ZM 28 users, would you contribute a word or two, please?

[nayanan]

Hi,

I'm a user of ZI camera and the ZM 50 lens. ZI is my first RF camera, and the ZM 50 is my only RF lens so far. Now I'm interested in two-lens line-up, and considering to get the ZM 28 lens for a 50-28 pair.

For a while, I was debating between the reportedly better performance of the ZM 25 vs. the built-in frameline advantage of 28mm. After trying out the 25mm FOV with the Bessa L and 25/4 combo for a while, now I'm pretty convinced I like 28mm focal length better anyway.

One thing I'd like to make sure before I go buy one is that its edge performance is high enough as other superb siblings in the ZM line up for general picture taking situations. I'm asking this because I don't know much about how to translate the MTF values into practical shooting situations.. 😕

Any comment or insight you share based on experience will be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
Han

 

[SDK]

The ZM 28mm/2.8 is very nice. It's very lightweight, compact and has excellent optical performance overall. It's got good contrast, resolution and color rendition. It does flare a bit more shooting into the light than the ZM 25mm/2.8, and you really should get the hood. It is remarkably sharp at infinity at f/5.6, making it a great landscape/cityscape lens, slightly better in this respect than the Leica 28mm/2 Summicron that I also have.

The ZM 28mm is well made and mine survived rolling out of a camera bag, falling 18" onto a sidewalk with only scratches on the barrel. The lens still functions perfectly optically and mechanically. Fortunately it landed rear lens cap first.

I've been using these lenses on M7 and Hexar RF bodies. Unfortunately I have scanned no prints to show yet.

 

[Palaeoboy]

"slightly better in this respect than the Leica 28mm/2 Summicron that I also have"

Do you find the light fall off with the Summicron to be quite great compared to the Biogon? I tried the Summicron but I found this to be a problem, especially for a lens of its purchase price. I hadnt see that greater falloff compared to any other 28mm lens I have tried.

 

[Mazurka]

Just go to Leica's and Zeiss Ikon's sites and download the pdfs with the light fall-off charts.

 

[Palaeoboy]

Thanks but I would rather have a users opinion.

 

[Nick R.]

Good, sharp lens. I haven't noticed a problem with light fall off at the edges. This was shot at f4, not cropped.

 

[Nick R.]

Here's a color shot:

 

[nayanan]

Thanks, SDK, for the assuring comment about the ZM 28!
Based on your comment, the lens sounds like one of the greatest 28mm lenses
available out there! Thanks for making the weak(?) minded strong.. 🙂

I believe what you say because I'd say pretty much the same thing about ZM 50 🙂
except that it wouldn't flare that easily.

Before, I had a chance to make side-by-side comparisons between the 50mm
lenses I own (ZM 50, Canon EF 50/1.4, Nikon 50/1.8 AI-S), and the ZM was just
head and shoulder above the others in many aspects including the flare department.
Compared to how this lens flares (no pun), the CV 25/4 lens I also got (another
one-body-one-lens combination of mine - no RF at this time though..) looks rather
pathetic in this regard... (This is a very good lens in other ways, though.)

Would I say that ZM 50 is one of the greatest 50mm lenses one can get?
As far as I know, I certainly would without any hesitation!
And now I'm glad it has its excellent 28mm sibling.. 😉

BTW, I'm glad your lens was OK after the mishap.

Nick, thanks for your comment and the pictures in particular. Both're nice pictures!

Regards,

 

[SDK]

"slightly better in this respect than the Leica 28mm/2 Summicron that I also have"

Do you find the light fall off with the Summicron to be quite great compared to the Biogon? I tried the Summicron but I found this to be a problem, especially for a lens of its purchase price. I hadnt see that greater falloff compared to any other 28mm lens I have tried.

Well Paleoboy, I'd say the two 28mm lenses are very similar in light fall off. I don't find it too objectionable in either lens, since I mainly shoot color negative film. I deliberately overexpose 1 stop with 28mm's, so this compresses the tonal range a bit. And then when I do my printing, the light fall off of the enlarging lens usually corrects the light fall off, except with really contrasty films shot on really clear days. In negative printing enlarging lens fall off lightens the corners slightly. Sometimes I have to dodge the corners a bit, but rarely with this lens. The 21mm and 25mm Biogon ZMs are much more likely to produce negatives that need a bit of dodging, even with 1.6-2 stops overexposure.

I expect both the 28mm Biogon and Summicron lenses would present more of a vignetting problem with slide film, where light fall off would be exaggerated and the enlarging process would add to the taking lens corner fall off. In Digital scans you probably could shoot a white card to get a compensation level adjustment mask for Photoshop.

None of the Biogons, or the 28mm Summicron, are as bad as the 21mm/3.4 Leica Super Angulon M is in vignetting, because the 21mm SA is a non-retrofocal design. I'm going to sell that lens soon, the Zeiss 21mm is better in almost every way (except for minor distortion that you really have to look for, and size, the 21mm SA is tiny, the ZM 21mm is a bit long).