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Rumor: New Heliar Classic 50mm f/1.5 VM


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Product photo. I agree, this looks great. 

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The Heliar optical design was really stretched to achieve the 50 f2.0 Heliar, and while I like mine, its performance is well short of the 3.5 (which I also have). Wide open has quite a glow due to aberrations, and a lot of focus shift as it is stopped down. The literature made quite a point of how getting an f2.0 out of the Heliar formula was quite an accomplishment. So I expect the f1.5 to be... interesting.

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The Heliar design is only 5 elements in 3 groups. With so few interface surfaces it should have good contrast, but it's hard to correct for aberrations at large apertures with so few elements. Same problem Leitz had stretching the 50 Elmar to f2.8 instead of 3.5 in 1958. The later Elmar-M performed better - so shows modern design methods can improve these simple designs. 

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It's official now:

https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=ja&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fdc.watch.impress.co.jp%2F

" this product is "created by the product concept opposite to the APO-LANTHAR 50mm F2 Aspherical,"

"The lens configuration is 6 elements in 3 groups. Spherical aberration and coma add an accent to the depiction of bokeh when the aperture is wide open, with the intention of using it for unique drawing. Among them, the company describes it as "a timeless bokeh" in that it suppresses the flow in the sagittal direction (so-called round and round bokeh)"

https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=ja&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cosina.co.jp%2Fseihin%2Fvoigtlander%2Fvm-mount%2Fvm-h-50mm1_5%2Findex.html

http://www.cosina.co.jp/seihin/voigtlander/vm-mount/vm-h-50mm1_5/index.html

Edited by FrozenInTime
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I know its optical design is meant to replicate a more vintage rendering but I'd be curious to read whether focus-shift has been eliminated as it seems to have been a known issue with some previous Heliar designs. 'Soft and Dreamy' I could live with but not 'Out-of-Focus'...

It will be interesting to read reviews from trusted snappers about how it draws. A bit like the 50mm f1.5 Summarit, perhaps, or more like the v1 Summilux?

This bit of the advertising bumph in the link posted by Keith is a touch curious;

"This unique Heliar look cannot be obtained with modern lenses that over correct all optical aberrations."

How can optical aberrations be over-corrected? Surely they have either been corrected or they haven't?......:-k......

Visually it reminds me (a bit) of the old Olympus-OM Zuiko 50mm f1.4. I like it. I don't need another 50 but, still, I like it!

Philip.

Edited by pippy
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3 minutes ago, pippy said:

"This unique Heliar look cannot be obtained with modern lenses that over correct all optical aberrations."

How can optical aberrations be over-corrected? Surely they have either been corrected or they haven't?......:-k......

The optical formula doesn't contain any special lenses (asph, low disperssion etc) so the images will be very specific... I bet this is one of the most interesting lenses released not pursuing for clinical results. But Pippy - the term over corrected sounds strange indeed.

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