Carl Zeiss for Contax/Yashica

[robin0112358]

Carl Zeiss lenses for the Contax/Yashica mount were all manual focus with aperture ring marked in single stops. They all had the T* coating. Expensive on issue, they've maintained their value, being of special interest to those desiring a certain subtle vintage look that is nonetheless clean and sharp. Here's the line-up.

Primes
Distagon T* 15mm f/3.5
F-Distagon T* 16mm f/2.8
Distagon T* 18mm f/4
Distagon T* 21mm f/2.8
Distagon T* 25mm f/2.8
Distagon T* 28mm f/2
Distagon T* 28mm f/2.8
Distagon T* 35mm f/1.4
Distagon T* 35mm f/2.8
PC-Distagon T* 35mm f/2.8
Tessar T* 45mm f/2.8
Planar T* 50mm f/1.4
Planar T* 50mm f/1.7
Planar T* 55mm f/1.2
Makro-Planar T* 60mm f/2.8
Makro-Planar T* 60mm C f/2.8
Planar T* 85mm f/1.2
Planar T* 85mm f/1.4
Sonnar T* 85mm f/2.8
Planar T* 100mm f/2.0
Makro-Planar T* 100mm f/2.8
Sonnar T* 100mm f/3.5
Planar T* 135mm f/2.0
Sonnar T* 135mm f/2.8
Sonnar T* 180mm f/2.8
Aposonnar T* 200mm f/2
Tele-Tessar T* 200mm f/3.5
Tele-Tessar T* 200mm f/4
Tele-Apotessar T* 300mm f/2.8
Tele-Tessar T* 300mm f/4
Mirotar T* 500mm f/4.5
Mirotar T* 500mm f/8
Mirotar T* 1000mm f/5.6

Zooms
Vario-Sonnar T* 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5
Vario-Sonnar T* 28-85mm f/3.3-4.0
Vario-Sonnar T* 35-70mm f/3.4
Vario-Sonnar T* 35-135mm f/3.3-4.5
Vario-Sonnar T* 40-80mm f/3.5
Vario-Sonnar T* 70-210mm f/3.5
Vario-Sonnar T* 80-200mm f/4
Vario-Sonnar T* 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6

I have an appreciation article and spreadsheet of lenses over on my blog.

Other Carl Zeiss lines follow. All are full-frame coverage and manual focus unless otherwise noted.

• Carl Zeiss for Contax G auto-focus cameras
• Carl Zeiss for Contax 645 medium format
• Carl Zeiss Jena, made in East Germany for M42, Exakta, and Praktina
• Zeiss SLR lenses marked ZK (Pentax), ZS (M42), ZE (Canon), ZF (Nikon), and ZF.2 (Nikon coupled). These are named Milvus, Otus, and Classic.
• Zeiss Batis (auto-focus) for Sony E-mount
• Zeiss Loxia for Sony E-mount
• Zeiss Tuit (APS-C, auto-focus) for Sony E-mount and Fujifilm X-mount
• Zeiss ZM for Leica M-mount

This thread is not for these lens lines, but feel free to add another!

 

[robin0112358]

Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* 85mm f/2.8

This lens is a bargain compared to the Planar T* 85mm f/1.4 or the unobtanium Planar T* 85mm f/1.2 60th Anniversary Edition. You can find one between €300 and €400 with the AE (made in Germany) earlier version being cheaper. At only 61mm long and 230g it is almost the same size as a nifty fifty. The photos here demonstrate that it looks just fine wide open, though the image does improve noticeably on stopping down to F4. It has no appreciable chromatic aberration and is low distortion.

The following shots were taken with the Lumix S5. Danger Cat was taken at f/2.8 with post-processing (crop and mono).

This table setting was also wide open but SOOC to demonstrate colours.

Finally some driftwood to show the detail available wide open, again with no processing except standard RAW development. No cropping so you can see the edges. Remarkably little vignetting.

I consider the Sonnar 85mm to be an essential part of any Contax Zeiss set. Longer review on my blog.

 

[Travis Butler]

How do you like the colors on your 85 T* Sonnar?

