I have a friend I've known for 49 yrs (We were photographers in the Army together). He was a commercial photographer in Manhatten for a long time (a real New York Pro). He heard about this husband/wife couple who used Leica slrs in their professional work. They had the lenses modified by a repairman (who, I don't know)---he reshaped the aperture blades & did something else (what, I don't know)--the result was significantly sharper pictures! So I guess any Leica slr lens you can buy just doesn't live up to it's full potential.

If there were something that (relatively) easy to improve sharpness on what, by any standards, are top lenses by a top maker, I really think that it would be common knowledge. Sounds rather like "magic" diet plans and ways to make $100,000 on the stock market with just 15 minutes work a week.

Mustafa Umut Sarac · Jul 1, 2015

rail , search for overcorrected optics , it is well known art.

gone · Jul 1, 2015

I'm sure we're dealing w/ urban myth here. Never heard of any pro using Leica R cameras. You could, sure, just never heard if it. Why would you want to make some of the best lenses in photography sharper anyway? And Petty's car was anything but stock. Maybe that was a tongue in cheek comment? They may have called it stock car racing, but those cars were anything but after 1955 or so. They were torn apart and totally rebuilt from the tires up w/ much different components than what came off the showroom floor. Way back in 1966 the Holman Moody Ford began the transition away from stock cars (not that they ever were anyway) by going to a hand made tube chassis. Others followed suit, and began the era of replicars.

jjphoto · Jul 1, 2015

momus said:
... Never heard of any pro using Leica R cameras. ...

You have now. I shot professionally (full time, not the odd part time gig) using only Leica R for several years (editorial, car photography features etc). Eventually I got tired of the practicalities of Leica R and jumped ship to Canon (1v). Canons are great to use, and no one really noticed the difference in image quality moving from Leica R to canon EF.

removed account4 · Jul 1, 2015

sorry for my ignorance ...

leica did improve on their classic camera and lens designs
over the years, didn't they ? why would it seem crazy that
someone was able to have a design "tweaked" on their own ?

frank · Jul 1, 2015

It does seems crazy to me that the research and design resources of Leitz/Leica would be bettered by an independent repair technician.

darkosaric · Jul 1, 2015

Probably the lens was worn out and he did CLA .

Hatchetman · Jul 1, 2015

perhaps he modified to perform better under specific conditions, ie near focus or something. Leica would probably optimize for broad variety of user conditions.

semi-ambivalent · Jul 1, 2015

darkosaric said:
Probably the lens was worn out and he did CLA .

I doubt the story's veracity, but if it did happen my money would be on Marty Forscher.

s-a

Trask · Jul 1, 2015

I was thinking that perhaps they reshaped the aperture blades in some manner that made the aperture more circular and less of a hexagon or whatever. Of course doing that might result in the f/stops not being at the proper value or in proper 2X or 1/2X relationship with each other.

Mustafa Umut Sarac · Jul 1, 2015

There were examples at web which front element place been changed and contrast exploded , I remember the process but may be an scientific article , this is overcorrection , people you are writing like bunch of alcoholics.

NB23 · Jul 1, 2015

Only Leica, eh? Utter Bull$hit.

I don't really mind becau$e I've got $ome Leica $tuff to $ell and the Leica bull$hit work$ for me.

But when I'll be out of Leica $tuff to $ell watch me call out each and every Leica Bull$hit I $ee.

chip j · Jul 1, 2015

Right, Mustafa---these are the most idiotic responses I've ever had to any of my posts!!!

Christiaan Phleger · Jul 1, 2015

Well I have a few Nikkor EL 50mm enlarging lenses and one mint copy I got off Ebay for a song didn't test out very well. I didn't look at it for a few months and it then developed a small spot of fungus internally, so I did a CLA. (those of you who follow me know I do this to Nikons and many others so I know whats what when it come to lenses and such; not an amateur but not interested in going a professional repairman career path at this point). When I went inside on one set of elements the retaining ring was *unusually* loose; not totally sloppy but loose enough that it made me wonder. I cleaned the spot and re-tightend the retaining ring to what I use as my standard torque (which was way more than I found it) and I retested the lens. This time it not only tested excellent but was actually an improvement over the other 3 Nikkor EL 50mm. I then checked the 2 worst of them and re-torqued that one retaining ring and those also showed an improvement.
SO; I don't doubt that a good camera tech can improve a lens, perhaps if he had an optical bench he would be able to adjust each lens while looking at the results in real time. But having done a few CLA's on M and R lenses they are extremely well built and don't 'fall out of spec' like Ever.

chip j · Jul 1, 2015

I have a problem with the "specs" of Leica slr gear generally-I don't think "top-flight Leitz designers were very good at slrs.

FYI: RARE tidbit on Leica R lenses

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