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Archive 2010Zeiss 28-85 on the way
p.1 #1Zeiss 28-85 on the way
I've been looking for a high quality, yet inexpensive FF standard zoom for a while mow, and I just picked up a Zeiss 28-85 from KEH. Reviews and samples look great. I know the 35-70 is more used here, but 35 mm is not wide enough for a standard zoom, IMO. I'd rather have a 35 prime. 28-85 is a great range, though and the lens looks to be good. We'll see when it gets here. Excited.
Feb 04, 2010 at 10:32 AM
p.1 #2Zeiss 28-85 on the way
For a 3x zoom, the VS28-85 is remarkable: not perfect, but impressive throughout the range.
Feb 04, 2010 at 11:42 AM
p.1 #3Zeiss 28-85 on the way
i got it some months ago.. it's great for a zoom, it's just very heavy and big, and it distorts quite a bit at 28mm (tho you can fix it in many softwares nowadays)
perhaps colors are not so punchy like 35-70
oh, and you better dont hit it when mounted, the mount is very thin and can bend easily, and then it will move a bit on the adapter
perhaps colors are not so punchy like 35-70
oh, and you better dont hit it when mounted, the mount is very thin and can bend easily, and then it will move a bit on the adapter
Feb 04, 2010 at 11:59 AM
p.1 #4Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Jordan,
it is a great zoom.Distortion at 28mm is the only draw back.My copy had amazing resolution, zeiss color and build.Here is a set that i took with mine when i had it.I rented a Canon 24-70L while i had it to do a wedding(needed AF) and the Zeiss was as good if not better than the L. http://www.flickr.com/photos/footstool67/sets/72157620730733903/
-Jim
it is a great zoom.Distortion at 28mm is the only draw back.My copy had amazing resolution, zeiss color and build.Here is a set that i took with mine when i had it.I rented a Canon 24-70L while i had it to do a wedding(needed AF) and the Zeiss was as good if not better than the L. http://www.flickr.com/photos/footstool67/sets/72157620730733903/
-Jim
Feb 04, 2010 at 12:17 PM
p.1 #6Zeiss 28-85 on the way
I understand you are talking about the CY 28-85 zoom.
Does anyone know how this lens compared to the converted 28-85mm f3.5-5.6 macro zoom ?
Does anyone know how this lens compared to the converted 28-85mm f3.5-5.6 macro zoom ?
Feb 04, 2010 at 01:21 PM
p.1 #7Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Jordan,
I really missed not having a macro lens.So i sold the zoom to get a Zeiss 60mm Planar Macro.And then eventually i picked up a Zeiss 28mm prime.I really prefer shooting with primes.Also my finances do not allow me to keep all the lenses i have and continue to buy new ones.Many times i have to trade one to get another.Its a vicious cycle.
-Jim
I really missed not having a macro lens.So i sold the zoom to get a Zeiss 60mm Planar Macro.And then eventually i picked up a Zeiss 28mm prime.I really prefer shooting with primes.Also my finances do not allow me to keep all the lenses i have and continue to buy new ones.Many times i have to trade one to get another.Its a vicious cycle.
-Jim
Feb 04, 2010 at 01:21 PM
p.1 #8Zeiss 28-85 on the way
pascal03 wrote:
I understand you are talking about the CY 28-85 zoom.
Does anyone know how this lens compared to the converted 28-85mm f3.5-5.6 macro zoom ?
sounds to me like you are referring to the same lens as the OP.You could be thinking of the 24-85N?
-Jim
I understand you are talking about the CY 28-85 zoom.
Does anyone know how this lens compared to the converted 28-85mm f3.5-5.6 macro zoom ?
sounds to me like you are referring to the same lens as the OP.You could be thinking of the 24-85N?
-Jim
Feb 04, 2010 at 01:22 PM
p.1 #9Zeiss 28-85 on the way
ooops... I mean the converted N-mount 28-80mm f3.5-5.6 lens
Feb 04, 2010 at 04:02 PM
p.1 #10Zeiss 28-85 on the way
i think the 24-85 might be an interesting comparison. the 28-80 is not that super lens afaik
Feb 05, 2010 at 03:06 AM
p.1 #11Zeiss 28-85 on the way
I certainly enjoy usng my 28-85. Image quality is great. The others have covered the main downsides - heavy as a brick, 82mm filter size (=expensive), distortion at 28mm. Also at some point in its life that push pull action will start to suffer zoom creep and nobody repairs them these days.
