{"id":1564,"date":"2010-07-13T23:22:10","date_gmt":"2010-07-13T14:22:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2010-07-13\/1564"},"modified":"2010-07-13T23:22:10","modified_gmt":"2010-07-13T14:22:10","slug":"cosina-voigtlander-macro-apo-lanthar-125mm-f2-5-sl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2010-07-13\/1564","title":{"rendered":"Cosina Voigtl\u00e4nder Macro APO-Lanthar 125mm F2.5 SL"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
\nNOTE<\/b>: Images with an icon next to them have been artificially shrunk to better fit your screen; click the icon to restore them, in place, to their regular size.\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>640 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 560 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “An Amazing Day of Photography at Some Eastern-Kyoto Temples<\/a>”\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1.3 sec, f<\/span>\/22, ISO 640 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “Exploring the Sharper Side of the Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5<\/a>”\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>500 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “The Towel Museum in Imabari Japan, Part 2<\/a>”\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>8000 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 720 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “Revisiting the Road to Imabari: Stops #1 and #2<\/a>”\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 6400 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “Gioji Temple Photoshoot Continues: Little Orange Mushrooms and Depth-of-Field Comparisons<\/a>”\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>500 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nas seen in “Haphazard and Defocused: Elusive Lesson in Photographic Composition<\/a>”\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

Note:<\/b> the photos above are from among the hundreds of shots taken with the Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 that\nhave appeared on my blog since I first<\/span> published this article. The photo<\/span> I\noriginally<\/span> opened the article with, seen below, was one I just<\/span> happened to\nhave taken just before writing the article, but it reallly doesn't do the\nlens justice, so I came<\/span> back to add a few<\/span> that do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>20 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 8000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGive Me an Inch<\/span>\nand I'll ask for a mile\n125mm handheld at 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>20 sec, ISO 8000<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

A couple of months ago I wrote about a new<\/span> (for me) lens, a Cosina\nVoigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5<\/b> that I introduced<\/span> in this post<\/a>. It was my<\/span> intention to eventually write up a nice<\/span> post all about it, with\nsamples that I actually<\/span> took time to take carefully, but free time is just\nnot something I've had yet this year, so today's post will have to do.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 1250 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nTube<\/span>\nof metal and glass: no plastic\n<\/div>\n\n

Last fall's “Holy Cow, the Gardens at Kyoto's Eikando Temple are\nGorgeous!<\/a>” post represented an awakening for me to a whole<\/span> class\nof lens that far exceeds Nikon's offerings, at least by some metrics. In it I<\/span> had used a friend's<\/span> manual-focus Carl Zeiss 100mm f\/2<\/b>, and was\nthrilled with both the joy of using it and the photos it allowed me to\ntake. It's solid<\/span> metal and glass, with a long<\/span> focus pull that makes\nmanual-focus photography a luxury<\/span> of satin proportions. Modern SLRs tend\nnot to be designed for manual-focus use, but I have<\/span> a Katz Eye focusing screen<\/a>,\nwhich makes manual focus a pleasure.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Not long after this experience with the Zeiss, in an exchange with a blog<\/span> reader, I commented<\/span> that I was<\/span> looking for a nice<\/span> macro (super close-up) lens, and that the Zeiss\nwas nice, but that I longed<\/span> for more close-up than its 1\/2-full-macro abilities.<\/p>\n\n

He<\/a> replied:<\/p>\n\n\n

\n

As for macro lenses, I have almost<\/span> all of them and the Zeiss 100 f\/2 is next\n on my list, but I already<\/span> know (from reviews of the Zeiss) that I have<\/span> the\n best of the best, which is:<\/p>\n\n

Voigtlander 125 APO Lanthar f\/2.5 (by Cosina)<\/p>\n\n

Just the best, better than any Nikon macro (and I have<\/span> a dozen,<\/span> probably). It also has<\/span> a very<\/span> long throw, which is exquisite to use. Of course, it is\n all manual, but that is how I work<\/span> anyway, from choice. They are very hard\n to find now in Nikon mount, but they can be found and are about $1800 or so,\n but worth every cent. Each time I use<\/span> it, I am amazed<\/span>. Most copies come from\n Japan. Bjorn loves it. On a full<\/span>-frame camera, it is a joy.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n\n

(“Bjorn” refers to well-known lens geek Bj\u00f8rn R\u00f8rslett<\/a>,\nwhose review of this lens is toward the bottom of this page<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n

Something about this really struck a chord<\/span> with me — the calm\n“just the best” or the vivid “exquisite to use”, perhaps — and I felt<\/span>\nthat intuitively, sight unseen, that I just<\/span> had to have this lens.<\/p>\n\n

After long months of watching Yahoo! Auctions (they're not only still\nalive in Japan, but the market leader... the “eBay of Japan”), I finally<\/span> procured one, and was not disappointed.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 2200 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nSN 9120700<\/span>\nN\/AI-S<\/b> means Nikon “AI-S”-spec Mount\n<\/div>\n\n

The “exquisite” that so aptly describes the Zeiss 100\/2 is only a starting<\/span> point\nfor the Voigtl\u00e4nder, with a focus<\/span> pull that takes almost two complete\nturns of the lens barrel<\/i> to move from infinity to the minimum focus of\n38cm. Two turns of the barrel!<\/b> It exudes solid, velvety-smooth quality.<\/p>\n\n

The numbers around the barrel in red are the focus distances in meters\nduring the first turn, in white the distances during the second turn.<\/p>\n\n

The lens extends considerably as you focus closer, as if it's reaching\nout to the subject being photographed, and by the time you're at the minimum\nfocus distance, the length of the lens proper (sans hood) has almost\ndoubled. That's a neat<\/span> engineering trick in and of itself.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 4000 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nFocus At Infinity \/<\/b> Focus At 38cm<\/span>\nWith funky square hood. The comparison<\/span> would have been better sans hood.\n<\/div>\n\n

It comes with a funky square lens hood of speckled metal, and a rubber<\/span> square “hood cap”\nthat seems to be the only thing not made of metal or glass.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/11, ISO 4000 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nCosina Voigtl\u00e4nder Macro APO-Lanthar 125mm F2.5 SL<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

The official name is the long mouthful captioning the photo above. The Japanese<\/span> company Cosina<\/a><\/b>\nactually manufacturers the lens.\n\nVoigtl\u00e4nder<\/a><\/b> is\nvenerable names in cameras, being licensed by Cosina for the name's\nrecognition and heritage, I guess.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Macro<\/a><\/b> means\nthat the image projected on the sensor by the lens can be made at least as\nbig as the actual object being projected. The larger<\/span> the projection, the\nmore the object fills the frame, and so the more detail is rendered. This\nfull-macro lens can project an image twice the size of the Zeiss (which is\nalso manufactured by Cosina, the agreement with Zeiss likely being what\ncaused Cosina to stop producing this Voigtl\u00e4nder lens in the first place).<\/p>\n\n

APO<\/a><\/b> refers to\na type<\/span> of lens construction that reduces color fringing<\/a>,\nwhile Lanthar<\/b> seems to be another name borrowed for its heritage. I'm not sure<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

125mm F2.5<\/b> are the focal length and maximum aperture. SL<\/b> seems to be\na designator<\/span> for a line<\/span> or family of lenses at Cosina, but again, I'm not sure<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

The maximum aperture of f<\/span>\/2.5 is sort of middle\nground... not bad, but it's not f<\/span>\/1.4, either.\nStill, when combined with the D700's low-light\ncapabilities<\/a> I tend<\/span> to want to push the limits<\/a>, so I\ngrabbed<\/span> it on the way out one evening to check out fireflies with Anthony\n(and found none, where there had been a gazillion<\/span> the previous day...\nodd), yielding not much but the photo that leads this post.<\/p>\n\n

I haven't had much chance to use it since, but a few<\/span> photos with it appeared on my\nLightroom JPEG Quality writeup<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 6400 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nX4<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

Around the barrel in orange at various spots next to focus distances are\n“X2”, “X3”, and “X4”. I could<\/span> not find any reference on the web to what\nthese mean, so perhaps this will be the first: at very close focus\ndistances (less than half a meter<\/span>), the effective aperture starts to narrow,\nreducing the light by 2×, 3×, and 4× at the respective\nfocus distances. Those with modern TTL\nmetering<\/a> just let the camera take care of the exposure, but those doing\nthe exposure manually will need to adjust their exposure by 1, 1.6, and 2\nstops, respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n

Besides the square lens hood and hood cap, it comes with an all-metal\nscrew-on lens cap. Here's a photo<\/span> of the cap balanced on the hood at my\nliving-room window:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 cropped — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>2500 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 4000 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nLens Cap and Lens Hood<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

The lens cap is nicely machined, with a knurled<\/span> ridge offset at an angle\naround the circumference. It's less convenient<\/span> than a modern<\/span> plastic clip-on\nlens cap, and it can't even be accessed when the lens hood is on, but I\nsuspect<\/span> it's meant only for when the lens is in storage.<\/p>\n\n

Anyway, the lens cap doesn't look particularly interesting when you're\nholding it, but looking at it close up reveals all kinds of interesting\nplays of light. I set the<\/span> cap in front of the window, and used a tissue<\/span> box\nto steady the lens (because walking all way back to my room to break out my\ntripod was more work than I was<\/span> willing to invest), and ...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D700 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 cropped — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>400 sec, f<\/span>\/8, ISO 4000 —\nfull exif<\/a><\/span>\nEdge of Knurled<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

This is, of course, the subject of my most recent (though not very recent)\nDisorienting “What am I” Quiz<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

I took an interesting photo yesterday that I want<\/span> to post as a “What am I?” quiz<\/a>,\nso because I don't<\/span> want to have two open quizzes, I was sort<\/span> of forced to\npost about the Voigtl\u00e4nder today. So there<\/span> we are.<\/p>\n\n

Now back to the Lightroom plugin bit mines...<\/p>\n

(ignore this... it's just some ASCII-only versions of some names, for the search engines: Bjorn Rorslett, Voigtlander 125mm<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Note:<\/b> the photos above are from among the hundreds of shots taken with the Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 that have appeared on my blog since I first published this article. The photo I originally opened the article with, seen below, was one I just happened to have taken just before writing the article, but it reallly doesn't do the lens justice, so I came back to add a few that do.<\/p>

A couple of months ago I wrote about a new (for me) lens, a Cosina Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5<\/b> that I introduced in this post. It was my intention to eventually [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,7,1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1564"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1564"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1564\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}