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Archive 2015 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

jcolwell
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

I recently bought a Zeiss Distagon 25mm f/2 ZE to fill the last hole in my 'second string' lens lineup, and I wanted to put it through the paces, to see if it's up to the task. Strangely, my 'second string' lenses have slightly better IQ than my 'first string' Canon L-zoom lenses. All of my second string lenses are manual focus, Alt lenses; five are Zeiss ZE or C/Y lenses, and one is the Mamiya 645 A 200/2.8 APO.

The first image below shows the lens lineup, and the second image shows a table of the general characteristics for the five following lenses:

Canon TS-E 24/3.5 L II
Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 25/2 ZE
Canon EF 16-35/4 L IS USM
Canon EF 24-70/2.8 L II USM
Canon EF 24-105/4 L IS USM

Lens lineup: (L to R) Zeiss 25/2 ZE, EF 24-105/4L IS, TS-E 24/3.5L II, EF 16-35/4L IS, EF 24-70/2.8L II

Summary Table of Lens Characteristics

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:18 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Image Comparison Panels (1 of 2)

The first image below shows the test site, which is Halifax Harbour as seen from the Dartmouth side, just south of the MacDonald bridge. The distance to the ship at the centre of the test site is about 700m. It's about 1500m to the ships in the far left edge crop, and about 3000m to the wide, two-section building that defines the skyline at the centre of the same 'far left edge' crop images.

In this and the next post, I show a total of seven composite images to compare 100% crops of selected regions of the test site image, for the five lenses. Each comparison image has six panels; the bottom right panel shows the PS CS6 Navigator window, with a small red rectangle that shows the location of the 100% crops shown in the other five panels. The window title bar of each 100% crop panel shows the name of the lens.

The photos were taken at f/8 with a 6D on a tripod, at ISO 100, using manual focus LiveView with a 2 sec. timer for shutter release, with manual de-focus and re-focus between each test image. For each lens, three different images (or exposures) were taken and then the "best of three" was selected. For each lens, all 100% crops were selected from the same image (i.e. the "best of three" image RAW file); rather than selecting the best left corner from one, and the best centre from another; and so on. No post-processing was performed on these files.

Halifax Harbour test site, full image

Centre

Far left edge

Far right edge (in a bit)

Bridge top

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:19 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Image Comparison Panels (2 of 2)

Here's the final set of three image comparison panels.

Near left edge

Near left corner

Near right edge

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:21 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Summary and Discussion

Which is best?

A year or so ago, I devised a test scoring system for a Pentax-K to EOS adapter comparison that I think is relevant for lens comparison tests, too. Basically, for each test condition (e.g. each of the five panels for the far left edge image crops), I rate the best performance as 1, next best gets 2, and so on for each lens. If two lenses seem to be equally "the best", they both get 1, and the next best gets 2. Basically, low score wins. The table below summarizes the scores I assigned for each lens in each test condition. The right-most columns show the sum of scores (lowest is best), and the relative scores, normalized by the lowest score.

Based on this test the Zeiss 25/2 ZE is the best. The 16-35/4L IS, 24-70/2.8L II, and TS-E 24/3.5L II are all about the same, in second place, and the 24-105/4L IS is in last place. Note that even though the other lenses are better, the 24-105L has very usable image quality for most applications, even at the edges and in the corners. It's not the best, but it's certainly not a dog, either.

Also worth noting is that the left edge crops for the ZE lens image are at the absolute left edge of the orginal image, while the other lenses are all slightly in from the left edge to match the scene, even though I set the focus ring on the zooms to a bit longer than 24mm. This is shown by the location of the red rectanlge in the Navigator window for the "Far left edge" composite image, which is for the 24-70/2.8L II. The red rectangle for the 25/2 ZE would be hard up against the edge of the image.

The "far left edge" crops show some noticeable CA on the vertical edge of the second-from-left building (and on the right-most building for two lenses). The TS-E 24/3.5L II is clean, the 16-35/4L IS and Zeiss 25/2 ZE are next best, followed by the 24-70/2.8L II, and last place is owned by the 24-105/4L IS. Again, even though the 24-105L IS is in last place, its CA is not all that bad - I'd describe it as moderate, and very easy to fix in post-processing.

