{"id":4979,"date":"2015-05-12T20:01:25","date_gmt":"2015-05-13T01:01:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admiringlight.com\/blog\/?p=4979"},"modified":"2015-05-13T07:00:07","modified_gmt":"2015-05-13T12:00:07","slug":"review-zeiss-fe-35mm-f1-4-za-distagon-t","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/admiringlight.com\/blog\/review-zeiss-fe-35mm-f1-4-za-distagon-t\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 ZA Distagon T*"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sony’s been fleshing out their full frame FE lens lineup for E-Mount fairly quickly over the past year and a half, as the total FE system is now up to 11 native AF lenses. \u00a0One of the newest lenses to hit the street is aimed squarely at the professional and enthusiast with the no-compromises Zeiss 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon. \u00a0In stark contrast to the slower and significantly smaller Zeiss 35mm f\/2.8 Sonnar, released at the launch of the FE line, the 35mm f\/1.4 is a huge lens with a large aperture, and promises top-flight image quality. \u00a0With a $1,600 US price tag to go along with the large size, the lens will need to be an optical gem to be worth the price, size and weight penalties. \u00a0Let’s see if it meets the mark.<\/p>\n

\"Zeiss<\/a>
Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon on the Sony A7 II<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Construction and Handling<\/h3>\n

The Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 is a robust fast wide-angle lens that looks more like a telephoto lens than a mirrorless wide-angle. \u00a0Sony and Zeiss have thrown any pretense of size reduction out the window with this optic, and have instead focused on premium build and premium image quality. \u00a0The lens certainly lives up to expectations with regards to construction.<\/p>\n

The Zeiss 35mm f\/1.4 is a large, moderately heavy lens with a solid all metal exterior construction. \u00a0The lens is very tightly assembled with a flawlessly finished matte black metal lens barrel and a wide ribbed focus ring for easy manual focus. \u00a0The focus ring is well damped and silky smooth to operate.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The lens includes a metal and plastic lens hood, which adds another two inches to the length.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The lens is unique in the Sony world, being one of only two native lenses for E-Mount with an aperture ring. \u00a0The relatively wide aperture ring features 1\/3 stop detents that are individually marked. \u00a0Damping on the aperture ring is almost perfect. \u00a0It’s stiff enough to avoid accidental aperture changes, but not too tight to make changing the aperture difficult. \u00a0In a very nice nod to video shooters, the FE 35mm f\/1.4 includes a switch to remove the detents for the aperture ring, allowing the aperture to be changed smoothly and silently. \u00a0The only real issue I had with the aperture ring is the area marked with f-stops and hash marks does not have any ribbing on it, which can make it hard to grip with the left hand in some positions.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The aperture ring can be ‘de-clicked’ for silent aperture adjustment during video<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In my introduction, I’ve mentioned the size of this lens several times, and for good reason. \u00a0Optical quality can sometimes come with a size penalty, and such is the case here. \u00a0The lens is larger than many 35mm f\/1.4 lenses for DSLRs and significantly larger than its slower sibling, the FE 35mm f\/2.8 Sonnar. \u00a0Of course, with an aperture two stops faster, you’d expect a notable size increase. \u00a0In this case, the increase is triple the length and over five times the weight. \u00a0That’s right, five times heavier.<\/p>\n

When the lens is mounted on a body like the A7 II, the overall package is anything but discreet. \u00a0However, the ample grip on the A7 II does allow the lens to handle fairly well in the field. \u00a0Balance is a bit front heavy, but when supporting with two hands, the lens feels good. \u00a0It does, however, begin to wear on your wrist after a day’s shooting if you are like me and shoot your mirrorless cameras by carrying the camera and using a wrist strap.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The big 72mm front element of the FE 35mm f\/1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The bigger issue to size is in the added heft to your bag and the sometimes greater intimidation for your subject that can come with larger lenses. \u00a0 While I definitely noticed the weight and size every time I pulled the 35mm f\/1.4 out of my bag, the size wasn’t as big a detriment as I originally envisioned it would be during actual shooting. \u00a0Still, for those looking for a light flexible setup, you may want to look to the 35mm f\/2.8 or the manual focus Zeiss Loxia 35mm f\/2.0. \u00a0This is not a lens you’re going to grab for a casual single lens outing.<\/p>\n

Autofocus Performance<\/h3>\n

The Zeiss 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon features a very fast and quiet autofocus motor capable of locking quickly onto your subject with good accuracy. \u00a0Overall performance in most lighting situations was quite good, though I found the lens slowed down quite a bit in lower light and especially in backlit scenarios, where I’d sometimes get full-range hunting before finally locking on.<\/p>\n

\"Scooter<\/a>
Scooter – Sony A7 II with Zeiss 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon @ f\/1.4 (continuous AF)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I tested the lens for continuous autofocus using the A7 II, and the 35mm f\/1.4 was able to turn in a decent performance in this area. While I can’t say that almost all the shots were in focus in this scenario, I was getting around a 50-60% hit rate at f\/1.4. \u00a0While not the greatest performance in the world, some of this is likely due to the A7 II’s capabilities as well. \u00a0The shot above was captured in continuous focus mode at f\/1.4.<\/p>\n

Continue: Image Quality<\/a><\/h4>\n

<\/p>\n

Image Quality<\/h3>\n

With the lens eschewing size concerns for performance, the 35mm Distagon needs to perform, and perform it does.<\/p>\n

\"Dispatch<\/a>
Dispatch – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon @ f\/1.4 (click to enlarge)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sharpness<\/h4>\n

Zeiss is well-known for creating sharp lenses, and the 35mm f\/1.4 is another great example to add to that reputation. \u00a0The lens starts out strong right from f\/1.4 with very good, even resolving power across the image frame. \u00a0While it’s not razor-sharp at f\/1.4, there is\u00a0more than enough\u00a0detail resolved for most any purpose, especially at closer focus distances. \u00a0Near infinity at f\/1.4, the lens still produces good image sharpness, though the edges of the frame soften slightly\u00a0here due to a bit of field curvature.<\/p>\n

Stopping down to even f\/2.0 brings a bump in cross frame resolution, with the lens pulling truly excellent levels of detail out of a scene. \u00a0Stopped down even further, it’s simply\u00a0tack\u00a0sharp\u00a0all the way into the corners. \u00a0The lens is still slightly better at closer focus distances than it is at infinity, but only the pickiest of pixel peepers will notice or care, as the lens is very capable of producing highly detailed landscape images at small apertures, across the entire frame. \u00a0While it falls just short of the amazing sharpness of the Zeiss FE 55mm f\/1.8, it is indeed one of the sharpest 35mm lenses (or equivalents for smaller formats) that I’ve ever had the pleasure to use.<\/p>\n

Click on the image to the right to view a large size image taken at f\/1.4. Click on the green arrow at the bottom to fully enlarge.<\/p>\n

Color and Contrast<\/h4>\n

The other thing\u00a0for which Zeiss has built a strong reputation is rich image contrast and vibrant color, and the 35mm f\/1.4 is again cut from the same cloth as other great Zeiss lenses in this department. \u00a0The 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon produces rich contrasty images at all aperture settings. Combined with high sharpness and quick falloff to blur outside of the focus plan, the 35mm f\/1.4 truly produces images that almost seem to pop out of the screen or print, without being overly harsh. \u00a0This look gives images a special quality that is hard to achieve with many other lenses.<\/p>\n

Bokeh<\/h4>\n

One of the primary uses of a fast wide-angle lens is separating a subject from a background while including some context. \u00a0As such, the bokeh is of great importance in a lens such as this. \u00a0Often, when lenses are highly corrected for image sharpness, the bokeh tends to suffer and take on a bit of a nervous quality. \u00a0Somehow, Zeiss has managed to not fall into this pattern.<\/p>\n

\"Purple<\/a>
Purple Azalea – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon @ f\/1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 35mm f\/1.4 produces images with largely excellent bokeh. \u00a0Backgrounds melt pleasingly away from the plane of focus. \u00a0Specular highlights are evenly illuminated with only the slightest hint of a bright outline. \u00a0The nine aperture blades are rounded, keeping out of focus highlights looking circular until the lens is stopped down to f\/5.6 or beyond. \u00a0The only negative to the bokeh is the presence of some light onion-ring centers due to the aspherical elements used in the lens. \u00a0In all, I was very impressed with the rendering of the bokeh. \u00a0Combined with the high contrast and sharp images, the bokeh helps create a look that is simply beautiful.<\/p>\n

Chromatic Aberration, Flare, Distortion and Vignetting<\/h4>\n

So far, I really haven’t said a single thing that’s negative about the optical properties of the lens, but it is not a flawless lens. While color, contrast, sharpness and bokeh are all outstanding, the 35mm f\/1.4 does exhibit a few minor issues with lens aberrations.<\/p>\n

