Category Archives: Sony E-mount

lenses, Review, Sony E-mount

Review: Zeiss Loxia 2.8/21 Distagon T*

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Since the introduction of the Contax Distagon 2.8/21 in the early 1990’s, the 21mm lenses from Zeiss have a long and glorious history of being some of the best wide angle lenses in the world. While the Loxia 2.0/35 and the Loxia 2.0/50 are refined ZM-Designs, the Zeiss Loxia 2.8/21 is the first Loxia lens that features a new optical design. Lets have a look if the Loxia 2.8/21 can keep the heritage alive.
31/05/17 Update by Bastian: I have been using this lens regularly for a year now and Jannik asked me if there is anything I would like to contribute to his review, so I added a few notes and sample images.

Sample Images

Zeiss Loxia 2.8/21 | f/5.6 | ISO 100 | A7II
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Zeiss Loxia 2.8/21 | f/5.6 | ISO 100 | A7II | Full Size
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Zeiss Loxia 2.8/21 | f/2.8 | ISO 100 | Sony A7R

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lenses, Review, Sony Alpha 7, Sony E-mount

Review: Voigtländer 12mm 5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar

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Introduction

ultra wide heliar a7 series 12mm 5.6
Sony A7s with Voigtländer Ultra Wide Heliar 12mm 5.6 and VM-E close focus adapter (Helicoid)

The Voigtländer 12mm 5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar is actually one of the lenses I bought a camera from the A7 series for in the first place. It is worth to mention though, I am reviewing the old M39 version here. The newer Leica M version is optically the same, although there are other differences – apart from the lens mount – which I will talk about at the end of this review.

Sample Images

castle mannheim a7s 12mm 5.6 voigtländer ultra wide heliar
Sony A7s | Voigtländer Ultra Wide Heliar 5.6/12 | f/11 | full resolution
maulbronn monastery unesco world heritage 12mm 5.6 voigtländer a7s
Sony A7 | Voigtländer Ultra Wide Heliar 5.6/12 | f/11 | full resolution
abstract disneyland 12mm 5.6 ultra wide heliar voigtländer sony a7s
Sony A7s | Voigtländer Ultra Wide Heliar 5.6/12 | f/8

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lenses, Minolta SR mount, Sony E-mount

Test: $20 Minolta MC 1.7/55 vs $1000 Zeiss 1.8/55

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55erIn this comparison I want to compare two very different lenses.

The Minolta MC Rokkor-PF 55mm 1:1.7 was introduced in 1968 and it was always an affordable lens. Today it usually sells for around $20 at ebay.com (affiliate link).
I like it because it has very nice bokeh, the nice focusing feel and the small size. I is not one of my sharpest manual lenses, the Canon FD 1.4/50 for example is noticeably sharper but it has very nice character, not far away from the much heavier and more expensive Minolta MC 1.2/58.

The Sony FE 1.8/55 ZA was introduced 45 years later in 2013 and it costs around $1000 or 50 times as much as the Minolta. It has received very positive reviews and is considered to be one of the best normal lenses available today.

The question I try to answer with this test is: How different are the results I can expect from the lenses? I will look at smaller images optimized for the web but also at 100% crops to judge print quality.

All images are developed from raw and I used a tripod unless I mention otherwise. Please click on them to see them in full size (1500px wide).

Scene 1: Bokeh and Sharpness in the center wide open

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The same settings applied to the image taken with the Minolta 1.7/55

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