Intro

The Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar from the Japanese manufacturer Cosina is a wide-angle prime lens with a relatively bright f2.0 focal ratio designed for mirrorless cameras and corrected for full-frame sensors. A little wider than the popular 35mm popular focal length for street photography and general-purpose use, it captures more of the environment and landscape although it’s probably not wide enough for shooting architecture or interiors. The lens is manual focus and manual aperture only but has contacts to communicate EXIF data and works well with MF support from the camera. The Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar is made in Japan and costs around 1149 EUR / 1149 USD / 819 GBP for Nikon’s Z-mount. The Sony E and Leica M versions are similarly priced and although they look a bit different the optical formula is exactly the same.

For this review I tested the Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar on a Nikon Z8 and had a very close look at its optical qualities – using pixel shift shooting which quadruples the resolution of the camera to 180MP. So if you’re interested in whether the qualities of the Voigtländer outweigh the hassles of manual focus when selecting a wide-angle prime lens, you’ve come to the right place!

If you’re not sure whether you prefer 28mm or 35mm focal length have a look at my Voigtländer 35mm f2 APO-Lanthar review, where the lens earned a Highly Recommended. And if you’re looking for alternatives from other manufacturers, there is the highly recommended Sigma 28mm f1.4 Art (available in E-Mount, L-mount, and F-mount which can be used via FTZ-adapter on a Nikon Z body) and the Viltrox AF 28mm f1.8 FE (available for E-mount and Z-mount) which I haven’t tested yet – both offering autofocus.

Facts and features

As usual I’ll have a look at the technical data of the new Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar first. I’ve rated the features with a [+] (or [++]), when it’s better than average or even state of the art, a [0] if it’s standard or just average, and [-] if there’s a disadvantage. All data is for the Z-mount version of the lens. I’ve added comments when there are meaningful differences with the Sony version.

Size (diameter x length): The Voigtländer is pretty small at only 69 x 60mm (2.7 x 2.4in.). The metal lens hood adds 21mm and is 77mm in diameter and the lens extends by 4mm when focused to minimum object distance. The Sony version is a bit shorter and slimmer. [+]

Weight: 345g (12.2 oz.) plus 17g for the lens hood. The Sony version is 25g lighter. [0]

Optics: 12 elements (including 6 special dispersion and 2 aspherical) in 8 groups. [+]

Minimum object distance is 0.28m (1.2ft.) with a magnification of 1:6.8 which is not much. Working distance at MOD is 0.20m w/o lens hood. [-]

Filter-thread: 58mm. The Sony version uses 49mm filters[+]

Image stabilization: No. But the lens profits from the built-in sensor-shift stabilization which most modern mirrorless camera bodies provide. In case of a Nikon Z full-frame body over three axis. The Sony version has a built-in distance encoder which enables support for 5-axis image stabilization on the body side. [0]

Auto focus: No, the Voigtländer is manual focus only. The focus ring has the usual linear gearing of manual focus lenses with distance markings in m and ft plus a dof indicator. [-]

Although the Voigtländer has only manual focus and manual aperture operation the lens has contacts to communicate EXIF data like focal length and aperture to the camera. Some of the MF support is also activated like the viewfinder magnification on Sony cameras or changing the focus point frame color on a Nikon Z body. [0]

Covers full frame/FX or smaller. [+]

Price: 1149 EUR (incl. 19% VAT) / 1149 USD / 819 GBP. The Sigma 28mm f1.4 DG HSM Art currently sells for 650 EUR / 600 USD / 700 GBP and the Viltrox AF 28mm f1.8 FE is at 400 EUR / 380 USD / 375 GBP. [0]

The lens comes without a pouch but the metal lens hood is included. It is of the standard bayonet type and is reversible for transport on the Nikon version and of the non-reversible screw-on type for the Sony version. [0]

Aperture ring: Yes, the lens has a dedicated aperture ring with 1/3 click-stops from f2.0 to f16. On the Z-mount version, the click-stops cannot be switched off. But on the E-mount version you can turn the front ring to de-click the aperture. [+]

Sealing: No, the lens doesn’t even have a rubber grommet at the lens-mount. [-]

At a score of 3[-]/5[0]/5[+] the Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar has no outstanding features on paper – except that it’s pretty small and its full metal construction leaves a very sturdy and well engineered impression. But the lens is manual focus and manual aperture only, is not weather sealed, and offers only a pretty meagre magnification for close-ups. So with a price that’s not exactly cheap for a lens without autofocus it comes down to whether the optical qualities of the new Voigtländer are superior to what other lenses offer.

Two Voigtländer APO-Lanthar lenses

Above: Voigtländer 50mm f2 APO-Lanthar (1st generation, left), Voigtländer 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar (right)

Focus

The ribbed surface of the focus ring is 15mm wide and easy to grip. It turns 144 degrees the way Nikon users are used to (and on the E-mount version the way Sony users are used to). The focus throw is perfect for quick distance adjustments but still fine (enough) to put the focal plane exactly where it should be. The focus ring runs very smooth but is damped well enough that you cannot easily move it with one finger. Still I’m not happy with the minimal distance between aperture ring and focus ring of 7 mm: When you have the camera at your eyes and grab for the aperture ring you might easily dislodge focus.

Focus operation of the Voigtländer is not audible from the outside and if you record video with the built-in microphone turning the focus ring produces only a very low mechanical noise. The aperture clicks register a bit stronger on the internal microphone so it’s a pity that Cosina didn’t implement the de-clickable aperture ring of the E-mount version on the Z-mount version too. As you pull-focus, you’ll notice quite some focus breathing: the image became 8% more magnified when I adjusted focus from infinity to 0.38m (1:10 magnification). This is pretty obvious when shooting videos.

Next check out my quality results!

Check prices or buy the Voigtlander 28mm f2 APO-Lanthar at B&H or Adorama, WEX UK or Calumet.de. Buy used gear from MPB. Sell your used gear to MPB. Or why not treat yourself to a copy of my In Camera book, an official Cameralabs T-shirt or mug, or treat me to a coffee! Thanks!