p.1 #1 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Today Cosina Voigtländer announced that they will release Silver versions of X-mount 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 lenses + a new optional hood LHX-1S (Silver) and LHX-1B (Black) that can be used with these lenses (also with original Black versions). Apparently they have received a lot of requests for Silver versions of these lenses so they decided to make them. It would have been more exciting if there was an entirely new lens for X-mount but perhaps something new will be released at a later time.
There is some conflicting information about the release months. Japanese Product pages say that both will be released in September (specific date to be announced later) but announcement pages say that 35/1.2 will be released in September and 23/1.2 in October. In English X-mount listings the heading also states October for 23/1.2 so that might be correct. They'll probably correct the discrepancies after some time.
I personally have the black version of 35/1.2 and I have a limited Map Camera anniversary edition of 23/1.2 that has a bit different build and Single Coating instead of the regular MC. I usually prefer Black versions when both are available so I'm not planning to get these myself.
p.1 #2 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
If Fujifilm would oblige and release the long awaited X-Pro4 !
I often question why Voigtländer does not release a silver version* of their 35mm Nokton classic VM.
(* beyond that limited run MAP special edition of the mkI lens )
( Updating the VM lens for uncoupled close focus would be nice; I'm finding the recent Z native version of this is great fun to use )
p.1 #3 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Part of me was hoping that Cosina would time the release of some new native X-Mount glass with X-Trans 6 (X-T6)...!?
If anyone from Cosina is reading this, a 14mm/1.4 or 18mm/1.4 would be great!
I own the 35/1.2 and 23/1.2. The 35/1.2 has a beautiful & classic rendering with gorgeous bokeh (spherical elements only!). 23/1.2 is also very fine, however field curvature makes it a little tricky to nail focus (but very "poppy"!).. to combat this i find you have to focus / shoot <f2.
p.1 #5 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Thanks for posting this Juha! They likely released the silver finish since many Fuji bodies are popular in silver. Just to be clear, this is the exact same optical design as the previously released black versions.
p.1 #6 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Thanks for this Juha. And for finding a video with the English translation!
I like the silver versions of Fuji and C/V lenses, as both my X-T5 and X-E5 are silver, see below with the 18 and 27mm pancakes. My 4 Fujicrons are all silver. Was looking at adding the C/V 23 f1.2 in black, but now will definitely consider the silver version. For 35 mm I already have the Fujicron f2 and the old, but fantastic, XF 35mm f1.4 so no real need for another 35mm.
p.1 #7 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Both of the original versions of 35/1.2 and 23/1.2 for X-mount have been really good sellers for Cosina at least in Japan since they were originally released so it makes perfect sense to release the silver versions too since there's probably enough demand. I also like both of them a lot. I wasn't a big fan of the original 23/1.2 at first but the SC version became one of my X-mount favorites later.
I haven't shot much with my old X-S10 recently though as I tend to prefer my A7CII and I trimmed down my X-mount CV lens set to my 4 top favorites (23/1.2 SC, 27/2, 35/1.2 and 50/1.2) recently. I have 16 native CV lenses in E-mount so there's a lot of overlap. Might need a new X-mount camera to get more into the system again.
p.1 #8 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Juha Kannisto wrote:
.....
I haven't shot much with my old X-S10 recently though as I tend to prefer my A7CII and I trimmed down my X-mount CV lens set to my 4 top favorites (23/1.2 SC, 27/2, 35/1.2 and 50/1.2) recently. I have 16 native CV lenses in E-mount so there's a lot of overlap. Might need a new X-mount camera to get more into the system again.
While I have 4 Sony bodies, including 2 FF at 61MP, I am preferring to shoot with my 2 Fuji 40 MP bodies instead. More than enough pixels for me and just love the ergo of X-T5 with the locking control dials, a joystick and it has a perfect 3 way screen (for me) when shooting for travel/street. Another big plus is the true mechanical shutter with 1/8000 ss. Why have fast prime lenses if you have to put a ND filter on to shoot them in sunlight as 1/4000 ss just doesn't cut it. I live in a desert area and it seems to always be sunny
My A7CR and A6700 both lack these 4 important features unfortunately, and that is why I added Fuji X-T5 last year. Now so glad I did.
p.1 #9 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Juha Kannisto wrote:
I haven't shot much with my old X-S10 recently though as I tend to prefer my A7CII and I trimmed down my X-mount CV lens set to my 4 top favorites (23/1.2 SC, 27/2, 35/1.2 and 50/1.2) recently. I have 16 native CV lenses in E-mount so there's a lot of overlap. Might need a new X-mount camera to get more into the system again.
Juha - I've never shot Voigtlander on full frame. Obviously, you can access a wide variety of lenses that you can't on X mount. However, beyond availability, do you have any subjective or objective opinions on image output? Are the X mount counterparts comparable?
