Expanding the Equipment | Body with Lens Attached | Some Technical Data | Sample Images | Conclusions | Links

After Ricoh's official announcement of the M-mount expansion unit, I decided to buy one, although I had not intended to do so originally. Here are my first personal experiences with the lenses that I bought (or tried to buy). This page is devoted to the Zeiss Biogon f2.8/35mm lens.

Note: In order to avoid copyright issues, I replaced the Zeiss and Voigtländer lens photos with my own ones.

 

Expanding the Equipment

After I had acquired the M-mount expansion unit in mid-October 2011, I decided to also expand my range of lenses into focal lengths that I already own in the form of A12 camera units. This was caused by the observation that I was too lazy to exchange units. Exchanging lenses only seemed much simpler and also simplifies the equipment that I carry around with me. This decision turned out to become a very expensive one, because both of the Voigtländer lenses that I bought were decentered. So I sent them back (the 35mm lens even twice) and finally bought the equivalent Zeiss Biogon lenses at a much higher cost.

Side-Step: My (Temporary) Voigtländer Skopar Pancake Lenses

 
Photo: Arrived on November 8/17, 2011: Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II f2.5/35mm (52.5mm equiv.) -> returned (Nov 14 and Nov 21)   Photo: Arrived on November 16, 2011: Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II f4/21mm (31.5mm equiv.) -> returned (Nov 21)

Here is the story of the two Voigtländer lenses, a 35mm and a 21mm pancake lens, that I bought initially: The first sample of the Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II f2.5/35mm was fuzzy at the right edge. I exchanged it for another one that was fuzzy at the left edge, particularly at the lower left corner. Therefore, I decided to return it as well and bought a Zeiss Biogon f2.8/35mm, which is covered here. The first sample Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II f4/21mm was fuzzy at the left edge, for a change. I returned it as well and bought a Zeiss f4.5/21mm Biogon from the same dealer, which was, in the end, a little bit more expensive than even my Zeiss Sonnar f1.5/50mm.

         

Photos: Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II 1:2.5/35mm (left) and Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II 1:4/21mm (right) - click photos for larger versions

All in all, I am less than satisfied with the two Voigtländer Color Skopar Pancake II lenses that I bought. While these lenses got some favorable reviews, you probably need to be very lucky when you take part in the Voigtländer lens lottery. A dealer who should know better (they have 80% of the Voigtländer market) told me that only 0.4% of the Voigtländer are returned, which ia s low as the return rate for Zeiss and Leitz lenses - regrettably mine was 75%! Obviously, I was not lucky. Therefore, with a heavy heart I decided to go for the much more expensive and bulky Zeiss Biogon lenses.

Finally, a Zeiss Lens...

So here is my Zeiss Biogon T* C 1:2.8/35mm that finally replaced the Voigtländer 35mm pancake lens:

    
     
 

Photos: Arrived on November 22, 2011 as a replacement: Zeiss Biogon T* C 1:2.8/35mm ZM (black) (52.5mm equiv.)

The Zeiss lens is a little bit slower, heavier, and much more expensive than the respective Voigtländer pancake lens.

 

Body with Lens Attached

Photo: Body with A12 M-mount expansion unit attached and Zeiss Biogon f2.8/35mm lens

 

Some Technical Data

Focal length 35mm (52.5mm equiv.)
Angle of view (35mm film) 62° diagonal
Maximum aperture 2.8
f-stop range 2.8-22
Number of iris blades 10
Number of lenses/groups 7/5
Shortest distance 0.7m
Weight 200g
Length (with cap) 55mm
Maximum diameter 52mm
Filter thread 43mm
Lens hood do not have one

 

Sample Images

Here are some samples taken with the Zeiss Biogon f2.8/35mm lens:

 

Conclusions

Disclaimer: I am not a lens expert who sees marked differences between various Leica and/or other lenses. I can check for soft corners, find differences in color rendition, and, in rare cases, may discover a "3D look", but that's all. Please regard therefore my conclusions as the verdict of a "layman".

It is far too early for me to draw any conclusions. As far as I can see, the results that my new 35mm lens produces with the M-mount unit are very pleasing.

 

Links

An den Anfang   Homepage  
made by walodesign on a mac!
06.04.2013