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Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

weezintrumpete
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Fred - I'll be curious to hear your impressions of the aluminum vs brass versions. I bought the brass (black paint) version and while it feels heavy, like quality, etc, I'm somewhat regretting not going for the lighter version (which I assumed wouldn't feel as good).

Nov 30, 2022 at 12:37 PM

Desmolicious
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

rscheffler wrote:
That would be cool. Sounds like a good 3D printer project for someone.

Or remove the glass from a cheap 39mm filter? Or a 39-43mm step ring?

That still shows the silver rim. I have a black rim B+W filter on my CV 35 1.4 v2. It seems it would be such a simple thing for CV to provide, and I'd happily pay for it.

Nov 30, 2022 at 01:09 PM

qiu0717
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Desmolicious wrote:
I wish Voigtlander made black trim rings to cover up the bright chrome filter threads when a lens hood is not being used. Something similar to what Leica does with the 35mm FLE v1.
It would make the lenses look so much better and perhaps help reduce flare when a hood is not used.

Agreed. I think I will model and 3D printed one if I have it on my hand.

Nov 30, 2022 at 01:59 PM

wolfloid
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

I wish Voigtlander made black trim rings to cover up the bright chrome filter threads when a lens hood is not being used. Something similar to what Leica does with the 35mm FLE v1. It would make the lenses look so much better and perhaps help reduce flare when a hood is not used.

Your words in their ear. That and the excessive size of some of their hoods is annoying.

Nov 30, 2022 at 02:59 PM

rji2goleez
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

I have the 28 Ultron II and it's small. Very impressed with the size of the 35/1.5. And I agree with others it appears that the 28 Ultron is a bit sharper throughout. Of course, it remains to be seen once Fred confirms sharpness with other copies.

Nov 30, 2022 at 03:07 PM

nehemiahphoto
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

I stress tested my 35/1.5 today for flare and ghosting, I got more than I initially thought and hoped. More than the 35/1.7. I'll not invade your review with my own test photos, but I am very curious what your results are.

Nov 30, 2022 at 05:56 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

nehemiahphoto wrote:
I stress tested my 35/1.5 today for flare and ghosting, I got more than I initially thought and hoped. More than the 35/1.7. I'll not invade your review with my own test photos, but I am very curious what your results are.

Nehemiah,
Feel free to post your own tests and sample images. I will link it to the main page. The more info the better!
So, far I'm getting overcast conditions but once the sun is out, I will test for flare resistance. My first impression was that the lens performed well in this regard.

Nov 30, 2022 at 06:43 PM

rramesh
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Fred, keen to understand if there is there any focus shift on a rangefinder?

Nov 30, 2022 at 07:13 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

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Optical Vignetting and Specular Highlights shape

The Voigtlander 35mm f/1.4 Nokton is a very compact and fast lens so I was not expecting low optical vignetting. It's actually pronounced as you can see from the crops below and samples images. Specular highlights go from round at center to cat-eye shape towards the edge of the frame. I have never seen a fast 35mm lens capturing round 'bokeh balls' towards the edges of the frame, with the exception of the RX1's Sonnar 35/2.

The specular highlights' inner structure is not very clean. It shows onion ring pattern, due to the lens' 4 aspherical surfaces.

The lens is equipped with a 12-blade aperture which should ensure round specular highlights even stopped down. However, under high magnification, it's possible to detect the dodecagon shape even stopping down from f/1.5 to f/2.5

Here are some samples showing how the specular highlights are affected by optical vignetting at f/1.5, f/2, f/2.5 and f/2.8:

Sample 1 @ 1.5m

f/1.5

f/2

f/2.5

f/2.8

f/1.5 at high magnification

f/2 at high magnification

f/2.5 at high magnification

f/2.8 at high magnification

Nov 30, 2022 at 09:11 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #10 · p.2 #10 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Sample 2 @ 0.7m

f/1.5

f/2

f/2.5

f/2.8

f/1.5 at high magnification

f/2 at high magnification

f/2.5 at high magnification

f/2.8 at high magnification

Nov 30, 2022 at 09:13 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #11 · p.2 #11 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Sample 3 @ 0.5m

