Bought this lens because of your video. It became one of my favorite lenses I have ever used. It also was my first Contax and that meant I couldn't get just this 25 AEG... so I ended up getting the 50 1.4 AEJ, 85 2.8 AEG and 135 2.8 MMJ. Thanks for making me spend 💸lol.
love it! I think you'd enjoy em They're a great balance of size / weight, price / performance, character /sharpness I use them for literally everything haha
Glad that you have so many contax zeiss 👍 I had a set of 28mm f2.8, 50mm 1.4, 85mm f1.4, 135mm f2.8 and a 35-70mm f3.4, but sold all since needed some money. Over the years, I was using many old legasy glasses, now have many Nikon A-is and repurchased a contax zeiss 50mm 1.4. Compare to Nikon, contax zeiss has the rendering I preferred, but to each its own when come to looks of lens character. Overall the whole set that I owned before has the most consistent colors, only the 28mm a little more contrast than the rest. Nowadays due to many TH-camrs acquiring them, it's hard to find on ebay and my local used market, and getting more expensive and less of an investment for filming considering latest cheap cine primes from China of decent quality. Still hope to collect some though 🙂
thanks! you had a great kit right there! Those nikons look nice too, yeah I feel the same about the contax vs nikkor The prices aren't too bad! average 250-400 per lens, you should pick some back up again!
Thank you! Yeah that’s how I feel about the entire kit, they are so balanced with character and sharpness Love when you are close focusing and get that funky bokeh in the corners, even stopped down you get it
@@thomas.kovacik I also recently love the look of getting really close with a 24mm lens on full frame for stills. It puts you right in the scene. I personally don't mind the distortion ... it's a certain look which works so well for commercial work.
I wonder how it will work as a roughly 50mm field of view on my black magic pocket 4k...the pop effect up closer...does that also change or is it just field of view? i'll try it out cuz i love my 50mm, i just need to determine what changes in the lens other than the FOV on M43
Have you done any research on the Carl Zeiss 20mm or 18mm?? I was considering the 20mm but recently this 25 popped up on fb marketplace whereas the 20mm had to be ordered through eBay. I currently have the 35mm 2.8 and 85mm 1.4. I want a wider Carl zeiss 😮lens and was wondering your thoughts on having both the 25 and 35. Is it a little redundant having both? Also did you consider getting the zeiss flektogon 20mm f4 over the 25 2.8 distagon ?
I've been eyeing that 18mm! I heard it can't be used with focal reducers, so we'll see! The 25mm is a fantastic lens I've been looking into that 21 2.8, I heard that's a gem too! I love both my 25 and 35, they're different enough! I think I would use my 25 less if I had a 21mm to go ultra wide Didn't look into that fletkogon! I heard those Jena lenses are nice too, I wanted to stay all CY Contax Zeiss for this kit
Hey Thomas, great work on these. I’m thinking of getting one of these for my BMPCC 6K G2. I’m curious, how well could these match with the Helios 44-2? If it doesn’t I’ll just use it on its own.
thanks! Those would pair well with the P6K For matching, I dont think they would match extremely well but you can make it work! I'm personally not a fan of the helios as it's very aggressive with it's character
@@thomas.kovacik yeah that’s true, it is. Honestly I’m trying to pick between the Zeiss Distagon’s and Nikkor AI 2.8’s. Just curious if you’ve tried both and have any opinions?
@@quiztasiarocks I've heard great things about the nikkor lenses, I was tempted to build a kit but went for FD but sold the FD haha. Considering selling the CZ for Leica R, but I'm still giving it a thought
Hey what service or website did you use to Mod them or did you do it yourself? I just used these lenses this past weekend on a project and they created such a great image but I don’t want to mess adapters so I’ll want them Ef modded at some point.
