Analog Review: Zeiss 50mm 1.5 C Sonnar

[@mattdayphoto]

Loved this, man.

[@PINOYROCKTRAX]

I had the 50 Cron v5 and sold it after trying this lens. The Zeiss pop is really amazing! Mine is optimized at 1.5. The focus shift exists, but not really a huge deal once you get used to it. For landscapes I stop down and focus just a tiny smidge short of infinity stop and it’s always tack sharp. The Cron 50 is very predictable and flat and this lens easily beats it in portrait rendering.

[@JonathanNotley]

I tried so hard to get used to it but it's just so shifty. Even using it on a m10 with a visoflex it's just so unpredictable. Got a 'lux now but I do miss the zeiss colours.

[@soothsay3r588]

Just got this lens recently. This lens is staying on my M3 over my 50mm summicron V. I always shoot at F2, at F2 you don’t get focus shift and less busy bokeh. Focus shift is only at 1.5 AND 2.8, you get front focus at 1.5 and back focus at 2.8. It is perfectly focus at f2. That’s what I got from Zeiss.

[@morespinach9832]

Voigtlander f1.5 has no such issues.

[@asadraja377]

Great review. Just what I was looking for. Thank you for the great tips to tame this beast.

[@zguy95135]

The extra stop would be nice but not needing to deal with focus shift is why I got my Planar

[@bensonstein3993]

No issues with 'back focus' or infinity focus when using on a Leica? The originals I believe had a small offset from Leica mount vs Contax and Ikon mounts.

[@JonathanNotley]

Focus shift isn’t an issue with infinity (id day it’s a minimum-5m thing). It was enough to push me into a summilux though

[@samsen3965]

Nice job and thanks for that. How does Zeiss 50mm F/1.5 Sonnar T Opton differs from your C Sonnar?

[@MANUEL11]

can you please do more videos with th elmarit 28mm using portra 400?

[@ductritran8637]

Thanks for the review , because of the focus shift so I may go for the Voigtlander VM 50mm1.5 or the Zeus ZM 50mm 1.4 .

[@crwn_munkz]

Have you done a video on the planar f2?

[@crsantin]

So with focus shift with a film rangefinder, the viewfinder patch will show focus but the image will not be focused on your selected spot at 1.5? Is that correct?

[@JonathanNotley]

Correct

[@shawnthale]

Awesome lens. Great colors and sharpness. The only issue I had is the close focus distance of only .9 meters.

[@andyvan5692]

just had a thought about the focus shift you are talking about, how would using ND filters work?, you lower the light, with NO effect on d.o.f, as the F-stop is constant!

[@geekch96]

Excellent Review, I just got the lens. Question: Where did you get your camera strap from?

[@rafamorenoc]

What about a 50m sonnar 1.2 for use on a m 4/3 camera ?

[@girliedog]

Thank you for this excellent video, I was about to purchase this lens. The focus shift quirk would drive me nuts, going to consider alternatives.

[@morespinach9832]

Voigtlander

[@lugentaubner6853]

This lens was 600 GBP in 2019? Price has jumped quite a bit, then. - Cool video, awesome lens.

[@aarons6532]

Ask and you shall receive! Think this video may push me over the edge for purchasing one of these for my M4, despite some of the drawbacks you mention. Currently have the ZM 35 2.8 but now that I have a Contax T which covers the focal length it may be worth changing things up. A fast modern lens at that price is worth a small lean forward to compensate for its focus shift. Great video as always!

[@JonathanNotley]

I was about to reply to your other comment! The focus shift is very much an issue but is simultaneously very solvable. Have a play on a digi-M to learn how your copy reacts but 90% of them are 2.8-optimised in the factory (as mine is)

[@aarons6532]

@@JonathanNotley Think I'll take the plunge the next time I spot one for a decent price. The learning curve is just another excuse to go out and shoot! Thanks again (and great to see Hampstead Heath again - take it you're a fellow North Londoner and suffering Arsenal fan?)

[@vampolascott36]

I've been lucky choosing fast lenses that don't exhibit focus shift. My M10 seems to be very well calibrated also. I can trust rangefinder focus with my 50 1.4 Summilux and Voigtlander 50 1.2 Nokton while shooting wide open. I feel like I was very lucky. My understanding is that the M10 optical rangefinder system was redesigned to improve focus accuracy and reliability. I know that people with older Leica rangefinders have real problems with calibration.

[@bechelerroseme6821]

How much is this lens. I'm planning to get a Leica ( Bucket list ) and start shooting with rangefinders.

[@JonathanNotley]

The best way to check current prices is to search it on eBay and filter by sold/completed. I’d need to know where you are in the world to give you a figure. Careful as a beginner to rangefinders though: the focus shift might cause problems and you won’t know wether to blame yourself or the lens

[@bechelerroseme6821]

@@JonathanNotley U.S.A., west coast. Lol. I made a vow, I would always blame me 98% of the time when my pictures turn awful.

