Leica CL Lenses (*Leica TL Lenses) vs. Leica CL + M Mount Lenses | Leica Lenses Mirrorless

Good video . I love my CL :-) ... I did install the latest v4 firmware for the CL it gives some cool new features. did you install it ? and what are your thougth about it...

I’m currently using Olympus O-MD and thinking about a new system. Currently the Leica Cl and the Fuji X-T4 are my favorites. I’m looking for something small with very good quality.

My eyesight is crap - astigmatism - and varies in light and time of day. So I live and die by AF. Much as I would love to be able to trust the diopter adjustment, it simply isn't possible. I have an SL2 and just recently got a CL. I love both of them; very different siblings. So, I want to expand the kit 18mm range on the CL - I do largely urban and landscape, with a touch of closeup (not quite macro). I appreciate your videos. Thanks. It helps.

Question - would the 35 be a suitable alternative, in your opinion, to the 50 1.4, considering that I totally suck at manual in low light?

Thanks Matt for this video! I'm a huge Leica fan, due to both the quality of construction and end product (the photos!). I haven't managed to buy one yet, but am looking!! Great explanations and tutorials, as always!

I own both TL and M lenses, however on my Leica CL I still prefer to use M lenses. 
My TL lenses: Super-Vario-Elmar-TL 11-23, APO-Vario-Elmar-T 55-135, APO-Macro-Elmarit-TL 60mm f/2.8 ASPH
I own many M lenses, two of my favorite ones on CL body is: Summaron-M f5.6 28mm and Summilux-M 50mm f1.4

I do architectural / landscape / street photography, lots of low light or night photography, I noticed that TL lenses give me much more noise using same 100 ISO. 
TL lenses is amazing for convenience, when you need auto focus to shoot things quick, or lens like Super-Vario-Elmar-TL 11-23 gives you incredible variety, but color rendering is not as good as M.
M lens photography with small tripod using this lens,
Summilux-M 50mm f1.4 is a spectacular lens to, it gives me exceptional bokeh results, great low light lens, that feels perfect ergonomically on CL.

I found it to be much easier to have the magnification on the right dial. From the dial placements, the left would be in a similar spot like the M or Q Shutter dial, so I want shutter times on that one. Then the right dial for magnification became an instinct to me: Put the camera to your eye, thumb to the right, turn dial to punch in, immediately can do critical focus and do a half shutter press for composition. Works so great for me, I love this little marvel of a simplistic camera.

Matt, when using the Leica M adapter - L on the Leica CL, with a Leica lens, are the F stops on the lens workable, or is the F stop only used by the camera dial? Thanks so much for all. your help.

Great videos as always. I have two questions. If you use a Leica M lens on the CL does the distance scale on the M lens still function correctly when setting the hyperfocal distance for focussing such as during street photography. This procedure is based on the aperture. This brings me to the second question. While the only change is the sensor size and the effective magnification and apparent focal length changes so does the effective widest aperture changes by the crop factor. For example a 50mm f2 becomes 75 f3. Do any of these things matter and I presume Lightroom simply records it as a M50 f2.

I use the Leica CL and I use it with Sigma L lenses, 30 mm and 56 mm, and I like the focus assist, and I have that set on “blue” because I can see that better, and it lights up along the edges of the image and this works beautifully. I would love to try a manual focus lens, and I will see if I can do that, but part of my problem is my eyesight. Good review of the camera and the manual focus lenses.

Hi Matt, great videos thanks. Having used the CL for a while now which do you prefer....the M camera or the CL and why?

That’s great Matt. I have a 15mm voigtländer MIII super wide and getting a 7artisans 70mm f1.25 M mount did you review either on the CL anywhere? Cheers!

Great video. Can you focus manually with the TL 35 mm? Any good?

Nice review. I use my CL since over a year and it is great, especially the ergonomics after firmware update 4. Nice to use with stabilized lenses like the Panasonic 24-105

Matt, Thank you for the valuable information. I’m looking to get a Leica body and this helped.

Hi Matt - fantastic info here thank you - I've had a CL for a while now and a Q2 - and to be fair the CL isn't getting as much use as it deserves. I have the Leica TL 18-56 but prefer my Voightlander 35mm f1.4 II Nokton but am unsure which lens profile to use within the CL - great tip on magnifying before shooting - thanks very much :) Kev

Matt, just pulled the trigger on a Cl with the 18mm 2.8 Elmarit, I own a couple M lenses for my M240 and M4-P, I am curious if there are some good new AF alternatives as now Sigma is making L mount lenses too.

Matt - question on the manual focussing. After you 2 click to zoom in to focus how do you get it back to normal view to compose? 2 clicks in the opposite direction?

