APO-LANTHAR is a title given to particularly high-performance products among Voigtländer lenses, and APO is derived from the apochromatic design.
The APO-LANTHAR 50mm F3.5 Type II is an extremely high performance manual focus standard lens optimized for full size VM-mount sensors. The apochromatic design thoroughly eliminates chromatic aberration on axis and other aberrations, while pursuing ultimate performance in terms of resolution and contrast reproducibility (see attached MTF chart). While adopting a maximum aperture of F3.5, the lens is composed of eight elements in six groups, four of which are made of anomalous partial-dispersion glass to achieve uncompromising optical performance.
The Voigtländer APO-LANTHAR 50mm F3.5 Type II VM lens combines ultimate optical performance with easy handling and classic vintage rangefinder lens styling. As a tribute to classic rangefinder lenses that appeared in the mid-20th century, the more expensive vintage style straight slot screw heads were chosen instead of less expensive modern Phillips head.
Equipped with a high-precision rangefinder-controlled mechanism, and the silky feel of the all-metal helicoid allowing the photographer to experience the true joy of focusing using a traditional rangefinder. The minimum focusing distance of the Type is 0.35m by adopting a helicoid with a lens rotation angle of 300 degrees, which is rangefinder coupled as close as 0.7m (depending upon camera capability).
APO-LANTHAR 50mm F3.5 Type II VM
A mechanism is provided to recognize the junction point of the rangefinder-linked range by a clicking sensation during focusing operation. The Type II filter size is φ39mm, a popular filter size for rangefinder cameras. Two versions of Type II are available: a silver version with a heavy feel using brass materials (body weight: 250 g) and a black painted model with a lighter weight by using aluminum materials in some parts (body weight: 175 g). The silver model has a metal hood in the same color as the main body and a black metal cap with a pear-finish, while the black model has a black paint in the same color as the lens body.
