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Voigtlander lenses
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PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 9:10 pm    Post subject: Voigtlander lenses Reply with quote
Hi guys i have sony nex 6 and i looking to purchase a voightlander lens. what would be a good walking around lens for this brand? i really like the design of the lenses and looks nice on Nex cameras


PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 9:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
What kind of walk-around are you planning? Street? Nature Hikes? Your goals, price range and the APS-C sensor will make a big difference on the recommendation.

Steve


PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 9:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Need more info indeed to help successfully, in general all Voigtlander branded lenses are good enough to everyone to every purposes.


PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 9:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
There is no easy answer to that question.
I started my Voigtlaender lens collection with the 12mm/F5.6 on a MFT camera to have a decent wide angle 24mm equivalent lens.
Now I ended up with 8 Voigtlaender lenses mainly used on APS-C like your Nex 6 camera. I only left out the 40mm lens because I have the 35mm/F1.7 and 50mm/F1.5 anyway.
Maybe the SNAPSHOT-SKOPAR 25mm/F4 or the COLOR-SKOPAR 21mm/F4 would be a good start up if you do not concentrate on available light photography. Most importantly, they are very tiny and deliver excellent quality.
However, if you look into more light power you have to accept rather heavy and bigger lenses. Maybe the ULTRON 35mm F1.7 would be a compromise in that respect. It still can be found although already out of production for some years.
My ULTRON 28mm/F1.9 stays most of the time at home because it is a rather heavy and bulky beast.
So I know what I am talking about. Wink


PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 10:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
newst wrote:
What kind of walk-around are you planning? Street? Nature Hikes? Your goals, price range and the APS-C sensor will make a big difference on the recommendation.

Steve


Yeah street and landscapes and at night. i already have a sony 35 f1.8 but i want to only use mf cause its so much fun. after buying the tamron 90 2.5 recommended by a member here i dont think ill use a auto lens anymore. Budget around $700.


PostPosted: Fri May 01, 2015 11:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
ilovelens wrote:
newst wrote:
What kind of walk-around are you planning? Street? Nature Hikes? Your goals, price range and the APS-C sensor will make a big difference on the recommendation.

Steve


Yeah street and landscapes and at night. i already have a sony 35 f1.8 but i want to only use mf cause its so much fun. after buying the tamron 90 2.5 recommended by a member here i dont think ill use a auto lens anymore. Budget around $700.


In that case I would recommend the Voigtlander Nokton 40mm F/1.4. Fast enough for low light use, not too wide or too long.

Now let the bidding begin!

Steve


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 12:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
If you're using a tripod for night photography, a fast lens is not required, that it's well corrected for coma is.
CV15III A7r though it's a bit wide for a walk around, it is fun.


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 12:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Excellent shot. A great example of the now you see it, now you don't school of photography.

Steve


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 1:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
ilovelens wrote:

Yeah street and landscapes and at night. i already have a sony 35 f1.8 but i want to only use mf cause its so much fun. after buying the tamron 90 2.5 recommended by a member here i dont think ill use a auto lens anymore. Budget around $700.


In that case I would stick with my previous recommandation of 21 or 25mm. Even the 15mm/F4.5 would be a valid option. It's also very handy and small.
I always have a very pocketable "tripod" with me for possible night shots. You need it anyway to avoid shakes during longer exposure times.


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 1:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
No one talk about the old Voigtlander Prominent or Bessamatic lenses? Wink


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 1:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Laughing Laughing


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 4:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
1.8/21 if you are ok with prize and size. otherwise 4/21 or 4/25, for street on NEX I prefer the angle of view of 21mm


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 6:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
the CV 28/1.9 Ultron would be a superb normal lens on the Nex, and fast enough to go pretty dim too. Smile


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 7:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Apart from being slow for night work, I'm not sure how well the 21mm Skopar will work on the NEX. It's not a retrofocus design and does quite poorly on my M43 body - my Cosina 19mm actually works better on it. I expect the same will apply to the 25mm Skopars as well. I've used both and the M8 where they work well, but it has the 'offset' sensors to cope.