Long story short, the Zeiss 25mm f/2 ZE is up to the task. It's a keeper.

Summary Table of Lens Image Quality (IQ) Scores and Ranking

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:21 AM

campy
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

The 16-35 looks like a safe bet if you want wide.

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:32 AM

Coltrane
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Thanks for this post. I'm considering a Zeiss 25mm f/2 for my 6D, so this comparison is of great interest. The Zeiss was the best in my opinion as well, but I was certainly impressed with the 16-35mm.

Dec 19, 2015 at 10:53 AM

nehemiahphoto
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

thanks for doing this!

I am continually impressed by the 16-35 f4

I would be curious to see a comparison of the za 24, zf 25 and 25 new batis.

Dec 19, 2015 at 11:13 AM

technic
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

nehemiahphoto wrote:
thanks for doing this!

I am continually impressed by the 16-35 f4

I would be curious to see a comparison of the za 24, zf 25 and 25 new batis.

Given the big difference in price and size/weight, it would also be interesting to see how the 2.8/24IS compares :-)
I bet it is a lot better than the 24-105 and hardly behind some of the other options.

Dec 19, 2015 at 11:25 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

nehemiahphoto wrote:
thanks for doing this!

I am continually impressed by the 16-35 f4

I would be curious to see a comparison of the za 24, zf 25 and 25 new batis.

technic wrote:
Given the big difference in price and size/weight, it would also be interesting to see how the 2.8/24IS compares :-)
I bet it is a lot better than the 24-105 and hardly behind some of the other options.

Previous tests show the EF 24/2.8 IS is about the same as the TS-E 24/3.5L II, and way better than the 24-105L IS. I think the tests are posted in a Gunzorro 24mm thread. I can look up the link later and post it here.

Dec 19, 2015 at 11:32 AM

gdanmitchell
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

What the sample images (before post-processing correction, I presume) tell me is that there isn't any convincing image quality reason to consider the Zeiss lens. It is certainly a fine performer, but it doesn't look like it will produce final photograph quality that is different from a couple of other options here, and the zoom options have the potential to produce better quality if a crop is required to get the right angle of view from the prime.

It also tells me that the 16-35mm f/4 L IS is one heck of a fine performer at 25mm, especially for a zoom. (And it provides a reminder that a zoom that is very nearly identical to the performance of a prime at some FL will be better than cropping the prime to get other FLs.)

The 24-70 is very good, too, though at 25mm Canon zoom shooters might want to use the 16-35 when possible. I know that I could afford to be a bit less lazy about this when I have the 24-70 on the camera and the 16-35 in my bag! (Makes sense, given that 25mm is near the extreme end of one lens's range while it is in the middle of the other.)

As documented, the 24-105, while performing well in the real world and offering functional advantages, shows more CA before post-processing correction and is the softest at 25mm among this set of excellent lenses, especially at the edge of the frame. (Like the 24-105, this is the extreme margin of its focal length range.)

The TS is just as good as we would expect.

As always, knowing more about the objective image quality performance of lenses is useful. As always, that knowledge must be balanced with other factors affecting the overall "quality" of a lens from the perspective of a particular photographer. And the ways that such a balance play out could make a decision to get any of these lenses the "best" decision.

Dan

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:01 PM

jcolwell
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

gdanmitchell wrote:
What the sample images (before post-processing correction, I presume) tell me is that there isn't any convincing image quality reason to consider the Zeiss lens...

I'm convinced.

It's not replacing any of the Canon lenses, it's to complement them. The fact that it has slightly better IQ than the best from Canon is sufficient for my purposes.

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:24 PM

Rajan Parrikar
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

What Jim tells me is that his ZE25 is a keeper (Jim's words). Having used the best of the Zeiss lenses in the field, having made prints with them, I fully understand why he feels that way.

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:28 PM

Jeff Nolten
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Thanks for post. Excellent subject for such a comparison. The 16-35 f4 does hold up well in this comparison as others have said. Actually the 24-105 doesn't look too bad considering its just a "kit" lens

at the weakest end of its zoom range. But definitely want to keep the 16-35 handy for critical wide shots. I've been doing similar comparisons of my EF-S wides on a 70D and its nice to also see the high end glass.

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:29 PM

Monito
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Thank you for doing a thorough test of an interesting set of lenses, Jim.

