Over ten years ago, drooling over Voigtlander

[Archiver]

Not sure if this belongs here, but it pertains to Voigtlander lenses, so here it goes.

Over ten years ago, perhaps in 2007, I was regularly looking at this list of lenses, and drooling.

https://cameraquest.com/voigtlen.htm

Stephen lists every single Voigtlander lens here, with many group pictures for comparison. This page was like a Playboy magazine, only for lenses.

As I was new to RF shooting at the time, some of these lenses seemed so fascinating and exotic. The 35mm f1.2 Nokton, billed as 'the fastest 35 ever made', the pancake lenses as small as stacks of coins, the external viewfinders, and the images of lenses mated with Voigtlander and Leica bodies.

Now, I have many of these lenses and often think of which to buy next. Ten years have passed pretty quickly. Many of my favourite images have been taken with Voigtlander lenses, and I look forward to many more years with them.

 

[citizen99]

I had an earlier generation, the Ultron (Vitessa) and Heliar (Bessa RF), both top-class of their day. Your list is certainly drool-worthy

.

 

[charjohncarter]

I don't know your age but at 21 I bought a Leica Elmar 50mm f 3.5; I am now 76. It is still mounted on an RF camera (either a IIIf or a Bessa R) and I used it yesterday. You will get nothing but pleasure from your lenses.

 

[j.scooter]

I am now on my third Nokton 35 1.2. Each of the previous two times I sold it I kicked myself.

It matches so well with my M5 that was given to me by a dear friend.

I will not be getting rid of either.

I have my eye on the Ultron 21 1.8 as my next acquisition

 

[zuiko85]

How much drooling? Are Voighlander lenses slobber proof?

 

[Ccoppola82]

Voigtländer makes some really nice lenses for my purposes. I have 3 now. It’s funny that I’ve seen people say “man, I wish somebody made classic lenses as New builds,” then Voigtländer does it and people complain about their “flaws”. I, for one have had nothing but good times carrying around my little Nokton 35sc on my M2, or my 50 1.5 for a bit more modern rendering. Just can’t beat the value imo. This is coming from a hobbyist though. A professional would likely be far more critical...but in that case 8 would think one would research extensively and know what they are buying.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

It is only Voigtlander (Cosina) who makes RF lenses with normal ergonomics, normal optics and makes sense price for new RF lenses.
And they are available locally.

 

[Ccoppola82]

It is only Voigtlander (Cosina) who makes RF lenses with normal ergonomics, normal optics and makes sense price for new RF lenses.
And they are available locally.

2 of my 3 are ergonomically very nice. The 21mm Skopar and 35 1.4. The Nokton 50 isn’t my favorite to shoot with, but I adjust to it easily and make it work.

 

[Gregm61]

Of the three I have, the 35mm f1.7 Ulton VM is every bit as good as Leica's 35mm f1.4 FLE and 35mm f2 Summicron ASPH (I have all three and switch between them often), the 21mm f1.8 Ultron is superb and the 75mm f1.8 Heliar Classic is a much easier lens to focus accurately than the Leica 75mm f2 APO.

 

[BillBingham2]

I've sadly sold all my CV glass. While many were wonderful, I miss the 25/4 Snap-Shot most of all.

I wish CV would look at making smaller form-factor glass for Mirrorless. Boutique expensive glass returns a lot of cash, I think there is a large market for great reasonably priced prime glass that is average fast (e.g. 2.0 vs 1.2).

B2 (;->

 

[summar]

The 21/4 Skopar is one of my favorite lenses, especially for b&w. Nice that I can use it on a Barnack and an M Leica!

 

[Archiver]

My first Voigtlander lenses were the 25/4P Skopar and 35/1.4 Nokton MC, which paired up with my Zeiss Ikon. The 25/4P with the Ikon is a very light and unobtrusive shooter.

As time went by, I got the 35/1.2 Nokton V1, 75/2.5 Heliar and 50/3.5 collapsible Heliar in nickel. By that time, I had the M9, which opened up all kinds of worlds of imagery. The 50mm Heliar has the most organic rendering of any RF lens I've tried; it's sharp and crisp but also 'rounded', not sure how to describe it.

I had a 35/1.7 Ultron LTM for a week but it missed focus by about two inches, which lead me to return it. The handling and rendering of this lens were some of the best I'd experienced.

The 15/4.5 Heliar LTM and 12/5.6 Heliar VM came later. I use them with the Ricoh GXR just as much as the M9 and M7.

I'm still thinking about a 35/2.5 Color Skopar, 75/1.8 Heliar, 35/1.7 Ultron VM, 50/1.5 Nokton VM and the new 40/1.2 Nokton. The fast wides like the 21/1.8 aren't as appealing to me as they seem very large and heavy, and the 35/1.2 is about as heavy as I want in a RF lens. So many choices, so much fun.

 

[AJShepherd]

Well I started with the MC 40mm f1.4 Nokton Classic on my Bessa R3A, and added the thread mount set of 15mm Super-Wide Heliar, 25mm Snapshot Skopar, and 75mm Color Heliar. The 15mm and 25mm haven't had a lot of use, and the 15mm can be a problem to use both physically (view through the accessory viewfinder is blurred when I'm wearing glasses) and conceptually as I find I really need something up close and personal to anchor the shot.

That said, I recently picked up a Bessa L (thread mount, no viewfinder) as encouragement to use the 15 and 25mm lenses more.

The 40mm will always be my favourite though,

 

[Mcary]

Have two Voigtlander lens the 75mm F2.5 LTM and the 21mm F 1.8 Ultron which has been my most used lens since buying it in 2015.

 

[Archiver]

I've just picked up another LTM 35mm f1.7, and it seems fairly haze free, and this time it focuses perfectly on my M9. Very happy indeed!

 

[_lou_]

All my lenses for leica mount are from Voigtländer. My preferred probably is the 3.5 28mm Skopar. I use it on the Zeiss Ikon, a very good match. I wish I could shoot digital with it.

 

[steveyork]

With the Cosina manufactured lenses from Zeiss and Voigtlander, I've often thought we've been living in the golden age of rangefinder optics. It's one good reason to shoot M mount cameras.

PS -- Makes Leica stuff seem incredibly overpriced, but that's always been the case.

 

[Peter_S]

With the optics in the Bessa IIIW/667W, the new 65 mm/1:2,0 Macro Apo-Lanthar Aspheric, or the VM 21 mm Ultron f/1.8, they also showed that they can built lenses that are just top-notch, irrespective of pricing.

 

[ColSebastianMoran]

This page was like a Playboy magazine, only for lenses.

Your favorite centerfold?

Mine is the 50 f/1.5 Nokton which I have in S mount for my S2, Bessa R2S, and occasionally Sony digital. Besides the optical performance, the build quality is wonderful.

 

[markjwyatt]

The 21/4 Skopar is one of my favorite lenses, especially for b&w. Nice that I can use it on a Barnack and an M Leica!

Same with me except I have the SC mount on my Contax. I really love the 50mm f2 Sonnar, but the 21mm view seems to fit better with my shooting style, so it seems rare when it comes off the camera recently.