I have a 40/1.4 Nokton and it's great, but on a NEX it's going to be equivalent of 60mm on full frame, a bit narrow for a 'walk round' lens. The 35mm would be bit wider, but 28mm (=42mm full frame coverage) is nearer ideal. If there is such a thing as the ideal lens.

Does the budget cover one of the newer Voigtlander designs for mirrorless cameras? If so, that surely must be the way to go.


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 9:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
scsambrook wrote:
.. I'm not sure how well the 21mm Skopar will work on the NEX...I expect the same will apply to the 25mm Skopars as well..


oh, they are doing just fine on my NEX5n ( have been using them almost exclusively on Ricoh GXR M though but managed to find 2 samples each taken on the NEX )

e.g. the 4/21




and the 4/25:




the 4.5/15 works well on the NEX5n too, color cast in the corners only visible some times, then typically in the sky
( if anyone needs to see samples I could find some )

the 1.8/21 I don't have, but read that it is doing much better than the 4/21 on the Sony E mount FF cameras, therefore I assume it should be fine on a NEX


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 9:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
kuuan wrote:

the 1.8/21 I don't have, but read that it is doing much better than the 4/21 on the Sony E mount FF cameras, therefore I assume it should be fine on a NEX


But bear in mind that the new F1.8 version is aproximately more than 3 times as heavy and as long as the F4 version. Definitely heavier as the camera! I wouldn't like to carry it along all day long. I prefer my F4 versions.


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 9:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
tb_a wrote:
kuuan wrote:

the 1.8/21 I don't have, but read that it is doing much better than the 4/21 on the Sony E mount FF cameras, therefore I assume it should be fine on a NEX


But bear in mind that the new F1.8 version is aproximately more than 3 times as heavy and as long as the F4 version. Definitely heavier as the camera! I wouldn't like to carry it along all day long. I prefer my F4 versions.


I do and that's the main reason why I am using the 4/21, besides the 1.8 is a bit costly
but if the OP doesn't mind weight nor price, as I had written, it's a good recommendation, me thinks


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 9:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
kuuan wrote:

I do and that's the main reason why I am using the 4/21, besides the 1.8 is a bit costly


"A bit costly" is an understatement. Wink
However, for me the 28mm/F1.9 is already too heavy to carry it along. It stays mostly at home.
In addition I prefer to have the M39 versions for more flexibility.

"Servas" aus dem Burgenland!


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 9:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
tb_a wrote:
In addition I prefer to have the M39 versions for more flexibility.
"Servas" aus dem Burgenland!

right, if you want to use them on LTM film bodies. if digital only imo M would be more convenient. for handling I prefer my M version 4/21 over my M39 versions 4.5/15 and 4/25

griasti. do schau her, a oestareichischa Ricoh A12 user! Mit soittn uns amoi treffn, gibt jo nu a poa von unsara soatn de hia und do amoi auftauchn, warad schen! seass, andi


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 10:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
kuuan wrote:

griasti. do schau her, a oestareichischa Ricoh A12 user! Mit soittn uns amoi treffn, gibt jo nu a poa von unsara soatn de hia und do amoi auftauchn, warad schen! seass, andi

Vuagnumma hamma's uns eh scho amoi. Vielleicht schaff ma's irgendwann.
Seas, Thomas Wink


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 2:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
In order to give you a better idea about the different angles of view I took some test pictures during my daily dog walk. Klick on pictures for larger views.

