Category Archives: Manufacturers

Review: Mr. Ding Optics 50mm 1.1 Noxlux M

November 7, 2023 BastianK 43 Comments

Introduction

mr. ding optics studio 50mm 1.1 noctilux leica nokton voigtländer review m10 42mp 24mp sony a7rii contrast resolution bokeh coma noxlux — Mr. Ding Noxlux 50mm 1.1 on Leica M10

The Syoptic 50mm 1.1 was one of the big surprises for me in 2022, as it was a very capable, fast 50mm lens with surprisingly appealing bokeh rendering and a very affordable price tag.
Unfortunately there were also some issues: almost unreachable filter thread, loose focus rings in the first production run and allegedly some issues with product support.
Now the “official” and improved version of this lens is available branded as Mr. Ding Studio 50mm 1.1 Noxlux. Let’s have a look together.
This lens will be reviewed on the 42mp Sony A7rII and the 24mp Leica M10.
Update 11/23: Information on the updated Mark II version added

This lens is in many aspects identical to the Syoptic 50mm 1.1, so I will reuse a few sections of my review of that lens.

This lens is also part of my Comparison of 6 Super Fast 50mm M-mount Lenses together with the Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M, the Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M, the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton, MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM and Voigtänder VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton.

Sample Images

Sony A7III | Mr. Ding 50mm 1.1 | f/1.1 | LM-EA9

Continue reading Review: Mr. Ding Optics 50mm 1.1 Noxlux M →

Leica M, Review, Voigtlander

Review: Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton – The actually fastest M-mount lens

November 5, 2023 BastianK 29 Comments

Introduction

Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 nokton fle review sharpness comparison leica m10 24mp 42mp 61mp m11 bokeh vignetting coma — Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton on Leica M10

The Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton is a lens, which I always found to hit a sweet spot: a very fast lens that is also sharp with very nice bokeh in a compact package at a still somewhat reasonable price.
This is why I did not expect Cosina to release this more complex Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton so shortly after.
Going by price and technology (grinding aspherical, floating elements) this is Cosina’s flagship fullframe lens, so let’s find out what it is capable of in this review.
This lens will be reviewed on the 42mp Sony A7rII and the 24mp Leica M10.

Sample Images

Continue reading Review: Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton – The actually fastest M-mount lens →

Laowa, Macro, Nikon Z, Review

Review: Laowa 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5x Ultra Macro

November 2, 2023 Martin 12 Comments

Introduction

We have seen macro lenses with 1:2 magnification, 1:1 magnification, and even with 2:1 magnification. What if you want to have a lens that goes further and has greater magnification? The cool thing about macro at 3x-5x is that you can take any random ordinary everyday object and make it highly interesting.

For a long time the only available lens that had a magnification greater than 1x was the Canon MP-E 65mm, and not only that, it also could go up to 5x magnification. A long time a matter of envy for all non-Canon users, until mirrorless cameras and adapters made it possible to adapt that lens to other brands, but it was the only option and expensive. This is where the Laowa 25mm f2.8 2.5-5X Ultra Macro comes in handy. A small lens that has a whopping 5X magnification, costs half and does not need any adapters as it comes in almost all popular mounts. Let’s see how good this little wonder is!

Sample Images

Laowa 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5x Ultra Macro review sharpness bokeh coma vignetting 24mp nikon z6 z6ii 46mp nikon z7 z7ii Z8 Z9 D7200 D750 D600 D800 D7500 — Nikon Z6 | Laowa 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5x Ultra Macro | f/5.6 (Stacked, 29 images)

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Comparison, Leica, Leica M, Mr. Ding Studio, MS-Optics, Voigtlander, Zhong Yi

Comparison: Super Fast 50mm M-mount Lenses

October 22, 2023 BastianK 37 Comments

Introduction

comparison super fast 50mm m-mount leica 24mp 42mp 61mp sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting noctilux 0.95 zhong yi speedmaster voigtländer vm nokton 1.0 1.2 MS-optics ISM mr. ding 1.1 — Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux | Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M | Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton | MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM | Mr. Ding 50mm 1.1 | Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton

The M-mount seems to be more popular than ever, thanks to plenty of manufacturers – old and new – from Europe, Japan and China designing and releasing countless of new lenses every year for this bayonet.
Super fast 50mm lenses are especially popular here, so many manufacturers designed one as their “flagship” lens.
Thanks to a reader and very cooperative companies I managed to get 6 of these lenses on my table at the same time, so let’s see what each of them is good at – to help you figure out which one might work best for your needs.

Continue reading Comparison: Super Fast 50mm M-mount Lenses →

Leica, Leica M, Review

Review: Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M Asph

October 15, 2023 BastianK 12 Comments

Introduction

leica 50mm 0.95 f/0.95 m 24mp m11 m10 m10r sharpness contrat resolution bokeh vignetting review — Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M Asph on Leica M10

For one decade (2008-2018) the Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M Asph was Leica’s most expensive M-mount lens and it is still the fastest lens in their line up to this day.
Now in 2023 there are many f/0.95 lenses from China available for your mirrorless camera of choice, but in 2008 – when most people were using (D)SLRs – this was a unique offering and something you could only find in the M-system.
But is this lens (still) worth the asking price? Let’s try to find out.
This lens will be reviewed on the 42mp Sony A7rII and the 24mp Leica M10.

This lens is also part of my Comparison of 6 Super Fast 50mm M-mount Lenses together with the Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M, the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton, MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM, Mr. Ding 50mm 1.1 and Voigtänder VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton.