I tried the 25mm C/Y a while back and just couldn't fall in love with it. I have the 28/2.8, and it works very well. Also have 35/2.8, 50/1.4, 50/1.7, and 85/1.4. I've found the 85/1.4 to be a crazy-wonderful portrait lens.
jcolwell wrote:
Nope. It's probably something that happens somewhere between design inception, build, marketing, and sales. Maybe the big boss had a preference.
Good point...maybe the boss was a fan of blackjack.
From personal experience, the 28mm f2.8 is the best lens I've ever used. It has a very cinematic color palette and rendering. The 50mm f1.4 and 1.7 are both wicked sharp lenses but I prefer the smoothness of the bokeh and much better build quality of the 1.4. The 1.7 is all plastic and does not really fit in with the typical tank-like contax zeiss build quality. The 35-70, is just phenomenal. It can do everything if you can deal with the size and push/pull ergonomics (which were never an issue for me). I have never used, but would love to get my hands on a 100mm f3.5 or 100mm f2 someday. The 100mm f2 is supposed to be incredible. Some call it the best lens that they have every used.
I always preferred the later iteration of the C/Y 25/2.8, the Zeiss ZF/ZE 25mm f/2.8 Distagon. My favourite24/25mm FL on Canon 5DII, but I found it front heavy on the A7.
I'm surprised that the Contax 100-300 Vario-Sonnar hasn't been mentioned yet. I haven't used it myself, but it usually gets great accolades here. https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1501962
I found the CZ 100-300 to be an excellent lens, but the results for handheld shooting just could not match what I got from my Canon L-series zooms, with IS.
Jmonat7 wrote:
... I have never used, but would love to get my hands on a 100mm f3.5 or 100mm f2 someday. The 100mm f2 is supposed to be incredible. Some call it the best lens that they have every used.
In different ways, these are definitive CZ Contax lenses: I own both. Used S100 have been listed recently on FM B&S for under $300. The P100 is a dense hunk of glass and metal with great handling and classic rendition. It has excellent bokeh and virtually zero linear distortion—both rare for Planars. Narrow DOF wide open makes for a challenge at close range:
I'm coming to think I may be hooked on them as well ... again! (I briefly owned a modest, two-lens RTSII outfit back in the early '80s and loved it, but had to sell it when my car needed a new cylinder head and I was caught short of funds.)
Anyway, I was out photographing this morning in downtown Phoenix from 2:30 am until 6:30 am and used exclusively the 35/f2.8. Here are some of the initial results with it mounted on my A7R / Cambo Actus combo:
George Orwell wrote:
I always wondered why Carl Zeiss makes 21mm lenses as opposed to 20mm. Just to be different?
The had the first well corrected wide angle, the Biogon 2.1cm f2.8 from early 1950s. I think from them on, they stuck with 21mm. Note that Minolta also had a 21mm f4 that was and still is close to epic, and it currently the single lens that used the entire nomenclature available for Minolta Rokkor lenses. The 20mm appeared later. Also interesting to note that 21mm appears to be arbitrarily a bit more than a rounded 20mm, but that's only because we defined a cm as 1/10 of a meter, and also because we use base 10 system. There isn't anything in nature that makes a 21mm less natural than 20mm. And since they had the first fast 21mm lens (along with Angenieux) and it was already very close to the image plane, then I'd say it was the ideal trade off for the excellent performance of the lens.
George Orwell wrote:
OK. Any ideas why the odd number? It just seems weird.
It's only odd in metric system. The first 21mm f2.8 for FF that I know of is the Biogon for Contax. before any lens as such was 20mm, they first hd to be either the Biogon or a copy of it.
I like mine, they also work with my Fuji 50R, the 35-70 to varying degrees, didn't try any in 35mm mode.
I used to have the 85/1.4, though, someone decided they needed it more than I, I still miss it...
- 35/1.4 CYZ - very slight soft vignette,
this lens is also amazing close focus on the 50R.
I see this one is going to be another rediscovered treasure gem.
Sure to be used often.
- 35-70/3.4 Macro CYZ - Starts vignetting anything lower than 50mm.
Progresses to total tunnel vision super hard at 35mm.
However in macro mode, NO vignette, amazing, also amazing close focus in macro mode.
- 100/2 CYZ - non macro model - imperceptible vignette, if any?
