I think this review shows why these standardised technical reviews don't tell you the whole story and can be a little misleading. I've had a lot of lenses in the 35mm to 45mm range on Sony E mount and the Zeiss Batis 40mm is still my favourite by some distance. The way it renders, especially the fall off between in focus and out of focus areas, it beautiful. Several times I've used this lens to do an entire event for clients and been really happy with the results. You can pick up an excellent used Batis 40 for around £500 these days, which makes it excellent value for money.
Indeed, I'm awaiting a used specimen which looks to be in good shape from a private seller with a good rep, from an auction with 1 bid - mine (400e). C Frost lists quite a lot of CA where I haven't seen much of that in other reviews, except bokeh highlights. I expect the rubber will attract pollen just like the Touits' does. Will be interesting to see if I like it more than the Sony 35/1,8 .
I have actually owned this lens. It was really the only 40mm e-mount lens at the time, and I wanted one. Truth be told, I have rarely be so disapointet.
@@jijdomOh it is so long ago I can hardly remember. Most certainly my expectation were too unreasonably high. I do recall the vignetting being a good deal more pronounced than expected, and it was rather large too. I knew quite a lot less about such thing then than I do now and i may well be I was unreasonable, but never the less, it was a disappointment, not least considering the price.
Yep enoy it mate all everybody talks about is sharpness and this lens had plenty of it the rendering and colours are superior to any of sonys offerings including all aftermarket 35's and 50's.
Lens has a pretty specific use case. Not too wide, fast, close focus distance. It's a pretty spectacular lens for a very specific, low light type of home video. Can recommend.
An example of how far mirrorless lens design has come over the past 5 years; you can now get sharper, faster, lighter, smaller, less expensive lenses with better bokeh
This lens wasn't even that well regarded when it first came out due to the price. There were already mirrorless lenses better than this and many more DSLR lenses. Sony's own 35 f/2.8 from 2013 is just as sharp and they released a 35 f/1.8 in 2018 that is better. Lens design hasn't changed much either so not really sure what you are talking about, of course you can get cheaper, better lenses than this - this lens has obscene "zeiss tax" slapped on it. Just like when it came out.
Same here. I've been a working photographer for 25 years and this is my favourite ever lens. I've done whole day events using just this lens. There's a lovely look for colours and fall off, it stands out from the crowd in a age when so many lenses are more or less technically perfect but just look so clinical and boring.
Could the softness on the APS corners be due more to the field curvature of the lens? After all, you're not getting the true corners of the image circle, but rather something in the middle of the field.
Thank you Chris. I have been following you since the Samyang 800mm F8 Mirror lens. I bought it then discovered your video telling me how "good" it was. I still have it but, strangely enough, I never use it. I only shoot Nikon so I can't pretend to watch all of your videos but thank you for what you do.
Hi, Chris. How would you compare the IQ of this lens to the Sony F2.5 40mm? I know that you liked the Sony. Zeiss does have those wonderful coatings that, to me, seem to make the images “pop” ever so much more. Did you notice that here? Is there any noticeable advantage in the image rendering of the Zeiss over the Sony? Thank you./Warren
I had the Batis 40mm for a few years but sold it when I got the Sony 2.5 40mm. I used them on the A7r3. Unless you absolutely need f/2.0 there is not much that speaks for the Batis. It is big, and a bit heavy, and has not got an aperture ring. I now shoot with the Sony 40mm on my A7r5 and it is an excellent lens in every respect. That it is 2.5 you know when you buy it, so that should not disappoint you. On the contrary, I was very pleased with the sharpness at full aperture. (I have also sold my Batis 25 and 135mm, but I keep my 85mm.)
One of my first premium primes I own since I got into the Sony systems. This lens actually got me to love 40mm focal length. The CF, build, f2? was great at that time. Till came the Sony 40mm f2.5G. I took a side by side image. The batis colours really seems to pop more than the Sony G. Sony G seems abit flatter. I was using the A7iii BTW. The weight is really good imo for it's size, but of course the Sony G is definitely easier to be carrying it around. Pairing it with the A7R5 now. I still lean towards the batis for the out of camera shots. But Sony gives me more room for post corrections. If I can pick one now. Which will I go for? Batis for me.