The 35mm f\/1.4, like many fast prime lenses, can exhibit longitudinal chromatic aberration at wide apertures, showing up as a magenta fringe in out of focus areas in front of the focus point and a green fringe behind the focus point. \u00a0In certain circumstances, purple fringing can occur on high contrast borders as well. \u00a0However, all things considered, these are quite well controlled for a fast wide-angle lens, and only rarely come into play in most day-to-day shooting. Lateral chromatic aberration, however, is very impressively controlled. \u00a0I didn’t see any field relevant lateral CA during my shooting.<\/p>\n

\"Distortion<\/a>
Native barrel distortion can be seen in this shot – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon @ f\/5.6<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 35mm Distagon also shows a bit of barrel distortion. \u00a0In most cases, you won’t notice it, but if shooting architecture or other scenes with straight lines, the slight bulge of distortion can be easily seen. \u00a0Out of camera JPEGs and the lens profile included in Lightroom will help eliminate almost all of the distortion.<\/p>\n

Like almost every f\/1.4 lens ever made, the 35mm f\/1.4 also shows visible vignetting at wide apertures, though it’s reduced to moderate levels by f\/2.8 and is imperceptible by f\/5.6. \u00a0Nothing to worry about here, in my opinion.<\/p>\n

The lens also turns in a fairly good performance against bright light, though again slightly less than perfect. \u00a0Overall contrast remains high when a bright light source is in the frame, though small, but prominent ghosting can be induced. \u00a0This appears as a bright green blob in the frame, occasionally accompanied by a red ghost as well. \u00a0However, the flare is generally not a major issue. \u00a0In the shot below (click to enlarge), you can see the green flare ghosts in the lower left center of the image frame if you look closely, but they don’t detract from the overall image.<\/p>\n

\"Sunrise<\/a>
Sunrise – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon @ f\/8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Overall, the lens is incredibly impressive optically. \u00a0What Zeiss and Sony have created is simply one of the finest 35mm lenses around. \u00a0 It’s a lens that performs well at wide apertures and small apertures, close up and far away, is sharp and yet still retains pleasing bokeh. \u00a0In short, it’s an outstanding\u00a0lens that can produce extremely high quality images in most any situation.<\/p>\n

Continue: Conclusion and Image Samples<\/a><\/h4>\n

<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h3>\n

Pros<\/h4>\n
    \n
  • Extremely solidly constructed with excellent haptics<\/li>\n
  • Very sharp wide open with outstanding cross-frame sharpness stopped down<\/li>\n
  • Smooth and pleasing bokeh<\/li>\n
  • Excellent contrast and rich color reproduction<\/li>\n
  • Controls lateral chromatic aberration extremely well and longitudinal CA is only a minor issue<\/li>\n
  • Minimal and non-obtrusive flare<\/li>\n
  • Fast and accurate autofocus in most lighting situations<\/li>\n
  • Aperture ring has wonderfully firm detents that can be removed entirely for video work<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Cons<\/h4>\n
      \n
    • Very large and heavy for a mirrorless lens – \u00a0Even larger than many 35mm f\/1.4s for DSLRs<\/li>\n
    • Autofocus can hunt a bit in low light<\/li>\n
    • Some purple fringing in certain situations<\/li>\n
    • Some barrel distortion<\/li>\n
    • Expensive<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Sony and Zeiss pulled out all the stops with regards to the 35mm f\/1.4 Distagon ZA, and they created an exceptional lens. \u00a0The 35mm f\/1.4 is very sharp at f\/1.4 and tack sharp to the corners stopped down, while featuring the signature Zeiss color and contrast. \u00a0Somehow, they also managed to do this while keeping the background blur very pleasing overall. \u00a0The lens has a bit of distortion and some longitudinal CA and fringing, while the autofocus motor can hunt some in low light situations. \u00a0However, in general use these are fairly minor points, as the overall image quality and usability is outstanding.<\/p>\n

      The one thing that may stop people from snatching the lens up, however, is the large and heavy size. \u00a0Those two extra stops of light over the compact and excellent FE 35mm f\/2.8 Sonnar cost you quintuple the weight and three times the length. \u00a0The 35mm f\/1.4 is not a small nor a discreet lens. \u00a0It’s a lens for when you want the best native optical performance you can get and you don’t care about an extra pound of weight and a larger bag. \u00a0The lens also isn’t for the budget conscious, with a high price of nearly $1600 US. \u00a0However, given the stellar optical performance and fast aperture, I actually think the lens is well worth the cost if you’re in the market for a lens this speed and the size doesn’t deter you.<\/p>\n

      Overall, it’s probably the finest moderate wide-angle lens I’ve ever used and a gem in the FE lineup.<\/p>\n

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      \n