Feb 05, 2010 at 03:40 AM
p.1 #13Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Oh, one more question... Will I need to file anything on the lens for use on a 1ds II?
Feb 05, 2010 at 09:49 PM
p.1 #14Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Jman13 wrote:
Oh, one more question... Will I need to file anything on the lens for use on a 1ds II?
Nope.
Oh, one more question... Will I need to file anything on the lens for use on a 1ds II?
Nope.
Feb 05, 2010 at 11:17 PM
p.1 #15Zeiss 28-85 on the way
I had a 28-85 that I really liked. Only reason I got rid of it was that I got a converted N 24-85 at a good price and I think it's even better plus it allowed me to sell my EF 24-105.
Feb 06, 2010 at 10:47 PM
p.1 #16Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Came today. Cosmetically, it looks pretty darn good, but there appears to be some odd blotches on the glass, that can only be seen at certain angles (they look almost like breath, but only when the light strikes them correctly). Shots look OK...relatively sharp (though not quite as sharp as I expected), but pretty low contrast, which isn't what I expect from contax glass. I'm ok with the blotches if they don't affect image quality, but I want to be sure, so I ordered an EX condition model of one today, and I'll test both. If they're the same or extremely close, I'll send back the EX. If the EX is better, I'll send back the BGN I have now. Either way, I like the range a lot, and the lens feels great on my 1Ds II. Haven't had much to shoot today, though, as it's pretty crappy weather. We'll see.
Feb 09, 2010 at 03:10 PM
p.1 #17Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Got to take some shots today, and optically it's quite schizophrenic. Very sharp in the center at all apertures at about 1m and beyond, and softening a little when shooting towards MFD at 28mm and 85mm, but extremely sharp in the center wide open from 35-70mm at any focus distance. I also am experiencing big contrast dropoff wideopen near MFD, but at more normal shooting distances, the Zeiss color and contrast really pop. The corners at 28mm are very disappointing...they're more or less mush wide open and don't get a whole lot better stopped down, but I'm sensing a bit of field curvature there. Is this normal? Anyway, I've got the EX rated one coming Friday, so I can compare the two and keep the better one. I will say that the 35-85mm range is very good at all apertures across the vast majority of the frame, and 35-50mm is just prime-like in sharpness. Beautiful rendering and great color and contrast. Quite nice bokeh too.
We had horrible weather, so I didn't get to take much more than horrible test shots, except for a few of my daughter, so I'm including one here of her wide open at 85mm. Certainly not her best moment (she's sick), and I only took a few snaps, so this isn't going to win any contests, but it shows what the lens is like, at least. I'll post more when I have a chance to really shoot with it.
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/chloe_vs.jpg
100% crop:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/chloe_vs_crop.jpg
The lens does look totally bad-ass on the 1Ds II, though:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/vs2885-1.jpg
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/vs2885-2.jpg
We had horrible weather, so I didn't get to take much more than horrible test shots, except for a few of my daughter, so I'm including one here of her wide open at 85mm. Certainly not her best moment (she's sick), and I only took a few snaps, so this isn't going to win any contests, but it shows what the lens is like, at least. I'll post more when I have a chance to really shoot with it.
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/chloe_vs.jpg
100% crop:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/chloe_vs_crop.jpg
The lens does look totally bad-ass on the 1Ds II, though:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/vs2885-1.jpg
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/vs2885-2.jpg
Feb 09, 2010 at 06:53 PM
p.1 #18Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Jman13 wrote:
Came today. Cosmetically, it looks pretty darn good, but there appears to be some odd blotches on the glass, that can only be seen at certain angles (they look almost like breath, but only when the light strikes them correctly). Shots look OK...relatively sharp (though not quite as sharp as I expected), but pretty low contrast, which isn't what I expect from contax glass. I'm ok with the blotches if they don't affect image quality, but I want to be sure, so I ordered an EX condition model of one today, and I'll test both. If they're the same or...Show more →
I had a lens that had the same issue (My first thought with mine was that it looked like breath on the lens), it turned out to be a very light case of fungus on the inside of the rear element (Had to remove it to clean it). I don't know about yours, but fungus is certainly a possibility, and that would account for the low contrast and ever so slight lack of sharpness.
