Leica Elmarit-S 45mm f2.8 or Zeiss Distagon 45mm f2.8?

[Duff photographer]

Howdo,

I'd like to tap into the experiences of those who have used both the Leica Elmarit-S 45mm f2.8 and the Zeiss Distagon 45mm f2.8 (for the Contax 645), on the Leica S cameras.

Both are excellent lenses, but what are your thoughts on any differences in image quality (e.g., aberrations, rendering, etc.), if any at all?

Cheers,
Duff.

 

[epforever]

I haven't used both, but I have the Leica S 45mm, and it's one of the best lenses I've ever used. Sharp corner to corner wide open. Beautiful rendering. Negligible distortion. It's a much newer design than the Contax (one of the latest in the S lineup), so I would imagine it has fewer aberrations, haziness around the edges wide open, etc. I honestly have seen zero flaws in it. (It's a bit big and heavy, but if you're used to medium format, it's par for the course.) Attaching a couple of samples here, both shot with the S3.

 

[Duff photographer]

Thanks ep... for sharing your thoughts and images.

Cheers,
Duff.