wwilliams
Member
I am considering buying one of the Voigtlander Vito series and am trying to figure out the difference between the Vito CLR and the Vitomatic 2. Both seem to have rangefinders and built in exposure meters. Is there some other difference I am overlooking?
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konicaman
konicaman
The Vitomatic II is about 1/3 smaller than the CLR and app. 100 gr. heavier. The II has more shutter times 1- 1/300 vs. 1/15-500 on the CLR. Otherwise they are rather identical. IIa is about the same size as the II but has the meter needle visible in the viewfinder, so you don't have to remove the camera from eye level to adjust shutter or aperture. I have both the CLR and the Vitomatic II - somehow the II feels better build - but it might just be pure psychology, due to the smaller size and larger weight?
The Color-Skopar delivers really sharp pics except on full aperture (2.8) with a nice neutral color rendition. My first Voigtländer was a Vitomatic IIa - I have had that for more than 30 years and for several years it was my carry-everywhere camera. I took it out of the cupboard last week - after more than 10 years of inactivity - and shot a birthday party for one of my friends in B/W. Risky you might say, but the Vitos usually just keeps on ticking when kept dry at normal room temperature. Pics were really nice, no problems at all.
I have about 15 different Voigtländer rangefinders in my collection - all gifts or bought for peanuts at flea markets or thrifts stores. I have had many through my hand and have only ever come across 1 or 2 that had stuck shutters and needed a CLA. The meters are not always working though, but that is another matter.
The Color-Skopar delivers really sharp pics except on full aperture (2.8) with a nice neutral color rendition. My first Voigtländer was a Vitomatic IIa - I have had that for more than 30 years and for several years it was my carry-everywhere camera. I took it out of the cupboard last week - after more than 10 years of inactivity - and shot a birthday party for one of my friends in B/W. Risky you might say, but the Vitos usually just keeps on ticking when kept dry at normal room temperature. Pics were really nice, no problems at all.
I have about 15 different Voigtländer rangefinders in my collection - all gifts or bought for peanuts at flea markets or thrifts stores. I have had many through my hand and have only ever come across 1 or 2 that had stuck shutters and needed a CLA. The meters are not always working though, but that is another matter.
Keyne
Established
I havent used a CLR but I love the meter on the Vitomatic II for street shooting. You can easily see the meter on top while you are walking, lock in exposure, zone focus and then quickly bring to the eye for composition. Really nice. It is one of my favorite things about the design. Also, the color skopar is a very nice lens IMO.
ErnestoJL
Well-known
One big difference between the Vito CLR and the old Vitomatics (up to model IIa and besides that mentioned previously) is that in the CLR (as well as Vitomatics IIb and II Cs), focusing is done by front cell displacement instead of moving the full lens assembly. I think that Voigtländer decided to choose that system because of cost reasons only, but anyway performance of the Color Skopar doesn´t seem to suffer.
Cheers
Ernesto
Cheers
Ernesto