Our Recommendation
I enjoyed using the Voigtlander Nokton 75mm f/1.5. The build quality is phenomenal, and it performs very well optically, too. However, it’s definitely not the lens for everyone, with the main reason being the lack of autofocus. Even though today’s cameras have good tools to assist with manual focus, a 75mm lens used at f/1.5 has a really shallow depth of field. You’d need to be very dedicated to the art of focusing manually in order to choose this lens over some of the alternatives.
There’s also the price. I think that $900 is a reasonable value for what you get with the Nokton 75mm f/1.5, but there are many other lenses around this focal length available for less. Those include the Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8 S ($850), the Sony FE 85mm f/1.8 ($650), and the Canon RF 85mm f/2 Macro ($650). If you really need a faster aperture, a lot of DSLR-based 85mm f/1.4 are selling for great prices today as well. In the third-party realm, there’s also the Meike 85mm f/1.4 AF available for Nikon Z and Sony E at $470.
I wouldn’t say that any of these lenses necessarily beats the Voigtlander Nokton 75mm f/1.5, but the competition certainly is steep. I would only pick the Voigtlander if all three of the following statements are true for your photography:
- You don’t mind, or ideally prefer, manual focus
- f/1.8 isn’t bright enough for your needs
- You’re willing to pay for more sharpness than what you can get with third-party (or adapted) 85mm f/1.4 lenses
As you can see, the real value of the Voigtlander Nokton 75mm f/1.5 depends on your situation. It’s certainly a niche lens – even more so than the Voigtlander APO-Lanthar 50mm f/2 that I reviewed previously – but undoubtedly good at what it does.
Here’s how I’d sum up the pros and cons.
Pros:
- Great optical performance in almost every regard
- Beautiful background blur, with soft and unobtrusive bokeh
- Excellent all-metal build quality with tight tolerances and a really nice feel
- Reasonable in weight, size, and price
Cons:
- Not weather sealed, and focuses externally (though in practice, the great build quality means I’d be willing to use the lens in adverse weather)
- Aperture must be controlled via the aperture ring on the front of the lens, not via a dial on the camera
- Manual focus often takes more time and can be less precise than autofocus
All in all? I don’t think that I would get this lens myself, even if I did a lot of portrait photography, but it’s still a great piece of glass. If you’re a fan of manual focus, it could be perfect for you. It just depends on what you value most in a lens.
Conclusion
The Voigtlander Nokton 75mm f/1.5 is available through our usual affiliates, although it isn’t listed on Adorama at the moment. So far, the lowest prices we’ve seen have all been on Amazon ($900 for Leica, $800 for Sony, and $700 for Canon; unfortunately, I have yet to see the $900 Nikon version go on sale). It’s available on the following webpages:
- B&H: for Nikon Z, for Canon RF, for Sony E, for Leica M
- Amazon: for Nikon Z, for Canon RF, for Sony E, for Leica M
- Used/International: Check prices at KEH and on eBay
Thank you for buying your equipment through the links above, whether it’s this lens or anything else! When you do, Photography Life gets a small percentage of the sale without costing you anything extra. It goes a long way to help us test more equipment.
The final page of this review contains reader comments. Use the Table of Contents below the star rating to jump to the page of this review that you want.
Voigtlander Nokton 75mm f/1.5
- Build Quality and Handling
- Size and Weight
- Sharpness Performance
- Other Image Quality
- Value
Photography Life Overall Rating
Table of Contents