Voigtlander 50mm F/1.5 Nokton For Leica

The Voigtlander 50mm f/1.5 Nokton is a standard focal length Leica M-mount lens. Key features include:

• Great low-light performance

• Manual-focus design for precision control

• Click-stop aperture ring

• Durable, all-metal construction

Unique Lens Design. While it‘s noticeably different than other M-mount lenses, the all-metal barrel feels quite good while shooting. It features a smooth manual focus ring, and a rigid aperture ring with half-stop clicks. Distance and depth-of-field scales are also marked on the barrel.

Fast Aperture. The f/1.5 aperture allows for great low-light shooting performance. It also enables great background separation for portraiture.

Experience: Extensive field use.

Take: If you’re looking for a lens that gets 90% of the way to the look of the Leica 50mm f/1.4 Summilux ASPH but don’t want to spend the extra money, this is the …

Experience: Extensive field use.

Take: If you’re looking for a lens that gets 90% of the way to the look of the but don’t want to spend the extra money, this is the lens for you. Optically, this fast 50mm is really close to the quality you’ll get from its more expensive cousin but ergonomically it falls really short. Voigtlander chose to go with a vintage-style exterior design that I think was a poor choice. The knurls on the focus ring start to hurt your fingers after a while and the apertures on the aperture ring can be difficult to see at first glance when you’re working quickly. I always rent this lens when I’m looking at past images I took with it and then remember why I don’t rent it as much when I get it back in my hands. If Voigtlander housed this lens in a more ergonomically pleasing package I’d probably own it.