Anden wrote:
I am looking for a 21-24 mm lens and I don´t know which to choose.
I only have the Zeiss ZF 25mm and the Canon TS-E 24 II , but I'd clearly say it depends on what you will use it for: If architechture is amongst your frequently shot subjects, then get the TS-E by all means.
The difference in sharpness will be minor, the TS-E is a very sharp lens, specially when not shifted. But I find it a real pain to correct in software each and every pic you make of a building. In general I do not like converging lines anymore, I had the old 24 TS-E and at that time it was almost my most used lens. I recently bought the TS-E II (the new version) but the weather has been too bad to shoot much since.
I once have found a comparision between the old Zeiss Contax 21mm Distagon (perspective corrected in software) and the old TS-E. Although the old TS-E was not the sharpest lens, in the end, the correction made that both resulting files had about the same quality, the Canon even having a slight edge.
Bottom of the line: I really love and use a lot the manual Zeiss lenses (ZF in my case), but for architecture, the TS-Es are the ones to get.
philber wrote:
Ask member "bobu", I think he has both T/S, the ZE and 24L MkII.
Hi Philber,
I know I have to many wide angle lenses, but not all ;-).
I don't have the 24L and will probably never buy it.
Here are some of my tests with the 21ZE and the 24TSE II:
the zeiss 21 is really sharp and has nice color and contrast but the distortion kills it for me. Canon really made a big leap foreward with their new wide-angle lenses. i am very happy with my 24TS-Emk2 and i am very picky about lenses.
Different filter, but I think the 21 is simply higher resolution looking at the stamen of those flowers, even though the 24 is the longer lens here. My strong hunch is that the 21 is better for resolution, microcontrast, sharpness and the like, but that the 24 ts-e II is really top of the line for tilt-shift versatility. If you want versatility, the Canon is it. If you want probably the best straight forward photo you can get in a superwide-wide angle lens, the 21 is it. The 24 has to be closer to a medium format size lens to get an image circle big enough to do the shifting, etc, and medium format lenses simply are not as high a resolution as 35mm (given a 35mm FF sensor). Now that doesn't necessarily have to be true, but the expense to make such a large lens equal to the 21 I think would be cost prohibitive. That said, I think the 24 is a superlative compromise, and you won't go wrong picking it, from the photos I've seen. The 21 definitely has that 3D Zeiss thing going for it, though.
If you don't plan on doing a lot of architecture (or panos), I'd say the 21 is a must have in this focal length for an Alt man (looking to spend that much money, of course).
These are more comparable images. Same time, same light, no filter, same position, same WB (the Zeiss color is much warmer!), same LR settings, but different f-stops.
Both extremely sharp, considering just how small those crops are. A little hard to compare since the 24 is slightly longer in focal length, but 24 looks very good there.
As I said - and the samples show that - resolution is hardly a reason to prefer one or the other, they are simply comparable, specially in print it will be virtually impossible to see a difference.
However I always find the colours that the Zeiss deliver - like Bobu says - more pleasing and also more natural that Canon or Nikon lenses. The Canons tend to look washed out, the Zeiss are always kind of "vibrant".
the zoom was the only other 24mm lens I had about at the time since I sold my 17-40, which was markedly worse than all 3 of these lenses along the edges.
I found the TSE to be sharper than I had expected, and quite close to the legendary Zeiss. The contrast for the TSE (tested with no shift/tilt) was a bit less as was extreme corner sharpness especially at widest apertures. Of course the TSE cannot do f2.8 either.
This pics show the Canon to be as sharp as all other reports suggest.
However, it fails in the one area almost evey Canon lens fails:
It has very little plasticity. (3D effect.) The Zeiss just eats it alive, in this regard. The more experienced I've gotten with alt glass, the more this has become important to me. IMO, it is a major factor to consider.
I was once considering one of the new T/S lenses. Not any longer.
With a little luck (and maybe some prodding) DxO will create a module for Optics Pro, that will completely fix the distortion in the new ZE21. That would be heaven.
It's also a pretty good bet that Zeiss will eventually release PC (tilt shift) lenses for EOS.
They already have the design, so it's not a big stretch.
-Might be worth waiting for, though the price will certainly require a deep breath. (and deep pockets)
Both are great lenses but I would go with the 24 TS-E mk2 because of the extra versatility with T/S for composition and the ease of stitching multiple shots if you want. It is also better for architecture shots not to have the mustache distortion of the 21. I really love my TS-E 17. Being able to control the ratios of sky vs. foreground and the ability to tilt to get better DOF foreground to background is greater to me than the extra microcontrast, speed, and slightly better color of the ZE 21. Plus you already have the Oly 18, so I would think focal length wise, the 24 would be less overlapping than the 21.Good luck with your decision!
Cableaddict wrote:
It's also a pretty good bet that Zeiss will eventually release PC (tilt shift) lenses for EOS.
They already have the design, so it's not a big stretch.
-Might be worth waiting for, though the price will certainly require a deep breath. (and deep pockets)
Hartlblei works with Zeiss glass to produce TS lenses.
They are not as wide as Canon/Nikon, right?
Their new ones are prohibitively expensive.
The only PC lens I could see Zeiss releasing is an updated contax PC 35 shift-only lens.
Would be nice to see that one happen!
wayne seltzer wrote:
Hartlblei works with Zeiss glass to produce TS lenses. They are unchipped. They are not as wide as Canon/Nikon, right? Yes 40-80 and 120
Otherwise the lenses appear close (except the colour), but just look at the water! The word stunning is use too often, but the Zeiss rendering of the water is truly stunning compared to the Canon. Among all the things I love with the 21, the water rendering just might be the foremost.