First Published December 2009

OVERVIEW

In September 2008 Zeiss announced the addition of the ZE mount for the Canon EOS SLR/dSLR family. Initially only two lenses were available in the new ZE mount - the 50mm F1.4 Planar and 85mm F1.4 Planar. Historically, the 50mm & 85mm lenses have been regarded as mid-level performers. After trying many of the Contax lenses along with several Zeiss ZF’s, the four lenses I have been waiting for in the ZE mount are:  18/3.5 Distagon, 28/2 Distagon, 50mm F2 Makro-Planar and 100mm F2 Makro-Planar. Zeiss announced the 28/2 ZE in October 2009 and re-announced the 18/3.5 ZE.

For Canon owners the significant differences in the Zeiss ZE mount are:  automatic aperture operation, complete EXIF data, focus confirmation and no need for adapters. Using a Zeiss ZE is like using any other Canon manual focus EF lens - aperture is set via the control dials on the camera body, EXIF data shows the lens selected and exposure information - including the aperture selected, focus confirmation beeps and so on. The Zeiss ZE’s work on all EF and EF-S dSLR bodies.

A couple years ago I wrote brief Contax 28mm F2 Distagon review. The Zeiss 28mm F2 Distagon ZE is essentially an evolution of the original Contax lens. The two hallmark features of the 28mm F2 Distagon are its F2 aperture and the floating element design. In the 28/2 ZE press release, Zeiss focuses mostly on the F2 aperture, “From landscape photography at dawn to interior shots with weak lighting and close-up portraits, the Distagon T* 2/28 ZE offers photographers plenty of room for creativity when a tripod is not used.”

BUILD QUALITY

After spending a year shooting with the Leica M8, it is easy to grow accustom to Leica’s build quality. Leica lenses are known for tight tolerances, smooth focus action, lightly dampened focus rings and high grade materials. In comparison, the typical Canon lens lacks the tactile joy that a Leica lens offers. I am happy to write that the Zeiss 28/2 ZE build quality feels as a good Leica lens.

The Zeiss 28/2 ZE is not a light lens. It has a dense, substantial feel to it. It balances nicely on the 1Ds Mark III and feels very good as a walk-around lens. The focus ring turns smoothly with the wonderful dampened feel that we often associate with classic manual focus lens. Looking through the front element reveals of series of concentric circles created by the 10 elements; from a purely mechanical engineering standpoint, it is a lovely looking design. The body barrel construction is taught with no hints of wobble or flex. It is hard to imagine anybody being upset with the build quality.

On the Zeiss ZF lenses the aperture ring is quite close to the camera body, and somewhat recessed in a valley. In my experience with the Zeiss 100/2 ZF and 50/2 ZF, I found the aperture ring placement awkward - making aperture changes difficult. Thus, I welcome the 100% electronically integrated approach on the Zeiss ZE versions. There is a price to pay for electronic aperture control; compared to the ZF model, the ZE version gains 60 grams (about ~10% heavier) and have a slightly larger barrel diameter.

The silver ring at the front of the lens is a design aesthetic and I could take it or leave it. Whether the ring will look nice and shiny after a couple years of attaching and detaching the lens hood is unknown at this time. A metal lens hood is included. To attach the hood, it rotates into place and locks into position with metal spring clips. It works well enough, but I been feeling a little wild and crazy lately and have been shooting sans hood! I have not noticed any ill-affect such as flare or reflections caused by the silver ring.

The aperture and focus distance markings are engraved, so they should age well. The knurling on the focus ring is very fine. It is likely that finger oil and dust will accumulate in the ridges, so wiping down the lens with micro fiber lens cloth is good preventive maintenance. The lens does not come with a pouch or lens case. Considering is $1000+ US price tag, a tasteful pouch would be nice.