Voigtländer APO-Skopar 90mm f/2.8

Voigtländer APO-Skopar 90mm f/2.8

When Cosina introduced this lens it filled an unusually empty corner of the Leica M catalogue: a modern, apochromatically corrected 90mm that stays small and light rather than chasing a fast aperture. Reviewers repeatedly note that the field of in-production M-mount 90s is thin, with the alternatives being the large and costly f/2 APO-Summicron, a pricey f/4 macro, and the very expensive f/1.5 Summilux, which leaves this APO-Skopar as one of the few compact, affordable choices at the focal length [1][2]. At roughly 250 grams it is small enough that it does not unbalance a rangefinder body, a point made by users who value being able to add a short telephoto without much added weight.

The optical formula uses seven elements in seven groups and carries an apochromatic designation aimed at suppressing chromatic aberration[3]. The lens is rangefinder coupled and focuses to 0.9 m, giving a maximum reproduction ratio of around 1:8. The barrel is all metal with engraved, paint-filled markings, and the M-mount version ships with a metal screw-in hood; reviewers describe the build as comparable to Leica's own lenses. The focus ring has a relatively short throw of roughly 90 degrees on the M-mount lens, and the aperture is built from ten straight blades. It is not six-bit coded, so users who want in-camera lens detection must set the profile manually. Because it is a purely mechanical M-mount lens with no electronic contacts, it adapts readily to mirrorless bodies, where focusing is done by magnified live view rather than the rangefinder.

The M-mount APO-Skopar shares its optical design and 0.9 m minimum focus distance with the later Voigtländer 90mm f/2.8 SL IIs Apo-Skopar for Nikon F mount, but the two differ in mechanics. The F-mount version uses a 66 mm diameter barrel, a 52 mm filter thread and nine rounded aperture blades, whereas the M-mount lens uses a 39 mm filter thread and ten straight blades, which produce more defined sunstars when stopped down. The lens is offered in black and silver finishes.

Optical qualities

Rendering The lens is characterized by high sharpness and clean color correction in a compact package. Reviewers report strong central sharpness wide open with only minor softening in the corners that clears by the middle apertures, and the apochromatic correction is held up by sample images showing essentially no longitudinal or lateral chromatic aberration and no purple fringing. Out-of-focus areas are generally smooth and undistracting, though one reviewer noted a touch of soap-bubble outlining just behind the plane of focus. Because f/2.8 is only moderately fast for a 90mm and the minimum focus distance is 0.9 m, background separation is more restrained than with faster teles.

Sharpness On a 24-megapixel M body the lens is reported as sharp across the frame at portrait distances wide open, with near-flawless center performance even at minimum focus and only slight corner contrast loss. Testing of the matching optical design on a 42-megapixel sensor found the lens effectively out-resolving the sensor at portrait distance, with peak across-frame sharpness reached around f/5.6 to f/8.

Distortion and vignetting Distortion is minor pincushion that is rarely relevant in practice and easily corrected, and vignetting is described as well controlled and typical for a short telephoto of this aperture.

Flare resistance Flare resistance is considered average for a short tele: ghosting is not a problem, but veiling flare can appear with strong light sources, which is where the M-mount lens's longer hood helps.

History

Development and Launch The lens is a Cosina product sold under the revived Voigtländer name and was introduced for Leica M mount in the early 2020s, joining earlier modern Voigtländer APO primes such as the 35mm f/2 and 50mm f/2 APO lenses. It was conceived to give M shooters a compact, well-corrected short telephoto at a more accessible price than Leica's own 90mm options.

Production Evolution Cosina later released a Nikon F-mount SL IIs version using the same optical design and minimum focus distance but with different mechanics, including a larger barrel, a 52 mm filter thread, nine rounded blades and electronic contacts for Nikon bodies. The M-mount version remains the purely mechanical, rangefinder-coupled variant with ten straight blades.

Special editions No major factory special editions are widely documented; the lens is generally offered in standard black and silver finishes.

Collector Notes Buyers should confirm whether a given copy is the rangefinder-coupled M-mount lens or the F-mount SL IIs version, since the two share optics but not mounts, filter sizes or blade counts. One reviewer encountered front-focusing on a test copy but later attributed it to the camera body rather than the lens, underscoring the value of checking rangefinder calibration before assuming a lens fault. As a current, all-metal product the lens does not carry the haze and fungus concerns common to vintage compact 90s, and originality is straightforward to assess; the metal hood and caps are worth verifying as present when buying used.