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Sony Zeiss FE 35mm F1.4 ZA

Me too just read that review from LensRentals. Doesn't look that great for the price and size. Though, it probably is useful for videographers.
I'll keep my Sigma 35mm Art.
I've owned the Sigma Art (twice) and if I was going to shoot it or the new Zeiss on the A7 bodies it would be no contest. The new Zeiss has the resolving power of the Sigma with better bokeh, focuses better and is lighter.
 
I've owned the Sigma Art (twice) and if I was going to shoot it or the new Zeiss on the A7 bodies it would be no contest. The new Zeiss has the resolving power of the Sigma with better bokeh, focuses better and is lighter.
If I compare side by side the test results published by Camera lens tests, user reviews, camera accessory reviews - SLRgear.com! it seems to me that the resolving power of the Sigma Art on Canon 1DSmkII is clearly superior to the the one of the Distagon on Sony A7R. Bokeh and other factors may clearly be more important:“Sharpness is a bourgeois concept” (HCB)
 

SamSS

New member
Let's just say the new Zeiss is slightly better, lighter, focus faster but is it significant enough to get rid of what I already have for maybe $650?
Don't know, but the Sigma (1st batch bought in May/2013) focuses pretty fast and accurate without any micro-focus adjustment on both a7 & a7ii
The new Zeiss FE would be a good investment but one like myself unless decided to dump all A-mount lenses.
a7ii, Sigma f2.5 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7299/16399325840_a63823b85c_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f1.6 https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3949/15575525961_90d5489b91_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f2.2 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7563/15855117639_ae00bc9ffd_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f2.8 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7402/16392187369_7dee3b490d_o.jpg
 
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philip_pj

New member
Much more impactful drawing style than the Sigma ART to my way of seeing. It will be a while before people warm to this Distagon, as Sony always starts off behind in most peoples' opinions. Major competitors Canon and Nikon have nothing like it, just as with the FE55.

It has a harmonious blend of rapid fade off the focal plane, great longitudinal separation for a 35mm, excellent tonality and really good color balance, deep rich tones. A great shot of the surfer, Charles. We've had a fair wait for the new FE and Loxia primes, but it was worth it, and it might be just the start - now Sony is past the zoom part of the program, they may announce what comes next in the next month or so (beyond the anticipated 90mm macro/portrait/landscape lens).
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
If I compare side by side the test results published by Camera lens tests, user reviews, camera accessory reviews - SLRgear.com! it seems to me that the resolving power of the Sigma Art on Canon 1DSmkII is clearly superior to the the one of the Distagon on Sony A7R. Bokeh and other factors may clearly be more important:“Sharpness is a bourgeois concept” (HCB)
I think it depends on what you're looking for. Even on the LensRental test it was clear to me that the Distagon was A LOT better than the 35FE Sonnar at thumbnail sizes on an iPad Retina.

As for the comparison to the Sigma Art - maybe it is the better choice for MOST as it is a more neutral lens and nearly half the cost. Let's face it the Zeiss look is one that you either take it or leave it. I happen to love it and am really starting to lean towards selling my Sigma Art for this lens. A big reason is that I can AF across the entire frame with native FE lenses compared to adapting A-mount. That's a huge deal to me.

Someone who has experience with both lenses isn't saying that the other lens is bad but it's just another opinion to the contrary of some others.
 
I think it depends on what you're looking for. Even on the LensRental test it was clear to me that the Distagon was A LOT better than the 35FE Sonnar at thumbnail sizes on an iPad Retina.

As for the comparison to the Sigma Art - maybe it is the better choice for MOST as it is a more neutral lens and nearly half the cost. Let's face it the Zeiss look is one that you either take it or leave it. I happen to love it and am really starting to lean towards selling my Sigma Art for this lens. A big reason is that I can AF across the entire frame with native FE lenses compared to adapting A-mount. That's a huge deal to me.

Someone who has experience with both lenses isn't saying that the other lens is bad but it's just another opinion to the contrary of some others.
Better than I could have said it. Yesterday I used the AF tracking on the a7II to take some shots of my boys on the trampoline. It worked very well. Using the native AF mechanism is really important to me and it should continue to improve in future bodies. I'm looking forward to even more sensor coverage of PDAF pixels but at least today I can move the AF point to the edges and have contrast detection when needed.

My experience with AF and the Sigma has been nothing but frustration - particularly in low light (which is where I need it to be good) on the LA-EA4. It also wasn't great on the A900 and I recall reviewers echoing that sentiment.

Of course the Sigma is an exceptional lens - one of the best AF 35/1.4 lenses you can buy and arguable the best value by a longshot.

As far as the SLR Gear review goes.... hmmpf. For how I shoot a fast 35mm, usually between 1.4 and 2, this thing is tops. Going back and looking at my Sigma shots I'll edit my statement to say that the Zeiss "looks" sharper to me in the center - I don't do test charts so saying that it matches the resolving power of the Sigma may have been a bit of hyperbole :angel:
 
Let's just say the new Zeiss is slightly better, lighter, focus faster but is it significant enough to get rid of what I already have for maybe $650?
Don't know, but the Sigma (1st batch bought in May/2013) focuses pretty fast and accurate without any micro-focus adjustment on both a7 & a7ii
The new Zeiss FE would be a good investment but one like myself unless decided to dump all A-mount lenses.
a7ii, Sigma f2.5 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7299/16399325840_a63823b85c_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f1.6 https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3949/15575525961_90d5489b91_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f2.2 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7563/15855117639_ae00bc9ffd_o.jpg
a7, Sigma f2.8 https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7402/16392187369_7dee3b490d_o.jpg
Hey Sam,

First off, my apologies if I came across sounding like the Sigma was a bad choice, of course it isn't and clearly you are enjoying it.

