Voigtlander 50mm 1.2 iii front focus

[Derbyshire Man]

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Anyone else got one of these? 

My copy at close distances front focuses slightly at f1.2 but by 2.5m it front focuses by about 20-25cm. I haven't used it much yet in landscape/cityscape but my guess is this will worsen as I head out further.

I realise I can stop it down but that does rather defeat the object of a fast lens, or I could lean forward every time I take a shot.

Has anyone got one of these and have any idea if their copy does the same or is it better behaved?

For reference, I don't like using the screen on the back!

 

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[hansvons]

Return it. It should be spot on at f 1.2 (which isn't easy to focus with an RF at that shallow DOF anyway). On a side note, do your other lenses focus as expected? If yes, then it's the lens. 

[Vanillasludge]

Mine is perfect. Are you able to verify that your rangefinder is accurate to eliminate that variable?

[Lesslemming]

My VM 35mm 1.2 III has noticeable back focus wide open and at close distance. I did not bother returning it because there is an easy, unobtrusive and reversible fix for BACK FOCUS, which is a piece of tape on the part of the lens that pushes the rangefinder cam (tricking the rangefinder to compensate for the back focus). For me this has worked exceptionally well. 

Also mentioned here: 

 

The same is not possible for Front Fokus, I believe. The reason being you can add material but not remove it easily. Sorry to say if the issue can be narrowed down to your lens, it needs replacing or calibration by a professional 

 

Edit: also make sure you have a correct understanding of „front“ focus vs „back“ focus. Maybe you’re lucky and just have these mixed up?

Edited January 10, 2024 by Lesslemming

[Derbyshire Man]

Thanks everyone for comments. If front focus means it focuses in front of the range finder focus point then I have front focus!

With regards to rangefinder set up, it's a 1 month old m11-p. The lenses I have though are a mixed bag.

Voigtlander 28mm f2 - this seems on point close focus and distance

Voigtlander 35mm f1.4 ii this front focuses but is a relatively easy lean forward to correct. 

Summilux 35mm 1.4 ASPH FLE mk1 seemed ok close but infinity was before the infinity point on the barrel so focussing by barrel results in soft infinity. Sent off for calibration currently so that I have hopefully an index lens other than the 28mm CV.

Voigtlander 50mm 1.2 iii no discernible front focus at 70cm, 20-25cm front focus at 2.5-3m, infinity before infinity point on the barrel. I'm normally good at manual focussing from my T90 and EOS1/1v days but at portrait distances the rangefinder patch is not accurate.

All of the above obviously wide open. 

I'm far from sure that any of that explanation will have helped!

[sometimesmaybe]

@Derbyshire Man seems odd that youre having focus issues with 3 different lenses. might be worth having another look at your RF 

 

[Derbyshire Man]

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I’m in London today and will pop into Aperture and see if they’ll help/check. 

[cheeseyk]

23 hours ago, Derbyshire Man said:

I’m in London today and will pop into Aperture and see if they’ll help/check. 

Did you have any luck at Aperture yesterday?

[Derbyshire Man]

They felt it was front focussing. I accidentally tried an APO 50 and ASPH 50, liked the latter a lot!

CV50 1.2 iii gone back fro assessment and swap. Even if I buy a 50 ASPH v2 the CV would still have a role for places where I didn't want to have the value of a decent car over my shoulder or very slightly softer portraits wide open.

[Lesslemming]

3 hours ago, Derbyshire Man said:

[…] I accidentally tried an APO 50 and ASPH 50 […]

Sorry for having a laugh at your expense but I love how this implies a grown man accidentally picking up the wrong lens and thinking: “oh golly, this is nice. An urge awakens within me. How did this happen?”

May I borrow this line of reasoning for the next budgeting round with my wife?

[Derbyshire Man]

Feel free but I can't provide any warranty it will work!

[Derbyshire Man]

On 1/10/2024 at 9:26 PM, sometimesmaybe said:

@Derbyshire Man seems odd that youre having focus issues with 3 different lenses. might be worth having another look at your RF 

Got a 50mm 1.4 FLE II today. Guess what? It front focusses; got out the tape measure and took a series of very careful photographs.

In fact the CV 28 front focuses (but a bit hidden being 28mm F2), the CV 35 1.4 front focuses and the 50mm FLE II. That makes the leading contender... the brand new camera;-)

Edited January 17, 2024 by Derbyshire Man

[sometimesmaybe]

1 hour ago, Derbyshire Man said:

Got a 50mm 1.4 FLE II today. Guess what? It front focusses; got out the tape measure and took a series of very careful photographs.

In fact the CV 28 front focuses (but a bit hidden being 28mm F2), the CV 35 1.4 front focuses and the 50mm FLE II. That makes the leading contender... the brand new camera;-)

4 front focusing lenses... you must be the (un)luckiest man alive! 😉 

[Derbyshire Man]

35 minutes ago, sometimesmaybe said:

4 front focusing lenses... you must be the (un)luckiest man alive! 😉 

Yeah, it cost quite a lot of money to discover that! I didn't even mention the 35mm 1.4 FLE or CV 50mm 1.2 iii !😪

Or why my landscapes were doing well but my portraits the worst hit rate in my life. Doh.

Edited January 17, 2024 by Derbyshire Man

[Maarten]

Can you test your lenses at infinity? Does the rangefinder fully overlap when your lenses are set to the hard stop at infinity?

Look at a subject at a distance of 1 mile (1,6 km) at least.

i suspect the infinity setting of your camera needs adjustment.
With experience a 5 minute job, without experience it might take 10 minutes!

this will usually solve your focus issues at all distances.

[Derbyshire Man]

Longer lenses overshot infinity. I agree Maarten that it is the rangefinder. It is brand new (well a month old) so I took it to the shop and they are sorting with lenses etc. I said I was happy to do it but they said they'd rather ensure I was delivered with a properly tested and adjusted camera. So I just agreed. When it's a bit older I won't hesitate!

[Danner]

Sorry for your troubles, but it seems you are in fairly good spirits, given the difficulties.