It would be interesting to see the same set of comparison images, after the best post-processing has been applied -- after distortion, aberration, vignetting correction, and some modest degree of sharpening. Interesting unless I have to do the work

thanks again.

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:39 PM

naturephoto1
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Jim,

Thanks for running the tests. I do wonder what the reults would be with a higher resolution camera in the 36 to 50 MP range.

Rich

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:46 PM

Gunzorro
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Jim -- Excellent demonstration and reporting!

I'm finding similar in my "second string" system, the D800e. I've been revisiting Zeiss lenses, after getting rid of the ones I bought to use on the Canon bodies, in favor of Canon lenses like 17 and 24 TSE, as well as new 24 and 35 IS versions.

I've found the ZF 25/2.8 (a second cousin to your new 25/2 -- congrats!) and ZF.2 35/2 to be excellent and top of my choices there (on an economy basis). The D800e resolution really shows these lenses well against others. An added benefit is that I can shoot them on Canon bodies with simple adapters.

The upshot is that I've softened my approach regarding Zeiss ZF/ZE lenses, and am considering buying a few more over time.

As we can see here, Canon lenses, especially the new generation of zooms, can hold their own against the best, often surpassing the quality "luxury" brand primes.

Thanks for providing this valuable comparison!

Edited on Dec 19, 2015 at 01:00 PM · View previous versions

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:57 PM

Monito
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

The reason I suggest tests also include post-processing (as well as no post-proc) is that the more I think about Dan suggesting this in other threads, the more I agree.

It could be that the nature of lens departures from ideal would lend themselves to better correction for some some lenses than others. Thus two lenses that have close results in no-proc analysis might show greater differences with post-processing.

Of course, since there are many tools, post-processing introduces an extra cluster of variables which is the standard objection. Thus I do not suggest abandoning analysis of no-proc test images.

However, in favour of doing post-proc analysis we must note that for most photographers including me, any serious image that I print large has gone through post-proc correction for distortion, aberration, vignetting, and sharpening. If I understand, I think this is true for Dan's pictures too, hence his conception of this kind of test result presentation and analysis.

Dec 19, 2015 at 12:58 PM

mogud
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Great work Jim and thank you for such an exhaustive test. Your test results further confirms my decision to purchase the 16-35. I'm not surprised at the results from the ZE 25/2.

Dec 19, 2015 at 01:48 PM

NCAndy
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Thanks for these tests. Obviously the Zeiss 25 goes to f2.0 which none of the others will do. Besides that, I'm really impressed with the Canon zooms. The 16-35 is impressive at 25 and I think for the price via the current Loonie exchange it is going to find my bag soon. The 24 ts-e is one fine lens too. For me, the ZE 25 f2 isn't really wide enough for night skies in my use, so it's not really a lens I would need but it does perform well.

Dec 19, 2015 at 01:51 PM

wayne seltzer
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Comparison of Zeiss 25/2 ZE and Canon L lenses

Your lens test shots do not expose the ZE 25/2's weakness of significantly blurring get the extreme corners of the image due to some extreme FC. I tested this lens when it first came out against my ZE 21/2.8 and reported this problem here in this forum. Others then discovered it too. I still preferred my ZE 21 for landscapes as the 25 was not any sharper stopped down to f8 and the 21 does not have the extreme corner problem of the 25 and I prefer the wider FL of the 21 more than 25 for my landscape shooting.
If I need to go wider than 21 or need the flexibility of a zoom I prefer my Nixon 14-24G or TS-E 17.
The Nikon is imo better than Cannon zooms at the wide end.

These test shots are done on a dismal flat light day with not much color in the shot. The benefit of Zeiss lenses over Canon lenses is not revealed in these shots. The better colors and micro-contrast and 3-do like you are there pop are lost. Take some pictures of some mossy rocks in a stream with some nice interesting light and then the difference can be seen.
The ZE 25/2's main strength is its great sharpness across the frame WO for which it is optimised but not needed for normal landscape shooting.
And before anyone tells me they see no difference between Canon and Zeiss lens images, I would like to say I scored almost a perfect score on Denoir's blind lens comparison test a few years back here in this forum.The only shot I got wrono was a macro shot.

Dec 19, 2015 at 01:55 PM

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