p.3 #1 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
d.s. wrote:
I don't remember where, but read the 21/2.8 Biogon performs a bit better than the 21/3.5 Skopar on a Sony(?), but these results look great. I'm glad I just bought one.
I recall all of the Biogons being pretty bad on Sony sensors. But I'm mostly thinking of how things were in 2012-2013 on the Nex-7 and the first A7.
p.3 #2 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
Taylor Sherman wrote:
I recall all of the Biogons being pretty bad on Sony sensors. But I'm mostly thinking of how things were in 2012-2013 on the Nex-7 and the first A7.
I've tried the Zeiss 21/2.8 Biogon on the A7R II a few years back and saw a very exaggerated field curvature.
So far, the CV 21/3.5 seems to be a great choice for both systems but I have not tried the 21/1.4 Nokton VM version yet.
In the future I may add Zeiss and Leica lenses to this comparison thread as well.
p.3 #3 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
The 21/4.5 Biogon is mega bad on a Sony It’s also pretty bad (or so I’ve read) on color M’s as well. It’s great on the 2 Monochrom’s Ive used it on - original and M10M.
I’m kind of curious to see what the ZM 35/2 is like on a Sony since the Loxia looks like a tweaked version of it.
p.3 #5 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
So Voigtländer has managed to produce a 21mm M-mount lens that works very well on both Leica M and Sone FE cameras (and other mirrorless mounts I assume) that sells for a very reasonable price. Well done Voigtländer!
p.3 #6 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
joakim wrote:
So Voigtländer has managed to produce a 21mm M-mount lens that works very well on both Leica M and Sone FE cameras (and other mirrorless mounts I assume) that sells for a very reasonable price. Well done Voigtländer!
Yes, I don't know any other 21mm that would work well for both Sony and Leica. I will try the Voigtlander 21/.1.4 Nokton VM as well.
So, I've tested the CV 50/3.5 Heliar again and ran into the same issue I had with other VM lenses. The lens' infinity hard top does not allow me to reach true infinity. It was the case with my CV 35/1.2 III, CV 35/1.4, CV 28/2 and now CV 50/3.5. It's not the body mount to sensor tolerance since I tested them on both Leica M240 and M10 bodies...
The good news is that the CV 50/3.5 Heliar performs great on both systems as well. I will post crops soon.
p.3 #8 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
Voigtlander 12mm f/5.6 Ultra Wide-Heliar Aspherical III
Mid-field resolution comparison only Sony and Leica bodies
Mid-field at f/5.6: The Sony appears a tad stronger but it is due to the Sony's higher resolution sensor downsampled to Leica's 24MP size. If a Sony appears stronger, that just means the M-mount lens performs similarly on both Leica and Sony
p.3 #10 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
Based on the crops above, I'd say that the Voigtlander 12mm f/5.6 III VM performs similarly on both Sony and Leica sensors. I don't have the CV 15/4.5 III anymore to post crops but I've tested this before and the same is true for this lens.
p.3 #11 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
As I wrote previously my CV 50/3.5 Heliar copy is not able to focus at infinity at the hard stop -- A common trend I see with Voigtlander lenses. The difference is very tiny but enough to make things apparent at 1:1 magnification.
However, I've analyzed the crops and the CV 50/3.5 'Sony' images are razor sharp in all areas of the image field. I don't see any induced field curvature.
See images below showing the Sony crops at f/4. I'm not showing the Leica crops because they look softer since I can't focus at infinity.
Based on these crops, I would say the CV 50/3.5 Heliar is outstanding on the Sony sensor. Perhaps only the Voigtlander 50/2 APO will perform better here.
p.3 #12 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
Very interesting comparison! Are you going to shave it? because if the lee seven5 does not vignete, it would be a very interesting lens
Fred Miranda wrote:
Based on the crops above, I'd say that the Voigtlander 12mm f/5.6 III VM performs similarly on both Sony and Leica sensors. I don't have the CV 15/4.5 III anymore to post crops but I've tested this before and the same is true for this lens.
p.3 #13 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
hanay78 wrote:
Very interesting comparison! Are you going to shave it? because if the lee seven5 does not vignete, it would be a very interesting lens
I'm pretty sure the CV 12/5.6 will vignette with the Seven5 + NDs. It works with the CV 15/4.5 III with the pedals removed but it's the limit for this adapter. The Seven5 polarizer won't work with any FL shorter than 21mm.
I will leave the CV 12/5.6 III VM as its and just shoot with my A7R II + SR app whenever I need the ND effect.
p.3 #14 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
It's surprising how consistent the 12mm is between the two cameras. I wonder if the corners are better on film.
Fred, I don't know if it's already on your list, but I highly recommend giving the ZM 15/2.8 a rental. It's big, roughly the same size and weight as the Laowa 15/2, and vignettes so badly they include a center filter, but the results are never less than impressive on an M or modded-Sony.
p.3 #15 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
freaklikeme wrote:
It's surprising how consistent the 12mm is between the two cameras. I wonder if the corners are better on film.
Fred, I don't know if it's already on your list, but I highly recommend giving the ZM 15/2.8 a rental. It's big, roughly the same size and weight as the Laowa 15/2, and vignettes so badly they include a center filter, but the results are never less than impressive on an M or modded-Sony.
p.3 #16 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
“Based on these crops, I would say the CV 50/3.5 Heliar is outstanding on the Sony sensor. Perhaps only the Voigtlander 50/2 APO will perform better here.“
Fred, since you have both Voigtlanders, the Heliar and the APO, have you had a chance to compare them side-by-side at distance on Sony? Also, do you know if the Heliar IV formula is identical to that of the collapsible screw-mount (Version 1, Anniversary)?
p.3 #20 · Best Voigtlander M-mount lenses for Leica and Sony sensors
For my usage, more interesting would be the gradient filters. Is there an app that mimics this effect? I use gradient filters all the time. What is people doing in this respect?
Fred Miranda wrote:
I'm pretty sure the CV 12/5.6 will vignette with the Seven5 + NDs. It works with the CV 15/4.5 III with the pedals removed but it's the limit for this adapter. The Seven5 polarizer won't work with any FL shorter than 21mm.
I will leave the CV 12/5.6 III VM as its and just shoot with my A7R II + SR app whenever I need the ND effect.
It’s also pretty bad (or so I’ve read) on color M’s as well. It’s great on the 2 Monochrom’s Ive used it on - original and M10M. 
