Voigtlander 40/ 1.4 focus shift

[oldwino]

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4 hours ago, steve 1959 said:

I bought mine about 4 months ago and because of the forum was already aware of the focus shift issue.

But try as  i might and despite endless tests at different distances and apertures i get no focus shift and at 100% in lightroom the lens nails focus on the eyes.

Now probably in a proper scientific test some shift would show up but on my copy it is invisible and not an issue at all.

I have the SC version which i got cheap used but its easily my main lens for people pictures accounting for 85% of my images.

I bought the lens ready to ignore f2.8 and f4 but those apertures are just fine.

I have an m262 .

This is the newer, mark 2, version?

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56 minutes ago, oldwino said:

This is the newer, mark 2, version?

Are there two versions of the 40mm ?  i know there is a newer version of the 35mm nokton classic.

If there are two versions of the 40mm nokton then i do not know which version i have.

[pippy]

21 minutes ago, steve 1959 said:

Are there two versions of the 40mm ?  i know there is a newer version of the 35mm nokton classic...

No, Steve. There isn't an updated Mark II version of the 40 f1.4 Nokton available; only the original SC and MC versions. The only new 40mm Voigtlander design is the f1.2 Nokton which is, by all accounts, a wonderful performer.

One of the members here has posted many photographs taken with his own f1.2 and it really does render very nicely indeed.

Philip.

EDIT : If this link works it should show all three lenses mentioned above;

https://www.reddotcameras.co.uk/377-voigtlander-lenses#/focal_length-40mm&orderby=position&orderway=asc&n=3

Edited May 21, 2021 by pippy
Adding Link.

[oldwino]

22 minutes ago, steve 1959 said:

Are there two versions of the 40mm ?  i know there is a newer version of the 35mm nokton classic.

If there are two versions of the 40mm nokton then i do not know which version i have.

Yes, sorry, you're right. I was thinking of the 35mm 1.4

 

Carry on...

[pippy]

1 minute ago, oldwino said:

Yes, sorry, you're right. I was thinking of the 35mm 1.4

Carry on...

Hey, no worries oldwino!

Once Voigtlander started to release all their new - and apparently superb - Version II lenses I did wonder if the 40mm f1.4 would be given a makeover and so have been keeping half-an-eye open just in case one should appear.

If one does come along then I would be interested to see whether there is any 'real-world-shooting' improvement over the existing offering. From what I've read the engineers of the V.2 releases have concentrated, in the main, in improving the focus-shift niggles we are discussing here. If one doesn't come along then, hey, I'm perfectly content with the results I'm getting with the V.1 anyway so it's almost a non-issue.

I did, briefly, think about adding the f1.2 to the herd but before I could get into town to have a good look at one the lockdown was enforced.

I went through a strange thought process when trying to balance out the pros and cons of the f1.4 / f1.2 conundrum;

Cons of the f1.2 : I don't need another 40mm; f1.2 is only half-a-stop faster than f1.4 and I almost never shoot at f1.4 in any case; the f1.4 is TINY and light whereas the f1.2 is bulkier and heavier.

Pros of the f1.2 : When did need ever really matter?; But sometimes I do shoot at f1.4 and, when I'm in those situations, having an extra half-a-stop would be a real advantage. It might be bulkier and heavier but it's not actually that much bulkier or heavier!

Still on the fence on the f1.2. Been here so long, in fact, that it's starting to hurt my bum....

Philip.

[oldwino]

I think the 40 1.2 makes sense if you are also using it on a mirrorless camera, to take advantage of the wide-open character. For me, and for normal RF shooting, I don't need the f1.2. Nor the extra weight.

I've got my little M-Rokkor 40/2, which has very pleasant out of focus rendering, something I found the CV Nokton to lack. And, if the Rocker has focus shift, it doesn't seem to be enough to worry about.

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35 minutes ago, pippy said:

No, Steve. There isn't an updated Mark II version of the 40 f1.4 Nokton available; only the original SC and MC versions. The only new 40mm Voigtlander design is the f1.2 Nokton which is, by all accounts, a wonderful performer.

One of the members here has posted many photographs taken with his own f1.2 and it really does render very nicely indeed.

Philip.

EDIT : If this link works it should show all three lenses mentioned above;

https://www.reddotcameras.co.uk/377-voigtlander-lenses#/focal_length-40mm&orderby=position&orderway=asc&n=3

Thanks,mine is clearly the 40mm f1.4 nokton sc which i bought for £300 in nice condition from london camera exchange but for some reason it does not have any obvious focus shift!!

I almost feel cheated by this strange happening! . just kidding.

[pippy]

16 hours ago, steve 1959 said:

Thanks,mine is clearly the 40mm f1.4 nokton sc which i bought for £300 in nice condition from london camera exchange but for some reason it does not have any obvious focus shift!!

I almost feel cheated by this strange happening! . just kidding.

Yes; I know what you mean, Steve.

As mentioned on the previous page I really had to go looking for it because, in 'real-world' shooting, it's simply never a problem; neither before I kooked for it nor since.

Perhaps other users who have complained use their lenses in a completely different shooting-style from myself?

Philip.

[AllNoAll]

I'm so glad I found this thread! I just purchased the MC version of this lens, used from Adorama, got it today, and started to notice some things were in focus that I focused on, and in some shots my focus seemed to be off. When I used an EVF on my M240 I could get things tack sharp. I checked the lens against my Voigtlander 28 Asperical VII F/2, and that lens was in focus across the range using the optical finder. I almost returned the lens until I read this thread. I can live with known failings of a cheaper lens, and learn to work around them. I mean for a M-mount lens $350 is pretty cheap. Yep, my focus seems to be consistently off in the 2-3m range at f/2.8-5.6. Thank forum for being awesome again!!

[fabianoliver]

Hi, again me.

today i was pissed off, I take this picture doing focus on the friend in the middle of the scene, knowing he was a little closer to camera. f4.

Here the poor result. I want to kill myself. Lost moment.

 

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[pippy]

On 12/15/2021 at 2:04 AM, fabianoliver said:

...I take this picture doing focus on the friend in the middle of the scene, knowing he was a little closer to camera. f4...Here the poor result...

Hi Fabian. Your friend in the centre being 'soft' is not a result of focus-shift; it is because the person in the centre was moving their head slightly.

At that distance from your subject-matter (around 2.5m?) and shooting at f4 there is approximately 0.8m depth-of field with a 40mm lens. The faces of your three friends, however, are all within a plane around 15cm deep. The face / shirt / hands of the guy at right are all sharper than the face in the centre and those are forward of that face. At the same time the silver-coloured toggles at the ends of the waist-tie of the guy at left are also sharp and those are further away from the camera than 'centre-face'.

The issue isn't to do with the lens but too slow a shutter speed being used under the circumstances coupled with some movement of your subjects.

It's still a very fine picture, though, of what was clearly a happy moment so you shouldn't let a small amount of subject-movement ruin your enjoyment of the photo.

Philip.

 

Edited January 27, 2022 by pippy