Zeiss Distagon 35mm F1.4 ZM vs Voigtlander Nokton 35mm F1.2 iii

[Robert Blanko]

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There are indeed smaller 35mm / 1.4 lenses on the market... Sold mine and replaced it with a 35 APO summicron.

But for a fair comparison one must not forget that the Zeiss Distagon is an internal focusing design which means that it does not change its length when focusing. Thus, one would have to extend other lenses to their maximum focusing extension in length.

[Huss]

On 7/15/2023 at 11:26 AM, Robert Blanko said:

There are indeed smaller 35mm / 1.4 lenses on the market... Sold mine and replaced it with a 35 APO summicron.

But for a fair comparison one must not forget that the Zeiss Distagon is an internal focusing design which means that it does not change its length when focusing. Thus, one would have to extend other lenses to their maximum focusing extension in length.

Do you really want me to post another side by side pic, with the FLE extended by an extra mm?  We are talking lenses, not trombones.

[01maciel]

Who says size matters except in humanitarian issues?
There can only be one 😀

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M10 + Voigtländer Nokton 50mm 1:1.0 VM

[Malabito]

Hi, any other comments about comparing these two lenses? I have the ZM and love it! But given its size, I rarely take it out. Now I have an opportunity to get the Voigtländer for a good price. I can't keep both. I could buy the Voigtländer and then sell it if I don't like it, but the local market here sucks, so that would be a difficult option.

 

Thanks!

[brickftl]

years ago I used it with a techart adapter on my Sony - absolutely loved it for environmental portraits.

 

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[henning]

Over the last 60 years I've had/used maybe 20 different 35mm lenses; my favourite FL. The Distagon has always been my favourite image maker since I got it, but I don't use it all the time. The Summilux ASPH from 1996 has been my most used lens for the last decades, but I've always been annoyed by its tendency to flare; otherwise it's been almost as good. Recently I've also tried the f/1.7 VM (awkward ergonomics), first two versions of the f/1.2 VM (a little bit mushy without compensating character), various versions of the pre-aspheric Summilux and Summicrons whose only benefit at this time is their size - this goes also for the re-creations and copies, such as the f/1.4 Noktons. So at present an often used 35 is the f/2 Ultron Classic along with the Distagon. I tried the vIII f/1.2 Voigtlander but didn't find its overall lower optical performance compared to the Distagon to be worth the smaller size.

The Apo-Lanthar 35 is great optically, but I really like the very slightly softer rendering of the Distagon better, and the size is almost the same. If I were smart, I should probably check the furniture for extra coins (and the shelves for unused lenses) and use the proceeds to get the Apo-Summicron, which is as close to flawless as one can get for the M system, and get the Voigtlander f/1.2 vIII to complement that.

[pk2787]

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On 7/19/2024 at 6:20 PM, henning said:

Over the last 60 years I've had/used maybe 20 different 35mm lenses; my favourite FL. The Distagon has always been my favourite image maker since I got it, but I don't use it all the time. The Summilux ASPH from 1996 has been my most used lens for the last decades, but I've always been annoyed by its tendency to flare; otherwise it's been almost as good. Recently I've also tried the f/1.7 VM (awkward ergonomics), first two versions of the f/1.2 VM (a little bit mushy without compensating character), various versions of the pre-aspheric Summilux and Summicrons whose only benefit at this time is their size - this goes also for the re-creations and copies, such as the f/1.4 Noktons. So at present an often used 35 is the f/2 Ultron Classic along with the Distagon. I tried the vIII f/1.2 Voigtlander but didn't find its overall lower optical performance compared to the Distagon to be worth the smaller size.

The Apo-Lanthar 35 is great optically, but I really like the very slightly softer rendering of the Distagon better, and the size is almost the same. If I were smart, I should probably check the furniture for extra coins (and the shelves for unused lenses) and use the proceeds to get the Apo-Summicron, which is as close to flawless as one can get for the M system, and get the Voigtlander f/1.2 vIII to complement that.

 

You mean for only 12,000 CAD (Canadian) while Zeiss is 3,000 and the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.5 is 1,000

[steve edmunds]

The OP said " size and weight arnt a factor" then posters say its too big ???  the zeiss is great for my hands and wide open the vignette combined with centre sharpness is very beautiful .

my M262 with the distagon is almost exactly the same size as my Q2 that well known every day carry camera.