Always looking for the best equipment for Landscape & Fine Art photography, in my recent D800E VS SD1 MERRILL PART II: THE WIDE ANGLE BATTLE article I compared the classic, legendary Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S on the Nikon D800E against the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 HSM on the Sigma SD1 Merrill. I come to the conclusion that if you intend to take full advantage of the Nikon D800E's high resolution, then the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S isn't up to the task; this camera & lens combination offered results comparable (minus lens speed, of course) with those obtainable with the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 HSM on the SD1 Merrill, a smaller & lighter kit costing far less. Since for my FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY business I have to print very big, while the SD1 Merrill's files are good enough if you prepare them for print carefully, the Nikon D800E's 36 Mp and its file quality are something I am not ready to give up just yet - so I decided to keep looking for that elusive perfect super-wide angle lens that seems so difficult to find: enter the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 Distagon T* ZF.2.
UPDATED DEC. 22, 2013: distortion-corrected sharpness tests added!
First of all, why going for the Zeiss 18mm rather than the Zeiss 15mm f/2.8 ZF.2 or the Zeiss 21mm f/2.8 ZF.2
instead, both of which enjoy a somehow better reputation? I thought about trying both, but filtering the Zeiss 15mm f/2.8 is at least as a pain as filtering the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S, and I want to be able to use filter in the easiest possible way; as far as the Zeiss 21mm, while easy to use with filters, it isn't wide enough for my need. So, that left me with the 18mm.
BUILT & OPERATION
Built. Built is simply first class on this lens. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is built like a tank and perfectly assembled. The lens is not particularly big, except for its unusually large front: since the lens' front element is much smaller than the lens barrel's outer diameter, I can only assume Zeiss decided to keep it so large in order to avoid vignetting (especially when using a filter). Despite its relatively small size, the lens is quite heavy at 470 gr (16.5 oz), thanks to its all-metal construction. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's filter ring is metal, which should guarantee it a long life span in use; filter size is a huge 82mm, which is larger than the 77mm generally used by pro lenses. If you use a Lee system like I do, I'd recommend the use of a WA adaptor; if you use regular filters, you'll have to add an extra set for this lens, and not a cheap one at that. The lens comes with a black-lined, all-metal lens hood, which smoothly slides and clicks into place. While some people (with some good reasons) prefer plastic lens hoods, Zeiss included a beautifully made lens hood with the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5: kudos for that. The only hiccup in the lens built is the front lens cap: it is a flimsy affair, it doesn't stay firmly in place and - what is worst - mine broke down during the first week of (very mild) use (!). I bought an original Zeiss replacement cap to include in the box for (eventual) resale, and a third-party one to use day-in day-out. As it turns out, the off-brand one is way better made than Zeiss' own: shame.
Operation. In short, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is a joy to use. The focus ring is smooth but firm and easy to operate; of course, this is an internal focus lens so nothing moves when you focus, which is great for filter users like myself. The aperture ring, should you decide to use it, has very positive clicks and is also very easy to operate. With my Nikon D800E and Nikon D3x, of course, I just set it to f/22 and used the control wheel on my camera body (as I would with any other modern Nikon camera).
Auto-focus lenses generally either don't have a depth of field (DOF) scale or have a ridiculously ineffective excuse for one. While I would love to see a real DOF scale on any serious prime lens no matter if they are auto-focus or not, this is particularly important on a manual-focus only lens. Luckily, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 has a great DOF scale, including an infrared mark. Well done.
LENS PERFORMANCE
While all this is great, what really counts in the end is how a lens performs, both in general and compared to its competitors. In this user review you'll see the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 compared with the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S, which is Nikon's best alternative in this focal length, it's one of Nikon's legendary lenses and it's considered to be one of the best WA zoom ever made. All files have been processed with the exact same settings with Nikon Capture NX2 and Photoshop CS6.
Since Blogger may have some problems in displaying the test images in full size on some screens, I prepared a zip file containing all the images of the test for you to be able to examine them on your screen at your leisure: CLICK HERE to download!
Let's analyse image quality with the help of my usual, uninspiring test scene:
(in RED the areas used in the crops below).
VIGNETTING / COLOURS
Vignetting. It is quite normal for wide-angle lenses to show some vignetting, especially wide-open and thereabouts, and the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is no exception. On the contrary, it shows a pretty serious amount of vignetting wide-open, around a couple of stops, vignetting that actually never goes away completely; faint traces of it are still present at f/11. While I often like to use vignette for expressive purposes, I also like to decide for myself whether to add it in or not; with the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5, the lens is making this decision for you. Here you can see the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's vignetting sequence, compared with the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S:
Colours. As you can see, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 renders the test scene a little cooler than the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S. Please note that I used custom WB clicking on the exact spot in both the Zeiss and the Nikkor images and that all other image parameters are exactly the same, you should take into account that the two series have been taken at very different times, which could have influence the result. I only mentioned colour rendition because what I see here is consistent with the tradition than wants Zeiss glass to render colours slightly cooler than Nikon.