Do you think it's worth picking up a full-frame mount camera to get access to the relevant Voigtlander lenses?
p.1 #10 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
SpecFoto wrote:
While I have 4 Sony bodies, including 2 FF at 61MP, I am preferring to shoot with my 2 Fuji 40 MP bodies instead. More than enough pixels for me and just love the ergo of X-T5 with the locking control dials, a joystick and it has a perfect 3 way screen (for me) when shooting for travel/street. Another big plus is the true mechanical shutter with 1/8000 ss. Why have fast prime lenses if you have to put a ND filter on to shoot them in sunlight as 1/4000 ss just doesn't cut it. I live in a desert area and it seems to always be sunny
My A7CR and A6700 both lack these 4 important features unfortunately, and that is why I added Fuji X-T5 last year. Now so glad I did....Show more →
I usually use my A7CII with Electronic Shutter and it can do up to 1/8000 in that mode. I mostly shoot rather static scenes with my manual focus lenses so it works, although the readout speed is on the slow side. Still faster than A7CR though (I chose A7CII over A7CR since I prefer less resolution, and the pricing was much nicer). I switch to EFCS when shooting in artificial light or when shooting fast moving subjects. When I shoot events / fast action I usually go with my A9 and AF lenses.
I mostly shoot my X-S10 with ES as well. It has a fast enough readout and I think it can even do 1/32000 with ES. In that area it does very well.
p.1 #11 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
snappy_happy wrote:
Juha - I've never shot Voigtlander on full frame. Obviously, you can access a wide variety of lenses that you can't on X mount. However, beyond availability, do you have any subjective or objective opinions on image output? Are the X mount counterparts comparable?
Do you think it's worth picking up a full-frame mount camera to get access to the relevant Voigtlander lenses?
Mostly my preference on image output is about the body / sensor rather than lenses. I think CV lens quality on both sides is comparable, but there are more / larger variety of options in E-mount FF. In terms of CV lens availability, E-mount has the following advantages:
- Plenty of Wide Angle lens coverage (10/5.6, 12/5.6 (discontinued), 15/4.5, 21/1.4, 21/3.5 (discontinued))
- A nice selection of APO-Lanthars (28/2, 35/2, 50/2) and Macro APO-Lanthars (65/2, 110/2.5)
- Lots of fast Noktons with "narrow dof advantage" due to FF, including 50/1 and 35/40/50 f1.2 lenses
- Portrait Heliar 75/1.8 is pretty unique, though for very specialized use
I also prefer the "pancake style" 40/2 Septon in E-mount over the closest counterpart 27/2 in X since FF f2 can provide some advantages and I enjoy bokeh shots with that lens more. X-mount 27/2 is certainly smaller and lighter though.
X-mount has the advantage of smaller CV lenses in general, and esp. 50/1.2 is a lot smaller and lighter than available closest 75mm options in E-mount. In E-mount, some of the CV lenses that I like a lot have been discontinued, so one would need to look for those in 2nd hand markets nowadays. I have all 5 of their discontinued E-mount lenses (bought when they were new), so it doesn't impact me so much.
Personally I much prefer the image output of FF when it comes to using higher ISOs / in darker environments. I adapt a lot of M-mount lenses as well (including MS-Optics and Voigtländer etc.), and for adapting FF lenses I much prefer a FF body.
Personally I do think that it would be worth picking up a FF E-mount body for access to all available Voigtländer lenses if you are really keen on the manual focus shooting experience.
p.1 #12 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
Juha Kannisto wrote:
I usually use my A7CII with Electronic Shutter and it can do up to 1/8000 in that mode. I mostly shoot rather static scenes with my manual focus lenses so it works, although the readout speed is on the slow side. Still faster than A7CR though (I chose A7CII over A7CR since I prefer less resolution, and the pricing was much nicer). I switch to EFCS when shooting in artificial light or when shooting fast moving subjects. When I shoot events / fast action I usually go with my A9 and AF lenses.
I mostly shoot my X-S10 with ES as well. It has a fast enough readout and I think it can even do 1/32000 with ES. In that area it does very well....Show more →
The majority of my photos are outdoor portraits and I use flash a lot, so I need the MS for that. Plus the ES can cause weird effects if shot shot wide open and at higher SS >1,000. Don't remember the X-T5 readout speed, but it was around twice as fast as the A7CR. When not using flash I use the ES, on the X-T5 is goes up to 1/180,000 ss!!
p.1 #13 · Cosina Voigtländer 23/1.2 and 35/1.2 Silver versions for X-mount got announced
SpecFoto wrote:
The majority of my photos are outdoor portraits and I use flash a lot, so I need the MS for that. Plus the ES can cause weird effects if shot shot wide open and at higher SS >1,000. Don't remember the X-T5 readout speed, but it was around twice as fast as the A7CR. When not using flash I use the ES, on the X-T5 is goes up to 1/180,000 ss!!
The weird effects in bokeh would happen with EFCS when shot at very fast shutter speeds due to some mechanical reason with combination of electronic front curtain and physical shutter, actually ES without any physical curtain doesn't cause any weird bokeh effects. The main challenge with ES on A7CII is the somewhat slow readout speed and the anti-flicker function which is often needed on artificial light only works with EFCS so I would just switch to EFCS when there's fast movement on the scene or artificial light. 1/8000 is kind of borderline as well, it would be nice if 1/16000 was supported, but I can manage with 1/8000.
I never use flash, I don't even have one for my A7CII, so from that perspective ES works as well. I got really into using ES with silent shutter first when I got my A9 in 2017 and after that I've been using it with all my later cameras as well (whenever possible).
