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Archive 2011 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #1 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Hi everyone,

My first post here. Am still learning photography so please be nice.

Just like to ask for some opinions here. Currently using a Canon 5D Mark II and have a 35L as my preferred lens. Recently got a Zeiss Makro-Planar 50mm/F2 and was totally poisoned by the images produced by this superb lens! The 3D "pop" quality that it impart to my pictures just me drool so much so that I am thinking about replacing my Canon 35L as my preferred lens with either the Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or the F2.0.

My principal consideration is the lack of AF for the Zeiss. However I have lived with it on my Zeiss 50MP and also purchased a Canon EG-S focusing screen which really helps in MF. Though AF is convenient, it has made me more wasteful of my shots, preferring to fire multiple shots first then select & crop rather than to take my time to compose, focus and shoot. Different style totally but I have no doubts the latter has improved my photography.

After reading many reviews online, am quite sure I will buy a second hand Zeiss ZE F2 lens but was offered a really good deal to buy a second-hand Zeiss F1.4 instead. However the difference between the 2 is close to US$800!!! As the F1.4 lens is still new with not many reviews available online, I am really not very sure about plonking down my money for it. May I just ask anyone here who have used both lenses before on a Canon 5DII about your thoughts and which lens you decided to keep in the end? The weight of the lens is not an issue to me, but the image quality is! If you can post some pictures comparing the two lenses on the same subject, that would be great!

Thanks so much and hope to get your advices soon!!!

sgfarfaraway

Dec 30, 2011 at 01:59 PM

Tariq Gibran
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p.1 #2 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I have not used the 35 1.4 personally but if your looking for the typical Zeiss high contrast and color pop, the 35 F2 certainly has it in spades.

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:14 PM

carlitos
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p.1 #3 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Do you need f/1.4?

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:25 PM

Douglas_Bush
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p.1 #4 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I use a 5d Mark II as well and I used to own the 35 f/2 ZE and it was great. I can't speak to the quality of the 35 1.4 but I would think if you aren't going to use the 1.4 aperture, the 35 f/2 is small, relatively light and that f/2 will give you really thin depth of field. I know the allure of 1.4 but be honest with yourself about whether you will really shoot it at that aperture and think about what you shoot the most... Decisions decisions...

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:29 PM

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #5 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Thanks for the quick replies people! Really appreciate that!

Regarding whether I need the F1.4, well I think that is a good to have capability I guess for me. Truth be told, I rarely do use the widest aperture on my 35L but F1.4 does give me the ability to produce some really nice shots when necessary. So if pressed for an answer I would say it is good to have and I do want it.

However between the two zeiss lens, which one is sharper? My 35L is a bit soft at the widest and I read that it is a common complaint. I was simply blown away by how sharp my Zeiss 50MP at F2 was when I first got it. Using the 50MP as a gauge, i hope my next 35mm lens at be as sharp at it's widest aperture and if that is at F1.4, i will be very happy to plonk down my money for that.

Not sure if I am correct to expect such capabilities from a lens though. Still learning so please let me know if I am wrong. Thanks!

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:46 PM

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #6 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Douglas_Bush wrote:
I use a 5d Mark II as well and I used to own the 35 f/2 ZE and it was great. I can't speak to the quality of the 35 1.4 but I would think if you aren't going to use the 1.4 aperture, the 35 f/2 is small, relatively light and that f/2 will give you really thin depth of field. I know the allure of 1.4 but be honest with yourself about whether you will really shoot it at that aperture and think about what you shoot the most... Decisions decisions...

I see. Any particular reason why you sold the lens?

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:46 PM

atran
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p.1 #7 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I don't have the 50/2 MP but looking at photozone.de. The wide open sharpness of 35/2 and 50/2 are very similar, the 50/2 is a tad better being a longer makro lens.
I look at LLoyd's guide and I think wide open the 35/1.4 is not as sharp as the 35/2, not because the lack of details but contrast. The 35/1.4 is designed for lovely bokeh so it was undercorrected for spherical aberration wide open.

