  We discuss the elastic photo- and leptoproduction of rho^0-mesons from
nucleons at Q^2 < 1 GeV^2 as studied in recent experiments at HERA and FNAL. We
find that the mass distribution of the measured \pi^+\pi^- pairs is determined
to a large extent by the two-pion contribution to the photon spectral function
as given by the pion form factor. With rising Q^2 the rate of diffractive
events decreases and the \pi^+\pi^- mass distribution approaches a symmetric
shape.
