Zeiss offered a wide variety of manual focus lenses for Nikon F-mount and Canon EF. Many of these lenses have been famous not only for being purely manual focus lenses, but also for being pretty big compared to the competition. Sitting inbetween the huge Zeiss 15mm 2.8 and 21mm 2.8, this Zeiss 18mm 3.5 was Zeiss’ “compact” ultra wide angle prime. It also has a reputation for being the worst of them, is that justified? Let’s find out in this review!
Released in 2000, the Nikon AF 14mm 2.8D is still the widest auto focus prime lens sold under the Nikon brand to this day. As some of the recent Z-mount lenses, this is also a rebranded Tamron lens though. The existing reviews didn’t paint a clear picture, so I decided to have a closer look at it myself.
As third lens of the prestigious Otus lineup, in 2016 Zeiss released the Zeiss Otus 28mm 1.4 Apo Distagon. At that time it was the biggest, heaviest and most complex 28mm fullframe lens ever seen and it came with an eye watering price tag of $5.000, putting it far ouf of most people’s reach. On the used market you can now find this lens for less than half that – still a lot of money – is it worth saving up for this lens? Let’s try to find out!
In the SLR era it wasn’t easy to find ultra wide angle lenses and it was even more difficult to find decent, affordable ones. The Tokina 17mm 3.5 SL RMC was one of these few options. Back in the day I used it on my D700, looking for a wide angle lens for my analogue FM2 now, I thought it was a good idea to revisit this compact vintage lens.
The Carl Zeiss Jena 135mm f/3.5 is a vintage lens, originally designed in 1929. Renowned for its simple yet ingenious design and impressive sharpness, it’s also celebrated for its remarkably light weight. Historically, 135mm has been the classic focal length for portrait photography, and the most popular telephoto focal length for most photographers. Therefore almost all of the lens manufacturers had at least 2 of them, a f/2.8 and a f/3.5, many offered other speeds in between or even faster than 2.8. The Sonnar design, with its compact size, made it a popular choice for photographers on the move. While Carl Zeiss produced numerous Sonnar 135mm lenses, other manufacturers have also developed their own Sonnar-inspired lenses incorporating modern technology. Despite its historical significance, I found the Carl Zeiss Jena 135mm f/3.5 price more reasonable than other coveted vintage lenses, prompting me to purchase one for testing. (I bought mine for €10 but prices normally start from €20)
I tested this lens on a 46 Mp Nikon Z 7II (Sample images Nikon Z6 and Nikon Zf)
You can see this review as a YouTube video here!
