Thanks for the review, I'm very excited to watch it!

I'd love to see more reviews of the Z mount voigtländer lenses

Great review, as always. I love that this lens has a traditional depth-of-field scale: it's such a pity that manufacturers stopped doing that.

It is about a grand more than it should, but apart from that a nice lens. :D

For a quarter of the price, I'm pretty happy with my FD 55mm f/1.2 SSC (non-aspherical) using an RF-FD adapter! I do wish that the manual focus aids would work with it, although focus peaking is somewhat helpful.

The video I’ve been waiting for.

I find the imperfections of this lens is what truly gives it character. Call me crazy,but if I were purchasing a 50mm for my R5 or R6m2, this is the one I’d get hands down. Wonderful video. Truly a fun and unique lens in a world full of clinically sharp and somewhat stale images.

Thanks for the review.

I was looking for this review earlier today!

Seeing those results im actually quite happy with my "F/1 on a budget" setup, the Sigma 30mm F1.4 DC HSM Art for EF-S with a Viltrox EF-RF speedbooster.

I have the Z mount version that I use with the Zf and I absolutely love it. Not sure why they changed the design of the RF version. I like the Z mount better. It's a joy to manually focus on the Zf and it is quite usable at f1. I snagged a new copy on eBay from Japan for $1400 so deals can be found if you are patient. I mostly shoot portraits and the rendering is gorgeous.

Thanks, Christopher!

Not really fair to compare this to slower 50mm lenses. That being said, this RF version seems to be less sharp wide open than my original M-Mount version. Curious. You get much closer focusing though, which is a plus. The M-Mount version of this lens is even sharper wide open and quite a bit better corrected for aberrations than the Leica Noctilux F0.95, and costs about 1/6th of the price. Pretty impressive!

Nikon Zf or Zfc paired with Voigtländer lenses is a dream team!

The 7artisans 50mm /1.05 looks like it performs better wide open, and it's $400. I'd love to see the two go head to head.

A review of the Voigtlander 50/1.0 VM (M-mount) version suggested Raws are corrected well with Adobe's Voigtlander 50/1.2 VM raw lens profile. That's what I use on my 50/1.0 VM and it does a very nice job moderating vignetting and the mild pincushion distortion. This is the very best f/1.0-0.95 lens on the planet, period. F/1.2 lenses are over 1/2 stop slower and are in a different class.

hi chris, I would love it if you made a Comparison video with all canon 50mm lenses. This includes the EF 50mm f/1.8 i, the EF 50mm f/1.8 ii, the EF 50mm f/1.8 STM, the EF 50mm f/1.4 USM, the EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM, the RF 50mm f/1.8 STM and the RF 50mm f/1.2 L USM. And it would be so cool if you could also Include the EF 50mm f/1.0 L USM!

After enjoying todays insanely good AF I cant go back to manual focus. AF speed and accuracy is the biggest upgrade from my old cameras.

No way this lens is $1800. That purple fringing goes wild, also very soft wide open. You are just paying for the brand

I found one “like new” M mount, that I adapt to my sigma fp L and I love it. I wish Voigtlander was making L mount lenses with the electric connections. Seems like a logical move since it’s the system the new Leica cameras use.

I turn beautifully with gentle clicks too , but that's mostly my knees.. Just curious, when a lens like this is soft at the corners, I wonder at what other distance the lens is sharper in the corners keeping the focus the same in the center. Closer? Further? Or not at all?

I own the Z mount version of this lens and after having owned the Otus 85, I say its properly priced. It has far more chromatic aberation than the Otus however, the images the Voigtlander produces.....even without trying hard....OMG! I LOVE IT!

Pricey, but takes pleasing photos.

Thanks!

It’s certainly an interesting lens. I’ve bought it this Christmas and played around with it a bit; however not long enough to form my conclusive opinion. I like it at f/1 - rendering and bokeh are beautiful. However stopped down to anything below f/1 the bokeh balls are becoming extremely prominent hexagonal and I’m not sure I like it too much. There some onion rings as well, which is definitely a no go for me. I don't know if all lenses are like that or I was especially unlucky with the copy I have.

