I built a set of Contax Zeiss primes in f2.8 due to how affordable they are compared to their faster bros. I am extremely impressed. My copy of the Sonnar 85mm 2.8 T* was made in West Germany, and I think I purchased it on a Contax 139 Quartz body. The color rendition is incredible, it has a “natural” sharpness, and isn’t too contrasty (see color checker in the photos below, which is in classic chrome and jpeg, even more contrasty than raw). The bokeh is pleasing and interesting. The only downside for me is the minimum focus distance being 24in, having to stay 2ft from anything to be able to shoot it can be limiting. However, I am in love with all of my CY lenses, except for the 50mm 1.7, which looks great but is plastic trash. I shot these photos on a fuji xt3 in classic chrome and f2.8.
A GREAT LENS FOR A GOOD DEAL- CY ZEISS 25 2.8
The Contax Zeiss Distagon 25mm T* f2.8 lens is, in my opinion, the humble little brother of the infamous 28mm f2. This lens is solid. I love the color rendition on skin tones. There is a more muted sharpness, which pairs well with 1/8 or sometimes 1/4 black magic or black promist for more of a period piece look. Bare, these lenses don’t have too much ghosting or halo flaring like other vintage lenses. the Zeiss T* multi coating is magic. I know there is a huge desire for certain models, and you will hear MMJ or AEG or AEJ. I was way more into that when I built my set, but I am realizing more with vintage lenses, a lot depends on the lens you have in your hand. You can narrow down to the best models and serial numbers, but in the end, there are cherries and there are lemons. My CY Zeiss 135 2.8 is a lemon… Kinda. It has a strange chromatic aberration in the center of the lens. I may need to have it serviced and it will be fine, but you don’t know that until you purchase sometimes. Thats the risk with lens obsessions, you end up going through a bunch of duds. Or, you do what I did and passed up on a ton of Canon FD SSC in my past, and now it’s gold. Anyway, I am glad I took the risk on this lens, the 25 2.8 is a great addition to the kit.
LENS OF THE MONTH AWARD- NIKKOR UD 20MM F 3.5
NIKKOR UD 20MM F 3.5.
My choice for MVP this month is the Nikkor UD 20mm. This vintage wide angle prime is full of character and dimension. Introduced in 1967, it was the widest non-fisheye lens ever made by Nikon. For handheld, this lens is stable but still alive. The focus throw is just right for both pulling from the barrel and follow focus. The contrast is medium, but loses a lot with a direct hit from a source due to crazy lens flares, veiling flares, and ghosting. The Field Curvature (focus falloff) is pleasant, the edges of frame are usable with a touch of distortion. Coma is there, Chromatic Abberation is there. Vignetting is mild, which is big for me. Overall, this is a really fun lens, and this lens and the CY Zeiss 25/35mm live on my Fuji xt3 pretty much all the time.