[@JonathanNotley]

Make sure you’re shooting with reliable kit otherwise it can get really disheartening. Some people have issues were certain shutter speeds on their camera don’t work and they just think they’re bad at metering. I’d try KEH for gear if I was in the states, but eBay also works

[@acachia]

Top review, just sterling. Love the way light looks on this lens. Thank you!

[@lucaslucas9505]

Why is everything a question?

[@cono_paello]

Hey man, come back! We want more videos!

[@CrazyCalabrese78]

Nice review 👍🏻. Can you please explain the focus shift concept to me as I’ve read about it a few times and it seems to be an issue if you focus then change aperture. If you focus at f1.5 and leave it there, are you getting an accurate representation?

[@JonathanNotley]

Basically the lens changes its focus as it’s stopped down. Because the aperture isn’t connected to the rangefinder the camera has no way of knowing what aperture you’ve selected and so the lenses are optimised in the factory for f2.8. Shooting at f1.5 isn’t accurate but there’s a fix - because it’s always the exact same amount off I know that to get accurate focus wide open I have to lean a few centimetres forward to move my focus into the scene.

[@CrazyCalabrese78]

Jonathan Notley cool, makes sense. Thanks! Coming from an SLR I’m thinking there’s already some guesswork involved if you need to focus and recompose at minimum focus distance on a rangefinder. Mind you, I’ve missed focus wide open with my SLR and think my “slight focus adjustment” at close distance actually changes focal point by more than a couple of centimetres 🤦‍♂️

[@nayuki2020]

The strap look neat on a film Leica. What is it?

[@jeffdrew625]

I like mine on m7 & VC R3a. I’ve always liked the quirks & old design for film.

[@christophscholz7484]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the whole idea of this lens to have a somewhat flawed image that resembles vintage lenses from the 30s? Because the Zeiss Planar is sharper and actually cheaper, too.

[@BriansPhotoShow]

Great video! Would you consider doing a side-by-side comparison with the Soviet Jupiter 3, a clone of this lens which sells for perhaps a third of the price you quoted for the Zeiss?

[@noah-mg2vy]

If you could answer this question it would mean a lot to me: does this have focus shift at the smaller apertures? I have a number of sonnar lenses, some of which experience focus shift at all apertures whereas some don't really feature much focus shift at f5.6 or f8 for example. Can you please tell me what you have found? I really appreciate your time.

[@JonathanNotley]

It has focus shift at all apertures but by 5,6 the increased depth of field should mask the effects. If your subject is over 2m away and you’re using 5.6 or above you should have sufficient dof to mask inaccuracies

[@noah-mg2vy]

@@JonathanNotley I see... So essentially at that point the depth of field catches up to the focus shift. Thabk you for your reply it means a lot to me as does your time. Thank you

[@kurocamera]

is the focus shift that big of a deal when shooting this lens on film or is it more of an issue on digital bodies? most old sonnars from the film era did have the same focus shift problem right?

[@ZachBie]

Tends to be more obvious on digital from what I’ve read ( I only use mine on film )

[@highlander200107]

Great video, been pondering one of these, already have the ZM Planar 50mm, but there’s something to this Sonnar I really like.

[@pennywi8553]

What do u like in sonnar? I am thinking about buying it.

[@highlander200107]

@@pennywi8553 I love the character of the lens, while not a 'perfect' lens, I love the final output. It has that classic lens look to the images, over the modern lenses that are just too perfect for me.

[@dennislam8102]

if you have chance, pls review Hexar RF and it’s limited Hexanon 50 1.2.

[@thomasackermann7505]

Maybe I don't get it correctly, but why dont you just focus again after you changed the aperture?

[@JonathanNotley]

The rangefinder system doesn’t show you what’s through the lens like an SLR does.

[@thomasackermann7505]

@@JonathanNotley Oh, of course! Thanks!

[@charruaporelmundo]

How does this lens on a Sony camera? Sony a7iii, Iv, anyone?

[@cameranjoun6420]

You can use contax or Nikon s, Sp etc...

[@FauxtakuLounge]

Yeah, well done. I only pass this one up because I really like to have 0,7metre focus and therefore stick with the Voigtländer 50/1,5.

[@wuzihuzi]

I think it's funny you addressed people who have it and might hate you 😂. It's quite true people ask for a review and if you sledge their new toy they don't think rationally. To those people, I'm sure you can still get fantastic photo's from it and if you can't you're using it wrong.

