I used EFCS and anti-flicker ON on all of the shots since the event hall is artificially lit and the shutter speeds were relatively slow so I think there would be no ill effects on bokeh from using EFCS. I didn't want to get any banding effects from using ES in artificial light.
There are a couple of sequence shots there where I tried to shoot the same target going through all the different SA control settings one by one from the most undercorrected (soft focus effect) to the most overcorrected (while shooting wide open at f1.8). There are markers for 6 undercorrected positions and 4 overcorrected positions and the middle position, so overall 11 different positions are marked. The extreme end positions have hard stops, and the middle position has a click stop as well, but the intermediate undercorrected and overcorrected positions have no click stops, so it's possible to use any in-between settings too.
When there are 11 shots of the same target in a sequence, they would always be progressing from most undercorrected to the most overcorrected, step by step. The 7th shot would be the one with standard correction. The first sequence has 12 shots so I must have made some mistake there and shot with one position twice. There are also some non-sequence shots. Not very scientific test but I think it gives some idea on the range of control.
The most undercorrected settings produce really strong soft focus effects.
I think I will enjoy this lens a lot personally as it offers a lot of shooting options. I didn't really explore other apertures than f1.8 except for the one wall shot at f5.6. I will try to get some better stopped down shots tomorrow....Show more →
Thanks Juha!
This image [Link] looks similar to what I get with the CV 75/1.8 Heliar VM wide open. I really like the next setting toward SA overcorrection, starting from the default setting in this image.
The previous image shows more spherical aberration, which also affects specular highlights. The images after this one have stronger outlining, which gives a cool effect.
Having said that, the SA under-correction 'glow' could work very nicely for portraits.
Fred Miranda wrote:
Thanks Juha!
This image [Link] looks similar to what I get with the CV 75/1.8 Heliar VM wide open. I really like the next setting toward SA overcorrection, starting from the default setting in this image.
The previous image shows more spherical aberration, which also affects specular highlights. The images after this one have stronger outlining, which gives a cool effect.
Having said that, the SA under-correction 'glow' could work very nicely for portraits.
Yeah, that's probably the "standard setting" shot on this sequence I probably made some mistake in the beginning of this sequencde as there are 12 shots, the first two shots might be at the same setting (most undercorrected).
Juha Kannisto wrote:
Yeah, that's probably the "standard setting" shot on this sequence I probably made some mistake in the beginning of this sequencde as there are 12 shots, the first two shots might be at the same setting (most undercorrected).
They should also release the CV 50/1.5 Heliar Classic VM in E-mount with the SA ring! I've heard this lens is popular in Japan.
Juha Kannisto wrote:
I didn't try it today as I figured it might not work so well adapted on Sony (as the 35/2 and 50/2 VM APO-Lanthars don't adapt well). I'll see if I have a chance to try it tomorrow.
MikeEvangelist wrote:
I'm jealous that you're able to see it in person! At least we can experience it vicariously, through your eyes.
Thanks so much for sharing your impressions.
PS
It's not Voigtlander, but if you get to the Sigma booth, I'm curious to know if this knurled ring on the 300-600mm has any function.
I asked Sigma staff and this is the ring that's mentioned on the lens features description page like this:
New function ring adds extended functionality
The Sigma 300-600mm F4 DG OS | Sports features a newly added function ring that further expands the options of the lens. The focus ring offers two different modes, selected via its setting switch:
Focus Preset Mode:
By turning the function ring to the left or right, the focus can be instantly shifted to a pre-registered focus position. This is useful when frequently shooting at a fixed focus position.
Power Focus Mode:
Focusing at a constant speed is possible by operating the function ring. This allows for smooth focus shift during movie shooting as well as for focusing with minimal movement when shooting hand-held. Focusing speed can be changed in two steps depending on the angle at which the function ring is operated.
