Voigtländer Ultron 1.9/28 - first impressions

As promised, here are my first impressions.

To spill the beans: I'm very happy with the purchase. It took QUITE a while to get the lens as Voigtländer is not being imported to Switzerland directly. So I had my Ultron ordered from Germany, which in turn took almost two months... (There seem to have been delays in production. In the US Voigtländer seems to be well represented though by the indefatiguable Steven Gandy @ http://cameraquest.com).

OK - Why am I happy?

- The lens is sharp.

- The lens is fast.

- It matches the Leica look quite nicely. (A chrome lens with its black hood on a black body might look even more stylish than my black version...!)

- It feels solid.

- It is much more compact than I read it was (applies to viewfinder obstruction as well).

- It cost me just $550 with M-Adapter.

So, at about 2/3 of the cost of a Konica 28 RF, 1/3 of the cost of an Elmarit 28 and almost just 1/4 of a Summicron 28 I got a FAST piece of glass that is fun to handle.

Where is the downside?

- Well, I DO miss that red knob telling me how to align the bayonet fast...

- There is a tiny focussing tab that is not as ergonomic as a Leica's - but at least you can easily unscrew it. (Anyway, it helps the focussing, which overall is very smooth.)

- The lens hood is fastened by means of a screw clamp. As the hood has cutouts for the image angles but doesn't "snap to grid" I found myself controlling the right position every once and again, which was slightly irritating.

- The typo and color of the hyperfocal scales is different from Leica lenses'. Just a slight difference, but it does remind you that there is a "guest at your table"...;o)

I can't give any ultimate judgement on the built. It feels solid, but time and use will tell the rest of the story. Anyway, I'm not part of the fence hopper fraction, so I'm more than optimistic.

I bought the Voigtländer to test ride not only the brand but the focal length as well. I had been using a 28 with my SLRs on and off and wasn't sure, whether I really needed one, if I "saw" enough 28 shots to justify the expense. After my first short experience with the Ultron I'm more than convinced that it's a perfect lens for the RF Leica. Especially along with a 0.72 or even 0.58 viewfinder. I'll stick to the 28 and for now I see no reason to "upgrade" to whichever costlier brand.

I'm adding a couple of shots. The scans (from slides) aren't too good, but they do give an impression. What most amazes me is the detail in fine grain slides and the absence (or almost) of flare even with strong light sources within the frame. I'm posting one of the few shots I did wide open - a lot of detail still, no flare, no visible distortion.

(Then again, a thought on resolution issues, "wide open": How often will I use f 1.9 on a low speed, fine grain film? Me, most seldom. Before I open to 1.9 on a 28 I will most probably step up speed to 1/15. What situations do I find myself in at 2.8 and 1/15? Available light indoors and night outdoors, most probably. What kind of film will I be using there? High speed, most probably. So I'm pretty sure that as far as resolution is concerned, in 99% of real life situations the film will be weaker than the lens...?!)

Enjoy

<P><CENTER> </CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>Some of my first shots taken with the Voigtländer

Ultron 1.9/28mm on a Leica M6</CENTER></P>

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<TR>

<TD WIDTH=150 HEIGHT=150>

<P><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//salotto.jpeg"><IMG

SRC="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//salotto.tmb.jpeg"

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<P><CENTER>wide open / 1/15th<BR>

on Kodakchrome EPJ 320T</CENTER>

</TD><TD WIDTH=150>

<P><CENTER>f 8 / 1/500th<BR>

on Kodachrome 200</CENTER>

</TD></TR>

<TR>

<TD WIDTH=150 HEIGHT=150>

<P><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//waiting.for.the.guests.jpeg"><IMG

SRC="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//waiting.for.the.guests.tmb.jpeg"

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<P><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//macglobal.jpeg"><IMG

SRC="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//macglobal.tmb.jpeg"

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<P><CENTER>f 11 / 1 sec<BR>

on Kodachrome 64</CENTER>

</TD><TD WIDTH=150>

<P><CENTER>f 8 / 1/60 th<BR>

on Kodachrome 200</CENTER>

</TD></TR>

</TABLE></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>© Lutz Konermann 2001</CENTER></P>

Thanks Lutz, nice photos, and nice layout. You guys always make me

feel so inadequate as far as my computer skills are concerned! The

wide open shot with light sources in the frame is pretty impressive,

no ghosting, no flare.

<p>

Am I the only one who is amazed at the rate that Cosina / V'lander

has gone from the inception of a rangefinder system to where they are

now? What's it been, 3 years since the 15mm and 25mm lenses for the

Bessa L? With the absence of "Leica snobbery", one could put

together a decent outfit these days for not too much money.

Lutz:

<p>

Nice shots. This lens looks like a keeper. I'm especially impressed

by the WO shot - minimal signs of flare in the point light sources.

