The specs of the Carl Zeiss Sonnar 2.8/90 sound great: Small, cheap, it’s from Zeiss so it should be very sharp and with the right adapter it even offers AF on the a7II! So how will it actually perform? Read on if you want to know.
Thanks to Uwe for loaning me the lens and Techart adapter for this review!
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 | A7IIZeiss Loxia 2.8/21 | f/5.6 | ISO 100 | A7II | Full SizeZeiss Loxia 2.8/21 | f/2.8 | ISO 100 | Sony A7R
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.
The Canon nFD 2.8/35 offers really good image quality for very little money. I think it is a very good solution for most budget oriented Sony Alpha 7 users.
There are many manual lenses above 28mm which work quite well on modern cameras like the Alpha 7 but not that many wide angle lenses perform good enough on modern cameras.
The Canon nFD 2.8/24 is one of the sharpest, affordable wide angle lenses and I think it can be a good solution for budget-oriented Sony Alpha 7 users.
A German version of this review can be found on phillipreeve.de.
Sample Images
Sony a7 | Canon nFD 2.8/24 | f/11 | full resolutionSony a7 | Canon nFD 2.8/24 | f/8
Sony α | Leica M | Nikon F/Z New article every week
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