I go through simmod! Yeah the adapters are always flimsy and not ideal Make sure you get the right products + sizing from him, but they're easy to do yourself Get a little heat gun thing to heat up the screws to loosen that locktite, and make sure you spend loads of time heating them up. You dont want to strip those screws haha I went for the simmod pro brass mounts, they're a little extra I think $10 per mount, but they're sturdy
Hey nice stuff. I had and sold some of the same lenses in the past but gonna be getting back into it now. I take it you're installing the EF mount on them. Can I ask what EF to E mount adapter you're using? I cant find it on your gear list
depends! I went all AE bc I heard there's less issues with the optics. MM's are known to have separation(?) issues. MM also have a different aperture blade setup so you dont get the "ninja stars" that you see on AE. Can't go wrong with either
Hey Thomas .. just wondering.. is there an adapter for Sony E mount ? When you say Mod , do you actually need to manually modify the lens? I went to a vintage camera shop and looked for this lens and the shop owner told me buy an adapter first ... Happy Thanksgiving.. love the channel man
Ok awesome! so if I pick up a c/y to E adapter there is no modding needed? also where can I get that gear ring for the follow focus that you added to the lens? thanks for all the advice!! I found your channel when I was looking at the reviews for the Fx3@@thomas.kovacik
hey thomas! i was wondering how your copy is performing wide open? mine is *really* soft, I was a bit surprised. wondering whether there's just sth wrong with my copy or what ... I don't mean a tad softer, more like a difference between night and day even stopped down 1 stop
Great video! How does the 25 and 28 compare in terms of character? Does the 28 flare up less? Or they are the same with 3mm difference? I want to get one of these. Thanks!
Appreciate it! the 28 is insanely clean, it rarely flares from my experience- of course some gets through but it's not as crazy as my copy of the 25mm I think the 28 is a good move if you want to build: 18, 28, 50, 85 I bought the 28 first bc it was cheaper and I heard pretty legendary, it's insanely good for the price. It made me never look into the 28 f2 I'm still glad I have it, though I have the 25 and 35, which are separated enough, 28 is a fun walk around focal length, so for travel stuff it'll be nice to bring along
amazing! I used some random cheap one- any should work! For the best experience I would convert to EF using simmod mounts + grabbing a nice EF adapter. I use the novoflex EF / E adapter
There is a 25mm distagon for sale that I want to use on my fx30 , do I need a lens adapter ? It says it’s a c/y mount , never heard of that , but assuming I need an adapter
yeah the vintage flares just feel so right, the contax 85? If so, mine has a really unique flaring pattern. Mostly rainbow ellipticals hah, check out my review on it to see
In your opinion is there enough difference between the 25 and the 28? do both flare the same way? what else is diff. I just got the 35, 50 and 85 and hunting for a wide one. I think I'll enjoy the 25 focal length more since I am used to my 24 Sony but if you can give me your take on it that would be great.
the 25 is funkier than the 28, the 28 has a unique feel- not too wide or tight I tend to not use it much as I would lean to the 25 or 35 for a noticeable difference I have been using the 28 for TH-cam broll lately bc the min focusing distance is 10", same with the 25, the 35 is 16" I think 25 would be a great addition to your kit
Damn these lenses seem to really take off that digital edge from the fx3 looks great. You might have said already but what adapter do you need for these lenses?
so true! these lenses give a great starting point, and with a little touch of grading you can get some really nice images! I use the novoflex EF to E adapter, it's expensive, but sturdy
they're C/Y so you could run a CY adapter for your camera, buuuut, those adapters are usually pretty cheap / flimsy. I bought FD - E and CY - E adapters for initial testing of the FD and contax lenses, and those adapters had so much play and wiggle. I converted these lenses to EF through simmod lens, the FDs were a bit tricky to do DIY, whereas contax is really straightforward I like having them converted bc I can rent them out, and EF is a universal mount that can adapt to anything. They're sturdy and lock in tight with no play
hahah I'm highly considering a c70. As I dont need the FX9 and the FX6 is so hard to get lol It's a long story but I'll be making a video on all of this soon haha
haha thanks! yeah I love the fx3 too- I definitely see both cameras fitting into my workflow Shoot that's right! I wonder if it'll be the rumored FX30- the apsc fx3 hah, guess we'll find out!
