Well let me start by saying Wow but this is also not a fair test for this lens as its a character lens and not really into the corners kind of optic. Now having said that its a amazing piece of glass and as I go along here you will see that but Big Bronco wall is brutal on a lens like this and your not going to see the new Sony 50 performance wide open with no CA. But on center this lens is brilliant and as I wrote Fred earlier what i notice at 1.4,1.6,1.8 unlike the jumps we see in the 50 and GM 85 this lens is more subtle jumps just really a touch more contrast. Whats that mean well 1.4 is killer on center. But the lens has a lot of falloff and with that comes amazing color, texture , pop , vignetting and a 3d look to beat the band and nice bokeh. Its just sexy as all get out and it truly is a character lens with a great look to it. Is it a landscape lens well I leave that for you to decide. But coming from the RXr1 II which is a fantastic optic that just did not get along with me and my workflow. Yea that stinks because I really really like it but I don't want to get into all that but this looks to be something I have been after and i been watching this lens for a long time , i just needed someone to twist my arm a little. No names but he owns the place.
Now truth be told the 24-70 GM was the intended landscape optic but having this in the bag might be interesting. Now there is a lot of talk about a Kolari Mod but I don't want to get into that but my body has a lot of mileage on it like if i calculate right about 50k on the A7rII so down the road i may do that mod. Will see
So here is Big Bronco wall test that I always do with every lens I buy. Don't let the beginning deter you it gets better.
I would say right between 5.6 and F8 it gets really good in the corners and the Purple fringing or CA goes completely away on its own right after 2.8 without any help from software. And F11 here maybe a little diffraction but usable
Distortion is pretty good here , I see a little not sure what the charts say but its not bugging me and I guess if your out there in the wild F8 to get great corners its there if you use it like this. Personally this lens may never get past F4 for me as its a artsy lens for more people type stuff.
Guy...this lens is brilliant. I used it on my A7rM and it produced stunning results. Thanks for the tests...
Gregg
At f11 it also produces great results... Here is a grab from last Sept on the Golden Gate @f11
Looking at this on center its slightly different to me than lets say the GM 85 and Sony 50 1.4 there is a big difference in those for 1.4 to 1.6. Here its a much more subtle change compared to those lenses. I am finding this part pretty interesting. I have another series on center, let me process those and post
"Well let me start by saying Wow but this is also not a fair test for this lens as its a character lens and not really into the corners kind of optic."
It would be very interesting to see how different this lens performs on a Leica M Digital with your subject. I suspect it would show dramatically better corner and off axis performance for instance. It might become less of a "character" lens though as that aspect may be a side effect of using the lens on the Sony.
When using my 35mm f1.4 ZM Distagon on my A7rM V3 when stopped down to f11 and using the LR adjustment for the lens the corners are really quite good or excellent for my landscape work. But, I am using the lens for mainly landscape and almost never use the lens wider than f5.6. But, it is not beyond the possibility in some instances that I may.
Hope you enjoy the lens. But, as many of us have indicated best performance for the corners will be on a Leica M camera or a Kolari modded Sony A7 series camera.
When using my 35mm f1.4 ZM Distagon on my A7rM V3 when stopped down to f11 and using the LR adjustment for the lens the corners are really quite good or excellent for my landscape work. But, I am using the lens for mainly landscape and almost never use the lens wider than f5.6. But, it is not beyond the possibility in some instances that I may.
Hope you enjoy the lens. But, as many of us have indicated best performance for the corners will be on a Leica M camera or a Kolari modded Sony A7 series camera.
Rich
Totally agree on the Solari Mod and on a Leica body as that was what this lens was designed for and we are going to see better corners with a mod and such. But have to say on a stock body this is not bad at all I mean at all. No question there maybe better corner 35mm out there . Let me see i tried everything but my math comes up empty.
Just kidding. Now the fun starts after these tests. the lens is just the holy grail of sexy
Tariq Gibran wrote:
"Well let me start by saying Wow but this is also not a fair test for this lens as its a character lens and not really into the corners kind of optic."
It would be very interesting to see how different this lens performs on a Leica M Digital with your subject. I suspect it would show dramatically better corner and off axis performance for instance. It might become less of a "character" lens though as that aspect may be a side effect of using the lens on the Sony.
You know Tariq you may have something there since its not really designed for the Sony body it becomes a little more dramatic in look. I won't be hurt by that.
I agree this lens will perform in those corners with the mod better as we have seen this very long test folks have been doing its very very interesting to read that thread on it.
GMPhotography wrote:
You know Tariq you may have something there since its not really designed for the Sony body it becomes a little more dramatic in look. I won't be hurt by that.
I agree this lens will perform in those corners with the mod better as we have seen this very long test folks have been doing its very very interesting to read that thread on it.
I just leave the hood on the UV filter that I have on the lens and just attach the Zeiss lens cap to the filter and inside the hood.
Hi Guy,
And as many of us have said in the past, the Zeiss 35mm f1.4 ZM Distagon is a whole lot smaller, lighter and more compact than the Sony FE 35mm f1.4. If you do not have the Zeiss hood for the lens, yes it is expensive but is worth using. Consider this if you do not have the hood; it is a reasonable price:
And as many of us have said in the past, the Zeiss 35mm f1.4 ZM Distagon is a whole lot smaller, lighter and more compact than the Sony FE 35mm f1.4. If you do not have the Zeiss hood for the lens, yes it is expensive but is worth using. Consider this if you do not have the hood; it is a reasonable price:
I got the hood it came with the lens used off eBay . I actually like the hood a lot and that says something I rarely use a OEM hood. Im just waiting for my TechArt today
GMPhotography wrote:
I got the hood it came with the lens used off eBay . I actually like the hood a lot and that says something I rarely use a OEM hood. Im just waiting for my TechArt today
Yes, this particular hood is quite nice and locks in postion with a click.
