Voigtlander 12mm f/5.6 on M240

[mirekti]

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Is there anyone using this lens on M240 who could share some experience about it? Some samples are welcome too.

Up to now I found it could be coded as a 21mm pre ASPH and this would solve the color shift problem.

How sharp this lens is, maybe compared to Nikon 14-24? Is the vignetting too strong wide open? Any hint would be appreciated as the focal lenght seems quite interesting and there's nothing similar from Leica in this range.

 

Thanks!!

[StephenPatterson]

I've just picked up a CV12/5.6 used as I was looking for an ultra wide that would not require Cornerfix or FF correction (unlike my CV 15/4.5 Heliar), and so far I am extremely happy with this little lens. Also I love the way it handles on the M240 with the EVF. Composition and positioning of flare is much easier than with external optical VF.

 

All examples coded as 21/2.8 Pre-ASPH (11134), no Cornerfix or Flat Field. Nothing special photographically but I tried to show some examples of what you can expect in the field.

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[rramesh]

Very nice. Does it render the same way on an M9 without need for corner fix?

[jankap]

The lens is very, very wide on a full frame. I mean, it is very special.

An 18er is more harmless.

Jan

[01af]

An 18 mm is more harmless.

No. It's less harmful.

[mirekti]

All examples coded as 21/2.8 Pre-ASPH (11134), no Cornerfix or Flat Field. Nothing special photographically but I tried to show some examples of what you can expect in the field.

 

Was the lens wide open in the first sample?

I ask, because I'd like to see how much it vignettes wide open.

[StephenPatterson]

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Was the lens wide open in the first sample?

I ask, because I'd like to see how much it vignettes wide open.

 

I think the first shot was at f/8 or f/11, definitely not wide open. This lens is still very new to me, but my impression is that it vignettes no worse than the Noctilux. Easily corrected in LR during post.

[01af]

Here's a few sample pictures with my 12 mm on the M (Typ 240). Sharpness doesn't bite at 100 % view but is still good for such a super-wide, and very even across the frame. Pictures shown here are moderately sharpened in Camera Raw, just as I would normally do. No red edges whatsoever. Vignetting and distortion are low; chromatic aberrations are surprisingly low—and totally absent when activating Camera Raw's chromatic aberration correction. The lens is totally adequate for architectural work.

 

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Shooting right into the sun shows no veiling flare or ghosts, contrast in the shadow areas is just perfect. Okay, there's a thin veil of clouds before the sun ... but the shadows are sharply defined so it's pretty harsh light nonetheless.

 

 

 

 

Vignetting is prominent but still acceptable at full aperture (first picture below) and nowhere near as bad as in Stephen's examples above. It's very low in the farthest corners at f/11 (second picture below).

 

 

 

 

 

Umm ... forgot to mention it's not the Voigtländer 12 mm—but the Sigma AF 12-24 mm 1:4.5-5.6 EX DG (original version), at 12 mm, on a Novoflex adapter

[mirekti]

Umm ... forgot to mention it's not the Voigtländer 12 mm—but the Sigma AF 12-24 mm 1:4.5-5.6 EX DG (original version), at 12 mm, on a Novoflex adapter

 

...if you only had a CV and made a direct comparison at 12mm, that would be a real deal.

[jaapv]

So it would. Comparing the uncomparable in this thread, I prefer the rendering of the Voigtländer.

[honcho]

Of course the CV 12mm has considerable edge fall-off, it's an extreme wide angle lens!

 

I have used the first version of the CV 12mm lens since release, on film, and I like it a lot. I've used it with and without a 1-stop centre grad and I prefer it without, I like the wide angle vignetting it produces in black and white. It isn't impressively sharp at any setting, if that's important, but does have good contrast. If you want dramatic perspectives then you'll have them but you'll need to think carefully about when it is a good choice and when it isn't, as the images posted here demonstrate.

 

For what it can offer, it's nicely put together and a reasonable price.

[01af]

Of course the Voigtländer 12 mm has considerable edge fall-off, it's an extreme wide-angle lens!

Why "of course"!?

 

The Sigma 12-24, at 12 mm, is exactly the same extreme wide-angle and has considerably less edge fall-off ... and no red edges to boot.

 

 

[The Voigtländer 12 mm] isn't impressively sharp at any setting, if that's important, but does have good contrast.

This is pretty accurately how I'd describe the Sigma, too. Of course, without actual test pictures to look at and compare, words from two different persons can be only so helpful ... but until proven otherwise, it seems to me that, with regard to sharpness and contrast, the Voigtländer and the Sigma 12 mm lenses are in the same ballpark, basically.

