Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Lens Review
[SECTION]INTRODUCTION[/SECTION]
The new Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm f/5-6.3 zoom lens is the longest in the SL range with the Leica name. It is designed for the Leica SL2 and SL2-S camera bodies, both full frame and with resolutions of 47MP and 24MP respectively. It can equally well be used with any of the other L-mount cameras. For this review, we are coupling the lens up with the full frame 24MP Leica SL2-S camera body and heading out into the Cotswolds to see how the lens fares on location, as well as looking at the studio technical tests. Let’s see how it goes and whether or not the new lens lives up to its Leica heritage.
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Handling and Features
As we might expect, this lens shows all the characteristics of solid, metal-based Leica engineering and weighs in at a solid 1530g (without hood) or 1620g (with hood), despite being relatively compact at 198mm x 88mm (without hood) or 253mm x 97mm (with hood). The generously sized metal hood does an effective job and bayonets cleanly into place. Within the bayonet fit for the hood is an 82mm filter thread. The Magnesium and Aluminium full-metal housing is dust and splash-protected to IP54, and it is good to have a specific rating so that we can have a better idea of what splash resistant might actually mean. The front and rear elements are also water and dirt-repellant, thanks to the hydrophobic “Aqua Dura” coating.
First up is a wide zoom ring, clearly marked with focal lengths of 100mm, 200mm, 300mm and 400mm. Behind this, the wide and well-gripped manual focusing ring is as smooth as we would expect any electronic ring to be. The only other control is the release button for the tripod ring. This ring enables the lens to be rotated whilst on a tripod, making it easy and convenient to switch between landscape and portrait orientations, and any angle in between. The tripod foot itself is detachable and is ARCA-Swiss compatible, which is a useful convenience.
AF is fast and virtually silent. Focusing is down to 1.1m at 100mm, for a maximum magnification of 1:9.3 and down to 1.59m at 400mm, for a maximum magnification of 1:4.1. The focal length of 100-400mm extends to 140-560mm when using the Leica Extender L 1.4x, which is specifically designed for this lens only.
Optical construction is 22 elements in 16 groups. The diaphragm comprises 9 blades for improved bokeh. To help reduce camera shake there is built-in OIS, quoted as being good for a 4-stop advantage, and certainly living up to the expectation. Of course, this is fine for static subjects and it does mitigate the effects of camera shake, but fast-moving subjects still need high shutter speeds and if the fastest lock-on time is required then switching OIS off will remove the time lag that stabilising requires. The general handling of the lens/camera combination is a little clumsy at first, mainly because it is heavy and bulky and especially because the zoom control is quite firm. The lens can also be zoomed by grasping the hood and using a trombone action, so this may be more convenient for some photographers.
[SECTION]PERFORMANCE[/SECTION]
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Performance
At 100mm, sharpness is very good centrally and at the edges, from f/5 all the way through to f/16. Results at f/22 are still good. This performance is evenly maintained centre and edge.
At 135mm the result is almost identical, with sharpness centre and edge being very good from f/5.6 through to f/22 and good at f/25.
At 250mm, the even performance continues and sharpness is good at f/6.1 and f/8, very good at f/11 and f/16, good at f/22 and fair at f/27.
At 400mm, performance remains even but the sharpness is just fair at f/6.3 and f/8, good from f/11 to f/22 and fair at f/29.
The overall sharpness of the lens is very even centre to edge, but images do benefit from some sharpening in Photoshop, after which they are clean and crisp. This is especially true at longer focal lengths.
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 MTF Charts
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How to read our MTF chartsThe blue column represents readings from the centre of the picture frame at the various apertures and the green is from the edges. The scale on the left side is an indication of actual image resolution and sharpness as LW/PH and is described in detail above. The taller the column, the better the lens performance. For this review, the lens was tested on a Leica SL2-S using Imatest. Want to know more about how we review lenses? |
CA (Chromatic Aberration) is measured with any in-camera corrections switched off, as far as we can tell anyway. CA is very well controlled throughout and is unlikely to be an issue. If further correction is required, this can be achieved using software.
