p.8 #1 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
imagesfromobjects wrote:
That was my next thought. I originally thought my lens' infinity was exactly at the hard stop, but it's actually juuuust a hair back. As mentioned, if it were exactly at the hard stop, this would *positively* effect how this lens performed, when in conjunction with the other factors (weather, minute camera-based registration distances) especially at this focal length. And it may have something to do with why the CV 15 has a bad rap.
So many variables at play here.
My next testing will be with a tape measure, to check the accuracy of the distance scale. It seems pretty good, but it's important to me for pre-focusing at waist level to know just how much trust I can put in it. Will report back, but in the meantime I'll be enjoying taking actual pictures.
p.8 #5 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
I believe you will like it, if the size is important to you. I was hiking with it at the weekend and found it great. It is not a perfect lens, but sharp enough even well into the corners with pleasant colours and smooth handling. But my opinion might be a little biased, being a CV fanboy :-)
GMPhotography wrote:
I just bit the bullet and ordered one from Cameraquest. I want something small
p.8 #7 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
jhinkey wrote:
It bugs me that CV designs these kind of lenses to be theoretically perfectly at infinity focus at the stop.
This then disallows adjustments for mount to sensor distance variations and lens assembly variations.
With my copy of the 21/3.5 both the center and far corners appear to be still improving when it hits the stop. I think this lens has field curvature to the rear of the image and thus could benefit from being able to go slightly past the infinity stop to improve the frame borders and corners at the expense of slight degradation of the very excellent center. My 40/1.2 is that way and I'm OK with it since I know I can get to a very good image across the frame at infinity (but I don't use it for landscapes so the point is moot a bit for me).
Same issue with my 15/4.5 FE - things appear to still be improving when it hits the stop (this was on my A7RII and my A7RIII so it's likely not a sensor to flange distance issue).
Now to decide if I will try another or live with the weight/bulk of the Lox for those times I'd rather not.
It's odd that when manual focus was not actually available (e.g. my old Canon 10-22 on EOS 400D) I couldn't use the infinity setting because it was much past infinity. I was informed that it there was a reason (temperature, tolerances, etc) and I agreed. Yeah, that camera hadn't live view, nor good enough viewfinder. I even wasn't able to test the focus after taking the shot (the display on the back showed a silly magnified thumbnail instead of the image at 100%).
And now that manual focus is a joy in current Sony cameras, some lenses manufacturers seem to be placing the infinity setting just a bit short, at times. Come on... seriously, how much time will this save us nowadays? At what price?
Oct 22, 2018 at 01:45 PM
imagesfromobjects Offline • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
p.8 #8 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
Me too.
I think this lens is awesome, but it might be wise to have managed expectations. It's not a Loxia. It's not set up to *be* a Loxia. It's half the price and significantly lighter and smaller. But it's definitely no slouch.
Personally, I was just looking for a replacement for my VM Skopar 25/4 and/or Samyang 35mm. Something small and light to carry or use on a gimbal, and something to gap between 15mm and 40mm.
The VM skopar was great in some regards - super sharp centrally from wide open, decent 2/3rds @ f/5.6, but it's made for film. The corners were horrendous on Sony. Unusable for 16:9 video, forget about landscape. The E Mount Skopar is on a whole 'nother level. Sharp edges and 2/3rds wide open, corners @ 5.6. The color signature and rendering are my cup of tea. It's TINY.
So, yeah. I never expected it to be Loxia-grade, but it's way better than I thought it would be. 100% satisfied.
p.8 #9 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
imagesfromobjects wrote:
Me too.
I think this lens is awesome, but it might be wise to have managed expectations. It's not a Loxia. It's not set up to *be* a Loxia. It's half the price and significantly lighter and smaller. But it's definitely no slouch.
Personally, I was just looking for a replacement for my VM Skopar 25/4 and/or Samyang 35mm. Something small and light to carry or use on a gimbal, and something to gap between 15mm and 40mm.
The VM skopar was great in some regards - super sharp centrally from wide open, decent 2/3rds @ f/5.6, but it's made for film. The corners were horrendous on Sony. Unusable for 16:9 video, forget about landscape. The E Mount Skopar is on a whole 'nother level. Sharp edges and 2/3rds wide open, corners @ 5.6. The color signature and rendering are my cup of tea. It's TINY.
So, yeah. I never expected it to be Loxia-grade, but it's way better than I thought it would be. 100% satisfied.
Yes, it's no Loxia, but it should meet some minimum performance for a $700 lens (like sharp to the corners by f/5.6). Sure, it's half the price Lox, but it's also not f/2.8 and it's also not weather resistant (no gasket) and it's not a Zeiss.
Also, CV said it was optimized for the thick cover glass of the Sony sensors on E mount and thus had great performance off into the corners (not sure of the exact language). Clearly with my copy I don't consider that the case.
p.8 #11 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
jhinkey wrote:
Yes, it's no Loxia, but it should meet some minimum performance for a $700 lens (like sharp to the corners by f/5.6). Sure, it's half the price Lox, but it's also not f/2.8 and it's also not weather resistant (no gasket) and it's not a Zeiss.
Also, CV said it was optimized for the thick cover glass of the Sony sensors on E mount and thus had great performance off into the corners (not sure of the exact language). Clearly with my copy I don't consider that the case.
I look forward to hearing other people's review of the lens and if other copies are better centered and perform like Fred's review lens did. I'm still waiting for my order to come in (B & H) and will test it when in hand. Sounds like you may have gotten a dud.
p.8 #16 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
I got mine yesterday.
Lovely tiny lens with build that screams quality.
I grabbed few frames against the sun and sharpness/contrast/sunstars are wonderful.
Time permitting I will test it against my 16-35 GM in the next days.
p.8 #18 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
jhinkey wrote:
It could also just be that my copy couldn't get slightly past infinity focus to clean up the mid-field and corners to an acceptable level.
This could very well be the issue with your copy John.
I'm a bit uncomfortable with my copy's infinity being at the hard stop. It would be better if it was a tad before it to make sure it's not causing the weirdness with the mid-field. I'm getting a second copy to confirm this.
p.8 #19 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
Mine is ever so slightly before the hard stop, although once I hit it the peaking levels don稚 change much. I need to play with this more in morning to be certain of it for sure. But today my mid zone on a shot down the street looked pretty good. But I知 not confirming anything yet till I知 on a tripod tomorrow which I hope I can. It痴 raining CV and Loxias here.
Oct 23, 2018 at 07:55 PM
imagesfromobjects Offline • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
p.8 #20 · Voigtlander 21mm f/3.5 Color Skopar Review
Mine's right before the hard stop, but a little hard to tell. The throw between 2m and infinity is just a few millimeters, so any variation could throw things off. It won't make much difference to me- I will be using it <3m most of the time, but it would make me a little more comfortable also if it turned a bit more past.
