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Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Fred Miranda
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p.3 #1 · p.3 #1 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Juha Kannisto wrote:
Tough question but based on the enjoyment factor and more ideal size and weight for walk-around use, I might even choose to keep the 35/1.4 first if I had to let one of them go. 40/1.2 is better corrected and I think it works better for low light city shooting since it can be used comfortably at f2.8 for that. I think 40/1.2 is also better for portraits and people shots. However for daylight walk-around use (which is my most common use case with these lenses) I might prefer the 35/1.4 for the size/weight and fun factor. Since I...Show more →

It's tough to decide which one to keep but if I was forced to choose only one, it would be the 40/1.2 for its better performance for landscapes and wider aperture as a general lens.

However, I intend to keep the 35/1.4 as well just because I enjoy its unique rendering and that's very subjective. It's my only 'funky' native and I really like the 35mm FL.

Another way to look at this: If you want the OOF rendering to be part of the composition, go with the 35/1.4 but if you want a less distractive bokeh to better isolate your subject, the 40/1.2 may be a better option. The 'classic' look and overall speed and size of this lens is what's attractive to me.

Oct 21, 2018 at 10:19 PM

juicer
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p.3 #2 · p.3 #2 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

As the OOF areas of the 35 soften at f2 and f2.8, does the look become more comparable to the 40?

Oct 21, 2018 at 10:43 PM

trogdon
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p.3 #3 · p.3 #3 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Just out of curiosity, could you do a comparison of the 35 1.4 wide open versus the 40 1.2 wide open on a subject about 3m away to see the bokeh and perspective differences? I really prefer 35mm to 40mm, but I’m not sure I’d like the bokeh of the 35 classic.

Oct 21, 2018 at 11:21 PM

Gunzorro
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p.3 #4 · p.3 #4 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Fred Miranda wrote:
If f/5.6 across the entire frame, including the extreme corners is a must, the CV 35/1.4 may be out for you. However most Loxias I've tried are only great at the very edges at f/8 or f/9 as well. This copy was actually an exception.

Do other Loxia 35 owners agree?

Thanks for the tests, Fred. Very interesting and revealing comparisons.

I disagree. My Loxia 35 is pretty terrific as well. I see nothing in the CV 35 and 40 to sway me away in a manual focus lens. I'll keep the Loxia 35 as one of my all-time favorites. I managed to get mine used for $700, so there's another point in the Loxia's favor.

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:16 AM

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p.3 #5 · p.3 #5 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Gunzorro wrote:
Thanks for the tests, Fred. Very interesting and revealing comparisons.

I disagree. My Loxia 35 is pretty terrific as well. I see nothing in the CV 35 and 40 to sway me away in a manual focus lens. I'll keep the Loxia 35 as one of my all-time favorites. I managed to get mine used for $700, so there's another point in the Loxia's favor.

Another strong point for the Loxia is the strongest MFD performance from the three lenses tested.

Oct 22, 2018 at 09:39 AM

GMPhotography
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p.3 #6 · p.3 #6 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

I’m thinking I having both the Loxia 35 which I have now and for funky but a nicer overall look and bokeh is add the CV 35 1.7 Ultron back into the mix. It does get sharp in corners at F8 when needed but it has nicer falloff on wider apertures. The Ultron is very under rated. I really like that lens

Oct 22, 2018 at 09:45 AM

Gunzorro
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p.3 #7 · p.3 #7 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Fred Miranda wrote:
Another strong point for the Loxia is the strongest MFD performance from the three lenses tested.

I'm glad you got a decent copy of the Loxia 35. I felt like the man in the wilderness the last few years, being one of the few who was blown away by the Loxia.

I certainly don't think it is a perfect lens (what is?), but for my needs, it is wonderful, in part due to its low distortion. My favorite use is smaller size buildings and gardens, such as houses. A lot of my favorite "woods" shots of the Pacific Northwest are with this lens -- the colors and contrast are pretty amazing, IMO, and well suited to PP improvements. (Thanks again to Chuck Coyne for selling me the lens!)

