Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC Review - Adapted to Fujifilm GFX
 

The Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC adapted to the Fujifilm GFX 50R with a Novoflex Adapter

 

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC Review

Adapting the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC to a Fujifilm GFX 50R With the Novoflex Leica M Lens to Fujifilm G-Mount Adapter

My search for a short telephoto lens option for my Fujifilm GFX 50R has been ongoing for a while. The Fujifilm options in this range count excellent lenses such as the GF 80mm f/1.7 R WR or GF 110mm f/2 R LM WR if you are willing to go with slightly longer focal lengths.

I have reviewed and can recommend both of these lenses but they are on the pricey end of what I am comfortable with at this point and also weigh about three times as much as the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, not to mention the bulk they come with.

 

The Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC adapted to the Fujifilm GFX 50R with a Novoflex Leica M to G-Mount Adapter

 

I also reviewed and was quite impressed with the Canon EF 85mm f/1.4L IS but this option is neither inexpensive nor lightweight. The Canon 85mm f/1.8 was merely okay in my test and suffered from vignetting and smearing in the corners of the frame.

After a brief encounter with a Nikon AF-S 85mm f/1.4, I concluded that it yielded nice images but again this lens is priced a bit higher for a used copy and with more bulk and weight.

The options are virtually endless when you count the number of lenses you could adapt and this goes for any camera system, not just for GFX. Read on to see why I decided to give the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC a shot and find out if it was a good move.

 

The Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC adapted to the Fujifilm GFX 50R with a Novoflex Leica M to G-Mount Adapter

 

Why Voigtländer?

The Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2 SL IIs was my first Voigtländer lens and it was a good experience. It’s a Nikon F-Mount lens and not only did it shine on my Nikon F3 HP, but I also successfully adapted it to my X-Pro3 and GFX 50R.

With that in mind, I was keeping an eye on Voigtländer lenses, not only for F-Mount but studied the lineup for L-Mount, E-Mount as well as M-Mount which I ended up with.

I decided on an M-Mount lens to start with. This was mostly due to the fact that the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC was just released on February 7th, 2023, and if I like this lens or other lenses in the lineup, I can easily adapt to other full-frame systems later on if I decide to go down that road.

 

Coal Harbour, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 5% crop

 

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC Specs, Handling, and Build Quality

You have two types of lens coatings to choose from, the MC for multi-coating (matte black finish) or SC for single coating (black paint finish). The multicoated version should result in more contrast and deeper blacks in your images and vice versa for the single-coat version which should yield a more classical rending.

The Voigtländer 75mm f/1.9 MC is a remarkably small and lightweight short telephoto lens with a 60mm full-frame equivalent field of view on your GFX camera.

With dimensions of 2.2” x 2.1”, 56.8 × 54.1mm, and a weight of 10.2 oz, 290 g, it is indeed very compact compared to other full-frame options and it is downright nimble on my GFX 50R. In comparison, the GF 80mm f/1.7 R WR weighs 1.7 lb, 795 g.

 

The Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC adapted to the Fujifilm GFX 50R with a Novoflex Adapter

 

I have chosen the Novoflex Leica M to Fujifilm G-Mount adapter as I found that it complements the look of the lens and GFX 50R nicely. The matte black finish looks great and does not clash with the look of my camera.

The build quality is of a high standard and it feels excellent in use with a well-damped manual focus ring and aperture ring which can be adjusted in half stops. The screw-in lens hood and slide-on lens cap give the lens a refined look.

The minimum focusing distance is 19.7”, 50cm, and the Ultron 75mm f/1.9 has 12 blade elements ensuring what I find to be a very pleasant bokeh.

At the time this review was written the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 was listed at $699.00 and Novoflex Leica-M to Fujifilm G-Mount Adapter at $247.50.

 

Howe Sound, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 20% crop to a 4 x 5 aspect ratio

 

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC - Vignetting on GFX

The Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC does show vignetting at all f-stops when attempting to cover the entire 44 x 33 mm sensor on your GFX camera. It creates a fairly soft vignette edge in the f/1.9 to f/5.6 range and it becomes very hard as you stop the lens down to f/8 but moves closer to the edge of the frame at these higher f-stops.

You can somewhat alleviate the issue in post-production but it will take several tools to fix the harder edges. In the photos you will see in this review I have used standard vignette correction, and light fall-off corrections using a Leica Summicron 75mm f/2 profile in Capture One.

This, of course, becomes a none issue if you use the lens on a Leica M camera, adapt to a full-frame camera, or if you use the 35mm Mode on your GFX camera.