I love to use this lens with Sony cameras, but I prefer the rendering of the Zeiss Makro Planar 50mm F2...the pictures taken with the Batis 40mm f2 are a bit anonymous. Thanks for the great review!
I actually like high quality plastic lens hoods more, because they have a higher dampening effect than metal in case of an accidental drop. Metal lens hoods are aesthetically great on retro style lenses though, like the M mount Voigtländer.
I think a similar thing can be said for metal lens body. You wouldn't carry around expensive drinking glasses in metal. Why optical glass you very much don't want to move a millimeter if dropped.
I thought the Batis 40 automatically stopped down to f2.8 for close focus due to Zeiss’s firmware? There was lots on the net about it when it came out.
That's right, it does. It's actually common in close focus designs but the firmware problem was that the lens didn't report the aperture correctly - it reported F2 but it was actually F2.8 so exposure metadata was wrong. It confused people whose ISO was unnecessarily high. But by the time I got it in late 2021 the firmware was apparently updated to reflect accurate values.
Thank you very much Christopher. I still have questions about distortion. I have a Sony Alpha 7 IV and there is an option to turn on distortion correction. 1) Do you recommend ALWAYS turning this option ON - no matter what lens you have? I still have the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM2 and the Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 and the Sony 85mm f/1.8. I just want to make sure that there are no unsightly effects when you have distortion correction ON in the camera. I am not familiar with this technique. I don't know if it is good or bad. 2) If I have the lens distortion ON in the camera: Then do I even need to edit distortion in programs like Lightroom, Luminar Neo, etc.? 3) If I have the lens distortion turned ON in the camera: Does this function only work on JPEG or also on RAW photos? 4) Can the in-camera lens distortion then keep up with the lens distortion correction in programs like Lightroom, Luminar Neo etc.? Thanks in advance and best regards from Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
I've seen so many youtubers lusting and gushing about the batis lenses, but the images have never really wowed me and this testing confirms what my eyes have always seen. Maybe folks are just trying to justify the enormous cost they had to spend to get them? It seems like Zeiss hasn't really produced a frontrunner of a lens for E-mount, between these and the co-branded lenses they did with Sony (although those lenses are pretty old at this point).
Fantastic video. I love this lens and I use it so much for video/photography. It’s definitely my favorite street photography lens. It’s semi Marco capabilities is such a loved function I use all the time. I would love for G Master to create a 40mm f1.2 that also has Marco capabilities, that would be a dream lens for me.
While overpriced, I actually like the rendition of the lens in terms of its tonal expression. It's way too expensive for me. Voigtlander out competes them for sure. However, I have heard really good things about the zeiss 21mm f2.8 and that lens might actually be worth it's salt.
I think low distortion is really what the Zeiss Batis lenses are going for. Sharpness edge to edge at wide aperture is less critical to me... I rarely shoot at the widest apperture. My 25mm f2 is excellent (can be found used for half the price of new). But a bit bulky IMO. I like the compactness of the Sigma 24mm 3.5 better.
You really should have a look at the Batis 135 mm 2.8. It sounds boring, especially thinking of all the 135 1.8 around there. But it´s amazingly sharp and a perfect travel telephoto lens, since it´s not too heavy and it handels equally good as all other Batis lenses.
Same conclusions about Batis lenses. I have owned three, but I sold them all 25/40/135. They are excellent except for lack of focus hold button and I think they are better suited for video. I would recommend if you want one buy it used then you pay what it’s really worth.
The color rendered by this lens has been admired by many. Personally, I am not interested in it at all due to the lack of sharpness, especially considering that it's a standard focal length and yet it is so expensive and it isn't really compact either. I also don't like the lens closing down the aperture without the photographer's consent near MFD.
You can safely remove 'this lens'and '456pounds' and amazingly the statement still stands. Nothing beats Sigma 40mm F1.4 in my knowledge. It is the pinnacle of optical design in photography lenses. Only coastal optics 60mm APO is kind of ahead in certain scenarios.
Weird, I'd have expected a lens designed for mirrorless with such low distortion to have very sharp corners. It's still not always because of in-camera corrections!