f/1.5

f/2

f/2.5

F2.8

f/1.5 at high magnification

f/2 at high magnification

f/2.5 at high magnification

f/2.8 at high magnification

Nov 30, 2022 at 09:14 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #12 · p.2 #12 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Sample 4 @ infinity distance
(The longer the focused distance the more extreme the optical vignetting)

f/1.5

f/2

f/2.5

F2.8

f/1.5 at high magnification

f/2 at high magnification

f/2.5 at high magnification

f/2.8 at high magnification

Nov 30, 2022 at 09:15 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #13 · p.2 #13 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

rramesh wrote:
Fred, keen to understand if there is there any focus shift on a rangefinder?

Yes, MFD performance and focus shift are tests scheduled on this review.

Here is the list:
https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1784972/0#ql

Tomorrow I will receive two more copies of the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton. One Type I (aluminum) and the other Type II (brass). Although my initial copy is well centered, I want to make sure resolution and contrast are optimal for the tests presented here.

Nov 30, 2022 at 09:23 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #14 · p.2 #14 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

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Focus Shift

Rangefinder shooters will be happy to know that the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton has negligible focus shift. I'd say the lens is well corrected for focus shift and it's not a concern focusing with the rangefinder and stopping the lens down from wide open.

Here is a 100% crop sequence shot at f/1.5, f/2, f/2.8 and f/4, focused with the rangefinder at 1.3m distance:

Update: I've added a second test shot diagonally showing depth with the ruler which confirms that focus shift is negligible with this lens. It was focused at f/1.5 and stopped down to f/2, f/2.8 and f/4 without refocusing.

f/1.5 (LEFT) | f/2 (RIGHT)

f/2 (LEFT) | f/2.8 (RIGHT)

f/2.8 (LEFT) | f/4 (RIGHT)

Rangefinder focused at f/2 (LEFT) | LiveView re-focused at f/2 (RIGHT)

Rangefinder focused at f/2.8 (LEFT) | LiveView re-focused at f/2.8 (RIGHT)

Rangefinder focused at f/4 (LEFT) | LiveView re-focused at f/4 (RIGHT)

Focus shift Test 2: Focused with the rangefinder, aperture set to f/1.5 and f/2

Focus shift Test 2: Focused with the rangefinder, aperture set to f/2 and f/2.8

Focus shift Test 2: Focused with the rangefinder, aperture set to f/2.8 and f/4. Very small shift, likely negligible in real images.

Dec 01, 2022 at 12:05 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #15 · p.2 #15 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

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Minimal Focus Distance performance

The Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton focuses down to 0.5m and performs well even wide open. There is some residual spherical aberration wide open but resolution and contrast improves when stopping down to f/2 and f/2.8.

It's a very good performance at 0.5m distance wide open even though the lens is not equipped with a floating system.

MFD @0.5m: f/1.5 (LEFT) | f/2 (RIGHT)

MFD @0.5m: f/2(LEFT) | f/2.8 (RIGHT)

MFD @0.5m: f/2.8 (LEFT) | f/4 (RIGHT)

Dec 01, 2022 at 12:43 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #16 · p.2 #16 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

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Infinity performance on the Sony A74

The Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton is not optimized for the thicker Sony sensor and therefore this combination degrades image quality considerably. There is more astigmatism and extreme field curvature when using the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton on the Sony A74 body. Expect even more side effects when using this lens on higher resolution Sony bodies.

The lens is sharp wide open and performs very well at center but due to induced field curvature, it performs poorly at mid-field and corners unless stopping the lens down to f/8 where it's actually a great performer even on the Sony.

Here is the full image thumbnail showing the area demonstrated at 1:1 magnification.

Distance: Infinity
Camera: Leica M10-R
Focus: Center - Best of three @ 12.4x magnification
WB: Daylight
Lens centered using my decentering test. The Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton is perfectly centered.
Software: Lightroom with my default landscape sharpening. All other settings set to default

PS: Distortion is not corrected. All in-camera corrections turned 'off'.

