The Voigtlander APO-Lanthar 110mm f/2.5 for Sony E-Mount
I have checked out the second Macro APO-Lanthar, this time the 110mm f/2.5 Lens for the Sony-E Mount, but on the TZE-01 adapter for the Nikon Z7. In the previous blog, I worked with the 65mm f/2 lens and found it very useful for my work, which is close-up stacking of images.
I am not as happy with the 110mm, for a couple of reasons, which may not affect most readers here, especially if you don’t stack focus.
Both the 65mm and the 110mm Voigtlander APO-Lanthars are about the same size, and they are external focus, so they hang way out there on the Nikon Z7 and the TZE-01 adapter. This is not SO bad if you are taking a single shot photo. Yet, for stacking, where I may have to take 150-250 images (or less or more), that overhanging lens is very hard to keep stationary. And the 110mm weighs 771 grams (1.78 lb.), while the 65mm weights 625 grams (1.4 lbs.). that 146 grams difference actually makes a difference in this case and for my work.
I usually use as a tripod head the geared Arca-Swiss C1 Cube. However, the C1 Cube is a little spongy because of the manual knob that allows the whole head to swing open 90-degrees. That knob has a little give to it. And so, given the long extension of the 110mm and the extra weight (146 grams), plus the helicoid on the 110mm is “stiffer” than the helicoid on the 65mm, the effort to turn the helicoid moves the lens more than it otherwise should, IMO. It’s no fun if you are doing many layers of images.
So, I went to the most steady tripod head I know of which is the Burzynski “Protec,” which as lens-master Bjørn Rørslett says “It simply defines what “dead solid” is all about.” Using the Burzynski helped a lot, but I still have to say that for complex focus stacking, the Voigtlander APO-Lanthar 110mm lens may not be for me. I can make it work, but my guess is that I may call on other lenses more often than choose it.
So, there you have it. I like and can use the Voigtlander Macro APO-Lanthar 65mm lens, but have my doubts (and gave reasons) why the 110mm is probably a bridge too far as for stability in stacking images. It is just not steady enough because of weight, overhang-stress on the adapter, and stiffness of the helicoid, plus the focus throw is not (IMO) as long as I like them.
That aside, it is my best judgment, after examining the 110 APO-Lanthar that this lens is a step above in quality of the image from the legendary CV-125 (Voigtlander APO-Lanthar 125mm) lens. And so, I will be keeping it, but using it a little sparingly perhaps. This is an exquisite lens and I would recommend it.
