Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

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Archive 2009 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

philber
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p.3 #1 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

You want some pics? You like' m sharp? Here is sharp with n°1. You give me a circular argument, look where that leads you, with n°2. I prefer to tell it straight, as in n°3...

2012 © philber

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21 mm f/6.3 1/160 sec 100 ISO 0.0 EV

2012 © philber

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21 mm f/5.0 1/100 sec 100 ISO 0.0 EV

2012 © philber

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21 mm f/6.3 1/160 sec 100 ISO 0.0 EV

Nov 13, 2009 at 10:43 PM

Daniel Heineck
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p.3 #2 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Philber--love the second one.

Nov 13, 2009 at 10:46 PM

philber
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p.3 #3 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Thanks, Daniel!

Nov 13, 2009 at 10:47 PM

Specularist
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p.3 #4 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Doo-bop wrote:
photomadnz wrote:
LLoyd has been a lover of the CZ21mm ever since the original and then the ZF came out. He raves on and on about it. Funnily enough if you are a subscriber, he pits it against the likes of the 14-24 zoom and in alot of the tests the zoom wins! .

I read somewhere that he uses the 1DIII for his zeiss reviews, maybe that is why?
Lloyd Chambers reviews lenses on a wide variety of bodies including the 1D Mark III and full-frame Canon and Nikon cameras. But what photomadnz stated is a misinterpretation of the test results. The Nikkor zoom does have advantages over the Zeiss prime, but any objective observer will concede that sharpness isn't one of them.

Regarding photozone's test results, it's interesting to note that the 21 mm Distagon is rated sharper across the frame (though only slightly) than the much-ballyhooed Canon 100 mm L IS macro! It even has less CA according to photozone (though I'd take their CA measurements with a grain of salt, because you can't measure CA in pixels). For a super-wide lens to beat a short tele macro across the frame at large apertures is nothing short of remarkable.

Of course the 21 mm Distagon also has many other strong qualities when compared to Canon lenses, not least of which its quaint lack of plastic.

Nov 14, 2009 at 01:43 AM

indiancanoner
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p.3 #5 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

review was helpful , philber has put some amazing pics !! , im deciding between the 24tse & 21 zeiss , the zeiss seems to be winning for me.

Nov 14, 2009 at 03:21 AM

philber
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p.3 #6 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

More pics from the same session. Nothing like like flattery to get whatever you might want from me...

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21 mm f/10.0 1/25 sec 100 ISO 0.0 EV

2012 © philber

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21 mm f/7.1 1/200 sec 100 ISO 0.0 EV

Nov 14, 2009 at 06:32 AM

kosmoskatten
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p.3 #7 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

I am starting to hope the Zeiss 21 will eventually come out in Alpha mount.

That head has really nice pop to it and the following shot has good depth separation of the elements in the image, which I find unusual in superwides.

Nov 14, 2009 at 07:17 AM

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p.3 #8 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

kosmoskatten wrote:
I am starting to hope the Zeiss 21 will eventually come out in Alpha mount.

That head has really nice pop to it and the following shot has good depth separation of the elements in the image, which I find unusual in superwides.

I like your way of saying 3D

Unfortunately I believe that Sony's exclusivity deal with Zeiss goes both ways. Not only ZA lenses cannot be manufactured in other mounts, Sony does not seem to want ZE/ZF lenses to be available in ZA neither. Even the 85mm which exists in several mounts is a completely new design in the ZA version.

If any ZA primes are ever introduced, they will be new and Sony exclusive designs too.

Nov 14, 2009 at 10:29 AM

philber
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p.3 #9 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

I think that Sony would be crazy to introduce MF lenses on the ZA system. They have an exclusivity on AF Zeiss lenses, and that can swing customers their way who can't get "German-style AF lenses" easily on Canikon.
If there is a 21mm prime on ZA, I would expect it to be AF as well, even though AF matters so much less on a WA than on a telephoto.
But, who knows, marketing departments of major corporations can sometimes think in strange ways...