Oct 22, 2018 at 10:02 AM

ChrisMak
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p.3 #8 · p.3 #8 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Gunzorro wrote:
I'm glad you got a decent copy of the Loxia 35. I felt like the man in the wilderness the last few years, being one of the few who was blown away by the Loxia.

I certainly don't think it is a perfect lens (what is?), but for my needs, it is wonderful, in part due to its low distortion. My favorite use is smaller size buildings and gardens, such as houses. A lot of my favorite "woods" shots of the Pacific Northwest are with this lens -- the colors and contrast are pretty amazing, IMO, and well suited...Show more →

I've got a very nice copy of the Loxia 35

The Loxia that has caught my imagination most though, is the Loxia 25, which may well be the best lens I have ever owned, including the 10 or so Zeiss lenses (I am not a lens freak..). It has taken me a while to adapt my PP'ing to the immense transparency of the Loxia lenses, and sometimes I still miss the look of "classic" lenses like the 28/2 distagon or the 50/2 makro planar, but I have to admit that the Loxia 25 is solidly in a class of its own. It simply does literally everything astoundingly good: wide open, closed down, bokeh, detail rendering (phenomenal on the 42mp bsi sensor), contrast, color. I simply can not find a weak spot other perhaps than it being a very transparent lens, that does not hold e.g. sky-color as well as a classic lens like 25/2 or 28/2. Before you know it, you find yourself turning down exposure a lot only to get the detail and color in bright skies back (all meant as relative to the overall exposed scene). This is actually augmented by the behavior of the Sony BSI 42mp sensor, that can in itself also wreak havoc on high contrast scenes, leaving bright skies as washed out large blobs with the rest of the scene still far from properly lit.

Anyhow, the Loxia 35 seems to struggle a bit more to earn its place on your camera as an allround lens that can not fail, something the Loxia 25 does with ease....

Chris

Oct 22, 2018 at 11:46 AM

Fred Miranda
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p.3 #9 · p.3 #9 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

GMPhotography wrote:
I’m thinking I having both the Loxia 35 which I have now and for funky but a nicer overall look and bokeh is add the CV 35 1.7 Ultron back into the mix. It does get sharp in corners at F8 when needed but it has nicer falloff on wider apertures. The Ultron is very under rated. I really like that lens

The CV 35/1.7 + 5m PCX performance is not much different than the Loxia 35/2's at infinity. I remember testing them side by side and the only difference was that the Voigtlander is sharper at f/2 and f/2.8 at center while the Loxia had slightly better corners.

I feel that the CV 35/1.7 Ultron performs noticeably better than the CV 35/1.4 Classic at infinity at f/5.6 but they are similar at f/8.
They really differ on rendering though. The former has smooth and technically better bokeh while the latter is full of character. (flaws)

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:20 PM

GMPhotography
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p.3 #10 · p.3 #10 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

I made some decisions this morning and maybe not the smartest but I’m keeping the Loxia 35 and continue on with my CV 50 1.2 M mount as my funky lens. I may lose my bloody shirt if it comes out with a E mount though. I’m trying to get my MF kit footprint even smaller. Sooooooo I just bought the CV 21 from Cameraquest. I pulled another hair brain move too but talk about that later.

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:25 PM

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p.3 #11 · p.3 #11 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

GMPhotography wrote:
I made some decisions this morning and maybe not the smartest but I’m keeping the Loxia 35 and continue on with my CV 50 1.2 M mount as my funky lens. I may lose my bloody shirt if it comes out with a E mount though. I’m trying to get my MF kit footprint even smaller. Sooooooo I just bought the CV 21 from Cameraquest. I pulled another hair brain move too but talk about that later.

If I didn't have a good copy of the Loxia 21, I would definitely go with the CV 21/3.5 since I only use this focal length for landscapes at f/8 or smaller where they perform similarly.

I'm hoping Voigtlander releases a high IQ 28mm next!

