Do Micro Four Thirds Cameras Need a 29mm f0.8 Lens?
This new Micro Four Thirds lens from Voigtlander is an oddball option with a hefty price tag.
Variety is certainly the spice of life, but sometimes new products hit the market and they make us scratch our heads. Voigtlander is no stranger to the Micro Four Thirds platform. They have made some great lenses for the m4/3 users before. While we’re sure their new offering will be nice, it’s still a little odd. The Voigtlander 29mm f0.8 manual focus lens has just been released, but we can’t help but wonder if it’s really needed. Find out all the deets about this new lens after the break.
A recent post over at 4/3 Rumors shows just how shallow the depth of field is from an f0.8 lens on Micro Four Thirds cameras. For years, many photographers have lamented the lack of bokeh or background separation that’s possible with these cameras. While I’ve never seen it as much of an issue, the naysayers took that disadvantage and ran with it to put down the platform at every possible opportunity. The new Voigtlander Super Nokton, 29mm f0.8, will certainly give you bokeh, but who really needs a 58mm f1.6 equivalent lens? Especially when it costs an eye-watering $1,799! Sure it takes the crown of being the fastest lens on the platform, but still, what a price!
The lens features two aspherical lenses. It has a viewing angle of 42.75 and has eleven elements in seven groups. As far as we can tell, the lens is not weather sealed. It also weighs in at a hefty 1.5lbs! Balancing might be an issue on most Micro Four Thirds cameras. It will likely appeal to videographers more than photographers. This is because of the clickless aperture ring and it being a manual focus lens. Still, we can’t help but feel that there are far better options on the market.
Micro Four Thirds Needs Affordable Faster Glass
We’re not going to sit here and say that the Micro Four Thirds system doesn’t need more fast lens options. It does. However, these lenses also need to be affordably within reach of the average Micro Four Thirds user. Olympus’s own f1.2 pro lenses, the 17mm, 25mm, and 45mm f1.2’s cost a little over a grand apiece, and that’s about the upper limit for lenses on this system. Anything priced beyond that for normal focal length lenses will be a hard sell.
There are some more affordable fast lenses for the system from Sigma. Sigma’s 16mm f1.4, 30mm f1.4, and 56mm f1.4 Contemporary lenses are fine options and generate the bokeh most photographers crave. Still, we hope OM Digital Solutions and Panasonic themselves will create or update some of their own fast, affordable primes. OM Digital Solutions and Panasonic both need to make their M4/3 systems sustainable. While we understand they want to cater to pros, they can’t forget about their core base.
What do you think about the new 29mm f0.8 Voigtlander Super Nokton lens? Is it really needed? What about that price? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.