SHARPNESS
Centre sample. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is already impressively sharp in the centre of the frame at f/3.5, and stays that way all over the aperture range:
Bottom sample. You can see how the lens already starts off very good, sharpening up nicely through the aperture range. Best aperture is f/8, image quality holds up at f/11 and start degrading due to diffraction at f/16:
Right side sample. Here too image quality is already pretty good wide open, and by f/5.6 is already very very good. Best aperture is again f/8 to f/11, loosing to diffraction after that:
Corner sample. The far corners aren't particularly sharp until you reach f/8 and are at their best at f/11; however, they never get as crisp as the rest of the frame:
Overall, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 puts off a great show as far as sharpness goes; the lens performs very well wide open, and is almost perfect all over the frame between f/8 and f/11. Below you find the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S's results, which are definitely very disappointing in comparison: the lens clearly suffers paired with the Nikon D800E's high resolution sensor:
DISTORTION
While the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S only shows a bit of barrel distortion at 18mm, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 shows a lot of complex distortion, unfortunately not very simple to correct: for best results, you'll have to use a lens profile, and apply some more additional corrections according to your shooting distance. Luckily Adobe PS CS6 has a good lens profile for this lens, which is a very good starting point to neutralise the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's distortion. Below you'll find an uncorrected and a corrected version of the same image:
Of course, lens correction will rob you of some of your field of view. As far as sharpness goes, I couldn't detect any perceivable loss after applying Photoshop's lens profile:
CA & FRINGING
The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 shows good contrast even when shot against the light, and just a bit of fringing wide-open that goes away completely at about f/8, a very good result for such a wide angle lens.
Again, since Blogger may have some problems in displaying the test images in full size on some screens, I prepared a zip file containing all the images of the test for you to be able to examine them on your screen at your leisure: CLICK HERE to download!
CONCLUSIONS / RECOMMENDATIONS
If you use a full-frame camera and you mainly shoot Landscape & Fine Art like I do, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 can be a very appealing proposition. It's very compact, it takes very little room in your bag and it's built like a tank; it's impressively sharp in the center and on a large portion of the frame all over the aperture range, showing very good micro-contrast as well for such a wide-angle; it draws with plenty of character; it's very good used against the light, it's contrasty and behaves nicely in respect of chromatic aberrations; you can easily use filters with it. On the other hand, it gets critically sharp in the corners only when stopped down quite a bit; it shows a hefty amount of vignetting that never goes completely away even when stopped all the way down; it has quite a bit of complex distortion, that requires some acrobatics in post-processing in order to get rid of. So, it all boils down to what your intended use for it will be. While its distortion would definitely not make it my first choice for Architecture, or even for Landscape when you have straight lines in the frame, it can be corrected easily enough if you use PS CS6 and if you know what you are doing (at the expense of some field of view, of course, and possibly of some sharpness as well). More, it's a very good lens for artistic effects and it would be a good choice, on modern cameras with good high ISO, for a PJ super-wide angle lens. Overall, on full-frame cameras I find the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 an impressive lens at what it does best (sharpness, contrast and Zeiss-colours, to mention a few); but one with some serious technical flaws (vignetting and distortion) that might be show stoppers for some.
If you shoot APS-C cameras, on the other hand, things change. On the smaller sensor you get rid of pretty much all the distortion, of all the un-sharp corners, and of quite a bit of the vignetting as well: you are left with a 27mm f/3.5 that performs pretty well. Sadly, an expensive one at $1.395 US, and even more so if you consider that for a little less money at $1.256,95 US (both are B&H prices as of December 15, 2013) you can get the Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S: a very good performer, it goes wider, it has AF and VR and it covers a range of very useful focal lengths.
My personal verdict? I will try the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 in the field some more before deciding whether or not I will be keeping it for my FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY work. In the meantime, looking for that elusive "perfect kit for my needs" that we all fantasise about, I will test the Pentax 645D with the 25mm (19mm equivalent) soon, together with a few more 645 lenses, to see if that could suit my needs better. Stay tuned...
Now for the technical stuff: the quick and dirty product shots at the beginning of this review have been taken with the Nikon COOLPIX P7700; light has been provided by two Nikon SB-700 Speedlight used as remote slaves on manual.