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:29 PM

GMPhotography
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p.3 #12 · p.3 #12 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

It looks good at F5.6 for street work so I’m going for it. I’ll have it in a day or two and give it a quick test on Big Bronco

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:38 PM

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p.3 #13 · p.3 #13 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

GMPhotography wrote:
It looks good at F5.6 for street work so I’m going for it. I’ll have it in a day or two and give it a quick test on Big Bronco

Oct 22, 2018 at 12:40 PM

MrTMan
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p.3 #14 · p.3 #14 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

ChrisMak wrote:
The Loxia that has caught my imagination most though, is the Loxia 25, which may well be the best lens I have ever owned, including the 10 or so Zeiss lenses (I am not a lens freak..).

I completely agree, the Loxia 25 (and the 85, which is very similar) is a phenomenal lens.

Oct 22, 2018 at 01:06 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.3 #15 · p.3 #15 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

Here are some rendering comparisons at around 0.5m distance.

Which do you prefer?

CV 35/1.4 Classic wide-open has a distinctive character at this distance. Many find this look very attractive

CV 35/1.4 Classic at f/2 goes from harsh to smooth rendering where it's more mainstream acceptable

Loxia 35/2 wide-open has some character as well but less than the Voigtlander

Loxia 35/2 rendering is pretty much smooth starting @f/2.5

CV 40/1.2 wide open yields plenty smooth rendering at this distance

CV 40/2 does not get much smoother @f/2

Oct 22, 2018 at 01:21 PM

GMPhotography
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p.3 #16 · p.3 #16 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

I’m not a fan of the classic at 1.4 it’s just a little too busy but at F2 I like better than the Loxia at F2. Wish you had my CV 50 here but I think the bokeh balls are rounder than the 40 which I like also.

I guess if you really like the Classic wide open bokeh your not going to get that look unless you bought a Noctilux which has that same look. Other than that it’s similar to the others. Maybe I like more corrected lenses at the end of the day

Oct 22, 2018 at 01:28 PM

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p.3 #17 · p.3 #17 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

You may have just won me over to the Voigtlander 35. I like the wide open look and I like it's f/2 better than the Loxia. I used to own the M-mount 35/1.4 and I miss it, but not the lacking EXIF data. I have the Voigtlander 35/1.2 II, but even with the AF adapter, the EXIF data always reads f/2 and is dumb. Heh.

Oct 22, 2018 at 02:05 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.3 #18 · p.3 #18 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

seanj wrote:
You may have just won me over to the Voigtlander 35. I like the wide open look and I like it's f/2 better than the Loxia. I used to own the M-mount 35/1.4 and I miss it, but not the lacking EXIF data. I have the Voigtlander 35/1.2 II, but even with the AF adapter, the EXIF data always reads f/2 and is dumb. Heh.

Yes, you get two distinctive looks with one lens...Wide open, you get that painterly look with prominent specular highlight outlining and @ f/2 you get smoother rendering reminiscent of the Loxia 35. With the CV 40/1.2 you get smooth from wide open, except for the transition zone which remains a bit hash even at narrower apertures.

Oct 22, 2018 at 05:50 PM

bjornthun
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p.3 #19 · p.3 #19 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

I'm not a fan of the OOF rendering of the Nokton 40/1.2 @ f/2 nor the Classic 35/1.4 @ f/2, since I can see the octagon or nine-gon aperture blade shape. Seems maybe 18 rounded aperture blades would be required for smooth bokeh. The aperture must be visibly circular for me to think it's smooth. This annoys me even in movies or TV production, when I can see the shape of the aperture.

Thus only the Loxia 35/2 cuts it at f/2, its open aperture.

Oct 22, 2018 at 07:09 PM

Steve Spencer
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p.3 #20 · p.3 #20 · Comparison: Voigtlander 35/1.4, Loxia 35/2 & Voigtlander 40/1.2

I like the CV 40 better than either of these 35s, and for this shot especially the CV 40 wide open. I find the hard outlining of the other two lenses especially wide open as not at all to my taste. I agree with bjornthun that the decagons (10 sided polygons--I took way too much simple geometry in grade school) of all these lenses are less than ideal when they are stopped down in theses images. That is the price you have to pay for the nice sunstars that come with straight blades. Rounded blades would help here, but would quite negatively affect sunstars.

Oct 22, 2018 at 07:22 PM

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