Contax G 21mm Lens?

James: I use the 21mm. A lot. It is a marvellous little lens! It is supersharp and has very very little distortion, to little for me to get annoyed about. I wouldn't trade this for any other (wide) lens in the world - and I have used quite a few...

Despite it's small size it delivers some incredible performance! The optical engineers made the most out of the design benefits of a rangefinder system. I have some really biting pictures from Old Habana, Cuba, with this little fellow blown up to 25X38 cm on Fuji Reala. Some other lenses may come close or be just as good but I don't think you can squeeze significantly more detail out of the 24x36 negative anyway so arguing about which 21 is better (Leica or Zeiss or...) is pretty pointless in this format. Enlargements bigger than 30X40 cm simnply doesn't look good from 24X36 anyway, at least the way I see it. If this size doesn't satisfy you, you need MF, something like the Mamiya 43mmL (roughly the same angle of view) for Mamiya7, which I use as well. Now you can start talking about blowing up things sky high... ;-)

The separate viewfinder is quite good. You do get more than you see on the final frame, and there is some parallax error, especially in the near focus distances. In the small leaflet accompanying the lens (or was it the G2 manual?) you will find out more. I won't go in to it in detail here as it is all in plain text in the manual but in general the finder works quite well, and the parallax has never caused me any teeth grinding grief. No grid/bright lines to help you keep it level though. Concentrate on the terrain / horizon / buildings for keeping it level. In my experience the finder fits well and sits "secure" in the hotshoe. Still it doesn't hurt to be careful, I would hate to lose mine.

In Habana/Hong kong I would often walk around with just the viewfinder and scout the terrain before getting the camera out in shabby areas. Handy.

Using the camera in manual focus mode can't be tricky. The depth of field is deeeeeep and stopping down the lens and focusing to a hyper-focal setting allows you to concentrate on shooting fast. I have used this modus operandi on some occasions with great success.

I haven't used the 16mm Hologon but considering the slow aperture (especially with the centerfilter attached) and very freaky angle of view I doubt it is as versatile as the 21 which excels in a variety of shooting circumstances. And the Rocky Horror price tag puts me off, especially when you can get the 15mm Voigtländer in a G2 mount (true!) for some 8-900$...

Tried to keep it short. Henrik

Yeah. About the finish of the lens. Get the cheap(er) one. You can always spray paint it later. Just cover the glass before doing this. ;-)

Henrik

James,

The 21mm Biogon is an awesome lens. I used it to take a picture of the interior of the Basilica Notre Dame in Montreal. This photo never fails to make people's jaws drop open.

There is significant parallax error for close subjects. In the actual photo, subjects appear higher to the right of where they do in the finder. I have heard of some users who do all of the focusing using the accessory finder, but I have not tested it myself. On my G2, the finder seems fairly secure when attached to the camera.

FYI, Genesis Camera is offering the 21mm Biogon for $750. Of course, this is a grey market version. I have found them to be reliable and honest. You can contact them at genesis.com or via the Amazon.com Z-shops (which gives you the added protection of Amazon.)

Buy the lens, buy the lens, buy the lens.

I don't need to embellish upon the comments about the 21's quality-- it's a dazzling lens. I've got all the G primes other than the 16 (what's this about a Voightlander 15 w/ G mount?) and use the 21 50% of the time.

The finder is the source of some frustration. Put it on blindly or in a hurry and it's not hard to lose your grip and drop it. The parallax error is real, and IMHO Contax should supply an adjustable finder to deal with it (such creatures exist). Regardless, one soon comes to terms with using the finder to take advantage of what the lens is capable of. The suggestion of using preset manual focus is a good one, it speeds up composition and shooting a great deal (and does away with focus lock issues on shiny, close subjects).

I use a silver finish on a black body--it bothers me not one bit. Save the extra money for a thin filter or some good slide film--you'll want lots.

Buy the lens.

p.s. The hard case is pretty worthless in the field. I keep the 21 in one of the Contax fake leather pouches w/ the finder in a small, padded bag clipped on.

Hi James, This is my favorite lens by far. Do be careful with the viewfinder though, as it will fall off the hotshoe. Mine did and was dented on a concrete pathway. Thankfully the viewfinder has a guard around the glass so the lens didn't get scratched.

Jeff

I used to deal with Eli Kurland when he worked at Wall Street Photo and was a big (and early) proponent of the Rollei 6003/6008 cameras. He was always helpful and generous with his time, and was willing to lend lenses on a trial basis back then in the early 90s. Whether this was at his personal initiative or was store policy I don't know.

I understand he has started his own outfit-one hopes he has the same marketing leeway.

For information on these lenses, please see: www.luminous-landscape.com/12mm.htm#Contax%20G

I love the classic Contarex Biogon 21mm F4.5 version more. I bought a Contarex Biogon 21/4.5 which converted into Leica M39 mount. I use it on my Bessa R and Leica M6 with M adapter with satisfactory result.

Buy the lens, you will LOVE it!

I have had very positive experiences with Eli Kurland. Has his 2nd store now (had to move after 9/11 ruined the first one). Honest gentleman and can be trusted.

Hi James, My advice is buy the 21mm. It is an incredible lens at an affordable price. The only problems I have with it are: the cross hatch in the finder is not clear enough - I shoot a lot of seascapes and have to watch horizons, so I tend to use the black mask area at the top of the frame. The other problem is, when I've put it on, I don't want to take it off - just too damn lazy. Because there is no parallax compensation with the 16mm, you may have trouble keeping unwanted stuff out of your shots. And of course, You can buy a lot of G2 kit for the price of a 16mm lens. If you need to use one for a shoot, it might be better to hire it.

Keith

Since going almost entirely digital a while back, and having no sentimental attachment to the various uglies that go with chemical photography, I've toyed with the idea of selling my G2 kit. This winter I even made a move to get rid of it all via eBay, and did sell my 90mm Sonnar. But then I went into the city and shot a few rolls of B&W with the 21mm, which reminded me that, for the moment anyway, there's no digital equivalent to the G2/21mm combination. For that reason, and despite the ultra-sad demise of Contax, I'm going to hang onto the G2. The camera's often frustrating, but the little Biogon is a wonderful lens, pure and simple. And you can get one these days for a very reasonable price.

Web-res images can't do the lens justice, but FWIW here are a couple of photos from the day I mentioned: a large open space and a small open space.