Saw a thread on Reddit with shots of the 28 APO on the M11….much smaller than I thought it would be, is smaller than 35 Lux he was also shooting with. No focus detent below 0.7
The other lens he had pictures of was the 50 f/1.2. That seems to have gotten a sizable reduction in length, doesn’t look any longer than a 50 Lux ASPH
rsolti13 wrote:
Saw a thread on Reddit with shots of the 28 APO on the M11….much smaller than I thought it would be, is smaller than 35 Lux he was also shooting with. No focus detent below 0.7
The other lens he had pictures of was the 50 f/1.2. That seems to have gotten a sizable reduction in length, doesn’t look any longer than a 50 Lux ASPH
I did try the APO-Lanthar 28/2 on my Sony A7CII on Saturday (on my 2nd visit to CP+ 2025), but I didn't do a lot of shooting because Cosina area was a lot more crowded on Saturday and staff asked me to shoot on the narrow area between counter and their shooting target area, but there were a lot of customers on all sides. I also don't think it's going to work optimally on Sony sensor stack so I didn't think the test shots that I could take there would be very useful.
The lens felt quite small in hand and on camera. There is one shot in the album taken on my smartphone that shows the lens on my A7CII. The rendering reminded me of my 35/2 APO-Lanthar, very sharp even from wide open at the focused point. Most of the shots in the album were taken at f2. I'm not sure about the longer distance shot, I might have stopped down a little bit on that one.
In hindsight I should have checked if the aperture blades were straight or whether there was any mechanism to support circular aperture at certain aperture values, but it didn't come to my mind at the time and I didn't inspect the aperture blades...
Since Cosina gave some strong hints that the lens is probably coming in mirrorless mounts too, I'm looking forward to buying an E-mount version sometime in the future (hopefully).
On the other hand, when I asked about whether the Portrait Heliar is planned to come in other mirrorless mounts, they said it is not currently planned but they may consider other mounts if the E-mount version is well received / if there appears to be strong demand.
Juha Kannisto wrote:
I did try the APO-Lanthar 28/2 on my Sony A7CII on Saturday (on my 2nd visit to CP+ 2025), but I didn't do a lot of shooting because Cosina area was a lot more crowded on Saturday and staff asked me to shoot on the narrow area between counter and their shooting target area, but there were a lot of customers on all sides. I also don't think it's going to work optimally on Sony sensor stack so I didn't think the test shots that I could take there would be very useful.
The lens felt quite small in hand and on camera. There is one shot in the album taken on my smartphone that shows the lens on my A7CII. The rendering reminded me of my 35/2 APO-Lanthar, very sharp even from wide open at the focused point. Most of the shots in the album were taken at f2. I'm not sure about the longer distance shot, I might have stopped down a little bit on that one.
In hindsight I should have checked if the aperture blades were straight or whether there was any mechanism to support circular aperture at certain aperture values, but it didn't come to my mind at the time and I didn't inspect the aperture blades...
Since Cosina gave some strong hints that the lens is probably coming in mirrorless mounts too, I'm looking forward to buying an E-mount version sometime in the future (hopefully).
On the other hand, when I asked about whether the Portrait Heliar is planned to come in other mirrorless mounts, they said it is not currently planned but they may consider other mounts if the E-mount version is well received / if there appears to be strong demand....Show more →
Thank you for sharing your testing images! The images do look similar to 35/2 APO-Lanthar.
Instant buy for me, if they come out with an E mount version. Thanks for posting the samples Juha. I hope they stick with the other E mount style and don't use the new one. Won't stop me from buying it, but it will be a disappointment.
Juha Kannisto wrote:
I did try the APO-Lanthar 28/2 on my Sony A7CII on Saturday (on my 2nd visit to CP+ 2025), but I didn't do a lot of shooting because Cosina area was a lot more crowded on Saturday and staff asked me to shoot on the narrow area between counter and their shooting target area, but there were a lot of customers on all sides. I also don't think it's going to work optimally on Sony sensor stack so I didn't think the test shots that I could take there would be very useful.
The lens felt quite small in hand and on camera. There is one shot in the album taken on my smartphone that shows the lens on my A7CII. The rendering reminded me of my 35/2 APO-Lanthar, very sharp even from wide open at the focused point. Most of the shots in the album were taken at f2. I'm not sure about the longer distance shot, I might have stopped down a little bit on that one.
