Voigtlander Nokton 50mm 1.5 or 1.1?

I used the CV 50/1.5 for about 2 years, and the CV 50/1.1 for about 2 months. I've since sold them both and use a 50/2 Summicron as my all-around 50mm lens, and a 50/1 Noctilux for very low light or when I want that "look".

Some observations on the CV 50mm lenses:

The 50/1.5 is a very very good lens as others have pointed out. I really had no complaints about it. The bokeh is much nicer than the 50/1.1 to my eyes. The only reason I replaced it with a 50/2 summicron is that f/2 is plenty fast for much of what I need, and the Summicron is quite small and light, and takes 39mm filters like most of my other lenses.

The 50/1.1 is surprisingly sharp stopped down a couple of stops, and if one can live with the size and weight it could serve as a do-anything all-around 50mm lens. The focus throw was surprisingly short for such a fast lens, which some may like and others may dislike. Wide open, my copy was quite sharp and quite low in contrast. My Noctilux 50/1 is sharper and contrastier wide open than the CV lens. I didn't like the bokeh of the 50/1.1, in several situations I found it jittery and distracting. The deal breaker for me was that the apparent depth of field at f/1.1 looked much bigger that what you would expect from a 50mm f/1.1 lens. This could be great if you want the lens for very low light and want as much in focus at f/1.1 as possible. But if you want the lens for that very thin DOF look, then it may disappoint.
 
The Noctilux 1.0 costs a very large sum of money. It better be better than the 50/1.1 CV lens.

I also use a Rigid Summicron 50/2. It is a wonderful lens.
 
I have never really swallowed RF baseline as the ultimate measure of focus ability of a system---there's so much more that goes into an RF than just that one number. If it's just raw length, then we all lose to early Contax, and Canon never made a camera that could focus the fast lenses they made.

If we just talk favorite 50s, it's my collapsible Summicron, but sometimes I really appreciate two more stops.
 
sleepyhead said:
I used the CV 50/1.5 for about 2 years, and the CV 50/1.1 for about 2 months. I've since sold them both and use a 50/2 Summicron as my all-around 50mm lens, and a 50/1 Noctilux for very low light or when I want that "look".

Some observations on the CV 50mm lenses:

The 50/1.5 is a very very good lens as others have pointed out. I really had no complaints about it. The bokeh is much nicer than the 50/1.1 to my eyes. The only reason I replaced it with a 50/2 summicron is that f/2 is plenty fast for much of what I need, and the Summicron is quite small and light, and takes 39mm filters like most of my other lenses.

The 50/1.1 is surprisingly sharp stopped down a couple of stops, and if one can live with the size and weight it could serve as a do-anything all-around 50mm lens. The focus throw was surprisingly short for such a fast lens, which some may like and others may dislike. Wide open, my copy was quite sharp and quite low in contrast. My Noctilux 50/1 is sharper and contrastier wide open than the CV lens. I didn't like the bokeh of the 50/1.1, in several situations I found it jittery and distracting. The deal breaker for me was that the apparent depth of field at f/1.1 looked much bigger that what you would expect from a 50mm f/1.1 lens. This could be great if you want the lens for very low light and want as much in focus at f/1.1 as possible. But if you want the lens for that very thin DOF look, then it may disappoint.
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Thanks Sleepy H, from what you've said I think I'd definitely use the 1.5 more. You also make me want both... but I can stretch tot hat at the moment!
 
If you want a modern (and sharp) fast 50mm RF lens, the CV 50/1.1 is a bargain. The real question is whether you benefit more as a photographer by going with another 50mm lens or not.
 
I have only used the CV 1.5 LTM, love it. Use it with film and digital and very pleased with the results.

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Good luck with your decision.
 
raid said:
If you want a modern (and sharp) fast 50mm RF lens, the CV 50/1.1 is a bargain. The real question is whether you benefit more as a photographer by going with another 50mm lens or not.
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I do not own a 50mm lens, only a 35mm on a crop frame camera. 50mm is my preferred focal length, so yes I believe I will certainly benefit from it.
 
The arrival of the M mount CV 50/1.5 caused the price of the used LTM version to drop further. They're now down to $300-400. That may have contributed to the drop of the Canon 50 1.4 which is now closer to $200-250.
 
It all depends on what other 50mm lenses you may have. If you are choosing your main fast lens, pick the 1.5. If you already have an everyday fast 50, the 1.1 is something special for available darkness and super shallow DOF.

Cheers, Dez
 
Update:

Things have taken a turn as I had a 50mm Summicron (Version 4 I believe) loaned to me for the day. Just got the results back and I am really impressed, so much so that I have abandoned the idea of purchasing either the Voigtlander 50mm 1.1 or 1.5 and have bought a Summicron instead! It should arrive in the next few days.

Thanks to everyone for your input, it was really interesting and helpful :)
 
It's arriving tomorrow, excited is understatement... If I keep checking the tracking code online it will arrive faster, right? :)
 
William Temple said:
Update:

Things have taken a turn as I had a 50mm Summicron (Version 4 I believe) loaned to me for the day. Just got the results back and I am really impressed, so much so that I have abandoned the idea of purchasing either the Voigtlander 50mm 1.1 or 1.5 and have bought a Summicron instead! It should arrive in the next few days.

Thanks to everyone for your input, it was really interesting and helpful :)
Click to expand...

Leica glass - best kept secret in photography....
 
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