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The Latest News:
Cosina’s New Voigtländer 40mm f/2 Lens
Sony E (left) and Nikon Z (right)
Cosina has announced the Voigtländer Septon 40mm f/2 Aspherical for full-frame Sony E and Nikon Z mirrorless cameras. It is a relatively compact manual-focus prime, especially in E-mount form, where it measures 30mm in length and weighs 165 grams. The Nikon Z version is slightly larger at 32mm and 205 grams. Both versions use 52mm filters and Cosina continues its habit of giving each mount a slightly different exterior design. The Sony version has a diamond-pattern focus ring, while the Nikon version uses a scalloped grip.
The optical design consists of seven elements in six groups and includes an aspherical element. Cosina refers to the layout as an “Orthometer” design, meant to maintain good sharpness across the frame, even at the maximum f/2 aperture. The lens uses a 10-blade diaphragm, which should help keep out-of-focus highlights reasonably round when stopped down. Minimum focus distance is 0.3 meters, giving a maximum magnification of 1:5.3.
Since this is a fully manual lens, handling is an important part. Cosina says the all-metal helicoid has been carefully machined and tuned for smooth focus movement with consistent resistance. In Japan, the suggested retail price is 85,000 yen (around $555 at current exchange rates), with availability expected in March. International pricing may vary slightly depending on region.
Ricoh GR IV Firmware Update
credits: Ricoh
A new firmware update (version 1.11) for the Ricoh GR IV and GR IV HDF is here, and the big news is that the standard GR IV now gets an electronic shutter. That feature was already available on the GR IV HDF and the GR IV Monochrome, and Ricoh had said it would eventually make its way to the regular model. With this update, all three GR IV variants are now up to date when it comes to high-speed shooting.
The addition matters because of how the GR IV handles exposure at wide apertures. The mechanical shutter tops out at 1/4000s, but that speed is only fully available at f/5.6 and smaller apertures. At wider apertures like f/2.8 to f/4, the maximum mechanical shutter speed drops to 1/2500s, and to 1/3200s between f/4.5 and f/5. In bright daylight, that can make it difficult to shoot wide open without overexposing. The electronic shutter solves that by extending the maximum speed up to 1/16,000s, which gives a lot more flexibility when working at fast apertures in strong light.
There are some compromises, though. As with most electronic shutters, there is a risk of rolling shutter distortion, especially when shooting fast-moving subjects. Vertical lines can lean, and motion can look slightly warped. In addition to the new shutter option, firmware 1.11 also brings general performance and stability improvements to both the GR IV and GR IV HDF, although Ricoh has not gone into detail about what actually changed.
You can download the update on Ricoh’s website here
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Missed The Sunday Issue?
In case you missed yesterday’s Sunday Issue (Snapshot Issue 103) including the amazing interview with photographer Carlos Salazar and many more incredible articles, you can read it here.
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