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Zeiss Lens Photos and Discussion

carstenw

Active member
This thread tries to tie up the Zeiss universe in one place, to avoid having many little threads pop up and die, and the information getting lost.

In this thread all Zeiss lenses are welcome, including ZF, ZF.2, ZE, ZS, ZM, ZA or older Contax 135 or 645 format lenses, Hasselblad V, Contax G, or even Zeiss large format lenses, not to mention Zeiss Jena lenses. In short, if the word Zeiss appear on your lens, you are welcome to post photos made with it here.

Here is a partial list of Zeiss-related links from this and other forums, which I will update as I discover more (leaving out single-poster and minor threads):

- ZE/ZF/ZM Lenses
- Contax Lenses
- Contax N Lenses
- Contax N Camera
- Contax 645 Discussion
- Contax 645

- Contax vs. ZE 21/2.8
- ZF/ZE 25/2.8 vs. Leica 28/2.8 R II
- ZF/ZE 25/2.8 vs. Olympus 24/2.8
- Contax 35/1.4
- Contax 35/1.4 MM on Canon
- ZF/ZE 35/1.4
- ZF/ZE 35/1.4 vs. 35/2
- Contax 35/1.4 vs. ZF/ZE 35/1.4 vs. ZF/ZE 35/2
- Contax 50/1.7 on Canon
- ZF/ZE 50 MP vs. 50 P
- ZF/ZE 50 MP and 100 MP Nodal Point
- Contax 60/2.8 Macro
- ZF/ZE 85/1.4 vs. Rokinon
- ZF/ZE 85/1.4 White Spots
- Rollei 85/1.4
- ZF/ZE 100 MP vs. 85L

- Contax 35-70/3.4
- Contax 80-200/4
- Contax 100-300/4.5-5.6

- Which first Zeiss
- Zeiss Infinity Adjustment
- Zeiss MTF Charts
- 3D Pop
- Zeiss Ikon Contina lens on Canon

I will start off with a shot taken in the rain last Friday in Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany. Nikon D3, 50 Planar ZF.2 (borrowed):

 
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carstenw

Active member
Thanks Douglas!

I have been looking for a longer Zeiss lens than 100mm (not to compete with my 200/2 VR) but the 180 doesn't have such an amazing reputation, the 200/2 is too close to the VR, and generally not as good. In the end, there was just two choices I was considering, the 80-200/4 and the 100-300, but the latter is too expensive (and slow) for a lens I probably will not use so much. Besides, Samuli Vahonen on FM has posted some gorgeous shots made with the 80-200/4, so I decided to try it out.

I bought mine in nearly new condition from Japan, which with shipping, customs fees, the Leitax mount with pre-installed Dandelion chip ended up costing about 400 Euro all told. Now there are some sitting in Germany's eBay at around 270 Euro, Buy it now price. I thought briefly about buying an extra copy or two in case some kind of revival is kicked off, but decided not to. I am not doing photography to make a profit, and would rather spend my time shooting.

Anyway, great lens, not all that large. Longer but thinner than the 100 MP ZF.2:



My copy is very sharp, although not quite as sharp as a modern ZF lens stopped down. It takes sharpening in Photoshop well, however. It has very little CA, less than the 100 MP and other ZF lenses. The boke is very gentle in my shots so far, almost Leica-like, but it still has that Zeiss feel to it. The push-pull zoom mechanism works well, and it doesn't move when I point the lens down. It is a very easy-to-focus lens, coming crisply into focus. I would say that it is easier to focus than my ZF/ZF.2 21 Distagon, 50 MP and 100 MP, although the latter comes close. Something about the way it snaps into focus. I was very happy to discover this, since I was worried that the f/4 could have made it hard.

At the current prices, buying one is IMO a no-brainer, although I don't know how much copy-to-copy variation there is. I do know that Samuli got his from a friend who bought 4, kept the best one for himself, sold the second-best one to Samuli and resold the other two, so at least there might be a little variation.

I don't expect that this lens is as sharp or clear as the best lenses in this region, like the Leica 180/2.8 APO, but I sure don't find many faults with it, so for the price, it is a steal.

Here are some shots made with it. The bird shot is a little soft due to its fast movement.





 
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Jonas

Active member
Good thread and a good move Carsten!
Here is an image I once posted in a thread Richard, or Brainiac, started about his first impressions from the Panasonic GF1:
.
Looking good?
Above: Panasonic G1, Contax Zeiss G Planar 45/2, into the mirror at f/2

I took the image just after having received the Metabones Contax G -> µ4/3 adapter and I had that initial love affair with the Planar 45/2.

regards,

Jonas
 

philber

Member
Carsten, when I met Samuli, he was shooting his 80-200, but considered getting a 70-200 (IIRC), which he considered to be "probably better".
 

bensonga

Well-known member
Great idea Carsten! Here's an image taken recently with my Hasselblad Zeiss 60mm CFi lens on Provia 100. It looks better than identical shots I took with a Canon 1D2 and Nikon D2X. Not sure if it's the Zeiss glass or shooting on film.