At any rate, the fungus hadn't etched in the glass yet and after I removed the rear element and cleaned it, it was like new.
Good luck.
Came today. Cosmetically, it looks pretty darn good, but there appears to be some odd blotches on the glass, that can only be seen at certain angles (they look almost like breath, but only when the light strikes them correctly). Shots look OK...relatively sharp (though not quite as sharp as I expected), but pretty low contrast, which isn't what I expect from contax glass. I'm ok with the blotches if they don't affect image quality, but I want to be sure, so I ordered an EX condition model of one today, and I'll test both. If they're the same or...Show more →
I had a lens that had the same issue (My first thought with mine was that it looked like breath on the lens), it turned out to be a very light case of fungus on the inside of the rear element (Had to remove it to clean it). I don't know about yours, but fungus is certainly a possibility, and that would account for the low contrast and ever so slight lack of sharpness.
At any rate, the fungus hadn't etched in the glass yet and after I removed the rear element and cleaned it, it was like new.
Good luck.
Feb 09, 2010 at 07:55 PM
p.1 #19Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Thanks. I've had lenses with fungus before and this doesn't quite look like that, but it is a possibility.
Feb 09, 2010 at 07:58 PM
p.1 #20Zeiss 28-85 on the way
Another day, lots more observations.
1) I was too hasty in my judgement. With a lot more time to experiment with the lens, and learning its mechanics and such, I was nailing focus with extremely good accuracy today (about 95% on...of course my focus confirm adapter helps at the wide end), and the lens is quite sharp at all focal lengths. the corners at 28mm and f/3.3 aren't great, but by f/8, they're quite good, and the lens is SHARP. Very sharp. Great Zeiss color and contrast, and a really nice feel to the images. Still overcast today, so I still haven't seen what it can do in bright colorful light.
2) I canceled my order for the other lens...this one'll do just fine.
3) The lens vignettes quite a bit wide open at 28mm (and throughout the range, but especially at 28mm). Like, needs +83 correction in Lightroom to completely make it go away. However, I really like the look. Gives the shots a lot of character, and for the most part, I've left it uncorrected.
4) There is a lot of chromatic aberration at 28mm, even stopped down. (worse the further you get out). The good news? It is 100% correctable with a -18 correction on red/cyan in Lightroom.
5) I think I'm going to like this a lot.
Two quick shots at 85mm and f/4:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/frozen_thistle.jpg
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/frozen_dog.jpg
1) I was too hasty in my judgement. With a lot more time to experiment with the lens, and learning its mechanics and such, I was nailing focus with extremely good accuracy today (about 95% on...of course my focus confirm adapter helps at the wide end), and the lens is quite sharp at all focal lengths. the corners at 28mm and f/3.3 aren't great, but by f/8, they're quite good, and the lens is SHARP. Very sharp. Great Zeiss color and contrast, and a really nice feel to the images. Still overcast today, so I still haven't seen what it can do in bright colorful light.
2) I canceled my order for the other lens...this one'll do just fine.
3) The lens vignettes quite a bit wide open at 28mm (and throughout the range, but especially at 28mm). Like, needs +83 correction in Lightroom to completely make it go away. However, I really like the look. Gives the shots a lot of character, and for the most part, I've left it uncorrected.
4) There is a lot of chromatic aberration at 28mm, even stopped down. (worse the further you get out). The good news? It is 100% correctable with a -18 correction on red/cyan in Lightroom.
5) I think I'm going to like this a lot.
Two quick shots at 85mm and f/4:
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/frozen_thistle.jpg
http://www.jordansteele.com/forumlinks/frozen_dog.jpg
Feb 10, 2010 at 07:26 PM