NOKTON 25mm F0.95

Large aperture standard lens for M43

A review and photo examples of the Voigtlander NOKTON 25mm F0.95.

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Gallery

The sample photos were taken with a Panasonic DMC-GM5

Review

Overview
Usage
Add info

1．Overview

The Voigtlander Nokton 25mm is a Micro Four Thirds lens with a focal length of 25mm released under the Cosina Voigtlander brand in 2011.

The lens is made up of 11 elements in 8 groups and uses only spherical lenses, with a minimum focusing distance of 0.17m and 10 aperture blades.
The filter diameter is 52mm and is attached by screwing it onto the front of the lens.

A dedicated cylindrical lens hood is included and is screwed on.

This lens is an older model, but the new TYPE-II model has added a function to turn off the aperture click sound, which is essential for video shooting.

Image taken from COSINA official website

2．Usage

When using this bright F0.95 lens, it is best to choose a camera with a high-resolution EVF.

This time, I used the Panasonic LUMIX GM5, which has a low EVF pixel count of 230,000 dots, so there were some problems with the focus accuracy when shooting with the pin peaking display at the maximum aperture of F0.95. If it is difficult to judge the focus position using the EVF, be sure to enlarge the display and check the focus position.

When the aperture is narrowed to F4, the focus peaking displayed on the EVF allows you to consistently obtain photos with a focus position that is practically problem-free.

When looking at the results of shooting with the maximum aperture, the edges are blurred and there is a blur around the light, but the center is well-depicted. When narrowed down to F4, the image becomes uniform overall.

What is more concerning is that the actual focal length is 25mm, which makes it a wide-angle lens in 35mm format, so barrel distortion can be noticeable depending on the shooting distance. It is unfortunate that barrel distortion can be seen at the equivalent focal length of 50mm.

3．Add info.

Voigtlander has released six large aperture lenses for Micro Four Thirds. All of them are bright lenses with an aperture value of over 0.95.

10.5mm F0.95 / 21mm
17.5mm F0.95 / 35mm
25mm F0.95 / 50mm
29mm F0.8 / 58mm
42.5mm F0.95 / 85mm
60mm F0.95 / 120mm

The 17.5mm and 60mm have focal lengths of 35mm and 120mm in 35mm format, and for the 35mm I used the 35mm F1.2, which is compatible with the 35mm format, so you can get a rough idea of the trends. I feel that the 120mm is a bit too long and difficult to use.

Of these, the lenses I would particularly like to try are the 42.5mm and 10.5mm.

The actual focal length of 42.5mm is close to that of a standard 35mm lens, which is equivalent to 85mm in 35mm format in Micro Four Thirds. The NOKTON 42.5mm has a focal length that makes it easy to reduce the barrel distortion that is a problem with the 25mm, and I am interested in how it will depict images.
I have used the NOKTON 21mm F1.4, which has an ultra-wide focal length of 10.5mm, which is equivalent to 21mm in 35mm format in Micro Four Thirds, but it will be interesting to see how the brighter NOKTON 10.5mm depicts images.

The 29mm F0.8, which is brighter than other lenses with an aperture value of F0.95, is designed for Micro Four Thirds, but it achieves an aperture value of F0.8 with a focal length of 58mm equivalent to 35mm. It is an interesting lens that is unique in terms of brightness, but the price of over 200,000 yen is difficult to accept as a lens for Micro Four Thirds.

Specification

Items	10.5mm F0.95	17.5mm F0.95	25mm F0.95 TYPE-II	42.5mm F0.95	60mm F0.95
Focal length(mm)	10.5	17.5	25	42.5	60
35mm equivalent focal length	21	35	50	85	120
Max aperture	0.95	0.95	0.95	0.95	0.95
Min aperture	16	16	16	16	16
Aperture blade	10	10	10	10	10
Lens Construction	13 elements in 10 groups	13 elements in 9 groups	11 elements in 8 groups	11 elements in 8 groups	11 elements in 8 groups
Min distance(m)	0.17	0.15	0.17	0.23	0.34
Lens length(mm)	82.4	80	70	74.6	87.7
Lens Max diameter(mm)	77	63.4	60.6	64.3	82.5
Filter Size(mm)	72	58	52	58	77
Weight(g)	585	540	435	571	860
Release date	June 12, 2015	April 29, 2012	April 8, 2014	August 23, 2013	April 24, 2020
Price(Yen/No-tax)	¥148,000	¥118,000	¥105,000	¥118,000	¥145,000