Dec 30, 2011 at 02:54 PM

philber
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p.1 #8 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I owned a 35 f:2.0, and now shoot a f:1.4, and couldn't be happier. The f:2.0 is a
spectacular lens. Its pictures are impressive from the first look. Lots of saturated colours, and a great "3D" effect, maybe more than any other.
While I owned it, it produced many keepers, maybe more than others, but very few shots that I truly loved. I felt that the rendering was just a bit on the clinical side, not unlike the 100MP I also owned, and the 50MP which I chose not to own (owned the 50 f:1.4 instead).
The 35 f:1.4 is a more subtle lens. Not as immediately impressive, but, upon inspection, more small detail, more subtle colours and volumes. Also, very impressive bokeh, which gives it a unique look close-up. It is so detailed that it even maintains spatial placement in OOF areas. It is also easier to focus than the f:2.0 IMHO, except of course wide open, where DOF is very thin indeed.
On the minus side, the obvious size, weight and cost, and price. Also, some field curvature requires a bit of care. And, while it is sharp wide open, contrast is slightly less than stopped down.
Overall, if you love the 50MP, either you want more of the same, and the f:2.0 will be great, either you want the best ZE in the lineup (IMHO), and a slightly more elegant rendering, so that you have more variety in your bag, and the f:1.4 will delight you.
Either way, have fun, and post your shots!

Dec 30, 2011 at 03:30 PM

wayne seltzer
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p.1 #9 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

The ZE 35/1.4 has slightly more intense/sensitivity colors than ZE 35/2 and has none to very little CA where the 35/2 has some CA. The 35/1.4 has an undercorrected spherical aberration design which allows it to render smooth bokeh and have slower transition from in focus to out of focus regions and objects in the OOF areas are blurred but retain their shape better than a normal lens. This also renders a slight haze at 1.4 and 2.0 which is gone by 2.8. This is why the 35/2 is sharper at f2 than the 35/1.4 as documented by Lloyd Chambers on his site. The 35/1.4 has this split personality of being slightly hazy with soft bokeh when at wide apertures and then rendering sharp when stopped down. But the 35/1.4 has some field curvature and the 35/2 has no field curvature so this may or not maybe an issue for you for landscape shooting.
There is no easy choice and it is a personal preference which includes the big price difference and size difference between the two lenses.
I have shot the ZE 35/1.4 just a little, but have the old CZ 35/1.4 and the 35/2, and the 50/2MP as well as other zeiss lenses including ZE21/2.8.
There are a few old threads from last year which discuss the pro's and cons of these two lenses.
Good luck deciding, they are both fine lenses.

Dec 30, 2011 at 04:05 PM

Lars Johnsson
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p.1 #10 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

philber wrote:
I owned a 35 f:2.0, and now shoot a f:1.4, and couldn't be happier. The f:2.0 is a
spectacular lens. Its pictures are impressive from the first look. Lots of saturated colours, and a great "3D" effect, maybe more than any other.
While I owned it, it produced many keepers, maybe more than others, but very few shots that I truly loved. I felt that the rendering was just a bit on the clinical side, not unlike the 100MP I also owned, and the 50MP which I chose not to own (owned the 50 f:1.4 instead).
The 35 f:1.4 is a more subtle...Show more →

+1

I own both the ZE 35/1,4 and the ZE 35/2. And agree with most things in philber's post

Dec 30, 2011 at 04:49 PM

Almass
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p.1 #11 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I purchased a ZF2 35/1.4 and had to return it and keep my trusted ZF2 35/2.

With the ZF2 35/2, I know what to expect and how to achieve it, while with the 35/1.4 it gets more finicky and although the Micro contrast is higher than it's 35/2 sibling, it only shines in very particular situations of general nature. It is not brilliant for landscapes or tight portraits because of the distortion. Having said that, the 35/2 is not so much better and I would not use it for landscapes or portraits anyway. The main and only reason I like the 35/2 is the render it gives for evening and night shooting. The dark orange glow is what makes it for me.

You just tell the 35/2 to go shoot a night scene and it always scores on the night

Image quality of both 35's is excellent and I concede that the 35/1.4 achieves better micro contrast. At the end of the day, it is your photography style and which tools you like.