I admit, while they were quality lenses, the Contax/Zeiss lenses I’ve owned - the 45/2.8 and 35-70 - kinda underwhelmed me. I’ve mentioned the color balance issues I had with the 45 on the vintage lens thread. The 35-70 had quality IQ… but with one or two exceptions, I don’t think the pics I got with it were any better than with my favorite Minolta MD 35-70 3.5 Macro. And the ergonomics were a problem; it was fairly large/heavy for a 35-70, and my copy had problems with the zoom. (Zoom creep combined with several spots in the zoom range where it tended to ‘stick’.)

 

[robin0112358]

How do you like the colors on your 85 T* Sonnar?

I admit, while they were quality lenses, the Contax/Zeiss lenses I’ve owned - the 45/2.8 and 35-70 - kinda underwhelmed me. I’ve mentioned the color balance issues I had with the 45 on the vintage lens thread. The 35-70 had quality IQ… but with one or two exceptions, I don’t think the pics I got with it were any better than with my favorite Minolta MD 35-70 3.5 Macro. And the ergonomics were a problem; it was fairly large/heavy for a 35-70, and my copy had problems with the zoom. (Zoom creep combined with several spots in the zoom range where it tended to ‘stick’.)

Not every lens in the Contax Zeiss line is made equal, especially as these were produced over a 25 year period.

The 45mm is considered the least good prime in the entire range, with IQ below par. I have no interest in zoom, but the 35-70mm gets good reviews. Not sure I could handle the push-pull design, which tends to suck in dust over time. Of course with all vintage lenses there are many "bad" copies, or rather samples that could do with a CLA from a knowledgeable tech.

Since I don't shoot film, colour is my least important criterion. But the Sonnar 85mm does a great job. This is aided by the Lumix S5 which has some very natural colours (struggling a bit with green). I don't make any colour corrections, unless for effect. Decide for yourself from the shots above. I provided the flowers for some bolder hues and the driftwood for the tonal subtlety.

 

[robin0112358]

My standard models feel left out of this thread. Both taken with the Sonnar 85mm wide open. My usual minor crop and post-processing.

Rin-Rin

Schweppes

I should mention that full-sized images are available on Flickr.

 

[robin0112358]

Next up I will demonstrate the Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm f/1.4. Again, the shots are ASOOC (almost straight out of camera) using my standard adjustments in Affinity Photo and perhaps cropping. These are all "grab shots" and not anything special. I am not harvesting my "best of" catalogue here, so I can be more honest about the true character of the lenses.

St. John's Wort @ F2

When it comes to the Planar 50/1.4 I honestly can't see much to distinguish it from other nifty fifties. At F2 it shoots very cleanly, with noticeable improvement from the wide-open vignetting. The bokeh is lovely. Colour rendering on the Lumix S5 is superb, to my eyes. That's something all the Zeiss glass shares.

Similarly, the handling on the Contax Carl Zeiss line is absolutely brilliant. One of the reasons I am a Zeiss fan is that the aperture ring in single stops glides from one setting to another, making it trivial to stop down without my eye leaving the viewfinder.

At F5.6 images have more contrast and almost zero vignette.

Abbey River @ F5.6

The lens is compact at 41mm long and 290g. You might be tempted to get the pancake Tessar T* 45mm f/2.8 but the IQ can't be compared. By reputation the Tessar has the worst rendering in the Zeiss line. The other alternative is the Planar T* 50mm f/1.7 which is slightly smaller (36mm, 195g). But the close focus distance is 60cm whereas the F1.4 version goes to 45cm. That's important for how I enjoy shooting, especially when it comes to flowers. So, even though I am unlikely to shoot with a wider aperture than F2, I went for the faster lens.

ginger tabby @ F2

The Sonnar 85/2.8 and Planar 50/1.7 share a 55mm filter thread, which is handy. Ditto for the Distagon 28/2, Distagon 28/2.8, Makro-Planar 60/2.8, each of which I will add to this thread in time.

But I am excited to see what others have done with Zeiss lenses on Lumix cameras!