___________

CENTER: Infinity performance on the Sony A74

f/1.5 (LEFT) | f/2 (RIGHT)

f/2 (LEFT) | f/2.8 (RIGHT)

f/2.8 (LEFT) | f/4 (RIGHT)

f/4 (LEFT) | f/5.6 (RIGHT)

f/5.6 (LEFT) | f/8 (RIGHT)

Dec 01, 2022 at 01:06 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #17 · p.2 #17 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

MID-FIELD: Infinity performance on the Sony A74

Mid-field: f/1.5 (LEFT) | f/2 (RIGHT)

Mid-field: f/2 (LEFT) | f/2.8 (RIGHT)

Mid-field: f/2.8 (LEFT) | f/4 (RIGHT)

Mid-field: f/4 (LEFT) | f/5.6 (RIGHT)

Mid-field: f/5.6 (LEFT) | f/8 (RIGHT)

Dec 01, 2022 at 01:06 PM

Fred Miranda
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p.2 #18 · p.2 #18 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

EXTREME CORNER: Infinity performance on the Sony A74

Extreme corner: f/1.5 (LEFT) | f/2 (RIGHT)

Extreme corner: f/2 (LEFT) | f/2.8 (RIGHT)

Extreme corner: f/2.8 (LEFT) | f/4 (RIGHT)

Extreme corner: f/4 (LEFT) | f/5.6 (RIGHT)

Extreme corner: f/5.6 (LEFT) | f/8 (RIGHT)

Dec 01, 2022 at 01:06 PM

nehemiahphoto
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p.2 #19 · p.2 #19 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

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Most is this is lifted from the announcement CV 35/1.5 thread found here, but I have consolidated from this review thread.

https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1778058/12

Near performance compared to the Sigma 35i on stock Sony:

For reference, I set up a tripod about 8 feet away from a bookshelf. Mounted a Sigma 35i which is good across the frame WO. Then the new CV 35/1.5 @ f2 with the focus on the center. Then the CV 35/1.5 @ f2 with the focus on the edge. Even at this distance, you can see the Sigma is better across the frame, and when we change the focus point on CV 35/1.5, we change sharpness, trading the better edge and better midframe for worse center, I am assuming FC from the sensor stack. I am going to mount the CV 35/1.5 on a modded sensor tomorrow I think.

Size and ergo on the CV are lovely though.

Some samples and immediate observations from casual shooting:
Some samples from very limited shooting in bad light. Processed normally for me--interested in what real world photos look like. The only thing I left off is LoCal correction (there is a fair bit WO in high contrast). Not really seeing or feeling as much SA as I recall with the 35/40/50 1.2's. Very high central sharpness and contrast--really like the colors on the newer CV glass. These are all on stock Sony.

Sunstars start at f2 and are decently defined.

Flare resistance is excellent--better than some other modern CV's. You can induce minor ghost if you really push.

Ergonomically great--one of those lenses where things just pop into focus in the EVF--very easy to manual focus.

You can make the bokeh look a bit nervous and ugly, even centrally (sensor stack indepedant) if you try. Mostly pleasant though.

Not a character lens--very balanced feel to the files. Very little magic, though I do like them. Just a solid transparent feel when processing. Very much an all-around successor to the 35/1.7 in my opinion. While not perfect, my initial thought it that I am impressed and will easily prefer this lens over the ZM 35/1.5 and 35 Lux's, esp. given size and price.

WO - stock Sony - mid distance

f8 - stock Sony

WO - stock Sony

f8 - stock Sony

WO - stock Sony

Bokeh stress test (WO A7c)

LoCal (WO on A7c with no LoCal correction)

Swirl (optical vignetting) WO - stock Sony

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Dec 01, 2022 at 01:33 PM

nehemiahphoto
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p.2 #20 · p.2 #20 · Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 Nokton Review

Real World SA Samples:

This lens has a much more crisp feel--the SA is very minor, and much less than the 35/40/50 1.2 I've shot. Below are crops from a modded a7--I took a series at 1.5, f2 and 2.8. One with dark subjects, and one with brights that SA shows up on more in my experience a bit.

I’ve included 3 actual photos, at different distances, all WO. You'll see there's very very minimal SA.

8 feet away WO

0.7 meters WO

20 feet away WO

Edited on Dec 01, 2022 at 04:01 PM · View previous versions

Dec 01, 2022 at 01:45 PM

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