And it looks pretty sharp on my computer screen, with decently smooth

out-of-focus areas in the extreme foreground and back ground. (Looks

to me like you focused about on the the guy with his back to us.)

<p>

Thanks for sharing!

Do you have any images that show a subject near the outer parts of

the field-especially in tye 4 to 10 feet range? I am curious whether

the pear shaped distortioin I got with my 28 Nikkor on the edges is

the same with this lens.

<P><CENTER> </CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>Something more like this, Andrew?</CENTER></P>

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<TR>

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<P><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//

scrabble.jpeg"><IMG

SRC="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//scrabble.tmb.jpeg"

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ALIGN=bottom></A></CENTER>

</TD><TD WIDTH=150 HEIGHT=150>

<P><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//

kite.3.jpeg"><IMG

SRC="http://www.konermann.net/ultron//kite.3.tmb.jpeg"

X-SAS-UseImageWidth X-SAS-UseImageHeight BORDER=0

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</TD></TR>

<TR>

<TD WIDTH=150>

<P><CENTER>f 2.8 / 1/30th<BR>

on Kodakchrome EPJ 320T</CENTER>

</TD><TD WIDTH=150>

<P><CENTER>f 16 / 1/125th<BR>

on Kodachrome 200</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>(a SLING-shot, of course...;o)</CENTER>

</TD></TR>

</TABLE></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>© Lutz Konermann 2001</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER>Cheers</CENTER></P>

Your shots certainly support your verdict on the lens. I particularly

like the picture of the 2 girls playing the board game (Scrabble?).

The composition, color, & lighting remind me of a Dutch Old Master

painting!

Thank´s a lot Lutz; your post is indeed very explicit, enough for me

to evaluate this lens and want one, your images are just what is

needed to evaluate this kind of lens, at least to me, thanks again.

Chen

<p>

Thanks for your nice comment. Yes, the Dutch masters in a way seem to

have anticipated available light leicagraphy... ;o)

<p>

For my taste, especially in portraits there is little to compete with

just one strong but soft light

source. In this case a lamp shade of 2 feet in diameter. As for the

color, the 60 watts bulb is too "warm" even for the tungsten type film,

resulting in that golden tone may-be reminding of those Dutch

candlelight scenes.

Al <BR><BR>For you and others to copy the layout I'm pasting the HTML

below.

Highlight and copy, then paste it into your

contribution window. Just make sure to swap my SWAP NOTES

against your

text leaving the "s untouched. Make sure you uploaded

your pictures to the internet FIRST to be able to see if the

links work. You may wish to test your posts here: <A HREF="http://

www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=005uhi">HTML

PLAYGROUND</A> <BR>If they work, go FORWARD with your browser,

highlight

and copy your whole contribution and paste it into the

right thread.

<P><CENTER><TABLE BORDER=2 CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=4>

<TR>

<TD WIDTH=150 HEIGHT=150>

<P><CENTER><P><CENTER>SWAP THIS AGAINST YOUR

HEADLINE</CENTER></P></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> </CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER><P><CENTER><TABLE BORDER=2

CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=4></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <TR></CENTER></P>

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</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <P><CENTER><A HREF="SWAP

THIS AGAINST THE INTERNET ADDRESS OF YOUR FIRST

PICTURE"><IMG</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> SRC="SWAP THIS AGAINST A THUMBNAIL

(SMALLER SIZE, IDEALLY 150X100 PIXELS) OF YOUR FIRST

PICTURE"</CENTER></P>

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BORDER=0</CENTER></P>

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ALIGN=bottom></A></CENTER></CENTER></P>

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</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <P><CENTER><A HREF="SWAP

THIS AGAINST THE INTERNET ADDRESS OF YOUR SECOND

PICTURE"><IMG</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> SRC="SWAP THIS AGAINST A THUMBNAIL

(SMALLER SIZE, IDEALLY 150X100 PIXELS) OF YOUR SECOND

PICTURE"</CENTER></P>

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BORDER=0</CENTER></P>

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ALIGN=bottom></A></CENTER></CENTER></P>

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<P><CENTER> <TR></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <TD WIDTH=150></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <P><CENTER>SWAP THIS AGAINST

THE FIRST LINE OF CAPTION OF YOUR FIRST PICTURE<BR>

</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> </CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> SWAP THIS AGAINST THE SECOND LINE OF

CAPTION OF YOUR FIRST PICTURE</CENTER></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> </TD><TD WIDTH=150>

</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> <P><CENTER>SWAP THIS AGAINST

THE FIRST LINE OF CAPTION OF YOUR SECOND PICTURE<BR>

</CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> </CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER> SWAP THIS AGAINST THE SECOND LINE OF

CAPTION OF YOUR SECOND PICTURE</CENTER></P>

</CENTER></P>

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<P><CENTER> </TD></TR></CENTER></P>

<P><CENTER></TABLE></CENTER></P></CENTER>

</TD></TR>

</TABLE></CENTER></P>

Lutz:

<p>

Interesting archetecture in that first picture (upper left). What can

you tell me about it and where the picture was shot. It looks a lot

like some of the south west United States Indian/Spanish pueplo

architecture.

