Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Lens Review

As a go-to set of focal lengths, the 70-200mm totally hits the spot, from portraiture to sports and beyond. Here, Leica’s beyond includes compatibility with the two Leica Extenders L, the 1.4x and the 2x. Supplied with the lens for review is the Leica Extender L 2.0x, so we have the potential for a 140-400mm f/5.6 lens that extends not only the focal length but the versatility to bring wildlife into the range of our photography. This is an exciting set of possibilities, so we set forth to try it all out, using the full frame 60MP Leica SL3 mirrorless camera body. Will the Leica promise of the highest quality be borne out in practice? Let’s find out.

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Handling and Features

The Leica SL3 is big and bulky and the new lens is also big and bulky, weighing in at a hefty 1540g without the metal hood or 1670g with. Without the hood, the dimensions are 207mm x 89mm. With the hood this becomes 259mm x 97mm. The Extender L 2.0x adds another 223g and 30mm in length. The provided round metal lens hood bayonets securely into position. The Magnesium/aluminium lens body is dust and splash protected and the external lens elements are coated with Leica’s Aqua-Dura coating to repel dust, grease and moisture. Within the bayonet fit for the hood is a conventional 82mm filter thread.

First up is the zoom ring, and this is an internal zooming action that does not change the dimensions of the lens. There are very clear markings at 70mm, 90mm, 120mm, 160mm and 200mm. The settings appear to be accurate, and setting an intermediate value of 140mm, for example, gave an actual setting of 141mm, which is pretty close. Handling-wise, the positioning of the zoom ring is probably less than ideal and it would be better suited closer to the camera. As it is, the grip becomes slightly awkward, but as with all things it improves with practice.

The manual focus ring is electronic, and focusing is again internal and there is no change in lens dimensions. At 70mm, closest focus is 0.65m, for a maximum magnification of 1:7. At 200mm, closest focus is 1.00m, for a maximum magnification of 1:5.1 – if we use the Extender L 2.0x, then the focal length is doubled, but the neat trick is that the minimum focus point remains the same. This means that we double the magnification, which is great in itself, but also consider how close we are anyway for a 200mm lens. This gives amazing close up capability especially for small birds and other wildlife. A 400mm f/5.6 lens that focuses down to 1.00m is a wonderful thing indeed. In that context, even how the bulk of the lens is perceived changes emphasis and it can be experienced as relatively compact.

Optical construction is 20 elements in 15 groups, including 3 Aspherical and 7 with low refractive index and especially low dispersion. To help keep things sharp, the built in OIS and the camera IBIS give around a 6 stop advantage. This works well. The AF system also works well, operating virtually silently with excellent speed and accuracy.

There is a tripod clamp and a tripod shoe that also allows rotation of the camera for vertical shots when tripod mounted. This is always useful. There are click stops on the rotation to mark the horizontal and vertical positions.

Apart from the slight feeling of unbalance with the zoom control being too far forwards on the lens, Leica have produced an optic that is great to use. Combine the lens with the extender and the result is a powerful 140-400mm lens of compact dimensions that is ideal for not only wildlife but also for close ups. The Leica experience proves to be a very satisfying one and the results speak for themselves.

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Performance

Distortion is very low for a zoom lens, measuring +0.02% pincushion at 70mm  +0.04% pincushion at 70mm with the extender added and +0.15% pincushion  at 140mm. This is as close to rectilinear as we could hope for. 

Bokeh is rather pleasant and smooth, helped of course by the longer focal length but also by the lens design. Impressively well graduated backgrounds can be used to enhance many different sorts of subject matter.

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Chromatic Aberration Charts

Flare is well under control, with even the most severe lighting being well handled. 

Vignetting is low for a zoom lens, and especially impressive at 70mm, where it is within a whisker of being zero.

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Sample Photos

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Aperture range

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Value For Money

The [AMUK]Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH|Leica+Vario-Elmarit-SL+70-200mm+f/2.8+ASPH[/AMUK] lens is priced at £2780.00

The [AMUK]Leica Extender L 2,0x|Leica+Extender+L+2,0x[/AMUK] is priced at £800.00

Alternative lenses could include:

• [AMUK]Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG DN OS Sports|Sigma+lens[/AMUK], £1499
• [AMUK]Panasonic Lumix S Pro 70-200mm f/2.8 OIS|Panasonic+Lumix+lens[/AMUK], £2099

To show how other marques pitch their prices, some lenses that will not fit the Leica SL3, but are just provided as a comparison of price levels:

• [AMUK]Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II|Sony+FE+lens[/AMUK], £2479
• [AMUK]Nikkor Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S|Nikkor+Z+lens[/AMUK], £2499
• [AMUK]Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM|Canon+RF+lens[/AMUK], £2999

All these lenses can be somewhat expensive, but the Leica is not the highest priced and is looking reasonably good value.

Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH Verdict