Isn’t it a bit late to be reviewing the Zeiss Batis range of lenses, are they now not discontinued? Look how the second hand value of them has fallen considerably! They are good lenses for how much they can now be obtained for second hand!
You mean still $800+ to buy a “characteristic 3D image fantastic I don’t care it’s just good you’re testing it wrong it shouldn’t be tested” lens like that?
Has been my main lense for 4 years, reason any 50mm with bright aperture that convince me at the time, i haven't feel the "lack of contrast" at f2 but i have a tamron 28-75 v1 and i can't relate the diference from one to the other. My veredict, the Batis 40mm is overpriced as fuck, for that price don't deliver.
@@shang-hsienyang1284 Hasselblad and leica atleast offer something unique like medium format and very high quallity lenses. The Batis are made in Japan and very plasticky.
I have a batis 18 mill and always wanted to get the 40 mill because the quality of the image is just wow, and its light and nice. But recently i startet having focusing issues and with it beeing focus by wire you are unable to use it at all, about 50% of the shots are unusable now. repair is not possible by myself and if i send it in i could also buy a new used lens. Love the metal manual fouc zeiss lenses but with this series they seriously fucked up in my opinion...
@@mcrist139 sorry i meant if you put your batis on a tripod and set your body to MF and then select f8 (as opposed to f2) and take 8 similar shots of THE same scene, without moving your camera or tripod, are ALL these shots EXACTLY the same (quality, colour, focus etc..) ?? If not then you'd definitely be better off long term sending it to be repaired.
“We should be expecting sharp corners at this price “ common Chris… not everyone want sharp corners!? It’s a design choice. If you want sharp corners, get a sigma art or gm lens but don’t forget to bring your Sherpa to carry it
Interesting to compare it with cheap Nikon Z 40mm f2 in terms of image quality and bokeh. Edited: actually I found the older Christopher video about the Nikon 40mm, he said there that at f2 it's sharp in the center and less sharp and contrast in the corners, and the bokeh isn't bad also. So, the lenses sre quite comparable. Interesting.
@@keith5824There are a lot of copies in the UK secondhand for £600-£700. Still expensive I guess. And it looks like it was released in 2018 so not as old as I thought.
In comparison, the Samyang 45mm f/1.8: is only slightly longer in FL, BUT: is faster, is lighter, is smaller in size, offers similar sharpness, offers softer bokeh, is MUCH cheaper, focuses faster. I wouldn't bother with this overpriced Zeiss oddity.
@@hazard3020 Zeiss isn't known for constant quality of their lenses - check 24-70/4 horror stories. And weather sealing is way overrated - i have used lenses of various kinds in adverse weather and everything worked just fine. Including 85/1.8 Canon that drowned in the lake and next day I actually did a photoshoot with it :)
Zeiss are attaching a premium on their lenses based off of their name, when none of their latest offerings have inspired any more than native glass and other 3rd party lenses. I truly don't understand who is still buying these over their other Emount counterparts. Their lenses haven't been top tier in years.
I have to disagree, its not a very good looking lens. It's too basic to be beautiful. It's not offensive, but it's really nothing special. The fingerprint smudges also don't do it any favors.
Hello Christopher, Just checked out your review of the Nikon Z 50/1.8 s lens here th-cam.com/video/i-PqTvcS1r0/w-d-xo.html Seems Nikon for one thirds of a price offers a lens that is better than this in almost every respect except to focusing speed. But it was a camera issue I believe. Really cannot understand the point of Zeiss lenses.
Imho a disappointing lens. Only f2 and not even sharp in the corners with mediocre bokeh for that high price. I begin to understand why no new Zeiss lenses are released for Sony E mount.
I think this review shows why these standardised technical reviews don't tell you the whole story and can be a little misleading. I've had a lot of lenses in the 35mm to 45mm range on Sony E mount and the Zeiss Batis 40mm is still my favourite by some distance. The way it renders, especially the fall off between in focus and out of focus areas, it beautiful. Several times I've used this lens to do an entire event for clients and been really happy with the results. You can pick up an excellent used Batis 40 for around £500 these days, which makes it excellent value for money.
