Zeiss makes fast lenses for mirrorless systems:
There is an interesting new press release from Zeiss (Click here): “Another highlight will be the presentation of a design study, with which Carl Zeiss will offer a sneak preview of a new family of autofocus lenses for mirrorless system cameras (CSC) that will most likely be available in mid-2013. Due to their performance and high speed, these new lenses will be ideal for deliberate photo composition, making them perfect for more sophisticated photographers as well. Carl Zeiss plans to initially offer fixed focal lengths in the wide angle and standard range as well as a macro.”
Zeiss currently offers high quality and expensive “video-optimized” lenses, the CP.2 for Micro Four Thirds (a list is here at BHphoto). I hope the new lenses will have the quality and price of the famous [shoplink 24401 ebay]ZM lens range (here on eBay)[/shoplink].
New Fuji X camera/lenses:
Meantime today we have a new announcement from Fuji. The X-E1 camera (Click here) and the 14mm and 18-55mm X lenses have been announced. A full coverage with reviews is available at MirrorlessRumors.com (Click here).
56 Responses
WOW!!! that is the best news I have heard in a while for MFT…
Oh, Yes!
They’ll make ultra cheap and high quality AF lenses for just few thousands of euros.
Excepting of course the really high quality ones, for just few tens of thousands of euros.
Agree, best news in a long, long time….
Follow the link and read the press release carefully : they are speaking of mirrorless cameras, but never of mft cameras. Note that Zeiss is already working with Sony for their DSLRs models. I think that there are more chances that they will make their lenses primarily for Sony Nex and other APSC mirrorless, including the new Canon M. May be that they will do like Sigma and offer those same lenses in mft, with less interesting focal lengths.
I really hope that they will do something exclusively for mft because I think that this is a sweet spot to get the better size/quality compromise. But I think that apart from Panasonic and Olympus, the other mirrorless manufacturers are going with APSC sensors. I bet that Nikon will start offering one soon, they can’t allow Canon to be alone in that market. So Zeiss will probably go for APSC too. Didn’t they already make one lens for Nex cameras ?
However, if they were producing lenses truly made for mft sensors and of great IQ, because they decide that mft allows better IQ/size compromises, that would surely boost mft manufacturers and could shake the camera market ! I hope it, but I don’t think it will happen.
YES! Please make us a 12MM F2…. Would zeiss do it as a 12.5MM?
NO, most certainly will not make a 12mm, more likely a 11.5mm 1.8 retailing at 2,750 Euros, we all know Zeiss makes equipment for the masses.
Caps and shade extra 750 Euros.
For the Nex-system probably…
yeah…you are probably right. I won’t have any money left after I purchase the Zeiss 15mm ZE for my Canon anyway….LOL!
I think it’s for m43 too!!! Otherwise they would have specified that this is for the NEX system only!
I hope they are not hand-me-downs otherwise they will be huge for m4/3. They charge a premium so I guess it might not come to that.
Wish Olympus would make a new 17mm or Panasonic a 20mm.
Not only larger than necessary but the wrong focal length as well.
Yes..if the lenses are made for the Nex system then they will be much to large design for MFT…the many, many lenses that we have to choose from and more on the way will be much more compatible for our smaller cameras. That is the whole point afterall.
I think it will be just another aps-c lenses being aquired also with m4/3 mount just like the cp line
I hope after the gh3 release more manufacturers will understand that we need native m4/3 lenses and no FF/aps-c with m4/3 mount and crop 5000x and no autofocus
my hope is this is the cosina/zeiss collaboration that will be variations on the FF m-mount rangefinder lenses line. http://www.cosina.co.jp/seihin/cz/index.html
these lenses are small, lite, excellent optics. These cosina/zeiss lenses are designed by zeiss, manufactured by cosina and tested by a zeiss/cosina team.
http://www.zeiss.de/C12567A8003B8B6F/EmbedTitelIntern/CLN_25_en/$File/CL-News_web_en.pdf
These MF zeiss ZM lenses are usually less then $1000 too. The nice thing about mirrorless cameras is (like SLRs) they are all around a similar flange distance (approx 20mm). So like the zeiss SLR lenses, there can be one lens design with differen mounts attached (canon, nikon, pentax).
http://www.cosina.co.jp/seihin/cz/slr-lens.html
So if they follow a similar pattern, the lenses will likely look like the m-mount lenses, but follow the many-differnt mounts pattern of the zeiss SLR lenses.
