Voigtländer’s APO-Lanthar 90mm f/4 Close Focus VM lens is now available to pre-order in the UK, offering Leica M photographers a compact short telephoto with an unusually close minimum focusing distance. Originally announced by manufacturer Cosina in July, the manual-focus lens combines apochromatic optics with a two-stage focusing mechanism that allows photographers to work closer to their subjects than conventional rangefinder-coupled 90mm lenses.
The most distinctive feature is its ability to focus down to 0.5m, although the Leica rangefinder coupling operates only as close as 0.7m. A click in the focusing mechanism marks this limit, after which photographers can continue focusing closer using live view on a compatible digital Leica M camera or an M-mount adapter on another mirrorless system. At its closest focusing distance, the lens achieves a maximum magnification of 0.28x, making it useful for photographing smaller objects, food and other details without requiring a dedicated macro lens.
The lens also carries Voigtländer’s APO-Lanthar designation, indicating an optical design intended to minimise chromatic aberration and unwanted colour fringing. Its construction consists of eight elements arranged in seven groups, while a ten-blade diaphragm provides an aperture range from f/4 to f/22. Although its maximum aperture is relatively modest compared with faster portrait lenses, the smaller optical design helps keep the overall size and weight down.
Measuring just 54.8mm in length and weighing 235g, the APO-Lanthar 90mm f/4 is designed to complement the compact proportions of Leica M cameras. It accepts 43mm screw-in filters and comes with a metal lens hood and cap. Both black and silver finishes are available, giving photographers a choice of appearance to match their camera bodies.
Voigtländer APO-Lanthar 90mm f/4 Close Focus VM specifications
| Specification | Details |
| Mount | Leica M (VM) |
| Focal length | 90mm |
| Aperture range | f/4–f/22 |
| Optical construction | 8 elements in 7 groups |
| Aperture blades | 10 |
| Angle of view | 27.5° |
| Minimum focusing distance | 0.5m (rangefinder coupled to 0.7m) |
| Maximum magnification | 0.28x |
| Filter thread | 43mm |
| Dimensions | 53 × 54.8mm |
| Weight | 235g |
| Finishes | Black and silver |
| Included accessory | Metal lens hood with cap |
The Voigtländer APO-Lanthar 90mm f/4 Close Focus VM is available to pre-order through UK retailers including Red Dot Cameras. It costs £599. Further technical information is available on Cosina’s official Voigtländer product page.
Product Details
High performance across the all distance
APO-LANTHAR90mm F4 Close Focus
In addition to the high image quality achieved through an apochromatic design that minimizes axial chromatic aberration to near zero, this lens boasts an astonishingly compact size, with an overall length of 54.8 mm from the mount and a filter diameter of 43 mm. With a minimum focusing distance of 0.5 m, it offers a magnification ratio of 0.28x—exceeding 1/4-macro capabilities—while the apochromatic design ensures that image quality remains sharp even during close-up photography.
Main Features
Apochromatic design – This design thoroughly eliminates various aberrations including axial chromatic aberrations and pursues the ultimate performance in terms of resolution and contrast reproducibility
High performance & compactness – The newly designed optical system uses abnormal partial dispersion glass for 6 out of 8 elements in 6 groups. The compact lens design extends only 54.8mm long from the lens mount.
Minimum focus distance of 0.5 meters by live view – The lens focuses beyond the minimum rangefinder-coupled focus distance of 0.7m all the way down to 0.5m. This feature is especially useful when using the lens on a camera with a live view function
Focusing click at 0.7m of the rangefinder coupling range – A mechanism is provided to recognize the junction point of the rangefinder-linked range by a clicking sensation during focusing operation
Metal hood and Hood-cap included – To minimize interference with the frameline while shooting without compromising flare reduction, the lens comes with a dedicated metal hood designed to blend seamlessly with the lens body, which protrudes only about 9 mm from the filter ring.
Manual focus for reliable focusing – Employs a very precisely machined and adjusted all metal helicoid unit lubricated with high quality grease to realize smooth focusing operation with just the right amount of torque. This enables very precise focusing
Bayonet type VM mount – Uses the VM lens mount compatible with Leica M-mount
Installed with a focus-coupling system – The high-precision rangefinder coupling mechanism enables precise focusing in critical situations.
Imaging circle that covers full frame format – The lens features a generous imaging circle that covers the 35 mm full frame format