Sneakyracer wrote:
I tested the 15mm Zeiss and my 14mm L II is as sharp all over the frame. The only downside of the Canon is that it has more CA, specially closer to the borders of the frame. the 15mm Zeiss has little to none. That is impressive. The 14-24mm was also very good and very close to the Zeiss. But the Zeiss is easier to filter (no hood version available). No need for those huge 150mm filters.
I had the Canon 14L II. Excellent lens. However, it has a distinct field curvature, something that is not as pronounced on the Zeiss. And as you say, the Zeiss is extremely well corrected for aberrations. Another big plus of the Zeiss is the smoothness of the focus ring and the hard infinity stop which can be crucial when shooting the skies in pitch darkness.
I have a question about protective filters for the Zeiss 15mm Distagon lens.
The MSRP of the 15mm ZF.2 Distagon is definitely up there, but given the mass exodus from the Nikon F-mount, the used prices for the ZF.2 version of this lens have become "reasonable".
Has anyone successfully addressed the problem of fitting an extra-slim protective filter on the 95mm threads that are included on the front of the lens? With a focal length of 15mm it's going to be difficult to find a protective filter that's thin enough not to cause vignetting. I've looked at the B+W slim mount protective filters, whose name has most recently been changed to the "B+W UV-Haze #010 MRC MASTER Filter (95mm)".
The B+W spec sheets note that the filter rings spec'd for the "BASIC" line of filters are not suitable for ultra-wide-angle lenses, and only the "MASTER" or "T-PRO" lines of filters have the slim profile rings that are suitable for ultra-wide lenses. The problem, though, is that the Zeiss lens has a 15mm focal length and the B+W filters are only rated for a minimum focal length of 17mm. I presume that the difference in angle of view would be sufficient to cause annoying vignetting.
Of course one answer is not to use a protective filter, but I can't do that because I would end up damaging the lens. I just don't want to put an unprotected front element at risk. I'd prefer to damage a sacrificial $200 filter to protect the front element on a $3k lens.
Does anyone know of any other ultra-slim high quality filters for ultra-wide lenses in the 15mm focal length? I'm aware of the external clamp on/slide-in filters for ultra-wides, but for pure protection purposes I prefer to mount a permanent filter on the screw threads on the front of the lens, and resort to the external clamp on filters with the rectangular slide-in elements for creative use.
If anyone could recommend a suitable protective filter, I'd love to hear your advice. Thanks.
I used the filter of Zeiss design with their T* coating without issues. Four minutes ago I put that filter on my virgin 200-800 for itīs first real trip into wilderness. This filter does not appear particularly thin.
The need for a thin filter might depend on the optical design of the lens. The 15mm Distagon has a filtermount _far_ wider than the front lens. Anyones guess until someone asks Zeiss about it. Dr Hoenlinger at Zeiss has always answered any questions with surprising openness.
I usually put the intended protective filter on a lens before I test the lens. This way I will attribute any vignetting to the optic design which is easier to accept, as I use filters on all my lenses, always.
Thanks for responding. It is interesting that the filter mount is _far_ wider than the front lens. I should have thought about that by looking at the photos, but somehow I failed to think about that. I'm hoping that the design of an oversized filter thread was intentional, to avoid vignetting issues. Maybe it won't be a problem and I'm worrying too much.
Can you recommend the best way to contact Dr Hoenlinger at Zeiss to ask about this?
I have the EF mount version of the ZE 15, but it's been a long time since I used it. When I did use it, I didn't generally have a filter on it, but I did when doing waterfall photography. I used a polarizer, maybe a Marumi if memory serves, but I'm not sure. I even took the glass out of another ND filter and puttied it into the front of another Marumi polarizer, so I could knock the light down further to hold the shutter open longer. The polarizer and ND would vignette. But the puttied in ND/CPL didn't.
I'm not sure where my filters are for that lens, but I do believe it was a Marumi polarizer. So I would imagine a UV filter would not vignette unless it has a pretty thick ring.
coralnut wrote:
I have a question about protective filters for the Zeiss 15mm Distagon lens.
The MSRP of the 15mm ZF.2 Distagon is definitely up there, but given the mass exodus from the Nikon F-mount, the used prices for the ZF.2 version of this lens have become "reasonable".
Has anyone successfully addressed the problem of fitting an extra-slim protective filter on the 95mm threads that are included on the front of the lens? With a focal length of 15mm it's going to be difficult to find a protective filter that's thin enough not to cause vignetting. I've looked at the B+W slim mount protective filters, whose name has most recently been changed to the "B+W UV-Haze #010 MRC MASTER Filter (95mm)".
The B+W spec sheets note that the filter rings spec'd for the "BASIC" line of filters are not suitable for ultra-wide-angle lenses, and only the "MASTER" or "T-PRO" lines of filters have the slim profile rings that are suitable for ultra-wide lenses. The problem, though, is that the Zeiss lens has a 15mm focal length and the B+W filters are only rated for a minimum focal length of 17mm. I presume that the difference in angle of view would be sufficient to cause annoying vignetting.
Of course one answer is not to use a protective filter, but I can't do that because I would end up damaging the lens. I just don't want to put an unprotected front element at risk. I'd prefer to damage a sacrificial $200 filter to protect the front element on a $3k lens.
Does anyone know of any other ultra-slim high quality filters for ultra-wide lenses in the 15mm focal length? I'm aware of the external clamp on/slide-in filters for ultra-wides, but for pure protection purposes I prefer to mount a permanent filter on the screw threads on the front of the lens, and resort to the external clamp on filters with the rectangular slide-in elements for creative use.
If anyone could recommend a suitable protective filter, I'd love to hear your advice. Thanks....Show more →
I know a lot of people don't like to buy used, but there are indeed a lot of copies in good condition and sadly at a very low price ( I paid way more than double of going rate - used). Anyway, I converted mine to no hood - done by Zeiss - and never had an issue with uv, nd, or cpl filters from B+H, Zeis and Marumi.
if you have a mirrorless, does Nikon offer a drop-in filter adapter like Canon? Only lens I fear about the front element is the 17mm TSE - even the Otus 28mm goes naked and never had an issue.
ps: when filters get hit, is very possible that the shatered glass scratches the surface and very likely that the blunt object was not even slightly slow down by the thin filter glass - dust/snad protection is a different issue
Blowing dust/sand is a major concern for me, as I'm a frequent visitor to the Dunes National Lakeshore. I don't want to have my front element sandblasted so a filter is a must.