Stunning pictures of (it must be said) stunning young women. And a stunning camera. Thank you for the thoughts on this gem. I have been looking for a camera a few years now. I have been a photographer in my youth before I chose music:-) I always had a Contax with 3 Zeiss lenses, a 25, 50 and a 85 . MF as you understand.
I have used the Sigma SD10 for maaaany years with a same sort of set up but then as an amateur. Last year the SD 10 finally broke down. And I sold my lenses after discovering there isn't a good Sigma alternative (for me, that is).
Now I saved a little bit of money this last 1,5 year and I have to decide: the Q2 or a CL with 1 or 2 lenses. But my eyesight is become much worse these last years. I just can't use the MF as I want. I tried the Q1 for a day and I was stunned! It felt so good, just everything was right.
What would be your final advice? A CL or a Q2 (and maybe a Sigma DP3 Merril for the extra extreme sharp funthings)?

Love your calm video's (no fancy music etc, just the essence), love the pictures. I am a city/landscape/architecture kind of fellow. Never did modelling. Did a lot of weddings though:-)

Have a great one!

I've been orbiting a CL for awhile,,,I have a Panasonic GX-8 with Pana/ Leica primes and the 8-18 zoom.. I really enjoy this set up,,,But of course that bigger sensor is always hanging there in space. I appreciate how well you cover this system and especially how you illustrate it with fantastic images.(which most talking heads never do)... thanks again for giving me a lot to think about...

Hi Matt, is Voigtländer Nokton 40mm 1.4 + leica T = good pairing?

Will it become manual mode bec lens is manual ??

I m using it for portrait photography.
Thanks Guru for your advice!!! 😄

Alas the Leica M to L adapter is a ridiculous 350GBP or thereabouts new, while a decent Chinese adapter is around 30GBP !

I have noticed that when using recent non-Leica wide aperture lenses on my CL, like those from 7Artisans or similar, that they focus beyond infinity. By that I mean that directing the CL on to a very distant object results in focus being achieved just before the infinity stop is reached.

Hello Matt, After viewing your videos on the CL , I finally bought the CL 2 months ago. I am very satisfied with the camera the18mm kit lens. I am ready to go with the M mount lens however is it necessary to buy the M to L Leica adapter or can I go generic and get the same results? Is it worth the $ for the 6 bit that the generic brands do not offer? Is the final result the same when it comes to image quality?

Hi Matt would the lack of ibis a deal breaker? thanks and have a nice day.

I am using CL camera with firmware version 4.1 and adaptor firmware version 1.0.
I have discovered that if I use an "L" lens [ie: Elmarit-TL 1:2.8/18 ASPH] then both Focus Peaking and the Overexposure Clipping warnings are both working. However, when I use an "M" lens [ie: Summilux-M 1:1.4/35 ASPH] only Focus Peaking works. If I turn Focus Peaking Off, then the Clipping warnings work?

Another excellent video, thank you! As a user of a Bessa rangefinder, I'm considering the purchase of a CL as a companion camera. All of your superb videos on related topics are greatly appreciated! This stranded expat feels less so...

Great video Matt! I just ordered my M adapter tonight for the CL. I've been depending on auto-focus a little too much I think and it's time to get back to a more deliberate approach.

Matt appreciate your videos. Bought the CL in March 2020 mist of the lockdown. Yes I like the camera. Started with TL lenses then branched out to manual voightlanders and then LTM vintage Leica lenses. I prefer to shoot manual lenses for the same reasons u do. Focus peaking and zoom are very helpful. I then took the plunge and bought a Leica iiif. Great thing I can use the Ltm lenses on both cameras.

Happy 2022 Matt! I've enjoyed watching your channel for years. Recently I am thinking to get a second hand CL to open up another fun world of my collected M lenses. One question: Once I mount M lens on CL with Leica adaptor, does CL provide the accurate spot or central weighted Light Metering as with TL lens? Thank you !

Thank you for your content. I enjoy your videos very much. To my eye, and brain, the TL lenses are better on the CL than the M lenses. Not sure why that is, but in an interview with Peter Karbe he stated that the TL lenses were among the best they ever made. In particular, the TL 35mm 1.4 and the TL 60mm macro. I agree with him :) I have the two new VC lanthar lenses, and still prefer the native TL lenses. There is good science behind why on the CL the TL lenses are better than M lenses. Similarly, the Leica SL lenses are dreamy (and heavy) on the CL, and M lenses are not equal to the SL lenses on the SL system.

None the less, its fun to just play with the manual lenses... love those M lenses on a M body!!

Hey man I shoot my architectural and real estate photos with an xt3 and xf 10-24. Do you think the cl with the ttl 11-23 would produce professional quality images? Also if I got an adapter can the tl lenses be adapted to the fujfilm bodies?

Hi do you know if the Leica CL has focus peaking?