Indeed, I'm awaiting a used specimen which looks to be in good shape from a private seller with a good rep, from an auction with 1 bid - mine (400e). C Frost lists quite a lot of CA where I haven't seen much of that in other reviews, except bokeh highlights. I expect the rubber will attract pollen just like the Touits' does. Will be interesting to see if I like it more than the Sony 35/1,8 .
For that price, you can buy a Z5 and their 40mm f2 and get pretty much comparable performance but with a camera included ;-)
@@RealRaynedance The Z5 is a full frame camera so it's 40mm FOV, not 60mm FOV.
@@victorlim5077 BALLS. Sorry. I'm very sleepy and missed that there was no 0 there.
@@victorlim5077 the batis is also fullframe, unless you mean the nikon lens is apsc
I have a strange feeling that Zeiss just remade some of their old vintage lenses in a new AF case
If it ain’t broke…
These were literally designed by Tamron as their first E-mount lenses. Tamron branded lenses are now half the price and twice as good.
@@evrythingis1 agree
I have actually owned this lens. It was really the only 40mm e-mount lens at the time, and I wanted one. Truth be told, I have rarely be so disapointet.
Happened the same to me.
What exactly is the disappointment?
@@jijdomOh it is so long ago I can hardly remember. Most certainly my expectation were too unreasonably high. I do recall the vignetting being a good deal more pronounced than expected, and it was rather large too. I knew quite a lot less about such thing then than I do now and i may well be I was unreasonable, but never the less, it was a disappointment, not least considering the price.
Well I love mine so I hope it performs well! Got mine second hand for £500. I'd never pay the full retail price.
Yep enoy it mate all everybody talks about is sharpness and this lens had plenty of it the rendering and colours are superior to any of sonys offerings including all aftermarket 35's and 50's.
Lens has a pretty specific use case. Not too wide, fast, close focus distance. It's a pretty spectacular lens for a very specific, low light type of home video. Can recommend.
An example of how far mirrorless lens design has come over the past 5 years; you can now get sharper, faster, lighter, smaller, less expensive lenses with better bokeh
This lens wasn't even that well regarded when it first came out due to the price. There were already mirrorless lenses better than this and many more DSLR lenses. Sony's own 35 f/2.8 from 2013 is just as sharp and they released a 35 f/1.8 in 2018 that is better. Lens design hasn't changed much either so not really sure what you are talking about, of course you can get cheaper, better lenses than this - this lens has obscene "zeiss tax" slapped on it. Just like when it came out.
stunning lens. I have it. If I could only bring 1 lens, I would definitely choose this one. For portraits, group photos, details, almost everything.
Same here. I've been a working photographer for 25 years and this is my favourite ever lens. I've done whole day events using just this lens. There's a lovely look for colours and fall off, it stands out from the crowd in a age when so many lenses are more or less technically perfect but just look so clinical and boring.
Could the softness on the APS corners be due more to the field curvature of the lens? After all, you're not getting the true corners of the image circle, but rather something in the middle of the field.
Thank you Chris.
I have been following you since the Samyang 800mm F8 Mirror lens. I bought it then discovered your video telling me how "good" it was. I still have it but, strangely enough, I never use it.
I only shoot Nikon so I can't pretend to watch all of your videos but thank you for what you do.
My favorite camera lens reviewer. What took you so long to review this bad boy!
Hi, Chris. How would you compare the IQ of this lens to the Sony F2.5 40mm? I know that you liked the Sony. Zeiss does have those wonderful coatings that, to me, seem to make the images “pop” ever so much more. Did you notice that here? Is there any noticeable advantage in the image rendering of the Zeiss over the Sony? Thank you./Warren
I had the Batis 40mm for a few years but sold it when I got the Sony 2.5 40mm. I used them on the A7r3. Unless you absolutely need f/2.0 there is not much that speaks for the Batis. It is big, and a bit heavy, and has not got an aperture ring. I now shoot with the Sony 40mm on my A7r5 and it is an excellent lens in every respect. That it is 2.5 you know when you buy it, so that should not disappoint you. On the contrary, I was very pleased with the sharpness at full aperture. (I have also sold my Batis 25 and 135mm, but I keep my 85mm.)
One of my first premium primes I own since I got into the Sony systems. This lens actually got me to love 40mm focal length. The CF, build, f2? was great at that time. Till came the Sony 40mm f2.5G. I took a side by side image. The batis colours really seems to pop more than the Sony G. Sony G seems abit flatter. I was using the A7iii BTW.
