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Field Test: Zeiss Touit Lenses on Sony NEX

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Brian_Smith

Brian_Smith

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I got a chance to put the Zeiss Touit 12mm/F2.8 and 32mm/F1.8 lenses to the test on Sony NEX. I had high expectations for these lenses ever since I saw prototypes last October and they exceeded my expectations. While they aren't the fastest focusing lenses for NEX - the optical performance is spectacular!

--
Brian Smith
Sony Artisan of Imagery
Miami Photographer l Portrait Photography l Photography Blog l Books
 
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Brian_Smith said:
Brian_Smith wrote:

I got a chance to put the Zeiss Touit 12mm/F2.8 and 32mm/F1.8 lenses to the test on Sony NEX. I had high expectations for these lenses ever since I saw prototypes last October and they exceeded my expectations. While they aren't the fastest focusing lenses for NEX - the optical performance is spectacular!

Read More: Zeiss Touit Lenses on Sony NEX
Click to expand...
 
Thank you for your review! Great photos.
 
Brian.....I have to agree with you...these are fantastic lenses. I have both the 12mm and the 32mm to go along with the 24mm. I will not be getting rid of these 2 as long as I shoot with emount cameras.

I am not a pro like you, but I enjoy the quality of the IQ and the construction and will have many fun years of use with these.

Just paid a visit to Oakland Cemetery here in Atlanta to try them out. Here is a link to the gallery.

Oakland Cemetery with Touits
 
Thank You for that Brian, I would love to see any urban architecture shot with the 12 if you have any.

I am considering the 12 for just that.
 
Quick question, Brian, on handling of the Zeiss 12 mm: Can one easily put on and take off the front lens cap when the butterfly hood is on the Touit 12mm?

Or do you have to take the hood off first, before you can take the cap off or put it on?
 
Thank you for the review, it re-awoke the yearning for some Zeiss-glass this fall... I had decided that the 24mm Zeiss was enough for a while, but now it seems I will have to invest some more money in Zeiss-glass. Especially since pricing wasn't as steep as I originally feared. Still a lot of money though... Lucky for me I don't have an accountant, he wouldn't like this.
 
Section10 said:
Section10 wrote:
Section10 said:
1prime wrote:
Section10 said:
Section10 wrote:
Section10 said:
Brian_Smith wrote:

I got a chance to put the Zeiss Touit 12mm/F2.8 and 32mm/F1.8 lenses to the test on Sony NEX. I had high expectations for these lenses ever since I saw prototypes last October and they exceeded my expectations. While they aren't the fastest focusing lenses for NEX - the optical performance is spectacular!

Read More: Zeiss Touit Lenses on Sony NEX
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
BennyKingston said:
BennyKingston wrote:

Thank You for that Brian, I would love to see any urban architecture shot with the 12 if you have any.

I am considering the 12 for just that.
Click to expand...
Here's one with the 12.

Zeiss Touit 12mm/2.8 on Sony NEX-7
Zeiss Touit 12mm/2.8 on Sony NEX-7

--
Brian Smith
Sony Artisan of Imagery
Miami Photographer l Portrait Photography l Photography Blog l Books
 
I rented the 32/1.8 this past week (from LensRentals), and I'm of two minds about it. On the one hand, the image and build quality is pretty fantastic. And not mentioned very much, if you're a fan of B&W, you will love this lens --- the tonality is fantastic.

On the other hand, the autofocus (on a 5N) is pretty awful. I also tried it out on a 6 with similar results. There are two issues:

1. The lens will hunt. Even if the picture is in focus, if you half-press the shutter button, the camera will hunt out of focus, and then return to in focus.

2. The autofocus is always active, even with the finger off the shutter button! Coupled with the Touit's noisy AF motor, when you're walking around with the camera powered up, you will occasionally feel the camera vibrate as it tries to focus on whatever the camera is pointed at.

One consequence is that the lens could be well out of focus (maybe because it was trying to focus on the sidewalk when it was hanging from your shoulder), so when you bring the camera up to take a picture, the lens may have to travel a long ways to get into focus, which can take a bit of time since the focus is also slow.

NEX-7 users are a bit luckier because they can configure their rear AEL button to activate AF only when they want it (press to AF) when they're in MF mode. The rest of us have to put up with a buzzy camera that may occasionally be focused on the boonies when we need it.

I was hoping this would be a Sigma 30/2.8 upgrade and replacement. Now I'm not so sure. This lens works great for landscapes and considered, slower shots. It's really not suitable for action or some styles of street photography.
 
Andre Yew said:
Andre Yew wrote:

On the other hand, the autofocus (on a 5N) is pretty awful. I also tried it out on a 6 with similar results. There are two issues:

1. The lens will hunt. Even if the picture is in focus, if you half-press the shutter button, the camera will hunt out of focus, and then return to in focus.

2. The autofocus is always active, even with the finger off the shutter button! Coupled with the Touit's noisy AF motor, when you're walking around with the camera powered up, you will occasionally feel the camera vibrate as it tries to focus on whatever the camera is pointed at.
Click to expand...
Much appreciated that you wrote this since I have the exact same "issues" with my NEX-6 and Zeiss Touit 32 f/1.8. The automatic refocus is making me go mad but I probably can live with it. Lets just hope that Sony issues a firmwareupdate so we can have PDAF even with the new Touit-lenses.

Another question - I can't see the firmwareversion for my Touit-lens in the NEX-6. It only shows the bodyversion of the firmware (which is v1.01). Will I still be able to update or is there a connectionfault?
 
This is the inherent nature of AF based on Contrast Detection - the system is unable to determine if it is in focus just by analyzing the static image. Tho confirm proper focus, the system has to "hunt" while searching for position at which image contrast is at it's peak.
 
Swe_Legion said:
Swe_Legion wrote:

Much appreciated that you wrote this since I have the exact same "issues" with my NEX-6 and Zeiss Touit 32 f/1.8. The automatic refocus is making me go mad but I probably can live with it. Lets just hope that Sony issues a firmwareupdate so we can have PDAF even with the new Touit-lenses.

Another question - I can't see the firmwareversion for my Touit-lens in the NEX-6. It only shows the bodyversion of the firmware (which is v1.01). Will I still be able to update or is there a connectionfault?
Click to expand...
 
ZeevK said:
ZeevK wrote:

This is the inherent nature of AF based on Contrast Detection - the system is unable to determine if it is in focus just by analyzing the static image. Tho confirm proper focus, the system has to "hunt" while searching for position at which image contrast is at it's peak.
Click to expand...
Yes, that is true. However, lenses like the Sigmas don't hunt as much and lock focus much faster. Perhaps it's due to the smaller aperture on those lenses, but even the 60/2.8 focuses faster than the Zeiss 32.

If the focusing issues are important to you (and they may not be for everyone), then it seems like the NEX-7 is the only body that can work around it: put the camera in MF, and then use the AF/MF button on the back to activate focus only when you need it. You will still have hunting, but at least AF won't be focusing all the time.
 
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