Updated Zeiss ZF Page with ZF Bokeh

Thanks for posting the images - I think having the actual images is incredibly helpful for people to make their own decisions, instead of relying on a conflicting array of judgement calls.
 
I'm just not a fan of that ZF bokeh. I prefer those lenses' Nikon counterparts in that respect. But, they are sharp as razors.
 
Almost makes me want to go out and buy a Nikon F body. If I could afford it, I would.
 
A Nikon FG goes for like, $50 last I checked. A FM2N is pretty cheap these days too!
 
Its not the body that would set me back, its these darned ZF lenses!
 
The 50mm Nikkors, with the possible exception of the f/2 lens, are notorious for their bad background-bokeh. I can't imagine they can do any better than the ZF under identical conditions, i.e. wide open, focused at the same distance, with the same background at the same brightness.

Lenses with good reputation in this respect, like the C/Y 50/1.4 Planar and the pre-ASPH 35/2 Summicron-M, likewise give ugly bokeh when shot wide-open.

Moreover, the optical construction of the ZF lens doesn't look different from the C/Y version, except in the shape of some elements' rims where they are in contact with the barrel:

zf-50top.jpg
a-planar50mmf1.4.gif
 
Last edited:
The 58mm filter size makes no sense at all. Why not use 52mm (shared by many MF Nikkors and Yashica lenses) or 55mm (common within the C/Y Zeiss range)?
 
Well, I'm not sure THOSE pics help me much in regards to judging bokeh and yeah, bokeh isn't the be-all/end-all. But yes, it's really sharp, colour and contrast are nice.

But "Saint Starbucks"? Puh-leeeze! That is SO 20th century. Currently I'm experimenting with Tanzanian Peaberry, and recently had some nice Peruvian organic.
 
Almost makes me want to go out and buy a Nikon F body. If I could afford it, I would."

Hmmm, I guess bokeh is very subjective because the bokeh looks really awfull to me. People complain about the Voigtander 40mm yet I have never seen it produce background bokeh like that. I expected the exact oposite to these results from this new ZF lens.
 
It seems pretty hard to get razor sharpness across the field as well as smooth bokeh. The asph Leica lenses are kind of the benchmark for sharpness, but compared to the older lenses, they are not nearly as nice wrt bokeh. At least for the wide/normal lenses - longer lenses seem to be easier to design for both sharpness and smooth bokeh.

The nokton 35/1.2 seems to be the exception since I think it has pretty smooth as well as sharp (but apparently not as sharp as the ASPH 35 lux). On the other hand, it is a big honker of a lens.
 
I don't know -- $500 is a lot for an SLR 50. I am sure it's a great lens, however.

I was pleasantly surprised to see in Stephen's writeup that Zeiss is offering these in M39 mount as well. I had thought they were solely Nikon.
 
It's nice to see some pics of Chris ;) I'll have to tell him about how much I love his t-shirt! :D

Those ZF lenses are looking so beautiful on the classic Nikon bodies, it's wonderful...
 
KoNickon said:
I was pleasantly surprised to see in Stephen's writeup that Zeiss is offering these in M39 mount as well. I had thought they were solely Nikon.
Click to expand...


That's M42 for which adapters are available for most lens mounts. There is no market for an M39 SLR lens.
 
Stephen,
Thank you very much for posting the images. Could you also share with us what type of body you used taking those samples? My guess is it was DX format sensor, like D2X... but I'd like to know it for sure.
Eduard.
 
The boke ain't great with the 50mm, but let's get pass that. I'm really looking forward to Distagons between 18mm - 25mm for architectural work that doesn't have the dreaded 'moustache' distortions so common to retrofocus WA lenses of these focal length.

Nikkor primes from 14mm - 20mm invariably display this distortion currently, as does the old 18mm & 21mm CY mount Distagons, I hope CZ can finally improve upon this, given the clean slate with the ZF series.

Kev
 
sychan said:
It seems pretty hard to get razor sharpness across the field as well as smooth bokeh.
Click to expand...

The Contax 100/2 Planar is one lens that is really really sharp even wide open (don't shoot portraits with it stopped down, you will be shot instead), and yet has the smoothest bokeh to me, ever. Now only if I can put this thing on a rangefinder....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom