Leica NOCTILUX-M 1:0,95/50 mm ASPH. Notice D'utilisation page 19

spEcIaL FEaTurEs
The LEICA NOCTILUX-M 50 mm f/0.95 ASPH. offers a unique range of features. A
noticeably (11 %) higher speed has been achieved in a body with almost the same
diameter and only very slightly longer than its predecessor, the Noctilux-M 50 mm
f/1. At the same time, its rendition quality significantly exceeds that of its pre-
decessor, while retaining the typical, slightly soft reproduction of the previous lens.
Even at full stop, the LEICA NOCTILUX-M 50 mm f/0.95 ASPH demonstrates excel-
lent reproduction quality, which only deteriorates slightly towards the edges – while
the slightly smaller format of the Leica M 8 models only capture less of these areas
anyway. Stopping down brings a continuous significant improvement in perform-
ance, up to an exceptional level over the entire image field at 5.6. Even in the
close-up range, this performance is largely retained thanks to a "floating element".
The strikingly low degree of vignetting for such a high speed lens is a maximum –
i.e. in the corners of the image - of just 3.2 stops at full aperture in 35 mm format,
or around 1.5 on the Leica M 8 models. Stopping down to 2 visibly reduces this light
falloff towards the edge of the image, with practically only the natural vignetting
remaining. Distortion is slightly barrel-shaped and, at a maximum of just 1 %, is
hardly perceptible in practice.
14