I have been using the CL since 2018. I typically shoot with the 11-23 and 18-56. I have recently picked up the Voigtlander 35mm f1.4 mc. I have been surprised how quickly I have been able to produce acceptable shots using the manual focus. There is still room for improvement but……

Thanks for this, another useful look at things Leica. I have a Q and a CL with the Elmarit 2.8/18 mm "kit" lens. The combination is a dream, but I am almost certainly going to go for a 1.4/35 mm TL lens as well, partly because of your recommendation, reinforced by Ann Nominous’ report of Peter Karbe’s verdict. There’s a copy of the lens going for a very good price just at the moment…. I’ll be hammering the credit card, but Leica quality really is worth it. Thanks for all our videos and for the Flickr selection, too.

You have a fanrastic rapport with the
models. Been meaning to say that for a long time. That said, the tl lens
photos seemed sharper in terms of
rendering the blacks, and the M mounts produced a dreamier effect.
Thank you for another fine video!

I just got my Leica CL for 3 months and I like it a lot. I have Summicron-TL 23mm f2.0 and Summilux-TL 35mm f1.4 lens.

I usually use my Leica cl with Leica Elmarit tl 18 mm. I also use lenses from Voightänder bessa L 15, 35 and 50 mm.

Another big thank you for an excellent summary of the auto manual options for the CL. For auto go-to I love the Vario-Elmar 18-56mm f/3.5 - 5.6 ASPH. For manual I have the Voigtlander Color Skopar 21mm f3.5, and Voigtlander Color Skopar 35mm f2.5. I also have the Summilux-TL1:1.4 35mm ASPH which I find quite heavy for the CL. By contrast, the APO-MACRO-ELMARIT-TL 60mm f/2.8 ASPH is very comfortable on the CL with flexible use in the street for portraiture etc. Need a workshop next time I can get to the UK. Stay well.

I just bought a CL. Love it. What a great travel camera. The 18mm lens is amazing too. Sharp and the images pop. Even portraits. I will try it with the sigma zoom lens too. Not sure if the image quality will be comparable but I like the flexibility when travelling.

The M lenses are better

I picked up an inexpensive CL a few months ago as a small knock around camera when I didn’t want to haul my SL2 out. I’m absolutely loving it and it’s gone on every shoot since. I just tuck it in the bag with the SL2 or Nikon 850 and I always find an excuse to take a few pictures with it. Surprisingly I have used way more of the CL images from my “casual” shots than I ever expected.

Another great Video Matt. You explain the manual setup very well. It seems critical to get that expensive Leica M -> L adapter.

I need your opinion between leica CL ( mirrorless ) & Panasonic S1R which one should I choose for photography wise. Thank you.

Hi Matt, I 'm thinking of getting a used CL and use m mount voigtlander lenses on it. Can you confirm if the focus scale and infinity will be correct?

Hey Matt, august 2023 and I’m finally considering the CL. Maybe it’s because I can’t decide between SL2 or SL2s 🤣. I would only use it with M lenses from my M10M and R kit.

My concern is APSc— I’ve been a full frame guy since Canon 1Ds days, not enjoying a Fuji XT2 or GRII I used.
Think apsc in this is good? Or stick with the SL2 thoughts? Just a complicated matter, I’m also looking for a body to adapt a ton of’s ICE lenses to as the canon R5 is not floating my boat. I’ve been thinking about a Hasselblad X1D2 for those lenses, but the Fuji GFX 50II has got a flippy screen and ibis. I need help.

Still torn btw a Leica CL or SL2s or Nikon ZF... Briefly own a TL2 with a 18 TL lens. I took the TL2 out for a dinner for a special occasion and the low light image quality is just unbearable and I was quite embarrassed when asked to share the photos. I sold the Tl2 combo eventually shortly after. My experience with TL2 adapting m lenses was also not very pleasant. I own quite a few m or ltm lenses. Always want to buy a nice camera to adapt m lenses on. SL2s is too big for walk around in my opinion. And Nikon ZF is not that Leica(its just personal opinion) . I also shoot fujifilm and like the form factor but it's kind of weird to adapt m lenses on fujifilm bodies.

Your images are stellar!

I am still using it in 2024 and like it so much

Nice review.

I have a digital Leica CL camera and love it. I also have all the TL AF lenses, and adapters for M and Leica R lenses.

The Leica Summilux-TL 35 mm f/1.4 focuses to 0.4 m to the image plane and is a very sharp lens. I’ll soon compare it to my Voigtländer Nokton-VM 35 mm f/1.2 (version 1).

Also, the Leica Macro-Elmarit-TL 60 mm f/2.8 is a terrific AF/Portrait/Macro lens.

The Summicron-TL 23 mm f/2 is only slightly larger than the Elmarit-TL 18 mm f/2.8. The latter almost makes the camera fit in a pocket.