Not sure about this Canon RF version, but since I purchased this lens it has I have not even tried attaching another lens to my Nikon ZF that is how impressed I am with the optics. It has also reduced the the size of my kit where I could always have that nagging thought about not having a better lens with me. I mostly shoot at F/1.0 and the sharpness is always shocking to me. I would be curious to see if the performance is that much different from the RF lens or if for portraits it just looks incredibly sharp regardless. 🤔

I am happier to see that Canon opened up the RF mount to a third party : hope to see Sigma get a crack at a RF line up ❤

Glad to see you're reviewing more Voigtländer lenses - any chance you're doing the new 50mm f/1.2 for x-mount?

Jeeze this really does look like the Meike 50mm F0.95 and performs just like one lol. The asking price is just theft at this point, Voigtlander is just throwing its name for money at this point.

I’m pretty new to cameras and my experience is only in Ef but I have never seen a f/1 lens before

The sagittal aberrations in the corners is a real shame. Otherwise it would make a nice astro lens.

Looks like gorgeous colours and bokeh for night time. Despite coma. Can't really see much CA at night time.

4:45 omg has that batman logo in the snow been there this whole time!?

Sharpness at f/1 should have been very high if the M version on the M11 is a guide. You were given a marginal copy or Voigtlander has not effectively optimized the lens for the Canon sensor stack.

Is the RF TTArtisan 0.95 better than their $200 Sony E mount version? Or just more expensive because, Canon?

Why didn't you also test it on the r7?

only excited on the electronic permission, will go without wanting this for that price. not much sense to me considering the options for the same money

Looks nice, but the RF 50 1.2 for me is still way more interesting. Only about 10% more money gets you: perfect sharpness even wide open, weather sealing and autofocus.

With the focus aids I really thought this could replace my old EF 50 1.2L. Sadly neither sharpness nor CA handling seem to justify selling the EF and spending that much more on the Voigtländer :-/

Your voice sounded different.

Nice😍😍

Finally a proper review of this beast! Definitely a dream combo for the nikon ZF

I would have been more excited if it were a 58mm F1 lens (or 1.2). It would pair better with the Voigtlander 40mm F1.2 lens, and would be better for portraits.

It’s all about the magic this lens produces!!The rendering and colours are just stunning and example what other brands should do : in stead of trying to get the highest sharpness and corner perfection , lens designer should more focus on what really matters : beauty and gentle old school rendering which is timeless.

My Nikon 50mm 1.2 is 1090 g/2 lb 6.5 oz, but is very sharp wide open 😮‍💨

The 50MM 1.05 seems on par or better in most scenarios except flare resistance and is 1/5th the cost.

Now this is what I am talking about for a Third Party Lens for Canon RF!!! With those connections they clearly got permission from Canon to make this mount of lens and these lenses are beyond awesome but they are not perfect. I love my Voightlander 35mm Nokton for emount. Will buy this for Sony when it is available.

it's too much of a compromise because of it's rangefinder size restriction roots and M mount dimensions. Really strong vignetting + huge reverse field curvature (corners are focusing further away) means that in the corners, if you have anything distracting, it will be a lot more distracting because there will be more focus and less 'bokeh' What's good? It's the sharpest f1.0 lens. It's beaten by bigger, heavier branded autofocus 50mm f1.2 lenses at 1.2 and above. As much as I love the Voigtlander APO lenses and use the 50,65,110mm, I would pass on this lens and go for Sony 50mm 1.2 (or 1.4) GM lens. Btw I shoot Sony GM on Nikon FF using adapter. Still really fast focus, lighter lenses that perform quite good compared to giant 1.2 Nikon primes. If I were looking for a quirky, ultrafast 50mm lens with character, this lens would be on my radar. The cheap chinese 1.0 or 0.95 lenses lenses are terrible at close distances because they don't have floating elements so this lens is ideal for someone who enjoys close up photography (not macro) quirky, ultrafast lens with character and has the financial means to afford it. Thank you Voigtlander for producing this awesome lens. It will be a more niche lens but hopefully the profit margin is good enough.

