Fred Miranda wrote:
Over the years, my preferences for lens rendering have evolved quite a bit. When I was shooting with Canon and Sony, I prioritized lenses with incredibly smooth bokeh. My go-to lens was the Sony RX1’s 35/2 Sonnar, which I considered to have perfect rendering with super smooth bokeh with no outlining, round specular highlights, and minimal coma.
However, as I started experimenting with vintage lenses and newer lenses inspired by old designs, my perspective shifted. I began to appreciate that bokeh can be undistracting without being overly smooth and losing all its character.. Unlike many modern lenses, which often render with overly smooth bokeh, vintage lenses offer a unique charm with their imperfections --- cat’s eye effects, bokeh outlining, coma, astigmatism, and even some rough transitions.
Interestingly, some Leica and Voigtlander lenses manage to blend the best of both worlds, delivering modern performance while retaining unique characterr. I believe the Voigtlander 28mm f/1.5 Nokton is a prime example of this..
Sometimes, I can look at an image and almost guess which lens was used, especially those with unique qualities. This is not really possible with many modern lenses like the latest Nikon, Sony GM or Fuji lenses, which tend to have a more uniform, smooth, almost perfect rendering.
Nowadays, I find myself drawn to these characteristics and prefer lenses that display them for many applications. They add a distinct personality to the images, making them stand out in a sea of perfection. ...Show more →
I’m looking forward to your review of the E mount version of this lens. I love my Noktons.
For people that have used this lens and the 24 GM, or the 35/40/50 f1.2 Voigtlander Noktons, how would you compare them? Couple of specific questions or points ahead:
- do we miss f1.2 on the 28/1.5? I only had like 5 f1.2 keepers in 5 years with my CV 40, so it’s not something I relied on heavily, but the glow was cool.
- how is the weight and focal length difference between the 24 GM and 28 Nokton? I’ve began using the 24 GM a lot for video recently and it’s delivering on the home video front really well. The new 28 for E mount looks considerably lighter (320g vs 440g) and might be fun to use for manual focus pulls, but it seems so close to my 24. I can’t decide if the weight and AF/MF difference is enough to double down in the 24-28 range …
I’m trying to slot something in between my 24 GM and Sigma 45, having a hard time deciding between the 28 and 35 Noktons. Dark horse in the mix is the Viltrox 16 for extremely wide shots - my 24 is great for casual indoor stuff, but I’m having a hard time setting the scene with a wide shot.
akashyap wrote:
For people that have used this lens and the 24 GM, or the 35/40/50 f1.2 Voigtlander Noktons, how would you compare them? Couple of specific questions or points ahead:
- do we miss f1.2 on the 28/1.5? I only had like 5 f1.2 keepers in 5 years with my CV 40, so it’s not something I relied on heavily, but the glow was cool.
- how is the weight and focal length difference between the 24 GM and 28 Nokton? I’ve began using the 24 GM a lot for video recently and it’s delivering on the home video front really well. The new 28 for E mount looks considerably lighter (320g vs 440g) and might be fun to use for manual focus pulls, but it seems so close to my 24. I can’t decide if the weight and AF/MF difference is enough to double down in the 24-28 range …
I’m trying to slot something in between my 24 GM and Sigma 45, having a hard time deciding between the 28 and 35 Noktons. Dark horse in the mix is the Viltrox 16 for extremely wide shots - my 24 is great for casual indoor stuff, but I’m having a hard time setting the scene with a wide shot.
I have went through this same conundrum myself, doing both video and photo. I have an VM 28/1.5 but I also have a modded sensor, though not my video camera, which is a pain. Had the GM 24 since launch.
I think the 24 GM is the better lens in terms of video--better correction makes for less focusing on mid-zone or corner weakness, pulling focus, etc. However, the size is appreciably larger, and that FL of 4mm is pretty big--you're really going from a wide angle to a wide angle for a normal scene if that makes sense. For still, easier to crop that and not think much. For video, I can't/don't crop the same way. Though you might differ. Both lenses have very different draws as well, so that something to considered and a potential reason for owning both, aside from size and AF. I personally like using MF lenses with video, but sometimes, like moving dogs, the AF is just so hard to compete with even though much less engaging and pleasurable.
I have both, but I end up shooting the VM 28/1.5 more because I prefer MF, the smaller size, more personality in the rendering. But it does require more maintenance/is harder to shoot.