Nov 14, 2009 at 12:50 PM

kosmoskatten
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p.3 #10 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

edwardkaraa wrote:
kosmoskatten wrote:
I am starting to hope the Zeiss 21 will eventually come out in Alpha mount.

That head has really nice pop to it and the following shot has good depth separation of the elements in the image, which I find unusual in superwides.

I like your way of saying 3D

Ed; haha, you got it.

Well, I guess I could go for a 21mm ZA if they ever make one.
I ain't holding my breath though.

Nov 14, 2009 at 01:30 PM

edwardkaraa
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p.3 #11 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

I've been praying for that but I know it ain't going to happen

Not that there is anything wrong with the ZA 16-35.

kosmoskatten wrote:
edwardkaraa wrote:
kosmoskatten wrote:
I am starting to hope the Zeiss 21 will eventually come out in Alpha mount.

That head has really nice pop to it and the following shot has good depth separation of the elements in the image, which I find unusual in superwides.

I like your way of saying 3D

Ed; haha, you got it.

Well, I guess I could go for a 21mm ZA if they ever make one.
I ain't holding my breath though.

Nov 14, 2009 at 04:53 PM

edwardkaraa
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p.3 #12 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Phil, what I meant is that Sony doesn't want to use the existing Zeiss designs being sold under ZE/ZF/ZK in its ZA line. It wants the ZA line to be fully exclusive. I did not mean that these borrowed designs will be manual focus, they can be easily implemented for AF, especially with the screwdrive system because manual focus designs do not need any modification to become AF, unlike USM/SSM designs.

As for Zeiss itself adding the ZF line in alpha mount, that is absolutely out of question, as I have been told by Zeiss that they cannot compete with their own partner.

philber wrote:
I think that Sony would be crazy to introduce MF lenses on the ZA system. They have an exclusivity on AF Zeiss lenses, and that can swing customers their way who can't get "German-style AF lenses" easily on Canikon.
If there is a 21mm prime on ZA, I would expect it to be AF as well, even though AF matters so much less on a WA than on a telephoto.
But, who knows, marketing departments of major corporations can sometimes think in strange ways...

Nov 14, 2009 at 04:59 PM

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p.3 #13 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

I have not tried the Canon 14, 17, 24 or the ZE 21, but my Nikon 14-24 is the best lens (in terms of IQ) that I have ever owned and easily beat the 16-35L II that I used to have. The color, contrast, sharpness, CA, flare control are all stunning. I wouldn't dream of replacing my Nikon 14-24 which can do the job of the above-mentioned 4 prime lenses. I will ONLY replace that lens if Canon comes out with their 14-24/2.8 .... and only if they able to match the Nikon in terms of IQ which is a tough act to follow. Without a doubt, Nikon has set a new benchmark for optics .... prime lens IQ in a zoom lens.

Just compared Photozone's resolution and vignetting charts and it looks like the Nikon 14-24 easily beat the ZE 21 .... so it appears that the Nikon zoom is better than the Zeiss prime .... No?

Nov 15, 2009 at 01:10 AM

PhotoMaximum
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p.3 #14 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Did you see this :http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/834861
This guy shot a church interior with the Nikon 14-24, 17 TS-E, 21ZE, and 24 TS-E.

I would not say the 14-24 beats any of the other lenses here. In fact the 14-24 seems like it has more CA than the others. I have seen statements about how great the 14-24 is. But for Canon users the lens and adapter is an expensive option with a long waiting period to get the adapter from all accounts.

I still think the 17 TS-E is the most interesting lens of the bunch...

Nov 15, 2009 at 02:26 AM

bobbytan
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p.3 #15 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Maybe so, but the poster says "Regarding the quality there is not much difference between the 14-24mm, the 17mm TSE, the 21mm ZE and the 24mm TSE II in this situation" .... implying that the 14-24 zoom is prime quality i.e. 4 prime lenses in one!