I was (am) in a similar situation of sitting on a collection of A-mount lenses.

The 35mm 1.4 has been an ongoing saga for me as it is my personal favorite and important to my live music work. When I switched from Canon (I had the excellent 35L) There wasn't a good solution as I found the 35G to be lacking center resolution and while I was initially blown away by the resolution of the Sigma, the AF let me down. In the end I went through 3 copies of the 35G before I found a sharp one and I just sold it to fund the new Zeiss.

So if you have something you are happy with and works for you, congratulations!

For me, I'm committed to the a7 platform and the native lenses, so whenever Sony releases a native version (and I like the results), I'm all in and it is time to say goodbye to the A-mount version it replaces.
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
Better than I could have said it. Yesterday I used the AF tracking on the a7II to take some shots of my boys on the trampoline. It worked very well. Using the native AF mechanism is really important to me and it should continue to improve in future bodies. I'm looking forward to even more sensor coverage of PDAF pixels but at least today I can move the AF point to the edges and have contrast detection when needed.

My experience with AF and the Sigma has been nothing but frustration - particularly in low light (which is where I need it to be good) on the LA-EA4. It also wasn't great on the A900 and I recall reviewers echoing that sentiment.

Of course the Sigma is an exceptional lens - one of the best AF 35/1.4 lenses you can buy and arguable the best value by a longshot.

As far as the SLR Gear review goes.... hmmpf. For how I shoot a fast 35mm, usually between 1.4 and 2, this thing is tops. Going back and looking at my Sigma shots I'll edit my statement to say that the Zeiss "looks" sharper to me in the center - I don't do test charts so saying that it matches the resolving power of the Sigma may have been a bit of hyperbole :angel:
I would venture to say that my copy of my Sigma Art autofocuses pretty well in lowlight between f/1.4-2.5 in the center third of the frame but my issue is focusing on the outer thirds. Being able to zoom in helps with manual focusing but it is a lot slower to catch the moment than say my M mount lenses that are much smoother.

I'm getting closer to adding it back to my cart as it seems to be the lens I really hoped it would be.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Tre order from Amazon you get a 30 day return on it. If you don't like it than its a very easy to return place.
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
Tre order from Amazon you get a 30 day return on it. If you don't like it than its a very easy to return place.
Yup I've been a Prime member for the last 5 years BUT unfortunately they put a shipping center in my state and charge tax now soooo I've been ordering through B&H more often for big price items. They also do free shipping on some items as well.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
I'm happy with the Loxia for now. It turns out to be a excellent lens but you know me maybe I'll upgrade to this in the fall or something. I'm kind of waiting on announcements of cams and such. I will get the 50 Planar as well and maybe the 28. It's my long stuff or more to the point my 85. The Minolta 200 goes nowhere, like that way too much. I also want to see what Zeiss announces next. Kind of a dream kit would be 5 Loxia type lenses for the high mpx body and a trio of zooms for the PR stuff. That maybe kind of fun. This lens looks good and Sony under there brand name is going in the right direction. I think Sony realized after a period with the A7 series that serious shooters are moving in. They need to support that change.

As much as the selling point for Sony is to use just about any lens you want with it this does not make more Sony lens sales. So putting out top notch glass is a must on there part. This keeps the motor running for them.

Just like me as I transition out of 3rd party lenses this will be a change in the works as others will want to get away from adapter solutions and get more native glass as long as lenses like this are brought to market. Also we are seeing a change in Sigma, Loxia Zeiss that is, Samyang and others starting to make E mount lenses.
 

ryc

Member
I personally think E / FE is the way of the future. as we start getting more lenses and bodies start coming out with tru weather sealing and ruggedness, the big canikon will start to see a big loss. lets face it. these new lenses from Sony and Zeiss are top notch and deliver at a level which meets or excedes what we see now from the big DSLR companies. as more and more lenses start coming out there will be more converts. Not to mention the A6000 is still a work horse which yields amazing images for a few hundred dollars.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
I simple do not want to deal with a DSLR for the rest of my career if I can help. Even if Sony comes out with a A99II or whatever it maybe called with 50 mpx which I would like have I won't be buying it. I'm kind of burnt out on DSLR gear. After 40 years of it I think that's natural progression for me is use the new tech with mirrorless. I actually have really liked it since the A7r came out. Some quirks for sure and a menu system that resembles the space shuttle but I can get past all that.
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
I tend to agree about not wanting a DSLR but I don't see them as every being dead due to name recognition to associate with Pro systems. It's sort of like most people think Bose is the highest level of audio (which is quite laughable) most people think Canon/Nikon is tops for photography. Case in point my uncle was shocked by Canon's 5Ds announcement in that a camera can have 50 megapixels. I told him about the Phase One family of 80 megapixel sensors and he had no idea that cameras like that have been around for years.

Perception is reality for most.
 
V

Vivek

Guest
Tre, not having any need for any use for DSLRs makes them dead for me. Of course, not everyone sees it that way.
 

iiiNelson

Well-known member
I agree with that statement and I'd say the same unless I was going MF... Until the mirrorless ones are released. I wonder if there was any truth to the "digital mamiya 7" rumor. I've noticed that they're a legacy item on Mamiya website now and B&H no longer lists it for sale.
 
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