SAMPLES
Here a few samples for you from a quick real estate job I did about a month ago with my trusty Nikon D3x and the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5. Since this is one of the most hostile assignments for this lens, I thought it'd be of interest to see how it behave in the field. All images have been processed in Capture NX2 and the in Photoshop CS6, where a lens profile and other lens corrections have been applied to correct the generous distortion of the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5:
DID YOU ENJOY THE BLOG AND ITS CONTENTS? HELP ME TO PROVIDE YOU WITH EVEN BETTER ARTICLES WITH A $4.99 USD MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION VIA PAYPAL: IT'S LESS IN A MONTH THAN WHAT YOU SPEND FOR COFFEE IN A DAY, AND YOU DON'T GET ANY GEAR REVIEWS WITH YOUR CUPPA!
 |
| The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 Distagon T* ZF.2 on the Nikon D800E |
UPDATED DEC. 22, 2013: distortion-corrected sharpness tests added!
First of all, why going for the Zeiss 18mm rather than the Zeiss 15mm f/2.8 ZF.2 or the Zeiss 21mm f/2.8 ZF.2
instead, both of which enjoy a somehow better reputation? I thought about trying both, but filtering the Zeiss 15mm f/2.8 is at least as a pain as filtering the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S, and I want to be able to use filter in the easiest possible way; as far as the Zeiss 21mm, while easy to use with filters, it isn't wide enough for my need. So, that left me with the 18mm.BUILT & OPERATION
Built. Built is simply first class on this lens. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is built like a tank and perfectly assembled. The lens is not particularly big, except for its unusually large front: since the lens' front element is much smaller than the lens barrel's outer diameter, I can only assume Zeiss decided to keep it so large in order to avoid vignetting (especially when using a filter). Despite its relatively small size, the lens is quite heavy at 470 gr (16.5 oz), thanks to its all-metal construction. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's filter ring is metal, which should guarantee it a long life span in use; filter size is a huge 82mm, which is larger than the 77mm generally used by pro lenses. If you use a Lee system like I do, I'd recommend the use of a WA adaptor; if you use regular filters, you'll have to add an extra set for this lens, and not a cheap one at that. The lens comes with a black-lined, all-metal lens hood, which smoothly slides and clicks into place. While some people (with some good reasons) prefer plastic lens hoods, Zeiss included a beautifully made lens hood with the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5: kudos for that. The only hiccup in the lens built is the front lens cap: it is a flimsy affair, it doesn't stay firmly in place and - what is worst - mine broke down during the first week of (very mild) use (!). I bought an original Zeiss replacement cap to include in the box for (eventual) resale, and a third-party one to use day-in day-out. As it turns out, the off-brand one is way better made than Zeiss' own: shame.
 |
| The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 Distagon T* ZF.2 |
Operation. In short, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is a joy to use. The focus ring is smooth but firm and easy to operate; of course, this is an internal focus lens so nothing moves when you focus, which is great for filter users like myself. The aperture ring, should you decide to use it, has very positive clicks and is also very easy to operate. With my Nikon D800E and Nikon D3x, of course, I just set it to f/22 and used the control wheel on my camera body (as I would with any other modern Nikon camera).
 |
| The DOF scale on the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 |
LENS PERFORMANCE
While all this is great, what really counts in the end is how a lens performs, both in general and compared to its competitors. In this user review you'll see the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 compared with the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S, which is Nikon's best alternative in this focal length, it's one of Nikon's legendary lenses and it's considered to be one of the best WA zoom ever made. All files have been processed with the exact same settings with Nikon Capture NX2 and Photoshop CS6.
Since Blogger may have some problems in displaying the test images in full size on some screens, I prepared a zip file containing all the images of the test for you to be able to examine them on your screen at your leisure: CLICK HERE to download!
Let's analyse image quality with the help of my usual, uninspiring test scene:
 |
| Uninspiring test scene, Nikon D800E, Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 ZF.2 @ f/5.6 |
(in RED the areas used in the crops below).
VIGNETTING / COLOURS
Vignetting. It is quite normal for wide-angle lenses to show some vignetting, especially wide-open and thereabouts, and the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is no exception. On the contrary, it shows a pretty serious amount of vignetting wide-open, around a couple of stops, vignetting that actually never goes away completely; faint traces of it are still present at f/11. While I often like to use vignette for expressive purposes, I also like to decide for myself whether to add it in or not; with the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5, the lens is making this decision for you. Here you can see the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's vignetting sequence, compared with the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S:
Colours. As you can see, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 renders the test scene a little cooler than the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S. Please note that I used custom WB clicking on the exact spot in both the Zeiss and the Nikkor images and that all other image parameters are exactly the same, you should take into account that the two series have been taken at very different times, which could have influence the result. I only mentioned colour rendition because what I see here is consistent with the tradition than wants Zeiss glass to render colours slightly cooler than Nikon.
SHARPNESS
Centre sample. The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 is already impressively sharp in the centre of the frame at f/3.5, and stays that way all over the aperture range:
Bottom sample. You can see how the lens already starts off very good, sharpening up nicely through the aperture range. Best aperture is f/8, image quality holds up at f/11 and start degrading due to diffraction at f/16:
Right side sample. Here too image quality is already pretty good wide open, and by f/5.6 is already very very good. Best aperture is again f/8 to f/11, loosing to diffraction after that:
Corner sample. The far corners aren't particularly sharp until you reach f/8 and are at their best at f/11; however, they never get as crisp as the rest of the frame:
Overall, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 puts off a great show as far as sharpness goes; the lens performs very well wide open, and is almost perfect all over the frame between f/8 and f/11. Below you find the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S's results, which are definitely very disappointing in comparison: the lens clearly suffers paired with the Nikon D800E's high resolution sensor:
DISTORTION
While the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S only shows a bit of barrel distortion at 18mm, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 shows a lot of complex distortion, unfortunately not very simple to correct: for best results, you'll have to use a lens profile, and apply some more additional corrections according to your shooting distance. Luckily Adobe PS CS6 has a good lens profile for this lens, which is a very good starting point to neutralise the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5's distortion. Below you'll find an uncorrected and a corrected version of the same image:
Of course, lens correction will rob you of some of your field of view. As far as sharpness goes, I couldn't detect any perceivable loss after applying Photoshop's lens profile:
CA & FRINGING
The Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 shows good contrast even when shot against the light, and just a bit of fringing wide-open that goes away completely at about f/8, a very good result for such a wide angle lens.
Again, since Blogger may have some problems in displaying the test images in full size on some screens, I prepared a zip file containing all the images of the test for you to be able to examine them on your screen at your leisure: CLICK HERE to download!
CONCLUSIONS / RECOMMENDATIONS
If you use a full-frame camera and you mainly shoot Landscape & Fine Art like I do, the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 can be a very appealing proposition. It's very compact, it takes very little room in your bag and it's built like a tank; it's impressively sharp in the center and on a large portion of the frame all over the aperture range, showing very good micro-contrast as well for such a wide-angle; it draws with plenty of character; it's very good used against the light, it's contrasty and behaves nicely in respect of chromatic aberrations; you can easily use filters with it. On the other hand, it gets critically sharp in the corners only when stopped down quite a bit; it shows a hefty amount of vignetting that never goes completely away even when stopped all the way down; it has quite a bit of complex distortion, that requires some acrobatics in post-processing in order to get rid of. So, it all boils down to what your intended use for it will be. While its distortion would definitely not make it my first choice for Architecture, or even for Landscape when you have straight lines in the frame, it can be corrected easily enough if you use PS CS6 and if you know what you are doing (at the expense of some field of view, of course, and possibly of some sharpness as well). More, it's a very good lens for artistic effects and it would be a good choice, on modern cameras with good high ISO, for a PJ super-wide angle lens. Overall, on full-frame cameras I find the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 an impressive lens at what it does best (sharpness, contrast and Zeiss-colours, to mention a few); but one with some serious technical flaws (vignetting and distortion) that might be show stoppers for some.
If you shoot APS-C cameras, on the other hand, things change. On the smaller sensor you get rid of pretty much all the distortion, of all the un-sharp corners, and of quite a bit of the vignetting as well: you are left with a 27mm f/3.5 that performs pretty well. Sadly, an expensive one at $1.395 US, and even more so if you consider that for a little less money at $1.256,95 US (both are B&H prices as of December 15, 2013) you can get the Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S: a very good performer, it goes wider, it has AF and VR and it covers a range of very useful focal lengths.
My personal verdict? I will try the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 in the field some more before deciding whether or not I will be keeping it for my FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY work. In the meantime, looking for that elusive "perfect kit for my needs" that we all fantasise about, I will test the Pentax 645D with the 25mm (19mm equivalent) soon, together with a few more 645 lenses, to see if that could suit my needs better. Stay tuned...
Now for the technical stuff: the quick and dirty product shots at the beginning of this review have been taken with the Nikon COOLPIX P7700; light has been provided by two Nikon SB-700 Speedlight used as remote slaves on manual.
SAMPLES
Here a few samples for you from a quick real estate job I did about a month ago with my trusty Nikon D3x and the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5. Since this is one of the most hostile assignments for this lens, I thought it'd be of interest to see how it behave in the field. All images have been processed in Capture NX2 and the in Photoshop CS6, where a lens profile and other lens corrections have been applied to correct the generous distortion of the Zeiss 18mm f/3.5:
DID YOU ENJOY THE BLOG AND ITS CONTENTS? HELP ME TO PROVIDE YOU WITH EVEN BETTER ARTICLES WITH A $4.99 USD MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION VIA PAYPAL: IT'S LESS IN A MONTH THAN WHAT YOU SPEND FOR COFFEE IN A DAY, AND YOU DON'T GET ANY GEAR REVIEWS WITH YOUR CUPPA!
OR SEND ME A ONE-OFF DONATION:
0 comments:
Post a Comment