I was just wondering if there are any cases where the chromed front ring on Zeiss lenses causes any reflections that are visible in photos. I normally use my lenses without hoods, but the uv filters cover the front ring entirely. Today I was shooting without a uv filter in strong sunlight, and while I didn't see any flare in the shots, I noticed that the front ring was reflecting light strongly. It's almost unbelievable that these reflections would not affect the photos in one way or another.
Please post any photos that you believe are affected by the front ring reflections.
It's going to be interesting to see what is posted here as examples because I suspect the only way to really know if that chrome ring is causing additional flare is to see identical shots taken with the ring fully exposed and with it covered, either with a hood or blackened out completely with gaffer tape, etc. That would be a fairly easy test I suppose.
I wondered about and have been concerned about the same thing. I also personally do not like the chromed finish due to it being more conspicuous and eye catching to people, and in the field .
i mean i really doubt it's actually an issue. would they really be cranking out all these lenses for years and years, unaware that the silver thread on every single lens was a potential optical problem? i assume they've looked at this.
goosemang wrote:
i mean i really doubt it's actually an issue. would they really be cranking out all these lenses for years and years, unaware that the silver thread on every single lens was a potential optical problem? i assume they've looked at this.
it's their "red ring", that's all.
I would think that the chromed ring could be a real issue for wildlife photography due to reflection. The ring might require some hiding through something like gaffers tape.
I was told by Richard at Zeiss that the polished front part of these lenses is actually a hardened material to deal with the removable lens hoods and filters... not decorative.
I don't know how it couldn't be a potential problem in the right (wrong) situation - bright light source causing a specular highlight on that chrome ring...how can that be a good thing? I think someone should test this. I no longer have my chromed ZF's or I would.
I don't think it's going to be easy to test. The best way would be to position the lens in a way that the sun or light source would be at a 45 degree angle so that it hits the opposite side of the chrome ring and creates a reflection directly into the front element. In this scenario, we should see a ghost or flare in the opposite direction to the light source.
I will try to do that tomorrow if the sun is shining.
Some real problems with back reflection from an ND grad of the silver ring on my ZS 25/2.8. (At least that's what I decided was causing the white ring on the photo.) I've now covered the inner ring with a thin sliver of black electrician's tape, and haven't seen it since.
Edward, if you do find increased flare/ghosts, you could also use a small matte black step ring to mitigate against it. I use some B+W brass rings to step up to 52mm on my 25/2.8 and 35/2.8, and Nikon center pinch caps.
timballic wrote:
Here's one I posted here just over a year ago.
Some real problems with back reflection from an ND grad of the silver ring on my ZS 25/2.8. I've now covered the inner ring with black electrician's tape.
Timballic, thanks for posting that shot above. What kind of filters were you using, screw on or Cokin style? I'm asking because in both possibilities, the chrome ring should be covered by the filter and not be able to reflect light back into the lens. Usually ND grads are not multi coated for some reason, so maybe it's just filter flare?
edwardkaraa wrote:
Timballic, thanks for posting that shot above. What kind of filters were you using, screw on or Cokin style? I'm asking because in both possibilities, the chrome ring should be covered by the filter and not be able to reflect light back into the lens. Usually ND grads are not multi coated for some reason, so maybe it's just filter flare?
uscmatt99 wrote:
Edward, if you do find increased flare/ghosts, you could also use a small matte black step ring to mitigate against it. I use some B+W brass rings to step up to 52mm on my 25/2.8 and 35/2.8, and Nikon center pinch caps.
Hi Matt,
In fact I have no problem whatsoever because I usually use Zeiss UV filters on all my lenses, and they do hide the chrome ring. It's just a matter of curiosity to see if anyone has had any flare caused by the chrome reflections. There are so many people using Zeiss lenses on this forum, so if there is any issue of flare, I think at least a couple of users should be able to show us something.
Timballic, ok, now I understand after you edited your text. So you believe the ghosts are caused by the chrome ring reflecting back onto the filter. That makes sense. Thanks again for posting.
The 25/2.8 seems to have a very long silver "nose" (longer than my 100/2 which never has this problem), and the adapter ring of the Cokin P filter holder left about 1/8" of silver thread uncovered, which in this straight-into-the-sun shot produced this ring. With the P Cokin holder, the square resin filter is held about 1/4" further forward, with the silver exposed thread roughly halfway between rear of filter and the front element.
As I said, the ring disappeared after covering that 1/8" gap, so I'm fairly certain it was those exposed silver threads catching the light that was the cause, they were very visible to the eye too.
