Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black)

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

I may be the only person in the world who thinks this lens is optically superior in any way to the 35 Summicron, but there you have it. I've owned and used both lenses as my "primary walkaround" on my M9, I sold the Leica, I still have the Zeiss. When I look back at 35 Cron images and this lens' images, I always feel like I made the right choice. If I had to pin down the reason why, I would say the color rendition of the Zeiss is just phenomenal. For B&W images, the Leica and Zeiss I find very similar. I strongly recommend storing the Zeiss lens cap and getting a Schneider 47 mm push-on cap, as I've found it to be much more secure. I use the 35/2 non-ASPH profile on the M9 with great results. Mechanical construction and function is first rate, ergonomics are wonderful.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

I went in circles with Leica, Zeiss and Voightlander glass for my Leica M8.
Ended up choosing this lens above all!
If you like images with a defined contrast, deep colors that are razor sharp look no further! This lens is a great value.
Also use it with film on my M4-P with amazing results to.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

This is the first Zeiss lens I've used, and I just love the colors and contrast. This thing is small, light, and the quality is excellent.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

kinnda soft at 2, become super sharp when u turn it down to 2.8

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

Bought this lens for my M8 camera. Was nervous about buying a non-coded lens for this camera because of all of the comments and reviews of the M8. However, after receiving the lens and taking pictures with it, all my concerns went away. I have no issues with color casting and the lens provides tack sharp images at all apertures. I have only had the lens a couple of weeks and I have taken some great pictures. The lens is built solid and it is comparable in size to the equivalent Leica lens (slightly longer). The focus ring has a super-smooth operation and the aperture/distance markings are easy to use and read. This will not be my last Zeiss lens. I am already researching my next one.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

I use this Zeiss Lens in my Leica M6 camera, in fact, all of my lenses for the M6 are non-Leica but all Carl Zeiss Lenses. I have the ff. lenses: 21 f/2.8, 28 f/2.8, 35 f/2 and 50 f/2. My first encounter with Zeiss lenses was with my Contax G2 and because I have been so impressed with the contrast and clarity of the pictures, I decided to use Zeiss instead of Leica. The lenses are made by the same Japanese company "Cosina" who has proven that they can compare, if not surpass, the German quality and at a more reasonable price.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

That's the most frequently used lens on my M8.2. It is one of the sharpest lenses I ever owned. Color rendering is fantastic. There is absolutely no chromatic aberration, even in high contrast scenes. Mechanics is perfectly made, focusing is smooth and aperture ring clicks smoothly and precisely in 1/3 stops. Lens hood is not in the box and needs to be ordered separately.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

I bought this lens from B&H in August of 2009 for my trip to Europe. It has been my primary lens on my Leica M Rangefinder. The pics are very sharp with no noticeable distortion. The focus ring is buttery smooth and the aperture has firm uniform clicks. My main reasons for buying this lens instead of the Leica Summicron was the price, which is more than 3 times the price with hood included. I don't think there is a better 35mm rangefinder lens at this price period. Another plus is the 1/3 aperture stops.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

I own this lens.

Optically, it produces some nice results: Very low curvilinear distortion. High resolution ability (Not superb sharpness, but very good to excellent sharpness). Very low chromatic aberrations. Very good color reproduction.

However, mechanically, the lens is not designed well, and I'll explain:

When shooting vertical, due to gravity, tight tolerances of the mechanical design of the barrel, and an unstabilized barrel when shooting in the vertical position - the lens is very difficult to focus when shooting subjects with the camera held vertically.

The lens does not have this problem when the camera and lens are focused while in the horizontal position.

I have owned 40 lenses from 35mm to Large Format, and worked with 20 more, and this is the first time I ever saw this problem.

So my feelings about this lens are mixed.

Nice Optics, poor mechanical designing in the barrel.

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

This is my 'standard' lens on my Zeiss Ikon. It is used for about 75-80% of my shooting, which consists of street, environmental portraiture, landscapes, abstracts and "quotidian life".

It has a very solid build quality: hefty (without being heavy), smooth focus, positive clicks for the aperture stops (in 1/3rd stop increments). My results with it have been wonderful in both color and black and white. Some people have complained that it is a tad too high-contrast for black and white work, but I do not find it so (this may be because I use a highlight-restraining two-bath developer for my black and white up to 400 ISO). I love the Biogon's sharpness, distortion-free rendering, and its focus fall-off. Bokeh too is very fine. And as a bonus, it is highly flare-resistant even without the lens hood.

My two complaints are: (a) with the lens shade on it is not a compact lens and (b) the lens cap is just awful...hard to put on and almost impossible to seat properly with the lens shade mounted.

Highly recommended!

Comments about Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZM Biogon T* Manual Focus Lens ( Black):

For an semi-pro like me,this lens is the lens that i feel free to photograph everything when i want to relax away from business.Also i believe that Zeiss always is one step ahead from all the other makers...