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Chromatic Aberration Charts
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How to read our CA chartsChromatic aberration (CA) is the lens’ inability to focus on the sensor or film all colours of visible light at the same point. Severe chromatic aberration gives a noticeable fringing or a halo effect around sharp edges within the picture. It can be cured in software. Apochromatic lenses have special lens elements (aspheric, extra-low dispersion etc) to minimize the problem, hence they usually cost more. For this review, the lens was tested on a Leica SL2-S using Imatest. |
Distortion is minimal, measuring -0.01% barrel at 100mm, and thereafter a slight amount of pincushion, +0.06% at 135mm, +0.08% at 250mm and +0.09% at 400mm. This is closer to rectilinear than many macro lenses, and is very impressive.
Bokeh is the smoothness of the out-of-focus areas in an image and is relaxed and pleasant, of course, helped considerably by being a long telephoto lens.
Flare is also very well controlled and we have to work hard at generating any artefacts, even in the most severe lighting conditions.
Vignetting is modest throughout and really insignificant when we reach values such as minus one-third of a stop.
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| Aperture | 100mm | 135mm | 250mm | 400mm |
| f/5 | -0.4 | |||
| f/5.6 | -0.3 | -0.7 | ||
| f/6.1 | -0.6 | |||
| f/6.3 | -0.7 | |||
| f/8 | -0.3 | -0.7 | -0.3 | -0.4 |
| f/11 | -0.3 | -0.7 | -0.3 | -0.4 |
| f/16 | -0.3 | -0.7 | -0.3 | -0.3 |
| f/22 | -0.3 | -0.7 | -0.3 | -0.3 |
| f/25 | -0.7 | |||
| f/27 | -0.3 | |||
| f/29 | -0.3 |
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Sample Photos
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Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Aperture range
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You can view additional images in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own review, photos and product ratings.
[SECTION]VERDICT[/SECTION]
Value For Money
The [AMUK]Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm f/5-6.3|Leica+lens[/AMUK] lens is priced at £1970.00
Sigma offers some highly competitive alternatives for L mount, such as:
- [AMUK]Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Sports|Sigma+lens[/AMUK], £1099
- [AMUK]Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Contemporary|Sigma+lens[/AMUK], £899
- [AMUK]Sigma 60-600mm f/4.5-6.3 DG DN OS Sports|Sigma+lens[/AMUK], £1999
In terms of cost the Leica suffers in the value for money stakes, but for those who require the metal construction and the “Leica look” to their images, the equation of course shifts accordingly.
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Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Verdict
There is a lot to like about the lens and in practice it is capable of producing fine images, albeit ones that require some sharpening in Photoshop or a similar program. Focusing is swift and virtually silent and the IP54 weather sealing offers the ability to continue shooting in suspect weather conditions. Heavy, yes, a little unwieldy, yes, but nothing that cannot be coped with after a bit of familiarisation with the lens’s quirks. The all-metal construction feels very solid, although the downside is that a dropped lens would not potentially bounce unharmed as a plastic one might. The Leica will break the floor or the lens, so handle with due care. The matched extender offers additional scope for long-range shooting.
All in all, despite the very heavy lens delivering images that can benefit from some sharpening at longer focal lengths in particular, a successful set of results came out of the location shots and the lens can be ‘Recommended’, especially to those who enjoy the “Leica look” to their images.
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Pros
- Versatile focal length range
- Excellent CA control
- Virtually no distortion
- Pleasant bokeh
- Modest vignetting
- Close focusing
- Splash and dust resistance to IP54
- Fast and silent AF
- Well made
- Low flare
- ARCA-Swiss compatible tripod base
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Cons
- Some sharpening needed, especially at 400mm
- Heavy
- Expensive
[REVIEW_FOOTER]R_features=4|R_handling=4|R_performance=4|R_value=3.5|R_overall=4|A_level=4|A_text= Recommended – A versatile long telephoto zoom for wildlife and sports that delivers good results.|E_id=7977[/REVIEW_FOOTER]
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Source: Photography News
Leica Vario-Elmar-SL 100-400mm F/5-6.3 Lens Review
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