ZEISS's New Compact T1.5 Mirrorless Cine Lenses!!

[@HarnTeh]

Being myself an Otus 85 owner since 2015, as soon as i saw the CA issue appear at 1:36, i am shocked. We are in 2024, and there is still so many fringing issue appear at wide open and it cost more than $3900 each. hmmm..

[@SamGossner]

I am shocked this isn't a larger point of discussion, thank you for being at least one other person to comment about this. The fringing & LoCA is so jarring in all the footage. These NP's have characteristics and rendering almost exactly like the Cosina-Voigtlander Noktons I work with daily, which are an achromatic design as opposed to the apochromatic Otus and Supreme Primes (or Cosina's slower f/2 APO Lanthars). Cosina is of course a Japanese OEM for Zeiss responsible for assembling many of their manual focus lenses including Otus, so I would not be surprised if they are actually responsible for assembling the Nano Primes. There appear to be some noticeable improvements in vignetting and field curvature vs. Noktons or Zeiss' Classic Planars but the difference very much does not seem worth $3000 extra. Based on the pricing of the Noktons, Zeiss Classic Planars, and Milvus, these are basically roughly $1000-1500 lenses in $3000 housings. Nowhere even close to the rendering of Otus or Supremes full open. They could have easily corrected CA much better here; it's not like partial dispersion glass is that rare or expensive anymore...

[@arrjo]

It would be interesting to see how a budget cine lens set like the Nisi Athena Cine Primes would hold against the Zeiss and Cooke lenses.

[@MichaelNoLimitsLi]

Nisi way softer than Zeiss & Cooke

[@shimizujones]

in a good way?@@MichaelNoLimitsLi

[@princeharbinger]

There's also the Samyang Cine lenses, but I heard they don't perform too well. Guess it depends on the look you are going for.

[@KiritoHeinrich]

How hard(sharp) they can be?@@MichaelNoLimitsLi

[@ShotbyPicto]

@@princeharbingerThe Samyangs/Rokinons punch way above their price point, but perhaps not surprisingly, way below the Nanos, especially wide open.

[@spotshooter1]

Outstanding video... CVP sets the standard for comprehensive cine gear reviews and analysis. Thanks for your efforts.

[@BlaineWestropp1]

love it. great video as always. thanks for posting.

[@theothermarkwilliams]

I’d be really interested to see a comparison between the Nano Primes and the Otuses. Obviously very different in terms of the construction of cinema lenses vs. stills lenses, but I’m super curious about the image quality differences between those two.

[@rikucinema3454]

Still waiting for it.

[@davidfraiden8008]

Can’t wait for a Cooke sp3 vs nano comparison. This seems to be the first time lenses of such high quality have been offered by Cooke and Ziess. Aside from the fact that they’re both not PL mount, it seems to be a no brainer when comparing to the mini s4 and cp3. What am I missing? Did the game just shift to more affordable really great prime sets?

[@jasperbruijns7449]

Interesting, but I wonder what they would offer me over, lets say a set of Sigma High Speed Primes with cooke i Data. Both clean and sharp, t1.5 and 95mm front diameter. Seems nice to test them though on a project to find out.

[@jasperbruijns7449]

I never liked the greenish flares and a little bit less breathing would be nice, perhaps that is what they could sell it over the sigma's. but a PL mount is a insurance feeling to be honest.

[@kavavnaughmp]

I think the data passthrough to a E-Mount will be a big selling point for some. And I think they are the cheapest cine focused option with lens data now?

[@docbenway0]

I think you're right that those lenses are pretty comparable. I'm not sure that one is clearly better than the other. Just comes down to preferred look and mount availability. Part of the idea with the Zeiss set is obviously to have a kit that matches other Zeiss lenses, obviously, so it may be a good choice as a "house" set for small production companies that sometimes rent lenses for larger productions.

[@studiojohnny]

1:36 Interesting to see the color shift between where it's in focus ("Holland") and right after when it's falling out of focus. The in-focus looks magenta while the out-of-focus looks green.

[@Warren-g8t]

Another great review form you guy's at CVP. I would love to see the Zeiss Nano primes compared with the Canon Cn-e primes. I think these lenses are the most closest competition to the Zeiss Nano primes. As the prices are very close the fact that Zeiss has paid particular effort to colour matching the set and the super fast speeds of an average T1.5 of the lens set. I think that most people who are thinking of buying a set of primes in the near future will be interested in the comparison of the Canon Cn-e and the Zeiss Nano.

[@Apatura123]

I'm still waiting for the Cook SP vs Dulens APO Mini Primes comparison. Would be really interesting to see as they are so similar in speccs!

