Lazy Saturday evening....

Lazy Saturday evening...., originally uploaded by benny ng.

..with no spectacular sunset.

Sunsets in our part of the world is so short! And if there are thick clouds, you can forget about it.

I always enjoy sunrise and sunsets in temperate climates. Being in countries on a higher lattitude, the duration of these beautiful moments are also much longer than the 15 minutes we get over here. I will always remember trying to wait for the sunset in Scotland during July 1996 at the Loch Ness. We started at 6pm and left at 12.30am when we ran out of food and water. And it was still bright and the sun was far from reaching the horizon.

All's not lost, we do get a good 12 to 13 hours of daylight year round. Great for outdoor fun.

Cheers,

So we went to Changi again...

The roll from the Voigtlander Bessa R4A is finally developed. No spectacular sunset from the Changi trip. On well....

Anyway, here's a few shots from the lazy afternoon..







The overall feel of the camera is good, and the rangefinder coupled viewfinder at 21mm is certainly convenient. I think on a bright, sunny day, this combo will be great for a street shoot.

Anyway, ended up at Charlie's for Western Dinner. Yum Yum!



Cheers,

Wide Angle Fun!!

Voigtlander Bessa R4A + Color-Skopar 21mm f/4, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Voigtlander Bessa R4A + Color-Skopar 21mm f/4

Decided to take some of the lesser used gear out for a spin. So the R4A with the 21mm wide angle lens was the pick of the day.

Originally, the bunch of us was going to shoot sunset in Changi, but it was quite a washout. Ended up goofing around the broadwalk and took a few snaps of each other. As usual.

Shots from this set should be up soon. Hope they'll turn up alright.

Cheers,

Jaguar E Type (XKE) @ Frankfurt

Jaguar E Type (XKE), originally uploaded by benny ng.

Saw this at the Frankfurt airport whilst in transit. Part of some rental car advertising campaign by SIXT. Actually, there are other cars on display as well. Seems like it's quite popular to use airports for automobile presentations in Europe, or at least Germany.

Anyway, this is a classic and I just love the lines on it. We don't see too many of these in my part of the world.

Taken with the M mount Voigtlander 15mm f/4.5 Aspherical lens.

Cheers,

Looking up

Looking up, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Hanging out with the guys again at the usual spot.

I think the patrons of Isle Cafe must be sick of being shot to death by the hordes of photographers that hang out there. Here I was trying to create a perception of depth with the use of the 'sandwich' effect. Obviously not very successful.

Shot with the Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1 wide open on Zeiss Ikon on Kodak Portra VC.

Film is so much more challenging as there is no second chance...

3 Ladies

3 Ladies, originally uploaded by benny ng.

So I took the new speed king for a spin in Hong Kong. This was actually shot at the airport as I didn't get much shooting opportunities.

This is shot wide open at f/1.1. In the original size image, you can even see the text/brail on the two little aluminum plates!

The more I play with this lens, the more I like it.

Cheers,

All hail the new speed king!

Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1 + Leica M6, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Yup. The new Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1 is finally out!

Due to geographic proximity, Chii Fei was the first to get it outside of Japan and I'm sure this lens will be a hot seller for sometime.

The initial impression was that it seems slightly smaller (but loads lighter) than Leica's Noctilux 50mm f/1.0, but bigger than Canon's 50mm f/1.2 LTM. I'm not sure what the form factor for the new Leica Noctilux 50mm f/0.95 ASPH will be like, but I doubt it will be as compact.

A screw on hood is supplied, together with a 58mm pinch cap. I would have prefered a push on cap like the Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.2. However, the pinch cap can be used on the lens without the hood, which makes it slightly more compact. You win some, you lose some.

Overall built quality seems quite good. Focusing is smooth and aperture click stops are crispy. The black finishing is decent, like the lighter Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5 LTM. The absence of an infinity lock is not an issue for a lens of this size. Besides, some folks absolutely hate it!

