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OT Zeiss Ikon

Well, I was talking about 35mm primes. Philip believed we ought to talk about Contax In Contax site,so I named the 35mm lenses of Contax. No doubt N17-35 is the best wide angled Zoom in 35 mm photography, but I doubt if it will beat the best primes,to me at the moment is ZM 35 2. I am just not happy with zooms,no matter even if it is the best zoom.
Forgive me of talking about the MTF again,I just can't buy all of them in order to test them. The MTF of ZM35 2 is a lot better than N17-35 at 35.
Despite the fact that most ZM lenses are made in Japan,some of them are the best lenses in 35 mm photography.35 2.8,25 2.8 have the best MTF I have ever seen,one of them 35 2 is already tested by me and it is difficult for me to find a better one. I believe it is the same for 25.I will scan some photos and show up the result later.
 
Oh the debate on mtf charts again!!

It's true that primes on the whole are better than zooms, but people get too hung up on it. If your shot can only be framed at 31mm using the 17-35/24-85 et al, then you are losing your mtf advantage of your 28mm prime as you will have to crop and enlarge it to get the same view. With your 35mm prime you lose altogether as you can't do it at all.
I feel that on this and other forums there are people who are more interesed in collecting the gear and 'talking the talk' than taking photos (no matter what other people feel about them) and 'walking the walk'.
The reality is STOP getting hung up on facts and figures and use the stuff instead.

Sorry if I offend anyone with these comments.

Paul
 
No offense taken Paul. At least not by me. However, don't assume that if we talk gear, we don't shoot. I doubt you, or anyone else here, shoots more photographs than I do. I think your argument about field of view in relation to zooms verses primes is just as technically oriented to MTF chart as Chi's is.
I do agree that more focus should be on using the gear and offering opinions based on actual results.

Quality and characteristics of individual lenses manifests itself in a number of ways, and contributes to the overall look of an image. The best shooters I know DO discuss these characteristics, but usually with a print in hand, not a MFT chart.

There are reasons to prefer primes that go well beyond any sharpness tests. Less or no distortion, faster max aperture, Bokeh characteristics, and in the case of Zeiss or Leica lenses, MIcro-Contrast... especially it's effect on out of focus areas.... to name a few.

So while Chi may love his ZM 35/2 backed up with a MTF tests, I may hate the way it renders OOF areas at max aperture. Which I wouldn't know until I see it applied in a variety of circumstances, and manifested in 11X14 prints at viewing distances.

Irakly and I were just discussing some lens characteristics the other day. I recently secured a C645 55/3.5 and did some test shots. Irakly pointed out the unique way this lens renders almost perfect OOF Bokeh in the FOREGROUND rather than just in the background. He was right. BTW, Irakly also shoots a lot, and I mean A LOT.

Here's a shot from a portrait session done yesterday (yes, even on Sunday) with Contax 645 where I used the 55/3.5 and 140/2.8 as well as a Hasselblad 110/2 via a MAM-1 adapter... This one was with the 55/3.5 @ f/3.5 using available light ... I zoomed with my feet ; -) The baby's name is Ellie ...

355080.jpg
 
Hi Marc,

I didn't mean any offense to you. I have seen a lot of yours, and Irakly's work and admire it greatly. You appear to concentrate more on shooting and looking at what the equipment produces than reading the tech specs.
And what a lovely pic of lovely Ellie.

Respect!

Paul
 
Let go back to the comparison of the Zeiss Ikon lenses with our lovely G system. To me, the most amazing lens is Planar G45 2. It produces razor sharp images at f4 even better than Summicron 50 2. Now, here comes another Planar 50 2 of Zeiss Ikon. Let's see some photos.

355110.jpg


This photo was taken with my Planar 45 2 at f2. It is a few of those well focused. Even on my G2 getting subject focused at f2 is not easy. I use SAF, press to focus with bracket on the face of my subject followed by shutter release. The in focus area is slightly soft with average colour contrast. I crop the photo in the way that the bokeh could be assessed more easily.
 
Here is another photo from my G2 with 45 at f2. The subject of this photo is not as sharp as the previous one. The background of this photo give a good chance to assess the bokeh.

355113.jpg
 
The third one comes from the ZM Planar 50 2 loaded on my MP .85. The f no. is also f2. Most of the images produced in this way are in focus. Although I am a Zeiss fan more than Leica, my M is a lot more consistent in producing pictures in focus, particularly at f2.

355116.jpg
 
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