<p>

Thanks for sharing the info. I'm looking for a fast wide angle lens

(wider than my 35 ASPH Lux). I was recently shooting in the deep

woods of northern Wisconsin in full daylight with ISO 100 Kodak film,

the 35 Lux at F2 at 1/30. It gets that dark in a dense forest. I

need (want) something wider but after buying the Lux, a 28 'cron is a

bit much right now.

This lens doesn't seem to stretch out things on the edges as bad as

my 28mm Nikkor.

Thanks for the interesting and thorough post. I've been debating

which wide angle to get when my resources allow (don't have any wides

for the M right now--usually use medium format for that), with the

28/1.9 being the probable choice. You've provided the real-world data

needed to put it firmly at the top of the list.

Mark

<BR>

All but the street shot with the MacDonalds poster (Zürich) were taken

in the Italian countryside, about a hundred miles south of Bologna,

near the Adriatic coast. The living room in the picture you mentioned

is a transformed chapel of a former convent. The buildings of more than

one hundred years of age in that area are stonewall constructions with

huge oak beams and slats(?) to support terracotta floors.

Lutz,

<p>

Very nice -- makes me want the lens. Thanks for sharing. BTW, I

don't see the image with the McDonald's sign.

<p>

David

Thanks for your feedback, David.

<p>

As far as the McD's poster is concerned, it's rather tiny at the center

of the street view with the tracks in the

foreground. The view struck me, because the houses are obviously

European (Swiss to be exact), the brand

is American and the campaign is in Chinese letters - emblematic

evidence for the much discussed

globalism, ne c'est pas...?

<p>

Cheers,

Lutz

I'm on the verge of getting a Bessa R outfit, and am conflicted

regarding the 28mm-35mm lens range. I prefer fast lenses, so I'm

down to a choice of two. Does the 28mm/f1.9 comes with a viewfinder?

Can it be used with the Bessa R viewfinder (in other words, is there

enough space around the 35mm frame lines to estimate what the 28mm

will include?

Lutz:

<p>

Very nice photos! The Voigtländer Ultron 1.9/28mm lens looks like a

keeper!.......................

Jeff, on your first question: No, it doesn't come with a viewfinder.

But Voigtlaender has very fine brightline finders for about 150 USD

(converting from European prices). Sorry, on your second I have to

pass...

<BR><BR>

Cheers

While I'm at it... here's my rough sketch to give you some idea of the

viewfinder obstruction produced. I did it for the twin thread but once

it's uploaded it's easily shared... Cheers.<BR><BR><center><IMG SRC=

"http://www.konermann.net/ultron.finder.jpeg"></center>

Very good post. I was thinking which V/Lander LTM wideangle to get: 25

f/4 or 28 f1.9? Your shots with the 28 are good publicity for this

lens, especially the low light interior one. Would the 25 or even 15

be more useful for interiors though? Or would the trade off in speed

not be worth it? Anyone had good experience with these other ones?

Great review of the lens, and great pictures. Id been wanting to buy the leica 2.0 28mm

but for nearly 2 thousand dollars i was hesitant, then i read a few great reviews on this

lens. IMO why spend 2 grand when you can have basically the same high quality for

500 :). One thing all people buying this lens should look for.

<p>

Go to a large dealer that would have a few of these lenses. Have them pull out a couple of

them as the manufacturing in this japan factory must not up to the "QUALITY

CONTROL" of leica germany. Granted it shouldn't be for the price difference. Hold the

lens up to a light source in the store. I looked at 5 lenses at B and H only 2 of them had

fairly clean glass. The other 3 had more dust in the lens then my Leica 1960s dual

summicron.

<p>

Other then that this is a great lens superb contrast color and shadow detail. Definitely a

keeper.

<p>

Thanks

Ben

Thanks for the great review, Lutz -- from the text to the images (esp. w/data), this is a great user's review -- it really gives us an idea of what the lens is like in use across a few different scenarios (scenaria?). Thanks, too, for the HTML -- very handy, clean presentation tool. On the down side, it adds another lens to the wish list --

Nicely done!

Since the HTML is messed up, here's the VF obstruction sketch again. Cheers.<p>

<center><img src="http://www.konermann.net/ultron.finder.jpeg"></center>