In hindsight I should have checked if the aperture blades were straight or whether there was any mechanism to support circular aperture at certain aperture values, but it didn't come to my mind at the time and I didn't inspect the aperture blades...
Since Cosina gave some strong hints that the lens is probably coming in mirrorless mounts too, I'm looking forward to buying an E-mount version sometime in the future (hopefully).
On the other hand, when I asked about whether the Portrait Heliar is planned to come in other mirrorless mounts, they said it is not currently planned but they may consider other mounts if the E-mount version is well received / if there appears to be strong demand....Show more →
tsdevine wrote:
Instant buy for me, if they come out with an E mount version. Thanks for posting the samples Juha. I hope they stick with the other E mount style and don't use the new one. Won't stop me from buying it, but it will be a disappointment.
Are you sure you’re ready to part with your beloved Pentax?
I like CV's thinking quite a lot with the 75/1.8. Love the classic rendering and SA ring. But, there are many old fast classic 75-85mm lenses that are soft.
What would make CV's release as going from special to unique would be something like this in 24-32mm range with older rendering + SA ring control
I like they rehoused the 35/40/50 1.2's. They still compare well as to anything on the market--and yay for small size and no dumb chrome filter ring.
I really enjoy Sigma and CV being oddball companies in a generally homogenous photography market.
I'll always keep the Pentax 28, lot a sentimental value.
Although I've been shooting mainly the Sigma 28-45 lately, in lieu of the Pentax 28 and CV 35/50 APOs. I'm sure I'll come back to it, at f/11 it delivers gorgeous results for landscape shots.
Fred Miranda wrote:
Are you sure you’re ready to part with your beloved Pentax?
shujert wrote:
Apologies if I missed this, but any word on when these lenses will be available? I'm super interested in picking up the 40/1.2.
Cosina never gives the release date info on the new lenses they announce (as "under development") at CP+ before those lenses get officially announced in the coming months, so we can only guess when these will come out based on their past release cycles.
Usually Cosina releases the new CP+ "pre-announced" lenses within 6-8 months after CP+, and usually it's one new release per month. I think first possible lens release could be in April at the earliest since new release for March is Color-Skopar 35/3.5 VM (already announced mid-February). They usually announce the following month's official releases around 15th of previous month (exactly on 15th if it's a weekday, and on the closest weekday before 15th if 15th is on a weekend or national holiday). If anything will be released in April, I think they will announce it on 14th of March.
Since they will release Otus ML 50/1.4 in E/Z/RF mounts in May (in Japan at least, not sure about other markets), I'm guessing that they might skip releasing new CV lenses at the same month.
The order which the new lenses will come out in will also be anybody's guess... I'm personally hoping that the new Portrait Heliar 75/1.8 for E-mount will get an early slot but it remains to be seen.
I think the new f1.2 lenses might come out one by one in the order of 35/1.2, 40/1.2, 50/1.2.
Thanks! Yeah, it will be interesting to see if they would stick with the new design language (that they've said is their new standard for E-mount for new releases) or whether they would rather make it consistent with 35/2 and 50/2 in design. I would personally be happy with both styles (I really like the new design) but in this case I also think it would make sense to keep it consistent with the other APOs.
tsdevine wrote:
Instant buy for me, if they come out with an E mount version. Thanks for posting the samples Juha. I hope they stick with the other E mount style and don't use the new one. Won't stop me from buying it, but it will be a disappointment.
Juha Kannisto wrote:
Thanks! Yeah, it will be interesting to see if they would stick with the new design language (that they've said is their new standard for E-mount for new releases) or whether they would rather make it consistent with 35/2 and 50/2 in design. I would personally be happy with both styles (I really like the new design) but in this case I also think it would make sense to keep it consistent with the other APOs.
In all fairness, I haven't handled any of the new designs, but I'm used to the 35 and 50. I suspect it will be the new design.
I probably made some mistake in the beginning of this sequencde as there are 12 shots, the first two shots might be at the same setting (most undercorrected).