By the way, there's an even bigger vented hood available for those who like their gear to be visually imposing. I'm sure the hood will intrude into most of the cameras viewfinder, especially those with lifesize magnification.

Image quality is usually subjective, especially when there are legions of Leica diehards defending the reputation of the Noctilux in their collection. In any case, as a modern lens, this lens produce sharp and contrasty images of good resolution. Color film/slide users will surely like the output from this lens. Although I think the out of focus redition is great, but I shall not go into bokeh discussions. It's either you like it or you don't.

Being the only other fast 50mm rangefinder lens in production besides the Leica Noctilux and at only a fraction of the price, Cosina really have a winner on their hands. Whilst the Fujinon 50mm f/1.2 LTM, Zunow 50mm f/1.1 LTM and the Nikkor 5cm f/1.1 may not lose any value due to their cult/collector status, the desirability of the Canon 50mm f/1.2 LTM, Konica Hexanon 50mm f/1.2 M may be impacted with the availability of the new speed king.

Cheers,

Voigtlander Heliar 50mm f/3.5 LTM

6 X Voigtlander Heliar 50mm f/3.5 LTM, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Was trying to organize the dry cabinet and realized that I have 6 of these! Some history behind the strange numbers..

The lens is part of the limited edition Bessa T Heliar 101 Anniversary Edition which I like very much. I got the blue set initially and was very happy with it. Then I realized that that there is actually a matching trigger winder with it! So I got another blue set that came with the winder. But the black paint version was also very pretty and I gave in to temptation. Logged in 2 bids and hoping to land one, I ended up with 2 black paint editions instead. But the one that I really wanted was the Olive version, which I finally got. According to Cosina, they only released 500 set of each color and probably about 100 to 200 trigger winders in matching color.

So.... the lenses came with the pretty bodies and it's a consolation that it's a great performer in a little quirky package. I may trim down on the collection and just keep one of each color instead.

Cheers,

Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1 in M mount released!

Was trolling the Japanese sites and came across Asahi Camera's page on their upcoming June issue. Seems like Cosina will be releasing a new M mount 50mm with an aperture of f/1.1!!! Priced at around JPY 125,000, it's about 10 to 15% of the new Leica Noctilux 50mm f/0.95 ASPH!!

I think with this and the new Noctilux, the older Noctilux prices will be impacted. As will the recent insane prices of the Canon 50mm f/0.95 and f/1.2.

Styled like the Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5, the new lens will have a screw on hood and an optional vented clip on hood. Minimum focusing distance of 1m.

Focal length: 50mm
Aperture range: f/1.1 to f/16
Lens construction: 7 elements in 6 groups
Angle of view: 45.9 °
Number of diaphragm blades: 10
Minimum focusing distance: 1m
Integration range in range / ∞ ~ 1m
Dimension (diameter X length): 69.6 × 57.2mm
Filter size: 58mm
Weight: 428g

Good to know they've added a red mounting mark on the barrel, which they missed on the Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.2 Aspherical.

Shipping from July 2009. Can't wait!

http://www.cosina.co.jp/seihin/voigt/v-lens/v-l-m/50-1.1/index.html

Cheers,

p.s. This won't be the only 50mn lens that Voigtlander is releasing! Watch for the rest soon!

Voigtlander Bessa L in Technicolor!

I know there are folks who repaint their prized Leica. But the lowly plastic Voigtlander Bessa L!?







I suppose it's not difficult to strip this little camera to repaint it. Unfortunately, the silk screened "Voigtlander" and the workd "Bessa-L" could not be retained. Shame.

