I Love Zeiss Distagon ZM 35/1.4

[TheGodParticle]

No, seriously.

What a lens.

 

[YYV_146]

It's a little too fat, that was my impression when I handled it. But I'd buy it in a heartbeat if I didn't already own the 35lux ASPH...

 

[TheGodParticle]

It's a little too fat, that was my impression when I handled it. But I'd buy it in a heartbeat if I didn't already own the 35lux ASPH...

True, its bigger than the 35Lux ASPH v1 and v2

True, its wider than these lenses

But I hafta say i'm very impressed with the performance and the lens isn't a monster

It balances decently on the M240, is slightly front heavy but doesn't tip the camera over.

I have the silver/chrome version and the build quality is excellent. Leica still get 5/5 whereas I'd give this one 4/5.

It sure looks large but doesn't weigh all that much

 

[Monochrom]

I´ve seen that lens and i wonder why is it so large! Is it retro-focus design form Dslr´s???

 

[sojournerphoto]

Distagon's are retrofocus, though I'm not sure this is a dslr lens. I thought it was Zeiss' new rf design, aimed at 'taking the crown'. I'd buy one, but they're not inexpensive.

 

[raid]

I love my vintage Distagon 35/1.4 SLR lens. I use it on a E-PL1.

 

[nlubis]

No, seriously.

What a lens.

Great to hear it. It's on my wish list.

 

[rscheffler]

Yeah, based on size you'd expect it to be really heavy, like the Voigtlander 35/1.2. But it's not that extreme.

 

[thesubtler]

Agreed - Love the Zeiss ZM 1.4/35mm

Agreed - Love the Zeiss ZM 1.4/35mm

Hi I'm new to the forum which I found while researching vintage Nikkor rangefinder lenses adapted to the Sony A7s camera. I found a lot of very informative images taken with the W-Nikkor 1.8/3.5cm, but decided not to get it after the Zeiss ZM Distagon 1.4/35mm lens arrived a few weeks ago. (I have a weird obsession with 35mm focal length). Consistent with other reports on the internet, the lens has a solid feel, focusing is smooth, and the 1/3 stop aperture ring is great. On the Sony A7x series cameras, I'm sure image sharpness is generally better with the Loxia 2/35mm lens, but stopped down to f/8 the new ZM is more than sharp enough, and for a modern lens the ZM has a lot of character. The weather in NYC has been wrought with one snow blizzard after another, and the attached photo is the only one I could make that had any reasonable visibility.

Gavin

 

[jschrader]

Distagon's are retrofocus, though I'm not sure this is a dslr lens. I thought it was Zeiss' new rf design, aimed at 'taking the crown'. I'd buy one, but they're not inexpensive.

No, it is not the DSLR lens. The rear lens protrudes some mm into the M body, giving less than maybe 25 mm for the mirror; definitively not a lens you might use on a DSLR.

I would not even know if it should by definition be a retrofocus lens, the main surface being within the third or so last lens of the system.

It is, however, not a Biogon design

 

[SDK]

If anything the 35mm/1.4 Distagon ZM owes a bit to the Leica Summilux ASPH family of lenses for its design, but it's supposedly a better corrected lens, at the cost of being bigger. Just got mine on Monday after more than 5 months of waiting. It's very good on my M9-P. I'm particularly impressed by its performance at minimum focus distance; it's no Makro Planar in terms of magnification, but is very capable of collecting detail. I'm going to keep it on the M9-P for a year to see what I can do with just it (though shooting other lenses on my D800E).

Early images from the 35mm/1.4 ZM here: https://flic.kr/s/aHsk8warPq

 

[warmduscher]

Here a picture with the Zeiss Ikon ZM and Ilford Delta developed with Ilfosol 3 with the lens.
With the Sony A7ll which I primarily use, the corners are sharp at f/8. On Film these Lense is at least 2 stops earlier corner sharp.

http://rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=101859&stc=1&d=1427623759

 

[Tom A]

My Distagon 35mm f1.4 just arrived this afternoon. Quick shot to compare sizes between the Nokton 35f1.2, The Distagon 35f1.4 and the Ultron 35f1.7 in M-mount.
Smaller than the 35f1.2 - but not by much, bigger than the M-Nokton 35f1.7. It does balance very well on a M camera though. The hood is actually quite small (though the box for the hood is huge!).
Loaded a ZM with EFKE 50 and shall proceed to shoot some rolls with it in the next day or so.

 

[Bille]

My Distagon 35mm f1.4 just arrived this afternoon. Quick shot to compare sizes between the Nokton 35f1.2, The Distagon 35f1.4 and the Ultron 35f1.7 in M-mount.

The new Ultron looks amazing btw. I don't care for the ZM.

 

[lrrp77]

Conincidentally, just saw this:

http://rangefinder.yodobashi.com/lens/carlzeiss/distagon35.html

 

[noimmunity]

could there be a chance that the new Ultron takes 46mm filters? Tom mentions that his pre-production sample is 46mm but says the production model could be 43mm. If it were 46mm, I'd probably trade my chrome 35/1.2 for it!

 

[MCTuomey]

It took me awhile to save for a lux asph 35 (non-FLE), and I'm very attached to its imaging and size, so won't be considering the new Zeiss. But I've seen web pics from the new ZM 35 that look wonderful. If I didn't have a fav 35, I'd sure consider the Zeiss.

 

[lawrence]

I may break down and go for the 1.2 Voit. Or Zeiss
If Miss Ultron doesn't get to the US soon
No longer too concerned about the size

I wasn't either till I actually got the Nokton f1.2 and started using it. Yes, it's a great lens but no, I didn't keep it.

 

[Tom A]

Sony 7 with the Distagon 35mm f1.4 at f1.4. Cherry tree outside my "smoking" balcony. These are the late blooming trees in our neighbourhood. Usually around mid April - but due to the warm spring and lack of winter - early this year.

 

[Tom A]

Zeiss ZM and Zeiss Biogon 35mm f1.4 at f1.4. Kind of a Bokeh test. Efke 50 iso, developed in Rodinal 1:100 for 40 min, stand development