It is good news for all the mirrorless systems and I look forward to see their first offering.
Excellent news. Really excellent. I’ve been contemplating a 100/2 for a long time. Now if this one could be in the possible releases, that would be absolutely gorgeous.
I guess for the first ones they will concentrate on 35mm eq. or 50mm eq. lenses, though.
Time will tell…
Geezzz read the press release before talking : they said they would concentrate on the wide angle lenses primarily and in normal focal lengths.
They never said that they would do something for mft. They just spoke of mirrorless cameras in general. This could perhaps also include mft, but most probably APSC.
Good news!!
Ricardo, me escreva no flickr! http://www.flickr.com/photos/rinaldolima/
We want Voigtlander to announce more and more mft f0.95 lenses around 800-1200 $…
So 1400 $ for the E-X1 kit with the 18-55 2.8-4 ? Not bad I say.
They’ll probably have APS-C coverage, but also be released for M43, ala Sigma.
Of course that would also mean the focal lengths would likely be more APS-C oriented.
Anyway, awesome news if we get more AF primes for M43! A 17/1.4, please?
Sorry to burst a few bubbles but…
http://i.imgur.com/6DHVT.jpg
it is not a Zeiss , it is a fake zeiss not even designed by Zeiss.
Sony Zeiss means it just tested by Zeiss or Sony pays some license fee and allowed to put Zeiss mark on the barrel.
Very like PL lens for m43.
All I can say is that if its comparable price/quality, there will be a market for such “Zeiss”
You are right, it’s not a true Zeiss lens. But I didn’t say it was.
That looks big for a 24mm lens.
Ok I will start to play to loto…or maybe sell my car and use my bike !
I hope Zeiss makes T*2/50MP for MFT and Fuji X mount.
I also want a 85mm f1.4 and 15mm f2.8.
One thing I know about the Zeiss is the built quality is like a tank – heavy, probably is heavier than Voigtlander since they will put the AF system ,..I hope they come with a LENS HOOD,.. Not like Olympus
I wish there would be a lens for mFT like the Fuji 18-55… The lens roadmap of Fuji looks very interesting, even if there are not so many lenses yet, but 3 nice quality lenses from 10 to 200 mm would be what I want for mFT. X-E1 seems also to be very nice, but I want the VF in the middle of the cam, not in the corner. But if Fuji is earlier with the new lenses then Olympus then I will think about to sell my E-M5.
Same here: my E-M5 will most likely be replaced with X-E1 with 18-55mm and probably the 14mm later on. No problem with rangefinder VF on the side though.
But soemthing that I really like about Olympus is the pixcel correction in the camera. For me, it’s a very useful feature, but many people don’t think about it.
I think it was a BIG Mistake for Olympus and Panasonic, when they release their kit lens with F3.5 -5.6, or 6.3 aperture also THE X ZOOM from Panny for the sake of being small instead of follow their legacy lens from 43 mount started with an F2.8-4. As we know Oly have the 12-60mm F2.8-4 & 14-54mm F/2.8-3.5 , and Panasonic had the 14-50mm F/2.8-4 PL.
Now its seems like Fuji had a better roadmap lens to offer than m/43 system and faster lens Eventhough they have bigger sensor , which mean have better ISO & Offer better DoF,. They still release a lens with a BIGGER aperture than M43 lens.
Soon as they can catch up the AF system to be more faster,. It will be very interesting system , a way better than m43 ,.probably
The standard 4/3 kit lens from Olympus is the 14-42/3.5-5.6, sounds familiar?
Only the high-end e-x uses the 12-60/2.8-4 as kit lens, and iirc the e-30 was also available with the 14-54/2.8-3.5 mk II as a kit.
I don’t think E-30 ever came with 14-42mm and at least in later stage it came with 12-60mm.
1400€ campaign price wasn’t that bad price when lens alone was 900€ at the time here in Finland.
Now if I had gotten GH2 with same ergonomics/price ratio…
And what about the panasonic 12-35 f2.8 ?? 70 mm eq. focal at the long end instead of 82 mm but starting at 24 mm instead of 27 mm, great IQ, brighter, DOF is about the same at 70 mm…
Pretty good by pricey with ~1100€. 400€ for the 18-55mm as a kit lens are hard to beat by a m43 lens.
The 12-35mm F/2.8 , it’s a constant Aperture which mean it meant to be in different level rather than we ‘so called , A KIT LENS,.
