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Zeiss has a new 35mm 1.4 ZM


gberger

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Zeiss posted a comparison of their three 35mm ZM lenses on their twitter feed:

 

 

photo credit: official zeiss twitter feed

 

Leica can produces a 35/1.4 lens in the size of Zeiss's 35/2.0. Zeiss shows the dimensions of 35/0.95 to us.

 

D3S_5849-1200.jpg

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Zeiss posted a comparison of their three 35mm ZM lenses on their twitter feed

 

Not small, but not too big. Compared to the FE Distagon 35/1.4 that was launched for the Sony Alpha E-mount system this is small compared. And the performance is stunning according to Lloyd Chambers.

 

I'm not getting one however. The size and capabilties of the 35 FLE is the perfect combination... Although if I didn't already own it, I would probably have purchased this instead if I was buying new - considering the cost and performance difference.

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Taller than a Summicron 90 though...

 

Agreed, it is not compact. I guess one needs to hold camera and lens to arrive at a firm opinion.

 

We know that Leica buyers are very loyal, but I would be very surprised if this lens will not sell in high numbers. The "reviews" we have seen so far are very promising indeed and it only costs about $ 300 more than a 35mm Summarit. and unless you are looking for the most compact solution solution available the choice seems to be a no brainer.

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I don't think this lens will be too big- or block too much. I use the CV 35 1.2 lens (V2) and whilst it is large it works well ergonomically on the M240 and isn't too big. It does block out a fair corner of the finder but after a while you (I) don't even notice this. At the price of this new Zeiss glass I think I will be sticking to my CV f1.2 lens. To my mind it is an interesting lens wide open (noctilike)- and way better value than Zeiss (exceptional value really for Leica M mount lenses).

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I've always found Zeiss lenses too bulky, reason why i did not choose them for my Ms and (d)SLRs in spite of their high quality but there are exceptions like my favorite ZM 50/1.5 and 35/2.8. The new ZM 35/1.4 looks like a monster by comparison and will block the M's viewfinder a lot most probably. Now one can use EVFs with the M240 and mirrorless cameras of course. But for classical RF users, smaller lenses like Leica 35/1.4 pre-asph & asph or CV 35/1.4 look more convenient. As an happy owner of the latter lenses i won't even think to try the new Zeiss but it is indeed a matter of tastes as usual.

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My Noctilux f1 blocks out more but after a while I don't even notice unless I actively think about it. By the looks of this Zeiss it will block less than the VC f1.2 which is less than the Noct. I tell you don't worry about blockage; it's a well kept secret amongst us pros: Not much ever happens in the bottom left hand corner of good photos anyway:D

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My Noctilux f1 blocks out more but after a while I don't even notice unless I actively think about it. By the looks of this Zeiss it will block less than the VC f1.2 which is less than the Noct. I tell you don't worry about blockage; it's a well kept secret amongst us pros: Not much ever happens in the bottom left hand corner of good photos anyway:D

Blockage will affect the bottom right corner of your pics i'm afraid but nothing happens there either anyway :D. The new Zeiss will block your 35mm framelines significantly more than your Noctilux does on 50mm ones i suspect, but i may be wrong.

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How can this be so small compared to C-biogon (which is insanely small)?

And 380g is crazy light.

 

I wait more test shots, if it's close enough to ZF.2 35mm 1.4 character, then i will buy one for sure.

 

IMHO, 90mm Apo-Summicron asph is crazy small lens. Funny i always thought it's a big lens

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According to Lloyd Chambers the Distagon 35/1.4 even outperforms the APO-Summicron 5/2 in certain shooting conditions. At 1/3 the price, and one f-stop faster.

 

Seems like Zeiss is doing a great job with optics nowadays. Their Sony FE (35 and 55) lenses are superb, their Otus lenses are stellar, and this lens is also superb. And all of them are much more affordable than comparable Leica glass. Hmm.

 

Conclusions

The outstanding control and superb flare control delivers deep rich dark tones and pure highlights free of any flares (comment based on much more than this scene). To put this into proper perspective, the 35/1.4 Distagon is less than 1/3 the price, a stop slower, and yet is light years ahead of what Leica did with their flagship lens which suffered from damage even under ordinary shooting conditions (improved in revised version, but still not Zeiss grade).

The linked flagship lens points to the APO-Summicron 50/2. "a stop slower" is probably a typo, and should be "a stop faster" :)
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[...] 90mm Apo-Summicron asph is crazy small lens [...]

The Summicron 90/2 apo (78mm) is the tallest current Leica M lens aside from the Apo-Telyt 135/3.4. The discontinued Summilux 75/1.4 is a bit taller (80mm). With a length of 46mm w/o hood, the Summilux 35/1.4 FLE looks like a dwarf by comparison but is still bulkier than the Summilux 35/1.4 pre-asph (38mm) and the CV Nokton 35/1.4 (29mm). FWIW.

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