VARIO ELMAR R 70-210 F4

Review and Photo example of the LEICA R mount VARIO LMAR R 70-210 F4.

Gallery

The sample photo were taken with the CANON EOS 1Ds MKIII

Review

The Vario Elmar R 70-210mm is the third generation of Leica R’s four types of F4 class zoom lenses, and is a Japanese-made lens designed and manufactured by Minolta, of which 14,000 were manufactured.

Of the four generations of F4 class zoom lenses, the first to third generation were made by Minolta, and the fourth generation was made by Kyocera.
The Minolta model number of this lens is MD ZOOM 70-210mm F/4, and the difference between the Minolta version and the Leica version is that the Leica version has a built-in hood and a filter diameter of 60mm, so the design of the lens exterior is different.

Although it is a Leica brand, it is a zoom lens that is made in Japan and is available at a very low price.
Although it is cheap, the image is stable, and I feel that it is made by Minolta.
The front and rear blurs are smooth and do not produce any annoying two-line blur.
There are no noticeable false colors at any focal length, and backlight isn’t too much of a problem, and it’s enough for this price.
The shortest shooting distance is 1.1m over the entire range, and at 210mm, the magnification is 1:4.
It weighs 720g, so it’s not heavy. Because it is long and thin, it looks unbalanced when attached to a large camera, but this does not pose a problem when used.
Perhaps due to the aperture of F4, it is easy to get the peak in focus even with the EOS viewfinder in bright places such as outdoors on a sunny day.

Since this is a zoom lens from the manual focus (hereinafter referred to as MF) era, it uses a straight-line zoom method. With straight zoom, the focal length is changed by moving the lens barrel back and forth (it is 210mm when stored and 70mm when extended), and the rotation of the lens barrel is used as a focus ring to adjust the focus. Zoom lenses from the autofocus (hereinafter referred to as AF) era were two-ring types, with a zoom ring and a focus ring separated.

Speaking of straight zoom, when I first started using cameras, it was common for AF zoom lenses to have a separate zoom ring and focus ring. When I used the linear zoom of Tamron’s Adaptor 2, which I bought for fun with the mount, I remember being impressed by how it operated. For MF zoom lenses, this is a reasonable method of operation that allows you to zoom and focus at the same time.

The lens I own is one of 3000 made in 1991 with 3CAM specification and serial number 358xxxx.It is a lens that is relatively common and inexpensive on the market. I have never seen any other version of this lens other than the 3CAM version, and as a zoom lens for the R8/R9, there is a ROM version of Kyocera’s 4th generation Vario Elmar R 80-200, which is probably the one in charge.
Since it is a medium telephoto lens with no protruding rear lens, it can be used with the EOS-1DsMKIII without error.

Specification

Items	VARIO ELMAR	←	←	←
Focal length(mm)	80-200	75-200	70-210	80-200
Max aperture	4.5	←	4	←
Min aperture	22	←	←	←
Lens Construction	14elements in 10groups	15elements in 11groups	12elements in 9groups	12elements in 8groups
Leaf blade	6	8	7	8
Min distance(m)	1.8	1.2	1.1	1.1
Lens length(mm)	–	157〜	163〜195	165
Max diameter(mm)	–	70	73.5	71
Filter Size(mm)	55	←	60	←
Zoom method	Push/Pull	←	←	2 ring
Weight(g)	625	725	720	1,020
Release date to product end	1974〜1978	1978〜1984	1983〜2000	1996〜2009
Production numbers	4,500-	27,100-	14,250	14,350+
Manufacturer	Minolta	←	←	Kyocera
OEM	Minolta MC Rokkor 80-200mm F/4.5	MINOLTA MD ZOOM ROKKOR 75-200mm 1:4.5	MINOLTA MD ZOOM 70-210mm 1:4

Reference links

VARIO-ELMAR-R 4/70-210 @ Leica wiki

Update history

2024.04.25
2022.05.26

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