From Japan Yahoo.
http://openuser.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/show/auctions?userID=takanome2007
http://user.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/show/aboutme?userID=takanome2007

Cheers,

New Voigtlander 15-35mm zoom finder

Focal length: 15 - 35 mm
Macro ratio: 0.22 – 0.47
Lens construction: 7 groups, 8 elements
Diopter: -1.0 – 0.3
Diopter correction: yes, standard +1.3 / -2.8
Parallax adjustment frame: yes
Parallax distance: 1 m
Eyepoint: 15 mm from last element, 12.5 from eyepiece
Focal length indication: 15, 18, 21, 25, 28, 35 mmwith crop factor for digital camera 1.3X and 1.5X
Attachment: Via accessory shoe (integrated ring lock)
Size: 42.5 x 49.5 x 65.4 mm
Weight: 98 g

Not more juggling with finders! And it has 1.5X crop for R-D1 and 1.3X crop for M8!!

I gotta get me one of these! But I don't think it will be cheap though....

Cheers,

New Voigtlander Super Wide-Heliar 15mm f/4.5!!

New lens Voigtlander again!


New lens again!

Aperture: f/4.5 to f/22
Lens construction: 6 groups, 8 elements
Picture angle: 110˚
Aperture blades: 10
Minimum focusing distance: 0.5 m
Diameter: 59.4mm
Length: 38.2mm
Weight: 156 g
Filter mount: 52mm
Lenshood: Integrated
Mount: M-bayonet
Rangefinder coupling: ~ 0,7m (depends on camera body)

Looking at the above, it's interesting to see filter threads available for 52mm filters. Will be much easier to mount colored filters for black and white shoots. Also, it's rangefinder coupled! Not critical for such wide angles, especially at f/4.5, but still a nice to have.

I wonder when will it come to Singapore... Tempting....

Cheers,

Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.2 @ ISO 1600

Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/1.2 @ ISO 1600, originally uploaded by benny ng.

It's always fun to shoot with really wide apertures and at high ISO settings. The Epson R-D1' at ISO 1600 has grain, but in a pleasant way. Very film like. The older digital cameras gives very noisy images at that ISO setting. Practically unusable.

Anyway, this was taken on the night out with the boys at Holland Village. We had a session at the Bird Park earlier in the day with some serious long lenses. The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8 L IS USM!!!

Cheers

Got me another Voigtlander mini finder!

Since I got a few screwmount cameras, I wanted to get another Voigtlander 28/35 mini finder. I already have a black one, but the chrome one will be perfect for the Leica IIIg and IIIf as well as the Canon IID and IVSB2. Got Chii Fei to bring it down for me today and it looks great on my cameras. I've always loved the classic chrome look. It' all Michael's fault.

Unfortunately, I should have got it earlier as the recent screw up in the exchange rates resulted in a very unfavorable rate. The tiny little thing with no moving parts now retails at S$250 a piece. The price for vanity. Oh well....

Cheers,

New Voigtlander Ultron 28mm f/2.0

New lens! New lens!

Lens Construction : 8 groups 10 elements
Smallest Aperture : F22
Picture Angle : 75°
Aperture Blades: 10
Nearest Distance : 0.7m
Diameter x Length : φ55 x 51.2mm
Weight : 244g

Retailing in Japan for JPY75000, which is about S$970! This should replaced the Voigtlander Ultron 28mm f/1.9 in LTM mount. Looks like it's slightly smaller and already incoporate an M mount.

http://www.cosina.co.jp/seihin/voigt/v-lens/v-l-m/28-2/index.html

Likely to hit the shores of Singapore by end August 08!

Cheers,

A380 Tokyo to Singapore!

A380 Tokyo to Singapore!, originally uploaded by benny ng.

This is what a 15mm should look like in it's full glory!

Shot with the Voigtlander Super Wide-Heliar 15mm f/4.5 Aspherical on the Leica M7, so there is no 'crop' on the image as it's not a APS-C sensor.

By the way, lots of goodies from this Japan trip. Got the another Zeiss Ikon, but in black. Some vintage Canon and Nikkor M39 rangefinder lenses as well! All in all, a good trip.

Cheers