The weight is really good imo for it's size, but of course the Sony G is definitely easier to be carrying it around.
Pairing it with the A7R5 now. I still lean towards the batis for the out of camera shots. But Sony gives me more room for post corrections.
If I can pick one now. Which will I go for? Batis for me.
I love to use this lens with Sony cameras, but I prefer the rendering of the Zeiss Makro Planar 50mm F2...the pictures taken with the Batis 40mm f2 are a bit anonymous.
Thanks for the great review!
On your close-up (at 5:40), when you go from f2 to f2.8 the color cast changes a bit. Was that just your ambient lighting, or is that the lens??
Just got mine today, it’s super sharp and the colors really pop.
can you do a review of sony RX mark II with here carle ziss 35mm please
I actually like high quality plastic lens hoods more, because they have a higher dampening effect than metal in case of an accidental drop. Metal lens hoods are aesthetically great on retro style lenses though, like the M mount Voigtländer.
I think a similar thing can be said for metal lens body. You wouldn't carry around expensive drinking glasses in metal. Why optical glass you very much don't want to move a millimeter if dropped.
I thought the Batis 40 automatically stopped down to f2.8 for close focus due to Zeiss’s firmware? There was lots on the net about it when it came out.
That's right, it does. It's actually common in close focus designs but the firmware problem was that the lens didn't report the aperture correctly - it reported F2 but it was actually F2.8 so exposure metadata was wrong. It confused people whose ISO was unnecessarily high. But by the time I got it in late 2021 the firmware was apparently updated to reflect accurate values.
That focus breathing almost made this lens a 35mm-50mm f2 (but zoom ring and focus ring is coupled).
Thank you very much Christopher. I still have questions about distortion. I have a Sony Alpha 7 IV and there is an option to turn on distortion correction.
1) Do you recommend ALWAYS turning this option ON - no matter what lens you have? I still have the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM2 and the Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 and the Sony 85mm f/1.8. I just want to make sure that there are no unsightly effects when you have distortion correction ON in the camera. I am not familiar with this technique. I don't know if it is good or bad.
2) If I have the lens distortion ON in the camera: Then do I even need to edit distortion in programs like Lightroom, Luminar Neo, etc.?
3) If I have the lens distortion turned ON in the camera: Does this function only work on JPEG or also on RAW photos?
4) Can the in-camera lens distortion then keep up with the lens distortion correction in programs like Lightroom, Luminar Neo etc.?
Thanks in advance and best regards from Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Compared to the Canon EF 40 2.8 stm to me the price of the Zeiss appears questionable.
compared to the Sony E mounted Samyang 45mm..... same
i bought this lens since it released, it had two problems, changing aperature when close focus(f2-f2.8.) and bad AF accuracy.
I've seen so many youtubers lusting and gushing about the batis lenses, but the images have never really wowed me and this testing confirms what my eyes have always seen. Maybe folks are just trying to justify the enormous cost they had to spend to get them? It seems like Zeiss hasn't really produced a frontrunner of a lens for E-mount, between these and the co-branded lenses they did with Sony (although those lenses are pretty old at this point).
How much longer will Zeiss be able to trade on a name?
Fantastic video. I love this lens and I use it so much for video/photography. It’s definitely my favorite street photography lens. It’s semi Marco capabilities is such a loved function I use all the time. I would love for G Master to create a 40mm f1.2 that also has Marco capabilities, that would be a dream lens for me.
Please can you test the Batis 135mm f2.8
I hope that Zeiss will upgrade the Batis series for higher resolution Cameras and that Zeiss will ditch the rubber.
While overpriced, I actually like the rendition of the lens in terms of its tonal expression. It's way too expensive for me. Voigtlander out competes them for sure. However, I have heard really good things about the zeiss 21mm f2.8 and that lens might actually be worth it's salt.
I think low distortion is really what the Zeiss Batis lenses are going for. Sharpness edge to edge at wide aperture is less critical to me... I rarely shoot at the widest apperture. My 25mm f2 is excellent (can be found used for half the price of new). But a bit bulky IMO. I like the compactness of the Sigma 24mm 3.5 better.