 

Vignetting of the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC on Fujifilm GFX using the Novoflex Leica M to GF Mount Adapter

 

In images showing severe vignetting, I have used a mixture of the Spot Healing Brush Tool and Clone Tool in Photoshop to fix the corners.

In many photos, you can simply crop the images a tad (10-15%) and this fixed the vignetting issue. You can also try to crop your images to the 4 x 5 or 3 x 2 aspect ratio depending on the scene. I did this for some of the sample images in this post.

In other photos, you can get away without or with very few corrections in order to end up with a good result. In some cases, I actually prefer to show vignetting in order to create more emphasis on your focal point.

Please see the vignetting examples in the above image in the range from f/1.9 to f/11.

Please click to view a larger image.

 

Vancouver Fire Engine, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 9% crop

 

Image Quality

Image quality from the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC has met my expectations and even exceeded them slightly. In comparison to the Fujifilm and Canon lenses I have tested on Fujifilm GFX the Voigtländer lens renders images with a slightly warmer tone and a character that I find quite appealing.

It is not as clinically correct as the Fujifilm GF 80mm f/1.7 R WR and you have to go through a longer post-processing process before you can admire your final result, but I do find it is worth the effort.

I have tested the Ultron 75mm at various distances and in different scenarios for portrait, street, and landscape photography. Manually focusing is fairly easy with this lens but be prepared to miss a few shots, especially for any fast-moving topics.

Check the sample images in this article which can be viewed up to 2500 pixels wide depending on the size of your monitor.

 

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC adapted to the Fujifilm GFX 50R with a Novoflex Adapter

 

Conclusion

As a compact short telephoto solution for my Fujifilm GFX camera, I believe I have picked the right lens for now. The weight, bulk, and money savings are reasons I went this route and I am positively surprised by the image quality produced by the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC.

Although it is designed to only cover a full-frame sensor evidently it covers more than that and on the larger-than-full-frame sensor you can obtain a very desirable look with this lens with character-filled bokeh. Naturally, it will also serve well as a compact solution on any full-frame camera with the right adapter.

 

Polygon Gallery, North Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 35mm Mode, 3 x 2 aspect ratio

 

Manual focusing does present a few challenges but can also be a joy and the right solution for certain types of photography.

In a few last-minute wavering moments before my upcoming six-week trip to Denmark, I have considered the Fujifilm GF 80mm f/1.7 R WR instead as I fear that I will miss the autofocus ability. In the end, I decided to keep the Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC instead and will report back on my progress.

Price, image quality, and the compact nature of this lens have won me over for now and I have accepted that slowing down while capturing photos is a necessity and post-processing can be more time-consuming.

Update: November 2023

I have now reviewed the Ultron 75mm f/1.9 on the Nikon Zf as well. You can find the review here:

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 on the Nikon Zf

 

The Voigtlander Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC

 

Pros

  • Compact and lightweight

  • Wonderful build quality with a smooth focus ring

  • Nice looking bokeh and overall image quality

Cons

  • Manual focus only

  • Does not cover the full GFX sensor without vignetting

  • More time is needed for post-processing

Please see more sample images below.


Price / Availability

Thank you for reading my review. I hope you found it helpful. If you are planning a purchase and would like to support our site you can do so, at no additional cost, by using the affiliate links below.

Check availability and current price at B&H Photo

Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC - B&H Photo
Novoflex Leica M to G-Mount Adapter - B&H Photo

Thank you for your support.


Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC - Sample Images on Fujifilm GFX 50R

Please see the sample images below. Editing was done in Capture One and I used Fujifilm film simulations for some of the photos. Most of the images are cropped slightly. 

Please click to view larger images.

 

Coal Harbour, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 14% crop

 
 

Coal Harbour, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 27% crop

 
 

Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 10% crop

 
 

Jervis Street, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 0% crop

 
 

Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 18% crop

 
 

West 4th Ave., Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 20% crop

 
 

Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 16% crop

 
 

False Creek, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 8% crop

 
 

North Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 12% crop

 
 

North Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 12% crop

 
 

North Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 11% crop

 
 

Diana, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 0% crop

 
 

Vancouver House, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 16% crop

 
 

Granville Bridge, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 19% crop

 
 

Denman Street, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 10% crop

 
 

West End, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 12% crop

 
 

West End, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 12% crop

 
 

West End, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 9% crop

 
 

West End, Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 8% crop

 
 

Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 40% crop, 4 x 5 aspect ratio, cropped vertically from a file captured horizontally

 
 

Vancouver, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 23% crop, 4 x 5 aspect ratio

 
 

Whyte Islet, Fujifilm GFX 50R, Voigtländer Ultron 75mm f/1.9 MC, Novoflex FUG/LEM adapter, 12% crop, 4 x 5 aspect ratio