 

I have three test pictures taken three years ago with a borrowed Voigtländer 12 mm 1:5.6 (M bayonet version) on an M9 ... of cource, they're featuring an entirely different subject than my Sigma pictures. So they are not directly comparable. Maybe I'm seeing a very small advantage in terms of sharpness and detail for the Voigtländer—but to tell for sure, one would need to have both lenses at the same time for a real comparison.

 

 

Comparing the uncomparable in this thread, I prefer the rendering of the Voigtländer.

You mean you prefer the post-processing style of Stephen, right?

 

Assuming the sharpness is about equal, I clearly prefer the Sigma's rendition. Of course, it does come at a price: this lens is about four or five times bigger than the neat little Voigtländer, as it is (a) a retrofocus lens meant for 35-mm SLR cameras and ( a zoom lens. And of course it is not coupled to the rangefinder—so scale focusing, zone focusing, or live-view focusing only. On the other hand, it's the size that makes the lens free from red edges and also greatly reduces vignetting.

 

Sure, the size makes is bulky and not very comfortable to carry. But for occasional use it's okay, and the results are just fine. Delightfully good actually. As it is a lens that I happen to own (bought used years ago for my SLR cameras), I'll keep using it on the M (Typ 240)—no need for me to get the Voigtländer. Of course, when you want a 12 mm lens and don't have one yet, you probably won't go for an SLR zoom lens on an adapter. For the use on an M camera, the Voigtländer 12 mm 1:5.6 will be the better choice in most cases, despite its shortcomings.

[StephenPatterson]

You mean you prefer the post-processing style of Stephen, right?

 

No chance of that (especially with the above images)...

 

The weather has not been cooperating lately (typhoons will do that) so I have not had the opportunity to shoot (and compose) more interesting images with this fun, little lens. Like all ultra wides it requires careful composition to achieve interesting or even acceptable results. But in tight situations, like the below temple, it's a great tool. This is handheld at 1/12 sec, f/5.6 and ISO 1600.

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[gyoung]

Is the sigma a full frame lens or intended for aps-c?

 

Gerry

[mirekti]

It is a full frame. There is an APS-C version 8-16mm.

 

I had Sigma 12-24 HSM II on Canon 5D III, and even though it was a special lens because of it's 12mm I couldn't get near to the IQ of 35L or 70-200 IS II.

 

If CV's IQ is at the same level as Sigma 12-24 I must admit I'd be disappointed.

[01af]

You mean you prefer the post-processing style of Stephen, right?

No chance of that (especially with the above images) ...

Why not? I was referring to your way of handling colour and contrast—which is clearly different from mine. And even just happily accepting what the camera delivers (or the raw processor's default settings) also is, in a way, a processing style. Your style—be it your very own or just your camera's or raw processor's—is more likely to please average people than mine. But mine pleases me

 

 

Is the Sigma a full-frame lens or intended for APS-C?

It's for 35-mm full-frame format, of course—in Sigma's lens designations, "DC" stands for APS-C format, "DG" for full-frame format. Otherwise I wouldn't bother using it on the M ... much less comparing it (albeit only indirectly) to the Voigtländer 12 mm.

 

 

I had Sigma 12-24 mm HSM II on Canon EOS 5D Mk III, and even though it was a special lens because of its 12 mm, I couldn't get near to the image quality of EF 35 mm L or EF 70-200 IS II.

Sheesh, of course not! The former is an ultra-wide zoom; the latter are moderate wide-angle prime and telephoto zoom lenses. You cannot expect equal image quality from all of these; instead, you must compare one ultra-wide to other ultra-wides.

[plewislambert]

I have recently used the M9 with CV 12mm to photograph old terraced cottages in narrow streets in Lancaster Gate, London, lens coded as suggested as a 21mm; there was no obvious vignetting or need for Cornerfix. (I just studied one of the raw images.) The finished jpeg was cropped to remove an excess of tarmac in the foreground.

To have used the M9 and 12mm on a tripod with a spirit-level in the flash shoe to avoid tilts would have probably been impractical in the busy narrow side-streets. The only adverse comment I have is that parked cars at the extreme ends of the image look strangely stretched.

I photographed the dark interior of the Russian Orthodox church (with permission) and the image needed quite a lot of lightening in P'shop . Extra exposure at the taking stage would have been sensible but as a quick handheld shot it worked. I did feel I was getting under people's feet.

Philip:)

[billo101]

On Monochrom!

 

[mirekti]

I have recently used the M9 with CV 12mm to photograph old terraced cottages in narrow streets in Lancaster Gate, London, lens coded as suggested as a 21mm

 

Any samples, please?

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[viramati]

CV 12mm - a set on Flickr