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Zeiss Compact Zooms Thread

NateWeaver

NateWeaver

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Hi,

Now that these lenses are getting out there, what's the opinion of folks that have bought or used them on a job?

Of course there are passing references to either the 70-200 or 28-80 in various threads here, but almost all of those are from times when it was a minute here or there that somebody had time with one.

Delivery of my 28-80 is coming soon, as more time passes I wonder about the wisdom of committing to the set after only shooting simple charts of the 70-200 in 30 minutes (vs. some other, great lenses)

Chad Lancaster, did you ever wind up getting one?
 
I got the 70-200 and have the 15-30 on preorder.

I really like the 70-200 so far, I haven't got a chance to use it a lot yet. I'll be back filming full time on my film as soon as my dragon comes, any day and can post some screen grabs.
 
I really dig them. Don't know what else to say really. Wish the 28-80 had a bit of macro capability however.
 
Nothing like them on the market yet. I've been playing with the GL Optics 18-35 and wow its a great performer. If Sigma does come out with a new 24-70mm and Nan can do something with it, yikes... watch out!
 
I'd love to hear more too. They certainly sound terrific (particularly if you can afford all three of them!), though I'm most interested to hear how they compare to the Canon lightweight Cine-Zooms, which have a much more attractive focal range IMO (15.5-47mm and 30-105mm) but not a Vistavision-covering image circle, and the other obvious competitor is the Angie DP Rouge pair (16-42mm and 30-80mm) with their frustratingly deep lens throat, and more limited image-circle, but beautiful creamy imagery.

It sure is nice to have so many relatively 'affordable' options available though!
 
I recently shot a feature with the Canon 30-300 and the 15.5-47. Mechanically, they were fine, but I was very disappointed with the amount of vignetting - comparable to an HR. For a new lens, it was striking. You lose a stop at the end of the long zoom - not a big price to pay for 270-300, but it was startling sometimes. Also, the fact that the primes of the same series aren't available for PL is a frustration.

I saw a test of the Compact zooms and they looked very sharp, though a bit more contrasty than the Ultras or Masters.

Test by an owner would be very welcome...
 
I really like the Compact Zooms, and am excited about the prospects of the 3x lenses covering full frame and from 15mm to 200mm at under $60K.

The 70-200/T2.9 is currently is shipping and I know in stock now. The 28-80/T2.9 and 15-30/T2.9 will start shipping as the lenses become available. The 28-80mm started shipping in very limited quantities last year.

Digi Diopters for the CZ.2 zoom lenses were just announced. They are well matched and expand the versatility of the new Zeiss zoom lenses even further. Set of 3x ($3500, +.5,+1,+2)

All are color matched to CP/Ultra/Master Primes.

There's also a new transport cases for the CZ.2 lenses ($599)

Disclaimer, Hot Rod Cameras is a Zeiss dealer, but my love affair with Zeiss lenses started decades before that.
 
I finally got my 28-80 and picked up a 70-200 as well.

I'm really, really pleased with them. First, they are sharp. Really sharp, but only to a point, and then a smoothness that is not entirely unlike Cooke, but without the warmness. I feel ridiculous getting all wine and stereo enthusiast in my description, but I see a difference and words fail me somewhat.

The 28-80 is EXTEMELY flare resistant. I have not yet fired the 70-200 into direct light.

About the only bad thing I can say is the 28-80 is pushing the limits for handheld (if only for bulk and not weight), and they do not have the character (i.e. flaws) that make other lenses like the rouges attractive for certain jobs (i.e. vignetting, which I love on the rouges).

In two words I would describe them as "flawless pretty". They are NOTHING like the CPs in image quality, they are way ahead, although I'm sure they match in color and contrast.

The fact that they are $20k each is crazy in my mind, for what you get.
 
I had a look at Zeiss CZ, nice zooms but i will be ordering TLS Morpheus 80-200 and 24-70 instead. They look fantastic for $$ and being Nikons, they have plenty of character. And Wait, there is more, 14-24 will be available next year ;-).
 
NateWeaver said:
In two words I would describe them as "flawless pretty". They are NOTHING like the CPs in image quality, they are way ahead, although I'm sure they match in color and contrast.

The fact that they are $20k each is crazy in my mind, for what you get.
Click to expand...

Nicely said. Helmut and Zeiss has done a tremendous job on these rather forward thinking designs. The upcoming 15-30mm is equally if not more impressive too.
 
Question for anyone who has shot a project mixing the Compact Primes and Compact Zooms. I'm in pre production for a feature at the moment, and out production manager is a little nervous about our shooting time - and has asked me to look into some zooms to scrape for schedule time. For the size and performance, the 28 - 80 and 70 - 200 CZ look amazing. But I'd love to have some primes on set too.

Will CP2s match well? Or are there any other lenses you could suggest that might cut in well with the Compact Zooms?
 
I'm not a fan of the CPs, but I do own the 2 zooms and I am sure they will match. I wouldn't hesitate to mix them. Just stay away from the old 50mm CP.

I bought the Compact Zooms more out of practicality...they are the only short zoom series with an option to go past 80 or 100mm. The full frame coverage is just a nice, reassuring feature for possibly down the road.

That said, I have been absolutely blown away at the image quality of the CZs. I've been shooting with Rouges and Aluras for past 2 years (and my Red zooms), and image quality wise, I prefer my CZs to any of them. They are very sharp and very pretty.

This is just junky shooting at the beach, I posted to show a friend who was curious about some LUTs I've been playing with. But I was using my two new lenses too, so here they are:


 
Hey Chad, I see you used the Ti EF mount on the CZ 70 - 200 without braces. In your opinion is the Ti EF mount secure enough for feature work? Basically does it hold the weight well? Great work by the way.
 
Thanks Chad. I would use it with the support. Cool.
 
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