You really should have a look at the Batis 135 mm 2.8. It sounds boring, especially thinking of all the 135 1.8 around there. But it´s amazingly sharp and a perfect travel telephoto lens, since it´s not too heavy and it handels equally good as all other Batis lenses.
lots of competition at 135mm !
Thanks for your efforts
Respect🎉
I have this lens and I love it.
Same conclusions about Batis lenses. I have owned three, but I sold them all 25/40/135. They are excellent except for lack of focus hold button and I think they are better suited for video. I would recommend if you want one buy it used then you pay what it’s really worth.
Scotch tape works wonders on rubber rings. Cleans it to like new in seconds. Try it.
That's a great tip. Works like a charm.
go with that SIGMA 40MM 1.4 best Lens ever, absolute underestimated
one outstanding feature of this lens seems to be colour rendering, colours look natural and really pop.
Thanks very much for this.
All the Batis lenses gave been done on the channel except the 135mm? 🤔 Need to complete the series? 🙏
Yea, there are a LOT of lenses that look damned good at f/4.
This lens is at the top of my list.
Nice video, as always!
Good lens.maybe one for consideration for my sony.
A very sharp and flat non distorting lens!
Howdy Chris!
THANK YOU.
The color rendered by this lens has been admired by many. Personally, I am not interested in it at all due to the lack of sharpness, especially considering that it's a standard focal length and yet it is so expensive and it isn't really compact either. I also don't like the lens closing down the aperture without the photographer's consent near MFD.
Wooow thank you ❤❤❤
I don't see how this lens would beat my 456€ Sigma ART 40mm f1.4 😂
If you throw these two lenses at each other, the Sigma would literally crush this lens.
You can safely remove 'this lens'and '456pounds' and amazingly the statement still stands. Nothing beats Sigma 40mm F1.4 in my knowledge. It is the pinnacle of optical design in photography lenses. Only coastal optics 60mm APO is kind of ahead in certain scenarios.
Weird, I'd have expected a lens designed for mirrorless with such low distortion to have very sharp corners. It's still not always because of in-camera corrections!
hardly ANY lens has sharp corners..
Great review as always, Christopher. I wonder if you might also at some point in the future review Zeiss's 18mm f2.8? keep it up :)
Thanks for the review, it’s really not comparable to the lenses of modern technology such as Sony GM primary lens, Pricing is unreasonably high
Isn’t it a bit late to be reviewing the Zeiss Batis range of lenses, are they now not discontinued? Look how the second hand value of them has fallen considerably! They are good lenses for how much they can now be obtained for second hand!
You mean still $800+ to buy a “characteristic 3D image fantastic I don’t care it’s just good you’re testing it wrong it shouldn’t be tested” lens like that?
no they are not discontinued !
Four times the price of the sharper Nikon z 40 f2
Has been my main lense for 4 years, reason any 50mm with bright aperture that convince me at the time, i haven't feel the "lack of contrast" at f2 but i have a tamron 28-75 v1 and i can't relate the diference from one to the other.
My veredict, the Batis 40mm is overpriced as fuck, for that price don't deliver.
I love F2 lenses
Pretty much all Batis are really overpriced :/
Why complaining?
@@oliverlison Because they perform below their price point?
Pretty much all European lenses are overpriced. (Hasselblad, Leica, Zeiss)
@@shang-hsienyang1284 Hasselblad and leica atleast offer something unique like medium format and very high quallity lenses. The Batis are made in Japan and very plasticky.
Cosina makes gorgeous rendering Voigtländer lenses. Wonder why Zeiss didn't just ODM their lenses to Cosina?
In practice this lens is fantastic. Not worth $1300, but they can be had for half that in fantastic condition.
I feel that only reason buying that lens would be showing it off
I have a batis 18 mill and always wanted to get the 40 mill because the quality of the image is just wow, and its light and nice. But recently i startet having focusing issues and with it beeing focus by wire you are unable to use it at all, about 50% of the shots are unusable now. repair is not possible by myself and if i send it in i could also buy a new used lens. Love the metal manual fouc zeiss lenses but with this series they seriously fucked up in my opinion...
have you tried MF focus at infinity and set to f8 ?
