Voigtländer 15mm F4.5 Super Wide Heliar E-mount lens review by QuietOC

QuietOC#45686 date: Apr-3-2021
sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 3 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4	tested on: film camera: APS-C: 6MP; 10MP; 12MP; 14MP; 16MP; 20MP; 24MP full frame: 12MP; 24MP; 36MP; 42MP; 61MP
ownership:	I own this lens
compared to:	Sigma 10-20 F4-5.6 EX DC Samyang 12 F2 Opteka 15 F4 Macro Sigma 12-24 F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM Tamron 17-28 F2.8 RXD Tamron SP 17-35 F2.8-4 Tokina AF 17 F3.5
price paid:	550 USD (used)
positive:	Size Center sharpness Focus Encoder Lens Compensation De-clickable
negative:	Lateral CA Dark, smeared corners Fully manual Lack of sealing
comment:	A gritty, worn looking example purchased from an individual via a fixed price eBay listing. This is a manual, unit focus lens with electronic contacts. "Lens made in Japan" It is rather similar optically to the old Sigma 12-24 zoom at 15 mm and closer to the inexpensive Opteka macro than I was expecting. It is much wider than the 17 mm primes and zooms. The Tamron 17-28 F2.8 RXD is much sharper in the corners. A sharpness rating of 4 may be too generous given the falloff. The lack of seals is alarming at this price. The gap for the aperture control is sized to capture and hold grit. It requires more care than the previous owner gave it. Not a great deal for the cost, but it is small and fun to use.