Someone needs to send you an OM-1 or G9.m2 so you can test the Voigtlander 60mm F0.95 for MFT.

I miss the samyang xp and it's feel is the same...

voigtlander 23mm f1.2 fuji would be nice

you buy f1 but you need to use it at f2 ...

I don't really get the comments about the sharpness being bad. It's fine, especially for such an extreme lens at it's size. What's less than fine is the contrast, CA, and spherical aberrations for this price. But that's the downside of trying to make lenses small, the Nikkor Noct 58mm f/0.95 is the perfect example of taking the polar opposite approach, optimal optical quality no matter the size and weight.

Woooow!! Be aware everybody: Sharpness is not always important to PHOTOGRAPHERS (who take pictures of life instead of a test bill boardy thing). Take a look at the work of many great photographers and artists. They are often like paintings. This review says nothing of the character of the lens. How it renders. Pure magic. Pictures coming from this this are nothing like you get from Sony GM or other lenses that "are perfect". Chris, I love the way you test optics on a clinical level but please be careful with your advise to the creative community who often don't want perfect computerized pictures 😊👍🏼

HOW MUCH! I'm outer here 😆 Nice lens though

It’s probably the lack of decent dealer and agency in UK that make this looks overpriced. In Japan it sells at 213,900 JPY, or 1,150 GBP (1.450 USD).

Voigtländer lenses. You love it or you hate it. Nothing between😅

Oof. I think if I wanted a bright, manual focus lens for RF, the Brightin Star 35mm f/.95 lens sounds a bit better. And about $1600 cheaper, haha. Granted, it's APS-C, but....

I used to think my 58/1.4 Voigtlander was disappointing until I compared it to my Nikon 50/1.2 ais and yikes did the Voigtlander smash it in rendering. I have no doubt modern glass is better, but I don’t think one buys a lens like this for clinical rendering.

01:29-01:43 - That renders focus peaking completely obsolete. I wish Sony will implement this feature in their cameras ASAP!

I would pick my $80 RF 50mm F1.8 over this overprice lens everyday.

I'll not be selling my Milvus then lol

I like it, the problem is I can get a new Canon 50mm 1.2 RF from Hong Kong for that 😕

This or the newly released Sigma 50mm 1.2 without considering The AF. Just want those wide apertures and isn't sure if its worth the small difference in f stop

it's a shame Nikon F mount can't accommodate this kind of design 🥺😞

Hey, Chris have you ever considered doing one of your lens tests with say an iphone camera? Since everyone is so accustomed to your lens tests, it would be interesting to see how phone cameras compare.

I wish the manual focus aid worked with lenses that do not have cpu contacts 😡🤬

Really impressive for an f/1 though, that bokeh is just so good and the colors and saturation took my breath away.

If not for the price, this would have made me okay with a switch to Canon. I like my 50mm f/2 APO too much, and even if I get why this costs so much and like the look it gives, I could never justify it for myself.

When you see the size of this lens and the maximum aperture marking, you know something has definitely got to give. And sure enough as Chris so clearly demonstrates to us that something is pretty significant. First this lens is useless for video work for too many reasons. Second for still photography, it's an f2 lens at best because at the wider apertures, central sharpness is very poor and the edge resolution, light falloff, contrast and chromatic aberrations are quite abysmal compared to most newer f1.4 or f1.2 lenses from camera or third party manufacturers these days. An expensive toy at best for some rich Canon RF system owners.

The 7artisans 50mm /1.05 seems to be a better deal!

