Schneider-Kreuznach Edixa-Xenar 50mm f2.8 - Photo Set

The last time I used this lens was almost three years ago, and I wrote about it here. I praised the lens on the Canon 550D, but it works equally well, if not better, on full frame. Thankfully, this lens does not hit the mirror on the 5D Mark II.

From experience, many lenses have unique colour signatures. The Sigmas (older ones anyway) tend to have a yellow colour cast to the pictures, and Canon L lenses tend to have more vibrant colours than non-L versions. Would digital, the colour is no longer very important, especially when you shoot RAW, as it can be adjusted. Some lenses would produce beautiful colours from the beginning, so very little, or no adjustment is necessary in post processing.  I find many Zeiss lenses product very nice, pleasing colours natively. Certain, this Edixa-Xenar is one of them.

Magnolia - Canon 5D Mark II & Schneider-Kreuznach Edixa-Xenar 50mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Scooter - Canon 5D Mark II & Schneider-Kreuznach Edixa-Xenar 50mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Sculptures Outside TIFF building - Canon 5D Mark II & Schneider-Kreuznach Edixa-Xenar 50mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Pink Tulip - Canon 5D Mark II & Schneider-Kreuznach Edixa-Xenar 50mm f2.8. 

Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8 as a Close-Up Lens

One of the unique traits of Flektogon lenses is the extreme close-up capabilities. For the 35mm f2.8, the closest focus distance is 0.18m (0.6 ft). This opens up some unique possibilities; you can use the lens as a pseudo macro lens. Also notable is the very nice bokeh, at least from the 35mm f2.8 Flektogon. In some cases, wide angle lenses do not have pleasing bokeh, especially those with aspherical elements.

Kaiser's Crown - Canon 5D Mark II & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Tulips - Canon 5D Mark II & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Pink Tulip - Canon 5D Mark II & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8.