Cosina has announced a new Voigtlander 50mm f/1.0 Aspherical lens for Sony E mount. Oddly, though, they haven’t released the full specs of the lens yet. Nor have they released a price, but it’s expected to begin shipping in March.
It’s not the first 50mm f/1.0 they’ve made, though, so we can make some guesses. There are three other 50mm f/1.0 lenses for Leica M (buy here), Canon RF (buy here), and Nikon Z (buy here). And while all three sport differing exteriors, they all house that same 9-element, 7-group optical makeup.
The same old lens in a new housing?
As Cosina already has three other Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.0 lenses out there – although the Nikon Z one seems to be unavailable at the moment – it makes sense that they’re simply putting that optical formula in another new housing.
And the housing certainly is different. Here’s how all four Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.0 lenses look. From left to right, that’s Leica M, Canon RF, Nikon Z and Sony E.
As you can see, the differences between them are quite striking on the outside. Inside, however, the three on the left are pretty much identical in specs.
Naturally, they all have a 50mm focal length with a maximum f/1.0 aperture. They all have a minimum f/16 aperture, too. They all boast the exact same 47.8° angle of view, the same 9 elements in 7 groups, the same 12 diaphragm blades.
Or will it be something new?
There are some noticeable differences, however. While the Nikon Z and Canon RF versions of the lens offer a 45cm minimum focus distance, the Leica M version’s minimum focus distance is advertised as 90cm.
The Leica M and Nikon Z versions have a 62mm filter thread on the front, but the Canon RF version has a 67mm filter thread. The Leica M and Canon RF versions are both actually available to buy and the Nikon Z version doesn’t look like it ever made it past the initial launch in January 2023.
So, I think we can expect some differences from at least some if not all of the previous mode lenses. Perhaps not important differences, but differences nonetheless.
It’s also entirely possible that the new Sony E mount version is a completely new lens. A next-generation – without a Mark 2 moniker – of the lens that just happens to be coming to Sony E mount first.
While the lack of specs and price right now suggests this may be the case. Else why hide it when three lenses already exist? On the other hand, maybe that’s intentional to try to build up hype.
Price and Availability
Well, there’s the tough. The Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.8 for Leica M and Canon RF cost $1,799. So, I think we can expect the same for this. I guess we’ll find out for sure as we get closer to the March shipping date.
