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The Perfect Lens Selection

  
 
Knut.
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p.3 #1 · The Perfect Lens Selection


Steve Spencer wrote:
I have several different set of lenses. One set I currently use is the Voigtlander 21 f/1.4, the Voigtlander 40 f/1.2, and the Zeiss Batis 85 f/2.4. Those are close to 2X apart. One way to think about lenses being 2X apart is that you can crop the wider lens and still have about the same sensor size as a micro 4/3rds camera--so still quite capable for most uses. So, my 40 f/1.2 with a 2X crop has the look (same angle of view a depth of field) as an 80 f/2.4 lens. So, in practice I can use
...Show more

Set 1: 21mm CV, 40mm CV, 85mm Batis.
- Are you sure, you mean the Batis? The f-stop of 2.4 indicates the 85mm Loxia …

Addenum:
If four lenses: Batis 18 - CV Apo 35 - CV/Sigma 65 - Batis 135 is very nice as well!
(The B 135 doubles as very nice 200mm when slightly cropped)




Jun 19, 2025 at 02:07 PM
Steve Spencer
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p.3 #2 · The Perfect Lens Selection


Knut. wrote:
Set 1: 21mm CV, 40mm CV, 85mm Batis.
- Are you sure, you mean the Batis? The f-stop of 2.4 indicates the 85mm Loxia …

Addenum:
If four lenses: Batis 18 - CV Apo 35 - CV/Sigma 65 - Batis 135 is very nice as well!
(The B 135 doubles as very nice 200mm when slightly cropped)



Yes, you are right I meant to say Loxia rather than Batis. I actually have both lenses, but in this kit I typically take the Loxia. The Loxia is heavier, but it has a much smaller diameter, so takes up less room in my bag. I have edited my post now to fix my mistake.

I like your kit. I am a fan of all the lenses. Personally, however, I rarely need the reach of the 135 when cropped and although a lovely lens, it takes up a lot of room. The longest lens I take is typically the Zeiss Loxia 85 f/2.4, which can crop to 135mm very nicely or the Voigtlander 75 f/1.5, which can crop to 125mm very nicely without too much loss in quality, or the Voigtlander 90 f/2.8 APO when I had it, which can crop to 150mm very easily. All are very small in size and take up very little bag real estate. I will likely get the Voigtlander 90 f/2.8 APO again as I loved its tiny size.



Jun 19, 2025 at 02:11 PM
Knut.
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p.3 #3 · The Perfect Lens Selection


Steve Spencer wrote:
Yes, you are right I meant to say Loxia rather than Batis. I actually have both lenses, but in this kit I typically take the Loxia. The Loxia is heavier, but it has a much smaller diameter, so takes up less room in my bag. I have edited my post now to fix my mistake.

I like your kit. I am a fan of all the lenses. Personally, however, I rarely need the reach of the 135 when cropped and although a lovely lens, it takes up a lot of room. The longest lens I take is typically the Voigtlander
...Show more

Comparing the two: Batis and Loxia 85mm - I‘m doing some soul searching which one to get for landscapes.
- Do you think that they differ in an important way for the intended purpose? In which way?
- Is the „jumping“ transmission of exif data between the Loxia and more modern Sony bodies (A1, A7RV..) still a relevant issue?

Actually the CV 35 Apo - CV 65 Apo - Batis 135 are my favourite event and concert lenses. I do a lot of concert shooting for the school of my kids and the very good apochromatic correction of these lenses helps a lot to avoid any purple fringing around specular reflections on brass instruments.

Punching in with a little cropping is often very helpful with the Batis 135. Although some claim that the bokeh is poor in these three lenses, it really does not show up in my shots. I actually find the bokeh quite good.


Edited on Jun 19, 2025 at 03:18 PM · View previous versions



Jun 19, 2025 at 02:34 PM
Steve Spencer
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p.3 #4 · The Perfect Lens Selection


Knut. wrote:
Comparing the two: Batis and Loxia 85mm - I‘m doing some soul searching which one to get for landscapes.
- In which way do you think that they differ in an important way for the intended purpose?
- Is the „jumping“ transmission of exif data between the Loxia and more modern Sony bodies (A1, A7RV..) still a relevant issue?

Actually the CV 35 Apo - CV 65 Apo - Batis 135 are my favourite event and concert lenses. I do a lot of concert shooting for the school of my kids and the very good apochromatic correction of these lenses helps a lot
...Show more

For landscapes the Loxia 85 f/2.4 is my clear favorite of the two. It is not that the Batis is bad, it is just that the Loxia is exceptional and has consistently delivered excellent landscapes shots for me. It has great contrast and micro contrast. It handles shooting into the sun exceptionally well without flare, and it produces the very nice ten stroke sunstars for which Loxia lenses are known. The Loxia also does very well with close up shots, which is great in that 21/40/85 kit I described because close up shots are a weakness for the Voigtlander 40 f/1.2.

I have never had that issue of the jumping transmission of exif data and my A7r V. I have had two copies of the Loxia 21 f/2.8, one copy of the Loxia 25 f/2.4, and two copies of the Loxia 85 f/2.4 and none of them showed that behavior. I am sure it has been an issue for some, but it has never been an issue for me.



Jun 19, 2025 at 02:46 PM
nmerc_photos
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p.3 #5 · The Perfect Lens Selection


I pretty much only shoot wildlife and aurora, so I have:

A1 II
2x ZV-E1
300GM
600GM
2x Sigma 14mm f1.4

That being said... I've only used the 600GM once. The 300GM is so good it almost entirely replaces the 600GM. I've got a few more situations I'd like to test the 600GM in, but I suspect it'll get sold sooner rather than later.

I don't generally keep any lenses that are between 16mm - 100mm. Anything in that range generally can get covered with an iPhone and look good enough.

In the past I used to make a habit of having "every lens for every situation", which unsurprisingly - just ended up with many lenses gathering dust on the workbench. So I've made a conscious effort to thin the herd.



Jun 19, 2025 at 02:47 PM
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