So yes, and of course, it is a personal preference.

Dec 30, 2011 at 05:02 PM

FlyPenFly
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p.1 #12 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

I liked my ZF 35mm F2 but it was kind of boring. Excellent in all regards but didn't really have a unique signature. The bokeh was meh but the sharpness and 3D effect was very high.

I'm sure a 35mm F1.4 will be in my future but I kind of wonder whether it will be the Samyang, the CY Zeiss, or the ZF.2 Zeiss. Or maybe something else entirely.

From the 35 F2 on an Sony A850

_DSC4398.jpg by jaetography, on Flickr

Zeiss 35mm F2 ZF.2 Distagon by jaetography, on Flickr

Dec 30, 2011 at 05:21 PM

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #13 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Wow thanks for all the detailed replies and great shots! It is really helpful for an learner like me! And the shots! Posionous!

I understand more now. I think having read so much, both lenses are great and it is really a matter of individual preference as to which lens to choose. My head tells me to get the F2 for the cost and the tried and tested-ness whereas my heart yearns for the F1.4. Oh well... Choices choices choices...

Dec 30, 2011 at 09:28 PM

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #14 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Just like to ask whether are there anyone here who have the Zeiss Distagon 35mm ZE F1.4 and F2 together with the Canon 35mm F1.4L lenses? If you have, is it possible for you to do a test on the lenses by taking a few pictures of the same subject using the widest apertures for each lens and then stopped down to F2 for all (except the 35mm F2 ZE) then to F2.8? I will be eternally grateful!!!

Dec 30, 2011 at 10:11 PM

wiseguy010
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p.1 #15 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

It will be very interesting to see what the results of these lenses will be with the upcoming 36MP Nikon camera (D800).

For this moment I decided not to replace my 35/2 with a 35/1.4 although the softer bokeh at 1.4 and 2.0 is interesting. The only (minor) issue with the 35/2 is that it sometimes shows some traces of CA in extremely contrasty situations. However with one push on a button this CA is removed in postprocessing. On the other hand the 1.4 also has some drawbacks (see before).

In all the pictures that showed up to compare the 2 with the 1.4 I can hardly/not see a difference in drawing style even when looking at 100%. The so called better microcontrast of the 1.4 versus the 2 is not noticable for me.

My opinion at this moment: save yourself the bucks and get the 35/2 unless you really want/need 1.4.

Dec 30, 2011 at 10:19 PM

Ataboy
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p.1 #16 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Get the Contax 35/1.4 instead. IMHO It is more interesting than the ZE 35/1.4 and costs less.

Dec 30, 2011 at 11:16 PM

sgfarfaraway
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p.1 #17 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Thanks wiseguy010 and Ataboy for your input and suggestions. I am still quite undecided about which to choose. Will have to read more before making up my mind.

Meanwhile, if anyone is able to do some tests to show the difference between the two lenses together with the Canon 35mmL lens, I will be very grateful!

Happy New Year everyone!!!!

Dec 31, 2011 at 08:21 AM

Jochenb
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p.1 #18 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

This is also a popular discussion in the image thread, because as you can see... opinions are very different.
I fully agree with Philippe (Philber) and Wayne.

It does come down to personal preference, as they both render differently. I owned the f2 for about 1.5 years and loved it, but I decided to sell it after getting the 1.4.

Saying things like "the so called better micro contrast of the 1.4" are really not true BTW.
It really does have better microcontrast stopped down.

Dec 31, 2011 at 09:22 AM

Tariq Gibran
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p.1 #19 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

Jochenb wrote:
Saying things like "the so called better micro contrast of the 1.4" are really not true BTW.
It really does have better microcontrast stopped down.

Any side by side examples which show this out of curiosity?

Dec 31, 2011 at 11:16 AM

Smridevan
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p.1 #20 · Zeiss Distagon ZE 35mm F1.4 or F2 for my Canon 5D Mark II???

check out the comparison made my Akul here (towards bottom):

https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/860134/446

Dec 31, 2011 at 11:29 AM

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