How much influence does a lens have on colour rendering?

[Colin O]

I was reading a review of a lens that I won't buy - Voigtländer 65mm f/2 Macro Apo-Lanthar. The review is here:

https://dustinabbott.net/2018/08/voigtlander-macro-apo-lanthar-65mm-f-2-review/

One line made me think again about something...

Quote

Voigtländer is primarily known (for those who know them) as a maker of exquisitely built manual focus lenses with beautiful color rendition.

I understand that the "optical formula" of a lens affects things like sharpness, bokeh, sunstars, etc, etc. But how much does a lens contribute to the colour of output? I would have thought that colour was down to the processing applied in the digital camera (or properties of the film used), and not really anything to do with the lens.

(PS. I have some vague memory that I was involved in a similar discussion here before, but I cannot find it.)

[Colin O]

Thinking a little... I guess what this might really be getting at is contrast. If one optical formula handles contrast "better" than another, then that might result in more "pure" colours. So maybe it's not any kind of overall rendering along the lines of an Instagram filter, but rather just some lenses transmitting the same colours to the sensor/film in a different way.

Edited July 21, 2023 by Colin O
typo

[SCL]

I think it also has to do with the type of glass used in the lens. For instance the 50/1.4 Super Takumars were known to shift colors as a result of thorium used in the lens production. Not only did the end product (the negative) shift in colors, but the actual lens elements themselves turned light brown, which could be bleached out by UV exposure. Remember that modern lenses are usually achromatic (corrected for two colors) or apochromatic (more complex and expensive corrected for 3 colors).

[Colin O]

Actually probably worth also posting this link:

https://lenspire.zeiss.com/photo/en/article/achromat-and-apochromat-what-is-the-difference/

And I'm wondering if the two side-by-side photos of the model taken with two different lenses could be an example of how one lens renders colours slightly differently to another (as well as indicating the difference in chromatic aberration between the lenses).

[za33photo]

Human eyesight is not constant and equal for everyone , people do tend to see colours differently , if you like the lens , buy it and don't sweat the small stuff.

 

 

[rconey]

Just comparing 2 manual focus lenses. A 75-150 f3.5 and a 50-135 f3.5, both Nikkors used on a Z7 with the FTZ adapter. The 75-150 is consistently about .5 stop darker than the 50-135. When I went in to adjust a 75-50 image lighter, I found that it was also bluer than the 50-135. That I could adjust as well. 

I have seen this before with two similar lenses but happened to be doing a specific comparison today (or playing, if you wish).

[Ed_Ingold]

Here are some comparisons I made in 2015, using the same camera (Sony A7Rii) to compare 50 mm lenses of different manufacturers. You see a dramatic difference in contrast, color, and sharpness, particularly between a Zeiss Loxia lens, a Leica lens, and a Nikon lens. The Leica lens suffers at wide apertures due to it's short back focus distance relative to the Nikon SLR lens, and the Zeiss lens specifically designed for the Sony camera. Zeiss lenses have a reputation for bold colors, which seems to be demonstrated here.

[httpwww.photo.netbarry]

As you can see above, there are differences. To some they will matter and to others not so much.  I get a very different look using a Leica 50 summicron compared to a Fuji 50 f2. on a fuji X camera. I like both, but they are different.

[Ed_Ingold]

I purchased this Summicron 50/2 in 1964. At that time, Leitz valued resolution over contrast. That emphasis has changed.

[JDMvW]

Indeed, an ancient topic. Here is the first page of a 1971 (March) Modern Photography article on same.

It really didn't make much difference in film, and in digital whatever does occur is easily "corrected"

[AlanKlein]

The thing with color, is it's hard to see a difference if you're only looking at one picture.