Leica 35 ASPH Cron, V4 lens comparison
I was curious to see how the Leica 35/2 ASPH Cron and the V4 35/2 V4 Cron handled backgrounds when used wide open. For the first and second set of images you may want to open each image in a new browser window so you can see each picture side-by-side for easier comparison.
My biggest surprise was that the ASPH lens seemed to have less depth of field compared to the pre-aspheric Cron at wide apertures. The backgrounds in the ASPH simply seems to be more out of focus. Stated another way, items fall out of focus FASTER with the ASPH cron.
The first images of the "sale" sign shows this pretty clearly. I like how you can make things pop out more to isolate them with the ASPH. The images on this page were made in early 2003. In October of 2004 I was testing out Xtol film developer and went ahead and ran this test again. I made two images of a parking sign with a parking garage in the background. For each lens I used f2.8 and f8. Again, my test showed that the ASPH lens had a background that was more out of focus than the V4 lens when used at 2.8. At f8 the ASPH was virtually identical to the V4 lens when I made 8.5 x 11 inch prints of the scene from each lens. In the prints I made of the 2.8 versions of the scene I could still make out the wording on a sign across the street with the shot made with the V4 lens. In the ASPH version the wording on the sign was not readable. These four images are at the bottom of this page.
To my eyes the ASPH has a smoother background than the cron in the second set of pictures with the phone booth in the foreground.
Now for some technical details:
Yes, I was very careful when doing these tests. They were shot at the same aperture for each lens. These images have not been sharpened at all in the scanner or in Photoshop. They were scanned at 4000 DPI with a Microtek 4000tf and then sized down in photoshop, then saved at a quality of 60 in Adobe Imageready. The film was Tri-X developed in D-76 1:1.
--Jim
 ASPH at F2 |
 Cron at F2 |
ASPH at F2.5 (between 2 and 2.8)
V4 Cron at F2.5 (between 2 and 2.8)
Below are two more images between these lenses at f2. In these images
look at the shower curtain in the background and the hair brush on the sink.
The ASPH is the top lens, V4 is the bottom image.
ASPH lens at F2 (above)
V4 Cron at F2 (above)
In the four photos below I shot the V4 cron and the Asph cron at 2.8 and f8. The focus was on the bolt under the arrow on the sign. Look at the signs on the parking garage across the street in the 2.8 images. Click each image to see an 850 pixel wide image of each. No sharpening was applied to these images in the scanner or in photoshop.
V4@2.8 on left -- Asph@2.8 on right
V4@8 one left -- Asph@8 on right
I have three 35mm lenses in the M mount: A 35/2.8 Summaron, the V4 and the ASPH cron. I've noticed that each of these lenses increases slightly in sharpness at wide apertures and also jumps up in contrast. My Summaron has some scratches on the front element and has what appears to be some seperation at the outer edges. Despite all these flaws the Summaron STILL takes great images. Here's an image made with the Summaron.
The V4 cron is wonderfully small and light and balances perfectly on an M body. The ASPH cron is noticeably heavier than the V4. Because of this it still sees a lot of time on an M body when I'm taking the camera with me just to have one in case a good photo crosses my path. The ASPH lens is noticeably heavier than the V4 cron. The BP and chrome lenses are even heavier. But when I'm out specifically to shoot images I take the ASPH. At f2 and 2.8 it's a step above the V4. Once you get to 5.6 all things are equal. On a good monitor even with these web JPEG images you can see the the details such as my arm hair in the images above is more defined.
You could not go wrong with any three of these lenses. If you are buying used the prices for a V4 cron and the ASPH are so close it's hard to recommend the V4 cron over the ASPH unless weight and the ulta-compactness of the V4 are important to you. Don't overlook a Summaron if that extra stop of speed is not important.