Contax Planar T* 50mm f1.4 35mm Primes
Contax Planar T* 50mm f1.4 35mm Primes
USER REVIEWS
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[Jan 16, 2004]
VincentD
Intermediate
Strength:
Fast, sharp, great Bokeh.
Weakness:
None This was another of my Dad's lenses and it is an AE version. It is wonderfully sharp and renders colors superbly. Some of my favorite photographs have been taken with this lens. A great one for low light situations, like the canyons of NYC on a rainy day. Customer Service N/A Similar Products Used: CZ 50 1.7 (also great) Yashica ML 50 1.9(A bit cooler than CZ but very sharp and a Good lens) |
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[Apr 15, 2003]
Steve
Expert
Strength:
This lens is crispy!! Contrasty and the color rendition is spot on. If you want a normal lens this is perhaps the best in the world. These lenses are tanks and I have 5 manual focus Contax Zeiss lenses. The build quality is up there with Leica. Tack sharp at all apertures.
Weakness:
None. The best as usual!!! One of the best of the best!! Customer Service They back their products up, if needed. I have never needed any service on a lens. Similar Products Used: Canon 50 1.4 Zeiss G |
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[Feb 20, 2003]
Nick R
Expert
Strength:
Optically stunning, fast, even fairly cheap for what it is. Superlative. Well this is a stunning lens. What else can I say? If I had to have just one lens, this would be it. Customer Service N/A Similar Products Used: Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f1.5 Planar 50mm f1.7 And others too many to list |
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[Dec 13, 2002]
Lars Bryant
Expert
Strength:
Sharp, image quality. Build and feel quality superior than canon and nikon
Weakness:
The lack of af if you need af Sharpest lense I have used but I now use canon 50mm1.4 instead because when I need af I get more sharp pictures. One day I brought both my cameras for street photo-contax and my canon with only the 50mm lenses. Used provia 400f in both and all the photos with the canon was sharp. The contax where 80% sharp. And comparing the sharp slides from the contax I could mot really see any difference with the ones with the canons. 2 of my photo friends looked at them too, and without knowing what camera I used they could not tell the difference either. I use a leica slideprojector with the 90mm2.5 colorplan-pro lense. Similar Products Used: Canon usm 50mm1.4 Nikkor af 50mm1.4 Carl Zeiss 50mm1.7 |
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[May 08, 2002]
Bluefin
Intermediate
Strength:
color color color. small size, strong construction. low price for its performance.
Weakness:
none This lens simply gives right color and contrast. I have been using this one for >5 years and it impress all my friends when they see the pictures. When they are talking about those new stuff like digital, AF, or APS, I am usually quiet. All I want to show them is that a old standard prime lens can give all colors they like better. This lens and 85mm/1.4 are my favorite manual focus lens so far. Currently I use CANON AF for street photography and leave landscape for my CONTAX and medium format. Customer Service No need yet Similar Products Used: other contax lens. Minolta MC, CANON MD/AF |
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[Dec 04, 2001]
jason4774
Intermediate
Strength:
-super smooth focus and handling -high resolution -great contrast -wonderful colors -seems to capture deep blacks and bright whites better than other lenses. -shadow detail -very 3-D look to prints -in focus objects seem to snap from the background, and stand out. -cheaper and better than any other 50 1.4 you can buy -lovely ''''bokeh'''' to my eye. Where my canon simply gradually blurs into obscurity, the Contax seems to hold smooth, soft ''''haunting'''' resonances of objects that are hanging in the background (and yes, I tested both lenses for background blur, too)
Weakness:
Can''''t think of any. Nothing other lenses don''''t do worse. After having my Contax G1 long enough, and seeing the quality of the prints the Zeiss lenses in that system made, I found a Contax body with the Planar 50 1.4 included, and snatched it up. I have a Canon 50 1.4 autofocus, so I decided to test them out, side by side, shooting a friend of mine in the kitchen making a cake, low light, both lenses wide open. Then, after getting the prints back, I showed them to her. She looked at the prints made by the Contax, without knowing which camera I used, and said "My god!" It amazes me (and disturbes more ''''scientific'''' reviewers) that there can remain any discernable differences between similar lenses by different manufacturers, based on established designs that have existed for a century or more, but the evidence is in the final product, and that was clearly visible to that friend of mine, who knows nothing about cameras. She just saw an obvious difference. I don''''t know what makes Contax lenses so d*** wonderful, but there''''s something to them that goes beyond resolution (which this lens tested higher than any other in it''''s class) and contrast (which the lens beats the hell out of my Canon equivilant.) It''''s hard to describe the difference, but it''''s there (my friend saw it without prompting), and to both our eyes, the Contax photos looked unbelievable. I have shot 30 rolls with this lens, and the photos I get still blow me away. I don''''t know what Zeiss does right, but they do it, better than anybody else. Customer Service never used Similar Products Used: canon af 50 1.4 canon af 100 2.0 canon af 200 2.8 mk II contax g 35 2.0 |
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[Nov 24, 2001]
zapp
Professional
Strength:
Universal lens at any aperture
Weakness:
none I started to appreciate this lens when using other 50mm lenses. Color, contrast, sharpness... is great even at 1.4. Super touch, smooth focusing. Customer Service superb, check out the homepage for pdf''s with performance curves Similar Products Used: Nikkor Ais 50/1.2, 50/1.4, AF 50/1.8, Minolta MD 1.7/50, Canon FD 50/1.4, EF 1.8/50 |
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[Oct 13, 2001]
Matt Sam
Professional
Strength:
Sharp, fast, well built and not expensive. Well built, bulletproof.
Weakness:
None found Nice lens, I think the best 50mm I''ve used. At f2 it''s simply wonderful. Most of 50mm are similar, but not equal. Customer Service not needed Similar Products Used: 50mm1,4 FD canon, 50mm 1,4 EF Canon 50mm nikon not autofocus. |
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[May 24, 2000]
daniel steinberg
Expert
Model Reviewed:
Planar T* 50mm f1.4
Strength:
This is the best 50mm lens made. If you need an inexpensive setup, get a yashica body, with this lens, which can be found used for $125. I blow up color images in the darkroom to 30x40 with this lens, and they are superb. The color and contrast hold really well at this extreme blow up. The quality of the construction of the lens is industrial. Hold up a lens from any other company in one hand and a zeiss in the other hand and you will see the difference. Zeiss makes other lenses look like plastic toys. These lenses are rock solid!!
Weakness:
none Carl Zeiss lenses are the best lenses made, apart from Leica, which I haven't tried. Customer Service repairs can be expensive, and you have to send items directly to contax, which is an inconvenience. Similar Products Used: nikon |
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[Apr 10, 2000]
ND Janiszeski
Expert
Model Reviewed:
Planar T* 50mm f1.4
Strength:
The finest 50mm I have used. Smooth, well dampened focus action, but not stiff. Average size, weight, price. Only thing close I have used is the 50mm 2.0 Summicron R followed by the Nikon 50mm 1.4 AIS. Beautiful fit and finish.
Weakness:
None. Ever so slight tendency to produce veiling glare with sun shining in at oblique angle to lens axis. This is an extreme condition, very rare with this lens and will only matter to pros and those working at the extremes. Couldn't reproduce this effect with Leica 50mm or Nikon. Might just be my lens. The only lens that might outperform this lens is the new Leica R 1.4/50mm that takes E60 filters. Have not had a chance to compare. My wife still marvels at the clarity of the images from this lens. Similar Products Used: Nikon, Leica R |