ZM 85f2 or not?

fuwen

fuwen

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I have been given a very good offer for a ZM 85/2. But as u know even a very good offer for this lens it is still not cheap.

I am not a 85mm shooter, even for SLR I somehow prefer 100/2.8 macro and 135 Sonnar/Planar. I am now happy with the R4M but with this lens it will mean I need to have a 2 bodies set up or leave with the external finders again. I dun shoot that much now adays for a 2-body set up.

What I worry is the ZM85/2 will become a white elephant (which I have already a lot : D). But then the MTF of this lens at f4 the 40 cycle/mm curve is flat at 80% is the highest in Zeiss's 85mm range so this lens must have very high resolution and that's very tempting ........
 
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I will have one soon on loan to me for 2 weeks. If I get some good photos with it I will post them in the Gallery. I've been dying to get my hands on this for so long...
 
seems silly to buy something expensive for occasional use...unless your budget is flush and it wont hurt and you'd just like to own it.
 
fuwen said:
I have been given a very good offer for a ZM 85/2. But as u know even a very good offer for this lens it is still not cheap.

I am not a 85mm shooter, even for SLR I somehow prefer 100/2.8 macro and 135 Sonnar/Planar. I am now happy with the R4M but with this lens it will mean I need to have a 2 bodies set up or leave with the external finders again. I dun shoot that much now adays for a 2-body set up.

What I worry is the ZM85/2 will become a white elephant (which I have already a lot : D). But then the MTF of this lens at f4 the 40 cycle/mm curve is flat at 80% is the highest in Zeiss's 85mm range so this lens must have very high resolution and that's very tempting ........
Click to expand...

Tempting, indeed!

Three considerations:
It is a beautiful lens, but not excatly light and small.
You will have to buy a second body. Great excuse to finally get a ZI :D
You can probably sell it and perhaps the body for most of what you will pay, but what a PITA.

Conclusion:
No harm in buying it, trying it, and selling it.
You like Zeiss lenses very very much, so you will inveitably be insatiably curious about this master lens. Now is your chance. Given your long term interest in Zeiss I think you should go for it.
 
i owned one of these for several months and it was one of my all time favorites. the results were beyond reproach, and the form factor actually felt smaller than a 90mm summicron (latest version). it was a bit wider, but more squat. in use it is extremely ergonomic. the only reason i sold it was due to the cost versus how much time it saw on my body. i just don't shoot telephotos that often. if i were independently wealthy i would most certainly buy one again.

as jon said, no harm in buying it if you are getting a good deal and could sell it down the road if necessary.

here are a few samples:

2885613303_fdde4a233e_o.jpg


2870899453_983c2bc131_o.jpg


2871727910_d7f8972ecf_o.jpg
 
noimmunity said:
Tempting, indeed!

Three considerations:
It is a beautiful lens, but not excatly light and small.
You will have to buy a second body. Great excuse to finally get a ZI :D
You can probably sell it and perhaps the body for most of what you will pay, but what a PITA.

Conclusion:
No harm in buying it, trying it, and selling it.
You like Zeiss lenses very very much, so you will inveitably be insatiably curious about this master lens. Now is your chance. Given your long term interest in Zeiss I think you should go for it.
Click to expand...

Hey, friend, what u have written really is not doing anything good to me ............ LOL!
 
fuwen,

If you want to play with the lens first before buying, come pick it up from me for a spin.

Cheers,
 
The 85mm focal length is one of my favourites. Used to own an 85mm f1.4 Planar many moons ago when I was a Contax SLR user. The 85mm f2 ZM is a beautiful lens and not really that big (for an f2). :)

I got mine "cheap" but it still hurt, but the quality shines through, and it will last for ever. The old saying that "the quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten" really does apply.

However if you are not a fan of the 85mm focal length then don't buy it, no matter how good it is. Otherwise it is just money sitting unused in your camera bag.
 
I quite like the handling of this lens. It's does not feel as big as it looks.


Shot at f/2.8


Shot at f/2.0

Cheers,
 
Benny, your 2nd shot at f2 is very convincing.

I should be getting mine in a week or two. Joe's way of using equipment is more reasonable but u know, I am just an ordinary soul that very often buy things just because I think I want it somehow : D, well, I am human afterall ........

Maybe it's time for me to become a 85mm fan. The Rollei 35RF is on standby now. Think the 80mm frame line will be blocked by only a little bit .......
 
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Congratulations!
What better way to become an 85 fan than through this lens?
I'm really looking forward to seeing what you do with it, and to hear your opinions on how it compares to other Zeiss lenses.
 
Got the lens today. Not that bulky to my standard, very nice looking lens. Floating element seems to be the rear element. With a B+W filter and a tele Heliopan metal hood the blockage of the 80mm frame line in my Rollei 35RF is minimal, so lucky no need to get a Zeiss Ikon : D

Time to shoot 85mm ............
 
one thing you need to be careful of is the rangefinder base-length on the rollei. you will have a hard time focussing the 85mm close up and wide open.
 
high resolution is not much use of you are not shooting images with it! Look for lenses in FLs you like and ignore the ones in FLs you dont. I personally do not like lenses over 50mm on 35mm RF and although I have a 90 Elmarit-M for when I absolutely must, I do not get excited about 75 APOs, 90 APOs etc as I know they would be paperweights for me.
 
"I do not get excited about 75 APOs, 90 APOs etc as I know they would be paperweights for me."

Any lens can be a paper weight if unused. Sometimes I leave the house with just the 90AA on my M7. I love these lenses but the trick is you must use them.
 
fuwen said:
I am now happy with the R4M but with this lens it will mean I need to have a 2 bodies set up or leave with the external finders again.
Click to expand...
Want to kindly remind you that the R4m with an external finder (if that is what you mean) will not be able to reliably focus the 85@2 (or even 5.6 for that matter).

But maybe you mean you will buy another body and use external; finders on the WA side....

In any case: good luck with your decision....
 
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