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Which Zeiss lenses are new developments?
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 6:53 am    Post subject: Which Zeiss lenses are new developments? Reply with quote
Just out of curiosity:
Does anybody know which of the Zeiss DSLR lenses are new developments?
Some are old designs, like the Gauss 50 and 85, or the 28/2, which was a co-development with Pentax in the 70s.
It is not my intention to argue that these are bad, far from it, I just want to know which lenses are new calculations.


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 7:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I'm not really into Zeiss, but I know that the new Z series 28/2 is NOT the same lens as the classic 28/2 Distagon 'Hollywood' and the SMC Pentax 28/2. The Distagon 'Hollywood' has 9 elements in 8 groups while the new Z series Distagon has 10 elements in 8 groups.

"Das moderne Distagon T* 2/28 wurde durch aktuelle, leistungsfähigere und umweltfreundlichere Glassorten optimiert und nutzt „Floating Elements“, um die hohe Abbildungsleistung über den gesamten Entfernungsbereich zu gewährleisten. "

The original 28/2:



The new 28/2:



PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 7:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Well, ok, I would call it "slightly optimized" then. Wink


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 8:03 am    Post subject: Re: Which Zeiss lenses are new developments? Reply with quote
blende8 wrote:
I just want to know which lenses are new calculations.


Edit: Not completely new, but modifications of old Contarex designs with floating elements:
Distagon 35/2
Makro-Planar 50/2

Almost completely new:
Distagon 25/2.8 (only slight similarity to the old design and a 25/2.0 is rumoured to be coming out)
Distagon 35/1.4 (hardly similar to the old design, much bigger and heavier)

Significant modification:
Distagon 18/4 was also significantly changed (10/9 changed to 13/11).
Makro-Planar 100/2 (changed from 6/5 to 9/8)

Pretty much untouched:
Distagon 21/2.8 (one of the last elements was split up in the Z version)
Planar 50/1.4
Planar 85/1.4

Last edited by AhamB on Wed Sep 08, 2010 1:07 pm; edited 2 times in total


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:24 am    Post subject: Re: Which Zeiss lenses are new developments? Reply with quote
AhamB wrote:

Completely new are:
Distagon 35/2
Makro-Planar 50/2


Well, not completely. Both lenses were highlights in the Contarex catalogue. Although the Contarex Planar 2/50 did not close focus.


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Thank you!
And what about the 21mm?


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
blende8 wrote:
Well, ok, I would call it "slightly optimized" then. Wink


I don't know if the new Distagon 28/2 still retains the character of the original Glatzel design. Anyone?


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Spotmatic wrote:
blende8 wrote:
Well, ok, I would call it "slightly optimized" then. Wink


I don't know if the new Distagon 28/2 still retains the character of the original Glatzel design. Anyone?


There was a comparison online and the ZF fared a bit better in the corners wide open. But that was about strictly performance. About the character, I don't know, but I doubt. Glatzel's designs were unique, in the good (much) and in the bad (little).
By the way, optical design changes are not the only thing that changed. Optical glass certainly has changed, too (for some models forcedly, like the Distagon 21, which used components that are not legal anymore), and I suspect that this may have a higher influence on the final results than the design itself.


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 11:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
blende8 wrote:
Thank you!
And what about the 21mm?


Oops, forgot about that one. It's almost identical to the Contax, just one of the elements in the rear group was split up (increased from 15 to 16 elements).

Orio wrote:
AhamB wrote:

Completely new are:
Distagon 35/2
Makro-Planar 50/2


Well, not completely. Both lenses were highlights in the Contarex catalogue. Although the Contarex Planar 2/50 did not close focus.


The Contarex lenses are not in the historical datasheets. Are their designs in any way similar to the new Z* designs? Do you/anyone know where to find the optical array diagrams from Contarex lenses?


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 12:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
AhamB wrote:

The Contarex lenses are not in the historical datasheets. Are their designs in any way similar to the new Z* designs?


With regards to the Distagon, yes.
The similarity of the Z Distagon 2/35 with the Contarex version is striking.
And in fact, the rendering of the two lenses is similar (smoother than the Contax version)
This can not be said about the Planar, because Zeiss introduced further elements in the design for correction in the macro focusing range

AhamB wrote:
Do you/anyone know where to find the optical array diagrams from Contarex lenses?


You can find them on Marco Cavina's site:

Distagon 2/35:
http://www.luciolepri.it/lc2/marcocavina/articoli_fotografici/evoluzioni_Zeiss/00_pag.htm

Planar 2/50:
http://www.luciolepri.it/lc2/marcocavina/articoli_fotografici/space_cameras_and_lenses/00_pag.htm

Scroll down the articles and you will find the schemes.

BTW, the Distagon 2/35 and Planar 2/50 are amongst the most praised of Contarex lenses. No wonder that today's Zeiss thought about getting back to those old time proof designs, in an era (today) when people appreciate more the smoother bokeh that the Contarex lenses provided, compared to the 3Dness and microcontrast of the Contax lenses.


PostPosted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 1:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Orio wrote:
[...]

BTW, the Distagon 2/35 and Planar 2/50 are amongst the most praised of Contarex lenses. No wonder that today's Zeiss thought about getting back to those old time proof designs, in an era (today) when people appreciate more the smoother bokeh that the Contarex lenses provided, compared to the 3Dness and microcontrast of the Contax lenses.

Thanks, interesting info!

The Contax 35/1.4 has smoother bokeh than the Z* 35/2 at identical apertures, by the way. The Z* 35/2 also has stronger 3D/plasticity than the Contax 35/2.8 or 35/1.4, so I don't think it's the smoothness that it has inherited from the Contarex design.
For medium focus distances, the bokeh of the Contax/Z* Planar 50/1.4 is also smoother than the Z* MP 50/2. In most other cases (esp. close focus) the MP50/2's bokeh is smoother though.
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