Carl Zeiss Jena Pancolar 50mm f2 [EXA] - Some Observations

Let's just say that it was not easy making this lens to work on the Canon 5D Mark II. I will explain this in another article when I talk about the new adapter I got, which allows infinity focus for Exakta lenses on the Canon EOS full frame bodies. But, all the trouble was worth it. I love this lens on full frame.

The first thing that gripped me was how beautiful the bokeh is from this lens. It almost has that cinematic feel to it. When focused close and wide open, it exhibits slightly swirling background which is not as apparent when used on the NEX-6 with a smaller sensor. I absolutely adore the bokeh and I think it's wonderful. One of the reasons I missed full frame was seeing the full image as the lens was designed to capture, rather than just a the middle of it with cropped sensors.

Wide open, the lens has very severe vignetting of at least 1.5 stops. The last picture shows the exposure difference between the center and the corner. For you pixel peepers, you can see that the edge is no too shabby at f2. The far corner is not as sharp as the center, but is very respectable. Stopping down to f8/f11 does improve quite a bit, but still not as sharp as the center.

I don't mind the vignette at all. In fact, I prefer it. Usually, if you shoot wide open, you want the subject, usually near the middle, to stand out, and the vignette helps in this regard. Besides, it's completely gone by about f5.6.

Is this why people pay more money for a Pancolar than say, a Pentacon 50mm f1.8? I know the Pentacon 50mm f1.8 does not render pictures like this. The signature is certainly unique for this Pancolar.

Bokeh - Canon 5D Mark II & CZJ Pancolar 50mm f2. Click for larger.

Orange Bike - Canon 5D Mark II & CZJ Pancolar 50mm f2. Click for larger.

Reflection - Canon 5D Mark II & CZJ Pancolar 50mm f2 @ f11. Click for larger.

100% Crop sample. Need to click on the image to see the actual pixels. You can see that vignetting is pretty sever. I would say it's a difference of at least 1.5 stop.

Why I Slow Down Camera Body Upgrades

For a lot of people, they would upgrade to the latest camera bodies as soon as they are available.  I am guilty of this in the past to some degree, but I have now slowed down the upgrade intervals.  There are a couple of reasons for this.

In just a bit longer than a decade, the sensor in the consumer digital camera has matured with frightening speed.  It's unimaginable just a decade ago that today's sensor is capable of such high resolution and low noise.  But, the last couple of years, advances in image quality has been incremental.  The resolution of around 16MP is more than high enough for most uses, and ISO 6400 is surprisingly usable.  Cameras now can last two to three years and are still very usable compared to the new cameras. So, where do you spend the money allocated for photography?  I would suggest lenses.

In film days, we would say that cameras are just a light tight box.  It's the lenses that make the images. It's still true today.  Camera bodies retire at a much faster rate than lenses.  How many 10-year-old digital cameras do you see people use?  Hardly any.  Lenses are entirely different. I see lenses as an investment, though not entirely in financial sense.  I have gone through many Canon bodies, but my Canon lens collection has hardly changed; some of the lenses are more than 20 years old.

True, many people buy cameras not based on image quality, but other factors, such as size, weight, and other features.  Manufacturers know this, and will never make a "perfect" camera.  there are always features that you want, but lacking in the latest camera, and one of these features will be in the next iteration.

Reflection - Canon 1D Mark III & EF 200mm f1.8L @ f3.2.