This lens is from 1975. It is generally held to be the least impressive of the wide angle Zeiss lenses, with poor border performance. This matters more for landscapes, less for video work. The performance was improved in the later models (MM). Of course a less good Zeiss is still a Zeiss! The Distagon 28/2.8 (1978) has slightly better borders but doesn't have the wild flares. And some hold that the 28mm angle of view is more natural. I'd be one of those. Anything wider tends to get into "special effect" territory due to the perspective distortion. But if you don't mind that characteristic, then the Distagon 21/2.8 (1993) has the highest reputation of all of these lenses. It is much sharper wide open, even according to Zeiss' own data sheets. This is reflected in the market price! I haven't personally had a chance to use and compare all these lenses. Instead, I am happy with the Distagon 28/2 which has an aura indicated by its nickname, the Hollywood. Truly a special lens. Just as the 25mm has that one special quality... the flare. Every Zeiss lens has its uses and none are to be ignored.
Depends.. the 28 is way cleaner But I loved my 35 so my 28 barely got use If on super 35 I’d go 18,28,50,85 for ff I’d do - 18,25,35,50,85 both are solid
Yep! The lens telescopes when zooming, so you'd want to mount it to a front ring. But make sure it's not too heavy bc photo lenses aren't designed for heavy matte boxes
Unusable footage. Looks prety bad. No tripod. No stabilization. landscape shot, from hand. And you move around from right to left, wich makes it even worse... About lenses. From what i have seen, the Contax Zeiss looks better than the new lenses... Because i think they cheap out on coatings and stuff nowadays. Probably the techonology to just grind out the correct shapes of the lenses is there and also the computers to figure stuff out... But... Something is missing. They also banned some coatings i think, like lead and other banned materials. But this kinda trend has happened in literaly every industry. The cars for example, in the 90s people actualy tried to use good materials, and in general for things to be good and robust, much more. And later down the line, metals get thiner, and almost everything that is possible to replace with plastic is replaced. Cars are basicaly refrigerators now... Same with the lenses i suppose, they cheap out on something, wich means lenses can actualy be better. They just dont want to pay too much for production...
Bought this lens because of your video. It became one of my favorite lenses I have ever used. It also was my first Contax and that meant I couldn't get just this 25 AEG... so I ended up getting the 50 1.4 AEJ, 85 2.8 AEG and 135 2.8 MMJ. Thanks for making me spend 💸lol.
All your work with these Zeiss lenses really makes me want to start collecting some!
love it! I think you'd enjoy em
They're a great balance of size / weight, price / performance, character /sharpness
I use them for literally everything haha
I use the 28mm all the time on my r6 for photos and it is dope. Looks like film.
Glad that you have so many contax zeiss 👍
I had a set of 28mm f2.8, 50mm 1.4, 85mm f1.4, 135mm f2.8 and a 35-70mm f3.4, but sold all since needed some money.
Over the years, I was using many old legasy glasses, now have many Nikon A-is and repurchased a contax zeiss 50mm 1.4.
Compare to Nikon, contax zeiss has the rendering I preferred, but to each its own when come to looks of lens character. Overall the whole set that I owned before has the most consistent colors, only the 28mm a little more contrast than the rest.
Nowadays due to many TH-camrs acquiring them, it's hard to find on ebay and my local used market, and getting more expensive and less of an investment for filming considering latest cheap cine primes from China of decent quality.
Still hope to collect some though 🙂
thanks! you had a great kit right there!
Those nikons look nice too, yeah I feel the same about the contax vs nikkor
The prices aren't too bad! average 250-400 per lens, you should pick some back up again!
Looks gorgeous man. This lens has the right amount of sharpness for the FX3 i feel.
Thank you!
Yeah that’s how I feel about the entire kit, they are so balanced with character and sharpness
Love when you are close focusing and get that funky bokeh in the corners, even stopped down you get it
@@thomas.kovacik I also recently love the look of getting really close with a 24mm lens on full frame for stills. It puts you right in the scene. I personally don't mind the distortion ... it's a certain look which works so well for commercial work.
