Voigtlander CV 21mm f/4 on M8/M8.2?

Rob-F

Rob-F

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I see where Ken Rockwell says the CV 21/4 is a great lens on film, but no good on the M9, since the sensor performs badly with angular rays at the edges and corners. But he leaves the door open when it comes to the M8.2, with its smaller sensor, less demanding at the edges. He says just use the Leica 21 ASPH with the M9.

Well, I have the 21ASPH, and it's great, but bulky. For shooting in good light, I might like the CV 21/4 on both film and digital; and I do use the M8.2.

Has anyone tried the 21/4 CV on the M8 or M8.2? How is it?
 
I have the CV 21/4 in S mount, and even with an Amedeo adapter, it will not fit on M8 or M9. I use instead a Canon FD 17/4 with adapter B. There is no distortion.
 
Lss said:
I use it quite a bit. It's a very good combination, but requires coding (or in my case, Cornerfix).
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I have the coding kit for Leica lenses, but not the one for CV lenses. I find that my felt marker coding wears off pretty fast. I recall reading somewhere that some CV lenses (or is it just some of their LTM to M adapters) have a recess so that the felt marker coding won't rub off. How does the M-mount 21/4 rate in that department?
 
raid said:
I have the CV 21/4 in S mount, and even with an Amedeo adapter, it will not fit on M8 or M9. I use instead a Canon FD 17/4 with adapter B. There is no distortion.
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No distortion sounds great! I could go for that. And if I get it in LTM or M mount, I'm sure I won't have any mounting or adapter problems.

Edit: if I got it in LTM, I could use that CV adapter that has a hollowed out space for the coding, right? And I could use it on my Barnacks.
 
The ZM C Biogon 21/4.5 is a stellar, and I mean stellar, performer on the M8 once you have a profile for cornerfix.

I'd expect the CV to be very good, too.
 
Maybe Ken Rockwell happened to get a crappy sample of the lens, but my experience since 2007 with 2 copies of the Voitlander 21/4 (LTM and M) on M8, M9 and M240 is they perform beautifully on all those bodies.

On the M8 I had only the LTM version at the time, and used a vintage Leitz 9cm adapter (no cutout) hand-coded (drilled and filled) as a 21 ASPH because that's what was listed on an online conversion chart, and it took care of the IR-filter-induced cyan corners quite well with no need for Cornerfix. I believe there are aftermarket adapters with coding pits already milled.

When I got the M9 I had to re-code that lens as a 21 PRE-asph because that worked best. When I got the M version of course I coded it likewise. Those codes hold well for the M240 also. Again, no Cornerfix needed.
 
I have 2 M8's one has a CV40mm1.4 and the other has a CV 21mmf4. I find them both to be performers of the utmost quality. I have absolutely no regrets at buying them.
 
Great little lens indeed. My M sample exhibits cyan shift on the M8.2 with UV/IR filter. Got my best results with 000011 coding with same filter (Elmarit-M 28/2.8 v3 # 11804). There is a screw head on the way though so you'll have to paint it carefully if you want to hand code it.
 
Of all my 4 CV lenses, I use this one the most on my M8. The corners are minimally distorted, and only a fraction more than when the same lens is on my Ricoh GXR M with its microlenses. What's impressive is the resolving sharpness of this lens on a 10mp M8. Maybe I just got lucky with a very good example, but its way better than the CV 25mm f4 which I also own, but maybe for that one I got a poor copy. I think from reading various comments over the years, CV lenses are either really decent or a bit lacking, so maybe its QC at the factory, or just that we all see things differently. I won't be trading my one, if thats any kind of recommendation
 
I have to say, I agree with Rockwell on the CV 21/4. Great on film, but crap on my M8/M9. I found the color rendition to be poor, no matter how I coded it. B&W no problem. If you're interested, I'll be posting one for sale. Mint condition.
 
kbg32 said:
I have to say, I agree with Rockwell on the CV 21/4. Great on film, but crap on my M8/M9. I found the color rendition to be poor, no matter how I coded it. B&W no problem. If you're interested, I'll be posting one for sale. Mint condition.
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That's about what Rockwell said: "Although wonderful on film, this lens is awful on the LEICA M9 because its rear nodal point is too close to the sensor.

The left and right sides take on weird color shifts."

But you are saying it's just about as bad on the M8 crop sensor? It seems not everyone is reporting the same results with the M8. I wonder why?
 
Rob-F said:
But you are saying it's just about as bad on the M8 crop sensor? It seems not everyone is reporting the same results with the M8. I wonder why?
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The lens absolutely shows colour shifts on the edges on M8. My lens however performs wonderfully when software correction is applied. It may not be a very kenhuffwellian approach, which is why you can read certain comments on certain websites.
 
Good sample Maggie....nice Business class seat and wine

Btw, I have CV 21/4 LTM for my M8...no complain, sharp, contrast and color good.
For this price and focal range,CV 21/4 LTM is the winner.

~ron~
 
B & W does not show the problems this lens exhibits on the sensors of the M8/9. B&w conversions hide the color rendition/shift problems.
 
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