PhotoMaximum wrote:
Did you see this :http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/834861
This guy shot a church interior with the Nikon 14-24, 17 TS-E, 21ZE, and 24 TS-E.

I would not say the 14-24 beats any of the other lenses here. In fact the 14-24 seems like it has more CA than the others. I have seen statements about how great the 14-24 is. But for Canon users the lens and adapter is an expensive option with a long waiting period to get the adapter from all accounts.

I still think the 17 TS-E is the most interesting lens of the bunch...

Nov 15, 2009 at 03:44 AM

Steve Spencer
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p.3 #16 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

bobbytan wrote:
I have not tried the Canon 14, 17, 24 or the ZE 21, but my Nikon 14-24 is the best lens (in terms of IQ) that I have ever owned and easily beat the 16-35L II that I used to have. The color, contrast, sharpness, CA, flare control are all stunning. I wouldn't dream of replacing my Nikon 14-24 which can do the job of the above-mentioned 4 prime lenses. I will ONLY replace that lens if Canon comes out with their 14-24/2.8 .... and only if they able to match the Nikon in terms of IQ which is a tough act to follow. Without a doubt, Nikon has set a new benchmark for optics .... prime lens IQ in a zoom lens.

Just compared Photozone's resolution and vignetting charts and it looks like the Nikon 14-24 easily beat the ZE 21 .... so it appears that the Nikon zoom is better than the Zeiss prime .... No?

As the photozone site makes clear you can't compare across systems like that. Also they don't do any test at 21mm, so who knows. It is not at all clear the Nikon zoom is better.

Nov 15, 2009 at 03:53 AM

PhotoMaximum
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p.3 #17 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Its certainly interesting that one photographer has access to all of these great lenses at one time!

Hopefully he will do more tests. Not to be critical of you Bobby, but I am always skeptical of users who invest in one particular lens and then declare that lens is better than all the rest.

Each of these lenses offer different pros and cons. Its great to actually have these options in the wide angle arena now though. I myself do not own any of these lenses. Choosing one includes many decisions like IQ, lack of CA, zoom range, cost, filters, and TS-E function. As a user and admirer of the TS-E function I am far more attracted to the TS-E options than the 21ZE or the Nikon zoom. Of course others will have different needs. I own and use the EF 16-35/2.8 II and it find it lacking in several ways, even though I still consider it a great lens. I would prefer the Nikon 14-24, but the adapter issue and my need for a great wide TS-E with superb IQ trumps the Nikon big time.

As the saying goes, "one size does not fit all"...

Nov 15, 2009 at 04:17 AM

PhotoMaximum
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p.3 #18 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

I do find the the 17TS-E produced the more interesting photo in that test as well. The other aspect to the 17 TS-E is that many users are finding that using the 17 TS-E with the Canon 1.4 TE produces better images at the resulting 24mm factor than the original version of the Canon 24 TS-E lens...

Nov 15, 2009 at 04:25 AM

Doo-bop
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p.3 #19 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

Nov 15, 2009 at 10:19 AM

Yakim Peled
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p.3 #20 · Zeiss ZE 21 mm Review on Photozone

snowboarder wrote:
Yakim Peled wrote:
Filter usage in the Zeiss is indeed easier (as you don't need to buy a filter holder, rectangular filters etc.) but at 82mm, it's not that cheap either.

What are you talking about? Easier? It's a normal lens I can use all the filters I have with,
82mm since the introduction of 16-35L II lens has been the "normal" size, all my
filters are 82mm.

Now tell me how I can use a polarizer with the 14-24 zoom?

You can't. Another point for the Zeiss. Great. Now look at the last sentence I wrote: "It's horses for courses, as it always is, but it's far from being a clear cut victory for the Zeiss." Look, I'm not anti-Zeiss or pro-Nikon. All I'm saying is that there are VERY good reasons to chose either.

And BTW, I - personally - lust for neither. I want the 17TS.

Happy shooting,
Yakim.

Nov 15, 2009 at 11:19 AM

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