100% it's such a fun look! that's the draw of the 18mm for me, it would be fuuuunky haha
The 18 is amazing and actually is very low distortion, but is the only one in my set that looks noticeably different in color.
love it! oh thats good to know! maybe I should look into the 15 for more distortion
They'll look amazing on the C70 lol
your grading is killer, brother
oh I believe it! def wanna try them out with it
appreciate it Kleber!
I wonder how it will work as a roughly 50mm field of view on my black magic pocket 4k...the pop effect up closer...does that also change or is it just field of view? i'll try it out cuz i love my 50mm, i just need to determine what changes in the lens other than the FOV on M43
Have you done any research on the Carl Zeiss 20mm or 18mm?? I was considering the 20mm but recently this 25 popped up on fb marketplace whereas the 20mm had to be ordered through eBay.
I currently have the 35mm 2.8 and 85mm 1.4. I want a wider Carl zeiss 😮lens and was wondering your thoughts on having both the 25 and 35. Is it a little redundant having both?
Also did you consider getting the zeiss flektogon 20mm f4 over the 25 2.8 distagon ?
I've been eyeing that 18mm! I heard it can't be used with focal reducers, so we'll see! The 25mm is a fantastic lens
I've been looking into that 21 2.8, I heard that's a gem too!
I love both my 25 and 35, they're different enough!
I think I would use my 25 less if I had a 21mm to go ultra wide
Didn't look into that fletkogon! I heard those Jena lenses are nice too, I wanted to stay all CY Contax Zeiss for this kit
Hey Thomas, great work on these. I’m thinking of getting one of these for my BMPCC 6K G2. I’m curious, how well could these match with the Helios 44-2?
If it doesn’t I’ll just use it on its own.
thanks! Those would pair well with the P6K
For matching, I dont think they would match extremely well but you can make it work! I'm personally not a fan of the helios as it's very aggressive with it's character
@@thomas.kovacik yeah that’s true, it is. Honestly I’m trying to pick between the Zeiss Distagon’s and Nikkor AI 2.8’s. Just curious if you’ve tried both and have any opinions?
@@quiztasiarocks I've heard great things about the nikkor lenses, I was tempted to build a kit but went for FD but sold the FD haha. Considering selling the CZ for Leica R, but I'm still giving it a thought
Hey what service or website did you use to Mod them or did you do it yourself? I just used these lenses this past weekend on a project and they created such a great image but I don’t want to mess adapters so I’ll want them Ef modded at some point.
I go through simmod! Yeah the adapters are always flimsy and not ideal
Make sure you get the right products + sizing from him, but they're easy to do yourself
Get a little heat gun thing to heat up the screws to loosen that locktite, and make sure you spend loads of time heating them up. You dont want to strip those screws haha
I went for the simmod pro brass mounts, they're a little extra I think $10 per mount, but they're sturdy
Bro! you make me realize I need to put more effort into my videos lol Also, totally convinced I need some Contax!
haha appreciate it! Yeah those contax lenses are so lovely
Hey nice stuff. I had and sold some of the same lenses in the past but gonna be getting back into it now. I take it you're installing the EF mount on them. Can I ask what EF to E mount adapter you're using? I cant find it on your gear list
thank you! I'm using the novoflex EF to E adapter
Good looks- I'll update my gear list and add it in
FYI - the 18mm won't fit with the canon c70 speedbooster... The rear element sticks out about 1-2mm too far... Still a rad lens!
Oh no! that's a huge bummer
Yeah this lens looks fantastic! May just have to rock it with the normal adapter or just hold off on it
@@thomas.kovacik Save for the 21mm... It's epic.
Hello Thomas, love your video! Should i Pick MMJ version or AEG version for contax 25mm f2.8? Thanks!
depends! I went all AE bc I heard there's less issues with the optics. MM's are known to have separation(?) issues. MM also have a different aperture blade setup so you dont get the "ninja stars" that you see on AE.