It’s starting to get hard to justify buying some of the prime Lenses out there when Lightroom lens blur new feature it’s quite impressive to say at least.

f 2.0 good

Tbh 50 1.2 from RF can do so much better

imagine being a RF user and waiting for 3rd part lens and then you see that crap at this price...

Pretty image quality and build but manual lens at that price for canon… it isn’t so far off from canon’s 1.2

Thanks Chris! I’d love you to test the Nikon Z version please? This lens seems overpriced but if the Z mount version is slightly better wide open, then it’s “cheaper” alternative to the mighty Noct...

I was considering the Nikon Z version of this lens but it’s just way too overpriced for what you get.

Is there any Voigtlander lens which is not basically a scam? Mediocre performance at best for a ridiculous premium I have no idea what makes them think they're worth it.

I see them on ebay for $1400, no thanks I'll just get a used EF 50mm 1.2 lens instead, autofocus will get me way more useable portraiture shots.

Nice review. Seems like it should be sold as an f2.0 lens with a respectively lower price

I unpacked this lens yesterday thanks to a Black Friday deal. Oh, the click when you turn the focus ring to either end is worth all the money! Oh, this lens plays with light. But I'm very early with getting experiences. If you just are looking at sharpness in the edges wide open you are a RF50mm STM or a Milvus 50mm 2.0 Macro guy.

I simply don't understand this lens. The reason in buying them was the fact that they were pretty affordable, but with this prices I'd rather prefer pricier options of actual vintage glass, rather than this. And I can have like 3-4 really good vintage lenses for this price. Voigtlander/Cosina are out of their touch in my opinion.

Waaaaay overpriced. At that price point it should be weather sealed and be optically almost perfect wide open. Better off just saving a bit more for Canon's 50mm f1.2 lens instead 😅

Optical performance aside, there is no fking way I’m paying that much money for a non weather sealed lens…

Thank you for the review and sorry but no cigar. Absurdly overpriced for what it is and a far cry from other MUCH better performing Voigtlander lenses. This was originally designed as an M-Mount glass and there it performs much better (despite an unfortunate 1m minimum focusing distance). But the design adapted on a Canon RF is just not cutting it. In the meantime the 7artisans 50mm /1.05 (no electronic communications) beats it all round for less than a ONE FOURTH of the price, let's get real please.

optic quality is just horrible, I don’t understand who will spend $1800 to get this…

Definitely too expensive. At that price point you can nearly get a used RF 50 1.2 or the EF 50 1.2 with an adapter new. Don’t really see a reason to spend that much money on a lens without modern features

What a bargain my old lenses are!

another joke from a company exploiting the name it leases from someone else.

When you have "dandelion RF" you have manual focus assistent and focus point can stock on eye. Why we can't buy dandelion RF like dandelion EF?

They cost £1,599... I mean, what's even the point if you can have a 50mm RF F1.2 from Canon with autofocus and all the bells and whistles of that high end lens for almost the same price or cheaper if you're browsing the grey market like HDewcameras for example? If it costed 300 uk pounds, sure I can understand the appeal. But £1,599? Jesus, cmon, Voigtländer...

HIGHLY Overpriced. We have recently seen Brigtin Star 35mm 0.95 for APSC with much better results (and under 200€).

voigtlander lenses are cool

Disappointing considering I love voights

All the folks saying "The lens is worth it because of the magic" are either A) Working for the company or B) Have drank wayyy too much cool-aid. This is horribly overpriced for what its producing at f1.

With the problems she has at f1.0 I'd say it's horribly overpriced. A money grab for being some of the first 3rd party lens on the RF system for sure and not worth the money. I'd rather get the cheap canon RF 50mm and wait for better more affordable lenses from other manufacturers like Sigma.

First

*Umm this looks identical with the same issues as the Meike 50mm F0.95!!!!The price of the Meike is only $161!!! Vs 1800+ dollars. They literally look like they came out of the same factory!😮😮😮🤔🤔🤔*

pay 500$ more for sharper and autofocus