@@hazard3020 I dont have a 800,- zeiss lens for something like this
@@mcrist139 sorry i meant if you put your batis on a tripod and set your body to MF and then select f8 (as opposed to f2) and take 8 similar shots of THE same scene, without moving your camera or tripod, are ALL these shots EXACTLY the same (quality, colour, focus etc..) ?? If not then you'd definitely be better off long term sending it to be repaired.
“We should be expecting sharp corners at this price “ common Chris… not everyone want sharp corners!? It’s a design choice. If you want sharp corners, get a sigma art or gm lens but don’t forget to bring your Sherpa to carry it
Such a great lens, one of my favorites!
I don’t see any reason to make that lens. Especially sigma and tamron 35 1.4 perform way better and possibly cheaper too
since 35gm is around the same pricerange, it only has historical value now
Interesting to compare it with cheap Nikon Z 40mm f2 in terms of image quality and bokeh.
Edited: actually I found the older Christopher video about the Nikon 40mm, he said there that at f2 it's sharp in the center and less sharp and contrast in the corners, and the bokeh isn't bad also. So, the lenses sre quite comparable. Interesting.
Mine fell and lost its focus
Isn't this lens really old? Surely no one is buying it at full price anymore?
how much it is now?
@@keith5824There are a lot of copies in the UK secondhand for £600-£700.
Still expensive I guess. And it looks like it was released in 2018 so not as old as I thought.
That lens shouldn't cost over €400
But then you couldn't show off when you own one and claim all its weakness are "character".
You're wrong. This lens doesn't breathe. It's a 40-50mm lens.
what a fingerprint collector
In comparison, the Samyang 45mm f/1.8: is only slightly longer in FL, BUT: is faster, is lighter, is smaller in size, offers similar sharpness, offers softer bokeh, is MUCH cheaper, focuses faster. I wouldn't bother with this overpriced Zeiss oddity.
no weather protection. variability of quality.
@@hazard3020 Zeiss isn't known for constant quality of their lenses - check 24-70/4 horror stories. And weather sealing is way overrated - i have used lenses of various kinds in adverse weather and everything worked just fine. Including 85/1.8 Canon that drowned in the lake and next day I actually did a photoshoot with it :)
Zeiss are attaching a premium on their lenses based off of their name, when none of their latest offerings have inspired any more than native glass and other 3rd party lenses. I truly don't understand who is still buying these over their other Emount counterparts. Their lenses haven't been top tier in years.
I find this lens to be kind of bland and ugly. Great optics but personally never liked the look of these newer style Zeiss lenses.
I prefer the Sony 40mm f/2.5 for its compactness. I can't stand that OLED focus display, totally useless to me...
Zeiss stubbornly keep their lenses overpriced even though they have been overtaken in event quality by the likes of Sigma and Tamron.
I have to disagree, its not a very good looking lens. It's too basic to be beautiful. It's not offensive, but it's really nothing special. The fingerprint smudges also don't do it any favors.
I am a fan of the lenses, own the 85, but agree they look a little silly, and every little ding shows up. It’s not tough to get over though :)
I can't understand why anyone would buy a Zeiss lens... The price-performance ratio is just laughable at this point.
Why are you unable to reseach current prices of the highstreet? No one is interested in MRSP. The lens can be found with a 20 - 25% discount.
Right, so the lens must be shining at $1000, as that’s 20% off
Lol the nikor 40 f2 250 dollar lens is arguably better especially for the price except for build quality this is way over priced
Hello Christopher,
Just checked out your review of the Nikon Z 50/1.8 s lens here th-cam.com/video/i-PqTvcS1r0/w-d-xo.html
Seems Nikon for one thirds of a price offers a lens that is better than this in almost every respect except to focusing speed. But it was a camera issue I believe.
Really cannot understand the point of Zeiss lenses.
Nikon Z 40mm f/2 is one third of the price of Nikon 50mm f/1.8 and performs almost the same as this lens.
Imho a disappointing lens. Only f2 and not even sharp in the corners with mediocre bokeh for that high price. I begin to understand why no new Zeiss lenses are released for Sony E mount.
er LOTS of lenses are not sharp in the corners at f2 !!!!!
@@hazard3020 But at half the price.