Can't go wrong with either
Hey Thomas .. just wondering.. is there an adapter for Sony E mount ? When you say Mod , do you actually need to manually modify the lens? I went to a vintage camera shop and looked for this lens and the shop owner told me buy an adapter first ... Happy Thanksgiving.. love the channel man
yeah! there's a C/Y to E adapter
I manually modded these lenses and added an EF mount, so I can use EF adapters on my cameras
Happy Thanksgiving!
Ok awesome! so if I pick up a c/y to E adapter there is no modding needed? also where can I get that gear ring for the follow focus that you added to the lens? thanks for all the advice!! I found your channel when I was looking at the reviews for the Fx3@@thomas.kovacik
dope! what do you like better, this one or the 28?
never mind, posted this before you started talking about it!
Haha all good! Both are epic, that 28 is special!
I sold it and my 85 2.8 to buy the 85 1.4
My kit is now
25 2.8
35 2.8
50 1.4
85 1.4
100 2.8
@@thomas.kovacik awesome thank you! now all you need is that 21!
@@BlaineWestropp1 goodness yeah that would be so lovely
Been eyeing the 15 and the 18 too
@@thomas.kovacik they all seem to have such a great look! love your videos on them.
hey thomas! i was wondering how your copy is performing wide open? mine is *really* soft, I was a bit surprised. wondering whether there's just sth wrong with my copy or what ... I don't mean a tad softer, more like a difference between night and day even stopped down 1 stop
seemed well! you definitely get lots of that blooming in the middle that is quite a bit brighter but when you go one click down it resolves
Wish there's a equivlant 25mm for s35 like 17mm or 18mm with faster iris.
Totally! That 18 f4 seems really nice though. They have a 15 fisheye I think too!
Great video! How does the 25 and 28 compare in terms of character? Does the 28 flare up less? Or they are the same with 3mm difference? I want to get one of these. Thanks!
Appreciate it! the 28 is insanely clean, it rarely flares from my experience- of course some gets through but it's not as crazy as my copy of the 25mm
I think the 28 is a good move if you want to build: 18, 28, 50, 85
I bought the 28 first bc it was cheaper and I heard pretty legendary, it's insanely good for the price. It made me never look into the 28 f2
I'm still glad I have it, though I have the 25 and 35, which are separated enough, 28 is a fun walk around focal length, so for travel stuff it'll be nice to bring along
@@thomas.kovacik thank you this really helps a lot!
Is that an 80mm front ring? Images look dope!
85 OD 82 ID! I only use 82mm filters so I had to size up on these hah
thanks!
Hey Thomas Just picked up a mint 28 mm contax lens on eBay ... Just wondering what Cy to Emount adapter you recommend?
amazing! I used some random cheap one- any should work! For the best experience I would convert to EF using simmod mounts + grabbing a nice EF adapter. I use the novoflex EF / E adapter
There is a 25mm distagon for sale that I want to use on my fx30 , do I need a lens adapter ? It says it’s a c/y mount , never heard of that , but assuming I need an adapter
yes! you'll need a C/Y to E adapter, or hard convert the lens to EF and use an EF / E adapter
I don't like the Sigma green flares either. I returned it. 85 has purple flare right?
yeah the vintage flares just feel so right, the contax 85? If so, mine has a really unique flaring pattern. Mostly rainbow ellipticals hah, check out my review on it to see
In your opinion is there enough difference between the 25 and the 28? do both flare the same way? what else is diff. I just got the 35, 50 and 85 and hunting for a wide one. I think I'll enjoy the 25 focal length more since I am used to my 24 Sony but if you can give me your take on it that would be great.
the 25 is funkier than the 28, the 28 has a unique feel- not too wide or tight
I tend to not use it much as I would lean to the 25 or 35 for a noticeable difference
I have been using the 28 for TH-cam broll lately bc the min focusing distance is 10", same with the 25, the 35 is 16" I think
25 would be a great addition to your kit
Damn these lenses seem to really take off that digital edge from the fx3 looks great. You might have said already but what adapter do you need for these lenses?
so true! these lenses give a great starting point, and with a little touch of grading you can get some really nice images!
I use the novoflex EF to E adapter, it's expensive, but sturdy
@@thomas.kovacik So the contax are EF mount? or do you need to an additional adapter to change it to EF?
they're C/Y so you could run a CY adapter for your camera, buuuut, those adapters are usually pretty cheap / flimsy. I bought FD - E and CY - E adapters for initial testing of the FD and contax lenses, and those adapters had so much play and wiggle.
I converted these lenses to EF through simmod lens, the FDs were a bit tricky to do DIY, whereas contax is really straightforward
I like having them converted bc I can rent them out, and EF is a universal mount that can adapt to anything. They're sturdy and lock in tight with no play
@@thomas.kovacik Thanks for such a detailed response man, definitely will look into that option!
@@Videosbyme278 course! enjoy the process!
What Super 35 camera are you eyeing? 😏
hahah I'm highly considering a c70. As I dont need the FX9 and the FX6 is so hard to get lol
It's a long story but I'll be making a video on all of this soon haha
@@thomas.kovacik haha I’m looking forward to that video even though I love the FX3!
P.S. Keep an eye out for Sony’s new cinema camera tomorrow! 👀
haha thanks! yeah I love the fx3 too- I definitely see both cameras fitting into my workflow
Shoot that's right! I wonder if it'll be the rumored FX30- the apsc fx3 hah, guess we'll find out!
This lens is from 1975. It is generally held to be the least impressive of the wide angle Zeiss lenses, with poor border performance. This matters more for landscapes, less for video work. The performance was improved in the later models (MM). Of course a less good Zeiss is still a Zeiss!
The Distagon 28/2.8 (1978) has slightly better borders but doesn't have the wild flares. And some hold that the 28mm angle of view is more natural. I'd be one of those. Anything wider tends to get into "special effect" territory due to the perspective distortion. But if you don't mind that characteristic, then the Distagon 21/2.8 (1993) has the highest reputation of all of these lenses. It is much sharper wide open, even according to Zeiss' own data sheets. This is reflected in the market price!
I haven't personally had a chance to use and compare all these lenses. Instead, I am happy with the Distagon 28/2 which has an aura indicated by its nickname, the Hollywood. Truly a special lens. Just as the 25mm has that one special quality... the flare.
Every Zeiss lens has its uses and none are to be ignored.
Hi, is this XAVC HS codec throughout the video?
This time around it’s XAVC S-I
Where did you get the thick follow focus gear?
From simmod!
I would love to get those lens, where did you get that?
I personally got them off of eBay
you can try Facebook, offer up, keh, mpb, etc
Distagon design is 🤌🏼
So true!
If you had to choose between buying this or the 28mm, Which one would you get?
Depends.. the 28 is way cleaner
But I loved my 35 so my 28 barely got use
If on super 35 I’d go 18,28,50,85
for ff I’d do - 18,25,35,50,85
both are solid
@@thomas.kovacik Thank! I'm drawn more to the 25mm but since I don't have a 35mm I was wonder if the 28mm is the beter choice
can a matte box be used with this lens?
Yep! The lens telescopes when zooming, so you'd want to mount it to a front ring. But make sure it's not too heavy bc photo lenses aren't designed for heavy matte boxes
Do you use this lens for photo?
you can! I don't shoot much photo outside of my x100v though
Unusable footage. Looks prety bad. No tripod. No stabilization. landscape shot, from hand. And you move around from right to left, wich makes it even worse...
About lenses. From what i have seen, the Contax Zeiss looks better than the new lenses... Because i think they cheap out on coatings and stuff nowadays. Probably the techonology to just grind out the correct shapes of the lenses is there and also the computers to figure stuff out... But... Something is missing. They also banned some coatings i think, like lead and other banned materials.
But this kinda trend has happened in literaly every industry. The cars for example, in the 90s people actualy tried to use good materials, and in general for things to be good and robust, much more. And later down the line, metals get thiner, and almost everything that is possible to replace with plastic is replaced. Cars are basicaly refrigerators now... Same with the lenses i suppose, they cheap out on something, wich means lenses can actualy be better. They just dont want to pay too much for production...