Anything Zeiss....


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carl zeiss 50mm

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Zeiss ZF 18/3.5 @ F5.6

First time doing portrait on this zeiss wide angle.
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Asking for opinions. I have a 21mm ZF.2 f2,8 and I love it. Now wondering if I should buy the 50mm F1.4 ZF.2 when I already have Nikkor 50mm f1.4. It is the exact same focal length and speed, still worth spending money on a duplicate just because it is Zeiss? Is the optics for this one really good?
 

Asking for opinions. I have a 21mm ZF.2 f2,8 and I love it. Now wondering if I should buy the 50mm F1.4 ZF.2 when I already have Nikkor 50mm f1.4. It is the exact same focal length and speed, still worth spending money on a duplicate just because it is Zeiss? Is the optics for this one really good?

if u dun mind doing manual focusing. why not? but ask yourself if its necessary.
 



12 Apostles

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Shot during my last Melbourne trip.

Taken with my CZ 21mm f2.8 with a LEE big stopper (sun was setting then), shot in color, converted to b/w and edited in Lightroom
 


Sunset @ Philip Island

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Shot during my last Melbourne trip.

Taken with my CZ 21mm f2.8 with a LEE GND 0.9 soft
 


Autumn Tree

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Shot during my last Melbourne trip.

Taken with my CZ 21mm f2.8
 

sinned79 said:
if u dun mind doing manual focusing. why not? but ask yourself if its necessary.

Am wondering if the image quality will be a big improvement? If not much improvement then won't buy, if yes then can think about it and use both depending on whether AF is critical.
 

atvinyl said:
Am wondering if the image quality will be a big improvement? If not much improvement then won't buy, if yes then can think about it and use both depending on whether AF is critical.

no idea cos i am a canon user.
 

Asking for opinions. I have a 21mm ZF.2 f2,8 and I love it. Now wondering if I should buy the 50mm F1.4 ZF.2 when I already have Nikkor 50mm f1.4. It is the exact same focal length and speed, still worth spending money on a duplicate just because it is Zeiss? Is the optics for this one really good?

OK, answering my own question. I went out to rent the Zeiss 50mm f/1,4 ZF for a day and shot it side-by-side with my Nikkor AF 50mm f/1.4G. Not as straightforward as I thought. Wide open, I struggled to decide which is sharper but the Nikkor definitely has a softer and more pleasing bokeh. I think Zeiss has better contrast.

At f/8, the Zeiss is sharper. Colour renditions and contrast are however quite closely matched. Here are two 100% crops. Not sure if you can tell from JPEG images:

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Zeiss 50 f/1,4 ZF shot at 1/800s, f/8 and ISO 400.

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Nikkor AF 50mm f/1.4G shot at 1/500s, f/8 and ISO 400 (Exposure adjusted PP to match the Zeiss)



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Original Zeiss image uncropped


Now I am thinking between Zeiss 50 f1,4 Plannar and Zeiss 50 f/2 Makro Plannar. People seem to prefer the Makro Plannar.
 

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Do you shoot up close frequently? If yes, the 1.4 is not that ideal.
 

tommyx said:
Do you shoot up close frequently? If yes, the 1.4 is not that ideal.
That's true, thanks.. Not frequently but always nice to be able to. Choice tilting further towards the f/2 Makro Plannar :) of coz the latter is a lot more expensive though
 

Did not win in the category, but the photo was selected for display in London during the award ceremony. Here is the link, Sony World Photography Awards 2013 - Open Competition - World Photography Organisation

N.S. Ng

Congrats again!

That's true, thanks.. Not frequently but always nice to be able to. Choice tilting further towards the f/2 Makro Plannar :) of coz the latter is a lot more expensive though

The long focusing throw of the MP may not be everyone's cup of tea. I personally do not like such lenses. Really depends on which aspect of the lens is impt to you.


Testing shots of Zeiss 50/1.4 on Sigma SD15. Though of a different FL on APS-C, the bokeh looks smoother and softer than when used on Canon. There are some LoCA for my camera wide open. So maybe if you have a Nikon D800E, it may give a different look than when using cameras with AA. Give it a try.
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ManWearPants said:
Congrats again!

The long focusing throw of the MP may not be everyone's cup of tea. I personally do not like such lenses.

Testing shots of Zeiss 50/1.4 on Sigma SD15. Though of a different FL, the bokeh does not look so bad.

Thanks. May I ask what is the disadvantage of a long focusing throw?
 

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