[@AndresRuiz-gs8vm]

The voightlander nokton 50 mil 1.5 is pretty legendary I hear on the streets

[@Patsesson]

Great content! Cant wait for the Lomo 800 video

[@Raychristofer]

Great job on this review old chap.

[@MichaelRusso]

Works like a classic 50mm. Nice.

[@TomBiskup]

May I ask what was your scanning method? Thanks for the vid!

[@JonathanNotley]

Hi Tom, I use a Plustek 8200i with Silverfast 8 Ai, got a really in depth video about it elsewhere on my channel

[@TomBiskup]

@@JonathanNotley Yeah, but in your vids you are talking about scanning with flatbed too so I wanted to make sure. Thanks. I'm just wondering should I go with a plustek or a cheap mirrorless + macro lens for scanning via RAW shooting the film.

[@bryanasmar7682]

Hey Jonathan is this you from the camera show LA ?

[@JonathanNotley]

Don’t think so

[@crwn_munkz]

I asked u on a older video about this strap, the company changed the name to rock & roll straps and camera bags. Really good straps, a bit pricey but you get what you pay for.

[@dryandtweaky1412]

Great review. You really remind me of Miles Jupp, and I love it.

[@chloescanlon1107]

£600? It’s £920 everywhere I’ve looked. You should have stated whether that’s used or new.

[@privetgrisha]

You take a mid-portrait retro-bokeh lens and take with it only one portrait photo... Im sad because it.

[@justcallmesando]

Great great review!!

[@JonathanNotley]

Thanks

[@jokesNgiggles]

you're brave pointing that cloth shutter directly at the sun at 1.5.

[@JonathanNotley]

The real risk of shutter burn occurs when you’re not holding the camera. Shelves by windows or car dashboards come to mind - you can mitigate this by setting your focus off infinity or using lens caps! It’s actually very difficult to burn the shutter whilst using the camera because it’s constantly in motion and the focal plane lies a couple of mm behind the shutter itself

[@MiladJPanah]

Black Sheep Aran sweater ?

[@JonathanNotley]

I bought it from a Quba in Cornwall

[@thedondeluxe6941]

Great video as always! I was considering this lens, but I went with the Voigtländer 50mm f/1.1 Nokton. It's bigger and heavier, but I shoot a lot of photos in low light from quite far away, so it was tempting to have that extra half a stop. Plus I get the feeling that Voigtländer lenses work really well on film for some reason. Don't know if I'm right about that :-) I really like the Lomo 800, looking forward to your review of that one!

[@raksh9]

Voigtlanders do work very well with film. The 35/1.4, 25/4P, 75/2.5, 50/3.5 collapsible, all create quite gorgeous images with film.

[@thedondeluxe6941]

That's my impression too. I have the 35mm 1.4, and I'm super happy with that one for film photography. Haven't tried it on a digital body yet, but I'm sure it will do well there too.

[@raksh9]

@@thedondeluxe6941 35/1.4 and 35/1.2 are great on digital, too. Run images through Silver Efex and they gain an even more organic quality.

[@thedondeluxe6941]

@raksh9 Great! I just got an adapter for M mount to micro four thirds, so that's next on my list of things to try :-)

[@constantinkirwan-taylor9767]

Cool vid

[@thomasackermann7505]

600 Pounds? In Germany it is more than 900 Pounds (1000 Euros, new).

[@JonathanNotley]

I sold mine for £500gbp a few months ago

[@rockymhs]

Too bad that close focus distance is 0.9m...

[@johnirby493]

"If you're willing to close it down", it won't be worth any more than the f2 Sonnar.

[@DelayAndMentlegen]

1. awesome lens at f2 and onward 2. you looks like Justin Bieber

[@cameranjoun6420]

6pound ? Len wt ? You only knows British money ? Canadian/US dollar,how you adapted contax lens to leica ??cost ?

[@benwoodhead2570]

cameran Joun Just do the currency translation yourself, lazy

[@writehse]

Speaking in question marks lol

[@MIZRAIM1906]

Skip this... Get the 50mm Summilux.

[@faribahi]

Using the term " Analog " already indicates that you know nothing about the subject you are discussing about !

[@JonathanNotley]

It’s a catch all term for cameras without digital sensors used by the non-autistic community

[@faribahi]

@@JonathanNotley As a person you do not need to follow other people if they are wrong. Specially if you contribute to the knowledge of something, you need to make your research and not just superficially publish erroneous terms just because many young people and new to the art, like yourself, don't know the history and the progression of the art and technic of photography. Make a research before publishing something. Just the wrong term in the title tells us the whole review is greatly dubious. Unfortunately social medias these days are full,of people who just are in search for publishing contents without value just to gain followers and money.

[@faribahi]

@@JonathanNotley And by the way, there is no such a thing as "digital sensor" as you say, all sensors are analog !