Dear Mike,

thank you for the insight which as usual is so articulate. I think the solution is to keep weaning myself from photo reference. I am quite free from the colour rendition, so that is why I am only concerned with the white balance in photographing paintings. The next step will be to recognize and correct distortion, or better to be able to use it when and where I think it might be needed.

Lacey I am very tempted to get this lens, if only to take away a few grams from the traditional heaviness of Nikon cameras. At the moment I have no commissions and am mainly working on still lifes (hence less posting on the forum), but I will have to make a decision on my equipment sooner or later.

Thank you very much to both of you for replying to my doubts

Ilaria

Lacey,

That's a very good and inexpensive solution. I have become so used to composing with the zoom lenses that I forget the fixed are much cheaper. I didn't realize you could get a lens that fast and that cheap.

Here is a new lens offering from Leica. A similar fixed 50mm lens as discussed above that is very fast at f1.4. The cost of this lens will be $1499. Obviously, there is a wide range of quality to choose from.

As I rationalize my inability to purchase these high dollar gadgets I remind myself that there is a difference between photos that are the end product, being judged on their technical merit, and photos that we interpret and use as reference. Still, within our (my) price range there exists good and bad products. You have to do your homework.

The release reads:

The new LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 lens (35mm equivalent: 50mm) is a bright, large-diameter F1.4 standard lens. It incorporates an aperture ring and boasts as many as 10 lens elements in 9 groups, including a large-diameter aspherical lens, which assure a superb optical performance and F1.4 brightness, while one super ED (extra-low dispersion) lens and three ED lenses reduce color bleeding to an absolute minimum.