If we want to compare we should compare against the 24-70mm equivalent with the same Constant aperture ,.just remind us that on 43 system , the Oly 14-54mm F2.8-3.5 has different level than the 14-35 mm F2.
> it’s a constant Aperture which mean it meant to be in different level rather than we ‘so called , A KIT LENS,.
So far Fuji hasn’t proven anything about any superior optical quality.
http://www.photozone.de/fuji_x
Such big sharpness drop outside center at bigger apertures behaviour of 18mm and 35mm is at level of average APS-C/35mm system lenses.
60mm fares clearly better so Fuji probably has some oblique angle light problems with those small lenses and short flange back distance.
why do you post it here? if the new lensesd would be for apsc AND mft, it would make no sense fpr the mft-world, because the lenses would be too big compared for the actual technical needs; and if it is only for aps-c (Nex and Samsung and Fuji), it should be posted there;-)
this is proven by the 1,8/24 mm Zeiss Nex Lens: it is bigger than the kit-zoom and far bigger than any comparable prime (ww)lens for mft…
These Zeiss lenses will be way too expensive for the 99%. No way I’m going to pay $3000 for a single prime lens.
3000 is only for the lucky people of living same neughbourhood with Zeiss…for other people is more than 4000…
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Category_Lenses&sts=ta&ci=15492&N=4293919655&Ntt=zeiss&cm_sp=Filters-_-Category-_-Lenses
I see several lenses under or in the vicinity of $1000. SLR and rangefinder lenses.
Not exactly to everyone’s budgets, but a far cry from $3000 and above, which you pay for their cine lenses.
Let’s see what they come up first!
You are so correct Jules, there are many Zeiss lenses in that ‘Budget’ range, in fact there are 10 yes ten 50mm lenses below $1,300, I didn’t bother looking at the others but there are many duplicate focal lengths, though none to fit u43 without an adaptor.
About the E-X1: Isn’t the new Fuji pretty much what Admin and a few others been asking for, for some time now – a rangefinder style camera with electronic viewfinder. Except that it should have been M43 sensor of course. Anyway, the E-X1 seems like a very nice second camera, a bit pricey though.
“Isn’t the new Fuji pretty much what Admin and a few others been asking for, for some time now – a rangefinder style camera with electronic viewfinder.”
Totally!! X-E1 is what I have long hoped GF* and GX* would become. Barring some really awesome m43 news, I am likely looking at my next camera. 😉
> Meantime today we have a new announcement from Fuji.
Still can’t figure out the point of the Fuji X system.
Beside retro, it is easily – and cheaply – replaced by an entry-level DSLR. With the advantage of broader lens catalog.
this’ll be great news… for NEX 😛
Yeah all I am hearing is that 2013 will be a tough year for m43. The new PENs will have a good sensor but everything else will likely be behind the curve (no connectivity, peaking, HDR, orientation, gps, panaroma, etc).
NEX will get good lenses, Fuji seems well focussed in delivering pure quality.
.
So, are you saying I cannot take a good picture with my e-p1 if I don’t have focus peaking, connectivity, HDR, orientation, panaroma, and GPS? I should just junk my D5100 and e-p1 in the trash right now.
No, not really.
As years go by, technology becomes more advanced and new features eventually become standard.
It’s true that to sell more, the m43 can’t just release the same stuff all time time. For 2013 to be a good year, good products need to be released.
Now, features upon features impedes the operation of the product so having all these things help sales.
You can make a good photo with a 30 year old camera. 😉
This just shows how photography has or is quickly becoming the new Television or HiFi, where instant obsolesence is the key. I wonder which new trick will cause the camera market to bomb like 3D has bombed in the TV world? GPS, not exactly a beneficial trick, just useful for those who cannot write up their shooting, or simply use their camera for a year then take it into a photo shop to print off their pictures (remind you of anything?) A camera is still no more than a light sealed box, a lens and a medium to capture the light coming through the lens, every thing else is little more than toys to amuse those who like technology. I see few images from todays all singing, all dancing technological wonders to compare with the work of Adams, Bresson, Cameron need I say more?
Your E-P1 will still take good photographs for years to come as does my C5060WZ (or OM’s for that, if I can get film), it is all down to what your eye sees, if your eye is good you will get a good photograph, alternatively you might…
Zeiss and M43 is like a pea and a turd in a pod.
ROTFLMAO. TY!
Please, Carl Zeiss, make auto-focus lenses for the Fuji X-line of cameras.
MID 2013 ??? TAKE A LONG TIME NOT attractive