Couple test shots from today. I like this lens. In my testing so far, I find it weakest at infinity, but I think it is still as good as other options I have, just not as much better at infinity as it is at closer distances.
I have just bought my self this lens used for a nice price. Just sold my RX1 and also listed my Loxia 35. I will keep my Sony FE 2.8 for when I need really light and small, my FE copy is very sharp. I have also ordered the TAP.
Thanks for all the tests and input in this tread! It has helped me a lot on my decision.
Nice Fred. I posted some yesterday in the FE Images thread with this lens and the TAP as well. I'm so glad I purchased this lens. Wonderful colors and rendering. And I love this lens with TAP.
Before I read the entire 23 pages it would be great if you could help me out. Looking for a compact 35mm lens (My favorite focal length) with a decent weight that provides a "special character" for my A7RII. Basically I felt in love with the special 3D Zeiss Pop Look with certain lenses in the past and look for another candidate - hopefully the Distagon ZM...!? (The 1.4 FE is too big and heavy for me - although the AF is nice to have on board)
I was just not happy with the small FE 35mm 2.8 that gave me flat pictures - hard to explain. So do you think that the Zeiss Distagon here is the right lens to go based on my points above? I also thought about the Voigtländer 1.7 but for my taste the Vignetting is just too much here...
Can you recommend the Zeiss for the A7RII and which Adapter should I choose? I try to avoid cheap china adapters.
Mirror wrote:
Before I read the entire 23 pages it would be great if you could help me out. Looking for a compact 35mm lens (My favorite focal length) with a decent weight that provides a "special character" for my A7RII. Basically I felt in love with the special 3D Zeiss Pop Look with certain lenses in the past and look for another candidate - hopefully the Distagon ZM...!? (The 1.4 FE is too big and heavy for me - although the AF is nice to have on board)
I was just not happy with the small FE 35mm 2.8 that gave me flat pictures - hard to explain. So do you think that the Zeiss Distagon here is the right lens to go based on my points above? I also thought about the Voigtländer 1.7 but for my taste the Vignetting is just too much here...
Can you recommend the Zeiss for the A7RII and which Adapter should I choose? I try to avoid cheap china adapters.
Lots of wiggle room here. Hmmm..compact, decent weight, special character and yet produces great 3D Zeiss pop? I keep a battery grip always attached to my A7RII, so this might disqualify me on the weight/size evaluation, but I'll try. From my 35mm lenses, this would included M-mounts: Zeiss Biogon f/2.8c, Biogon f/2.0, Distagon f/1.4.... and in FE..Loxia...I'll not consider my other 35mm lenses, but the Hexanons are worth a look. The Biogons are small, especially the f/2.8c, but they stay with my film cameras... I've fallen prey to obsession with the peripheral, which is just plain silly in that I don't really shoot subjects that would suffer from this shortcoming at the apertures that I typically use. In fact, I suspect that with larger apertures and more central subjects, the poor peripheral presentation of the M-Biogons might add to the 'pop", but like the Loxia, the M-Biogon f/2.0 is not a wide open lens with tack sharp centers. The f/2.8c is centrally sharp at f/2.8.. and pretty compact. The Loxia is a great street lens and I tend to use it in the f/2.8-5.6 range. The auto magnification is a nice plus and like all of the Zeiss lenses, it is well made. I just received the Distagon, but it is clearly spectacular centrally with regards to sharpness, contrast.. you name it. It is probably sharper with great microcontrast wide open than my f/2.8c at 2.8 and Loxia at f/2.0. Where this lens seems to shine is in the transition to blur and (for a 35mm lens) the smooth bokeh. It is absolutely minuscule compared to the FE version and has a smaller girth and about the same length with adapter as the Loxia. I can already see that it Trumps my other lenses if shot close to f/1.4.. pun intended. It is also the most expensive of the bunch and I'm guessing that it is the most likely to make you smile if you are a 3-D pop junkie.
I use the Voigtlander VM-E Close Focus Adapter, but also have the Techart Pro on order.
Do most of you have your cameras modded or is this lens just fine stock? Considering going from my 38 2.8/Batis 85 to a TAP + 35 ZM and 85/4 ZM for a light travel kit.
Thanks. Thought I'd post here but seller with pretty good feedback over the last year has 3 of these left (used/like new) at $1,050.00. Enjoy. Picked one up and look forward to testing it soon. I miss my rx1r already and hopefully this will put me at ease