I love your photo of the bird in the water!

Gary

 
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dcjs

Guest
A panoramic stitch from the Contax 35-70/3.4, 35 or 40mm, ~f/11, Hoya HD polarizer on Fuji S5 Pro. Detail is only limited by my sharpen/resize skills which I'm trying to improve (original is 5000px high).

 
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dcjs

Guest
Thanks CVickery. I installed a Leitax Contax/Nikon bayonet. Not the easiest lens to convert, but not really bad either, and it's completely reversible too if necessary.
 
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carstenw

Active member
David, did you make any photos of that conversion process? I have been pondering the same lens for some time now...
 
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dcjs

Guest
Carsten, I didn't take any pictures, but there are some very good ones along with a description of th process here on the Leitax page. Have a look at the process and decide whether you would want to attempt the conversion. Once you are ready to go and have the lens in hand, read carefully, some images show steps from Canon/Sony conversions and need to be done differently for Nikon as described in the text.

The most difficult thing was actually relocating the little spring, it was glued in place at both ends (no mention of that in the description) and it took some work to loosen it. Other than that, it is a pretty smooth operation for a person with decent mechanical skills, I'd do it again without hesitation.

I like this lens for panos. The 2x zoom is actually pretty convenient here because if you use 35mm instead of 70mm, you can just double the rotation angle per shot, much easier to keep track of rotation this way than with an odd-number zoom ratio. 35mm stopped down is good for large DOF wide angle panos, 70mm/4 gives a very nice medium format look and beautiful bokeh unless the lens is focused too closely.
 

carstenw

Active member
Carsten, when I met Samuli, he was shooting his 80-200, but considered getting a 70-200 (IIRC), which he considered to be "probably better".
This was some time ago, right? When I contacted him recently to ask some questions about the lens, he was not really using it, and mentioned swapping it out for something else, but then he pulled it out and tried it again, and I think he intends to keep it now.

The lens is not super-fantastic, like the 21 Distagon or the 100 MP, but it is a very good lens, and is very cheap. I will not insult it by saying it is a good deal for the money, it is just good period.
 

carstenw

Active member
Great idea Carsten! Here's an image taken recently with my Hasselblad Zeiss 60mm CFi lens on Provia 100. It looks better than identical shots I took with a Canon 1D2 and Nikon D2X. Not sure if it's the Zeiss glass or shooting on film.

I love your photo of the bird in the water!

Gary
Thanks Gary! That 60 shot of yours is a cracker! The colours and sharpness are so Zeiss. I also still fiddle with medium format film, and recently exchanged my 2000FC/M for a 203FE, for which I own the 50/2.8. I need to come up with a project for that kit, to start using it again.
 

carstenw

Active member
I forgot to compliment you on your stitch, which is very beautiful, serene even.

I have seen that page, but felt that there were some steps which could have been explained in more detail. The 80-200/4 which I converted was about halfway between the simple mount exchanges and the 35-70, in difficulty, so maybe I will try it one day.

Carsten, I didn't take any pictures, but there are some very good ones along with a description of th process here on the Leitax page.
 

CVickery

Member
For some reason, I thought the 35-70 couldn't be converted with Leitax, but obviously it can :D A look at the Leitax site though, and all thoughts of doing this myself disappear. This is way beyond what I would attempt, but cudos to you.

Thanks CVickery. I installed a Leitax Contax/Nikon bayonet. Not the easiest lens to convert, but not really bad either, and it's completely reversible too if necessary.
 

CVickery

Member
I have a Contax 80-200/4 on the way. Looks like a decent lens. Thanks for bring it to our attention Carsten.

Thanks CVickery. I installed a Leitax Contax/Nikon bayonet. Not the easiest lens to convert, but not really bad either, and it's completely reversible too if necessary.
This was some time ago, right? When I contacted him recently to ask some questions about the lens, he was not really using it, and mentioned swapping it out for something else, but then he pulled it out and tried it again, and I think he intends to keep it now.

The lens is not super-fantastic, like the 21 Distagon or the 100 MP, but it is a very good lens, and is very cheap. I will not insult it by saying it is a good deal for the money, it is just good period.
 

rsolti13

New member
Carsten, I converted a 35-70 f/3.4 to Nikon mount myself. It was a little more difficult than the directions on the Leitax page tell you but it was definitely doable. Worth it in the end as the lens is awesome. I had a major problem with moving the spring from one side to the other...other than that the conversion was flawless
 
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