1. Voigtlaender ULTRA-WIDE HELIAR 12mm/F5.6:


2. Voigtlaender SUPER-WIDE HELIAR 15mm/F4.5:


3. Voigtlaender COLOR-SKOPAR 21mm/F4:


4. Voigtlaender SNAPSHOT-SKOPAR 25mm/F4:


Shot during a cigarette break sitting under a tree with my Ricoh GXR-M. Settings for all lenses identical at F8 and focus to infinity. No PP except resizing. JPGs straight from the camera. I've tried to keep the little blue sign right in the middle of the picture. However, without tripod this is rather difficult. Although I had also the 35mm lens with me, unfortunately the battery was finished after the 25mm shot. Therefore the 5th picture is missing. My 28mm would have been too big for my jeans pockets anyway. I've forgotten the spare battery at home.
There is no relationship between me and the motive, except that I am living near to this scenery.
The trees below the sky in the background are already on the other side of lake Neusiedel in Hungary. Actually I could swim from Austria to Hungary. Wink


PostPosted: Sat May 02, 2015 8:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Those are sharp images. I love it!!



quote="tb_a"]In order to give you a better idea about the different angles of view I took some test pictures during my daily dog walk. Klick on pictures for larger views.

1. Voigtlaender ULTRA-WIDE HELIAR 12mm/F5.6:


2. Voigtlaender SUPER-WIDE HELIAR 15mm/F4.5:


3. Voigtlaender COLOR-SKOPAR 21mm/F4:


4. Voigtlaender SNAPSHOT-SKOPAR 25mm/F4:


Shot during a cigarette break sitting under a tree with my Ricoh GXR-M. Settings for all lenses identical at F8 and focus to infinity. No PP except resizing. JPGs straight from the camera. I've tried to keep the little blue sign right in the middle of the picture. However, without tripod this is rather difficult. Although I had also the 35mm lens with me, unfortunately the battery was finished after the 25mm shot. Therefore the 5th picture is missing. My 28mm would have been too big for my jeans pockets anyway. I've forgotten the spare battery at home.
There is no relationship between me and the motive, except that I am living near to this scenery.
The trees below the sky in the background are already on the other side of lake Neusiedel in Hungary. Actually I could swim from Austria to Hungary. Wink[/quote]


PostPosted: Sun May 03, 2015 1:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
scsambrook wrote:
Apart from being slow for night work, I'm not sure how well the 21mm Skopar will work on the NEX. It's not a retrofocus design and does quite poorly on my M43 body .


on the nex I shot it alot. Very very sharp centers and fuzzy edges, especially at infinity.


DSC00781 by unoh7, on Flickr


PostPosted: Sun May 03, 2015 5:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
uhoh7 wrote:
scsambrook wrote:
Apart from being slow for night work, I'm not sure how well the 21mm Skopar will work on the NEX. It's not a retrofocus design and does quite poorly on my M43 body .


on the nex I shot it alot. Very very sharp centers and fuzzy edges, especially at infinity.


That's quite interesting and I will check if there is a different behaviour on the MFT-System, where I didn't use it so far because I have my quite nice Lumix 20mm/F1.7 lens. The fuzzy edges on the NEX are also new for me. I will make some comparisation pictures and find it out.
However, one thing is obviously true: There is no better camera for those lenses than the Ricoh GXR-M. On this body nearly every M39/LTM lens works best. Finally was that the reason for me to buy it. It may have something to do with the optimized microlens design of the sensor used in the GXR especially for wide angle lenses. Even the most problematic Voigtlaender 12mm/F5.6 lens works almost perfect on this carmera as you can easily see on my sample pictures posted earlier in this thread.
I will follow up this matter with the 21mm Color Skopar and let you know. Luckily I have cameras of all three different systems and all the necessary lenses and adapters.


PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 5:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
uhoh7 wrote:

on the nex I shot it alot. Very very sharp centers and fuzzy edges, especially at infinity.


tb_a wrote:
.. There is no better camera for those lenses than the Ricoh GXR-M. On this body nearly every M39/LTM lens works best.


so I just did ( fast and dirty ) test shots, Color Skopar 4/21 at infinity and middle distance on NEX5n and Ricoh GXR M

full frame of infinity, taken on NEX5n



100% crops @f4, f5.6, f8 and f11:







full frame focus at about 10 to 15m, NEX5n:



100% crops @ f4, f5.6, f8 and f11:






compared those taken with the Ricoh GXR M ( frame not 100% exactly the same, tripod changed to a slighter higher view )
infinity @f4, f5.6, f8 and f11:







and the middle distance 100% crops:





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