In-Sync Publications

18 The new Zeiss lenses I tested, available in either ZE or ZF.2 Mounts, are the super-wide f/2.8 15mm, the f/2 25mm (a stop faster than the previous offering, the f/2.8 25mm, the f/1.4, offering one stop more light gathering power than the f/2 35mm, and the first 135mm lens they've offered, which is also f/2. The 15mm is a big lens and relatively heavy lens compared with the other Zeiss lenses - on a par, I'd say, with the 100mm Macro (f/2) and the 135mm, also f/2, and the f/1.4 35mm. But it's very wide, but of excellent performance both in sharpness, and freedom from the barrel - or worse, eyebrow, or wavy - distortion that lesser-priced wide angle lenses often suffer from. You tend to get what you pay for in lenses. If you want to render straight lines as straight lines, not curved or wavy, this Zeiss 15mm might just be the ticket. Even with the 1.6x crop factor of Canon's APS-C sensors on the 7D, Rebels, 60D and the super new 70D, the 15mm is still a respectably wide 24mm. OK, it can't take advantage of the superb, industry-beating auto-focus and auto-focus tracking of the Canon EOS 70D, but you purchase manual focus lenses like these Zeiss ZF and ZE series specifically to focus manually, right? In this, all Zeiss lenses excel. Designed for manual focus, the focus ring rotates a lot more than an auto-focus lens, making it vastly easier to pull focus. Again, your focus puller/camera op will thank you if you supply manual focus lenses, and they may well tell you that focus pulls are either out of the question, or at least very questionable (!) with auto-focus lenses, which often don't have hard stops at infinity or closest focusing distance, and the focus, even when set to 'manual' on the lens, operates through the focus motor, so isn't precise when it comes stopping and starting right on the mark. Me, I'd pick the ZF.2 and have Duclos Lenses de-click it; then I'd have superb smooth iris control (instead of the click stops at half stop intervals) as well as silky smooth manual focus, and if I'm using a Nikon mount camera - like my friend Jimmy Chatsworth's Red, I've got the best-handling lens for that too. The f/2 25mm is a bit bigger and heavier - and also a bit sharper - than the f'2.8 25mm, so it's a very nice lens indeed. If I were buying today, I'd pick this f/2. The f/1.4 35mm is a lot bigger and heavier than I expected compared with my f2/35mm, but it's a very sharp lens. I recall Shane Hurlbut , ASC, enthusing about this lens when it came out. But it sure makes a great fast set with the 50mm and 85mm f/1.4 lenses. The fast telephoto f /2 135mm is a great performer, and very sharp, but heavy, although well balanced on the camera. Avoid the handheld shakes with a camera support or shoulder mount rig from Red Rock Micro or CamCaddie. Referring to the original nine Zeiss lenses in ZF mounts, I'll sum up as quickly as I can: I'm approaching 2 hours over deadline, and we want this to get printed and actually get to you at NAB! The two Zeiss Makro lenses, the f/2 50mm and the f/2 100mm are both very sharp; I'd pick the 100mm if primarily doing macro work, since the longer focal length gives more working room to light something close to the front of the lens. The 50mm Makro is a better performer in terms of sharpness than the f/1.4 50mm, but, due to the macro lens design, breathes a bit more, so isn't so good for cinematic- looking focus pulls. If you don't intend doing these (for documentaries, for example) get the 50mm Macro lose a stop, and get a sharper lens at wider apertures. The f/3.5 18mm is said to be a tad less sharp than the f/2.8 21mm, which I agree with, but it's smaller, lighter and wider; the f/2.8 25mm is a great little lens, again said to be a bit sharper than the faster f/2 28mm, but I happen to prefer the 28mm, a focal length I've liked for 45 years. So there you have it; a short review of Zeiss ZE and ZF.2 lenses. Even though I'm extremely impressed with Canon's new 70D, and its ability to stay in focus with a moving subject, which is great for documentary style shooting, if you want the resulting footage to look its best on a 40 foot screen for a theatrical piece where the actors move to marks, I'd pick the Zeiss lenses any time. See the full range of the ZE and ZF.2 Zeiss booth at NAB, and again at Cine Gear Expo. If you're near the In-Sync booth (C11431) do stop by; I can show you some Zeiss ZF lenses, plus a Duclos de-clicked f/1.4 35mm lens. We don't believe in cut-and-paste PR release pseudo-reviews at In-Sync. We actually use the gear we write about, and write about it for fun, and to share our experiences, not for money. Hope you like this concept, and this article!

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