Okay, I'm gonna state unequivocally that the idea that a lens like an 85 1.2s or Plena or Noct .98 is "cold and clinical" is a concept designed to protect clearly inferior optics.
In virtually all cases, a lens is designed to pass light with the best fidelity possible. That is the key function. Plus or minus regarding magnification, our lenses are essentially WINDOWS.
We measure a lens on the fundamental level of how well it does this WITHOUT disturbing the reality of what we're capturing on a sensor.
And that is the baseline, the first step in optical engineering and has been since the first lenses were designed. Are there variances in this approach? Of course. Some lenses are specifically designed to distort perspectives and color, but that is not what we're talking about here.
A "clinical" or "cold and clinical" lens means you have a lens that is devoid of distortion, softness or lack of contrast. It intrudes less on the passage of light than a so-called "lens with character." The character of an image should start clean and unencumbered by weaker optical design. The character of the image should be the choice of the artist both at the scene in post. Less "character" from a lens means more latitude to manipulate the image to the satisfaction of the artist.
And this why my Zeiss lenses are gone. And even in the world of filmmaking, it's why the top cinema glass from Arri and Hawk see more use than Zeiss these days.
Cold & Clinical simply means accuracy. It means purity. It suggests that a lens is so good at passing light, that the manipulation of the final photo and its ultimate qualities will be more fully in the hands of the artist. If you know what you're doing it's always going to better to have the option of choosing "character" rather being stuck with it because of an inferior lens.
So is my Nikon 135mm Plena more clinical than my previous Zeiss 135? Of course it is. That's what makes it better than the Zeiss is every way important to shooting and why it's regarded as the best on the market. It's what every lens maker chases after with premium glass all the way down to kit lenses.
Okay. Have a nice day!
Robert
Ok, here’s my take: When I got my Z6 in 2019, I bought the 50mm f1.8 quite soon after. I was thinking I needed one fast lense given the 24-70 kit lense was f4. I wasn’t into discussions about lenses and character/clinical. But I really didn’t like the images from the 50mm. Still don’t. I cant describe what it is; I just don’t like them. They are razor sharp, but still. Something didn’t appeal to me, so it stays in the closet. Then some months ago I got the 35mm f1.4, a lense with some «character» according to reviewers. That was a great lense for me. Immediately liked the images it produced right out of camera, so it stays in my Z6. On my D700 I had both a 50mm f1.4 and a 35mm f2.0. Also there the 50mm was the sharpest, but gave me images that was too clean. The 35 stayed on the camera. And its not about 50mm being a format I don’t enjoy. I do enjoy the 24-120mm though, and thats sharp.
I don’t know what it is, but theres something with some lenses that appeals to me, and something that doesnt.
I prefer what the 40mm f2 and the 50mm f2.8 MC deliver to what I receive from the 50mm f1.8 S. I do own all three. The manager of the name dealer in my megalopolis told me he has owned the 50mm f1.2 S as well as the 1.8 S, and the 50mm f2.8 MC is his favorite 50mm. When people throw down absolutes about preferences in things like lenses, such as characterizing preferences as covering up for inferiority, etc. . . Well. It's one thing to make statements about measures and metrics. It is another thing to make statements about preferences. People have a right to prefer what they prefer when making aesthetic choices without being negatively characterized on the internet.
There is in fact hard math here and real absolutes outside of whatever "preferences" you might have.
You might "prefer" 2+2 = 9, but it doesn't.
And a lens that bakes in "character" that you cannot control is a LIMIT. You might perceive it as a strength, but the reality is that the result has more limits for post control. That's a 100% fact.
I'm not assaulting anyone who likes lenses with baked in "character." Use what makes you happy. I'm simply stating that you can get that character from a better lens and have greater ultimate control, should you desire it. Once my skills in PP got to a certain level, I abandoned lenses with character because they limited my ability to control an image. Again, that's science.
Robert
