Test: Zeiss 24-85 on Canon
To maintain autofocus, auto aperture diaphragm and EXIF, you can of course go with the manufacturer's lenses, or you can go with the Contax N series converted to EF mount
For example, the Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-85 has a reputation of an excellent "knock around" lens. It has great colour, little distortion at 24mm, and great performance across its zoom range. Here is a 24mm sample, Canon EOS 1Ds, wide open, DPP sharpening=3.
100% crop centre
100% crop, edge, wide open not as good as centre, but not bad at all.
85mm is just great.
100% crop
http://support.conurus.com/files/394v3477_100percent_282.jpg
Note: all these tests are done with autofocus. As you can see in the 85mm 100% crop wide open at f/4.5, autofocus is extremely accurate. I took two pictures with AF but both of them focused equally accurately. The exact center, which is where the AF point is, is the plane of the crane and the boat, but you can see the roof just a bit in front is starting to get outside of the depth-of-field. (Please click on the 85mm 100% crop to see what I am talking about.)
Mechanical quality is outstanding, with a predominantly metal construction, although most samples have a zoom creep problem. It will slowly zoom itself back to 24mm if the lens is pointed upwards.
For example, the Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-85 has a reputation of an excellent "knock around" lens. It has great colour, little distortion at 24mm, and great performance across its zoom range. Here is a 24mm sample, Canon EOS 1Ds, wide open, DPP sharpening=3.
100% crop centre
100% crop, edge, wide open not as good as centre, but not bad at all.
85mm is just great.
100% crop
http://support.conurus.com/files/394v3477_100percent_282.jpg
Note: all these tests are done with autofocus. As you can see in the 85mm 100% crop wide open at f/4.5, autofocus is extremely accurate. I took two pictures with AF but both of them focused equally accurately. The exact center, which is where the AF point is, is the plane of the crane and the boat, but you can see the roof just a bit in front is starting to get outside of the depth-of-field. (Please click on the 85mm 100% crop to see what I am talking about.)
Mechanical quality is outstanding, with a predominantly metal construction, although most samples have a zoom creep problem. It will slowly zoom itself back to 24mm if the lens is pointed upwards.
Bo-Ming
conurus - world's first independent lens mount conversion with autofocus and auto aperture
conurus - world's first independent lens mount conversion with autofocus and auto aperture
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Comments
I hope you don't mind, but I added a custom curve to increase contrast, and then two USM applications of 20, 25, 0 and 100, .5, 0. I took a 640x480 crop from the horizontal center and a little high.
I think the results show a nice amount of detail, with no halo, even at the sub-pixel limits. (See the radio mast and whip antenna.)
I think this lens is a very good match for your system.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
Gary
Unsharp at any Speed
I had to look for it too.
Good questions.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
conurus - world's first independent lens mount conversion with autofocus and auto aperture
Technically, I oversharpened the image and it is too contrasty. The method I used is mostly to show the ability of an image to resolve edge information at the sub-pixel level without the edge halo that results when there is not enough lens resolution for USM to accurately process.
The test does not demonstrate edge or corner acuity nor does it compare against the Canon competitive products, which might be interesting.
Thanks for the clarification on the f rating for this lens.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums