Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 is a Fixed aperture Manual Focus (MF)
Ultra-Wideangle Prime lens with 35mm FF max sensor coverage, and it is designed to be used with
M Mount cameras.
What type of photography is the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 lens good for?
The choice of photography type for which you intend to use the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 is a crucial decision factor. Below, we have assessed its suitability for various photography scenarios:
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 is a member of Voigtlander's Heliar series of lenses. Below you can see the latest lenses in this series.
Voigtlander Heliar Series Lenses in Leica M Mount
Reasons to Buy the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar Lens
Here we've included a summary of the advantages and disadvantages of the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar lens in a list form to assist you in determining whether it offers the features you need.
| Aperture Ring |
| Distance Scale |
| Hood supplied |
| Covers Full-Frame Sensor |
| 9 Diaphragm Blades for Smooth Bokeh |
| Extreme Wide-angle capability |
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| No Weather Sealing |
| No Autofocus |
Lens Mount
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 is compatible with cameras that have a Leica M lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Leica M lenses are Leica M EV1, Leica M11-D and Pixii Max.
Size, Weight and Filter Thread
The size and weight are crucial factors to consider when searching for your next lens. Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 has a maximum diameter of 75mm and a total length of 43mm. It weighs 230g / 8.1 oz.
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 has a filter thread of 67mm. Below are links to the filters that we recommend you to consider for your Voigtlander 12mm F5.6:
You can also check All Leica M Mount Lenses with 67mm Filter Thread Size to find the matching lenses.
Focal Range
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 has a fixed focal length of 12mm.
Optical Image Stabilization
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 doesn't have an optical image stabilization system so the only option to stabilize the image taken with this lens is to mount on a camera body with IBIS (sensor based In-body image stabilization).
Maximum Magnification Ratio
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 has a Max Magnification Ratio of 0.09x with a minimum focusing distance of 0.5m. 0.09x ratio is quite low, making this lens unsuitable even for modest close-up photography.
Aperture
The Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar features a maximum aperture of F5.6 and can be stopped down to a minimum aperture of F22. While a maximum aperture of F5.6 requires a bit more ambient light or a bump in ISO when shooting indoors, it keeps the physical size of the lens much smaller and easier to carry. Given the wider 12mm field of view, the background will naturally stay a bit more in focus, making it ideal for environmental portraits, street photography, or landscapes where context matters. The minimum setting of F22 is excellent for deep depth of field work like macro photography, though you may want to avoid the absolute smallest settings to skip the sharpness loss caused by optical diffraction.
Optical Formula
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6's optical formula consists of 10 elements in 8 groups . Special elements used in this design is 1 aspherical element.
Lens Hood
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 comes with a removable lens hood which is handy to reduce lens flare and glare in your photos.
Body Colour
Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 is available in Black color.
Popular Comparisons of Voigtlander 12mm F5.6
Here are the 8 most popular comparisons of the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 amongst Camera Decision readers.
Top Alternatives of Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 Lens
In addition, it would be interesting to check which lenses from other mounts are most commonly compared with the Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar.
Top Alternatives of Voigtlander 12mm F5.6 in Other Lens Mounts
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