[@kinoromantic]

Dulens APO are around 4k$ per set of four. While it'll be interesting to see those tests, I fear they might be in a wholly different price bracket to compare

[@leandersvids]

@Apatura123 yes!!

[@Apatura123]

@romanaldaine6210 I don't see where this is a problem? The huge price difference is the key factor, why a comparison is so interesting. Those old and well knows companies like Zeiss and Cooke are often times really, really expensive for not that much better of an optical quality. You always pay 100% more for maybe 5-10% “better” image quality (if any). But it would be interesting to see, how each lens performs and where the shortcomings are. But those new Chinese companies are giving Zeiss and Cooke a run for their money…

[@kinoromantic]

@@Apatura123 As someone who rented Zeiss CP optics as well as their compact zoom options I have to say that the biggest difference for me is in the highlight rolloff. Expensive Zeiss lenses are much more pleasing to look at, and skin and shadow transitions do not look as harsh with them. Colour wise you’re paying for consistency and that’s coating. With that being said, cost isn’t everything and one of my favourite lenses in my kit costs 20$ and modified with focus gears and filter adapters and is an Industar 61 L/Z and that one gives my cimmoded Zeiss Jena DDR and even Leica R that cost 20-40 times more a run for it’s money.

[@leandersvids]

@@Apatura123 right and in some cases one can already say that the dulens minis are better than both (!) zeiss and cooke, like no chromatic aberrations, clean bokeh or zero to no distortion. still i'd like a comparison, also just to hear their opinion on this ^^

[@cthgts]

Sp3 vs nano prime is going to be a sweet video

[@hakejo]

Your test smokes the competition, thanks!

[@kane01337]

Superb video by CVP as usual - you guys are killing it with the quality content & comparative testing -keep up the amazing work! Would be curious to see how the Otus compares to the Nano's rendering / CA etc - so many options , great time to be a film maker :)

[@richardwhittaker2879]

They look nice! feel like the Cooke SP3 are easier to solo operate though (and look more distinctive). Whichever way you want to go it's a great time to be a filmmaker.

[@C.C.Cope220]

So these are very much Zeiss cp4s, but they decided to rebrand as nano primes instead of continuing the Compact prime brand. Makes sense since cook also called their’s Sp3s Honestly the cp2s from Zeiss were solid, and had some super speed; even ‘budget’ the zeiss lenses are so sharp I always wind up with filters on them, they are just too clinical left clean for my taste.

[@heartshapedfilms]

Immediately thought of the Cookes when you started this review! Though I am not sure its an easy comparision - I can almost see the outcome of the Ziess being cleaner more acurate with a more neutural image and the Cookes looking less clinical and have more of a vintage look, i'd say for an owner operator myself now that the cookes are more appealing as i dont have crews and having a shorter throw, though the cost difference speed and larger range of the Ziess makes them a very tempting offering. I also wonder if these are made in Germany as the Cookes arent made in Leicester. Very well done guys.

[@kunstspielklavier185]

According to Newsshooter the Nano primes are made in Japan.

[@heartshapedfilms]

@@kunstspielklavier185 thanks! That's canny impressive still

[@JorgeDourado]

Hi! Always enjoy watching your latest content guys. If I may make a suggestion, it would be fantastic to see a comparison not only to Cooke's SP3 but also to the Nisi Athena's. Thanks for sharing, cheers!

[@awsjaff]

looking forward for the comparison with Cooke SP or Nisi cine lenses? well done review

[@AustinHo]

A low-med-high budget comparison would be really cool.

[@EdProsser]

Another fantastic video - thank you! I don't love this shift to making mirrorless-only cine-lenses (but I get it) - it's great to see that the mounts will be interchangeable as I'm sure anyone investing in these lenses - even at the relatively lower price point will want the freedom to move to other camera systems. Would be interested to see how these compare to other "modern-look" lenses like the Athenas as well.

[@JalaGames]

its great seeing the new budget, now mid range to high end! without peeping too much there are so many similarities! comparing the nanos against the otus lenses would be nice. Since an otus set is around 13k then cine modding them would likely be cheaper or similar pricing. it might be worth while seeing the characteristic similarities or differences. especially since the otus (plus modded otus) lenses have more mounts than the nanos atm.

[@Tommy_Beal]

I love this review. So thorough and thoughtful. Thank you! Love you guys!!

[@blender_wiki]

Beautiful as a Zeiss, that means cold and sharp, not recommended for fiction. Perfect for VFX

[@docbenway0]

Hm. I'd wager that more Hollywood fiction films have been shot on either Zeiss or Cooke than any other brands of lens. It's fine if you don't like the look, but it's a little strange to suggest the Zeiss look is not recommended for fiction...

[@DJBFilmz]

I love Zeiss, and just picked up more Milvuses to round off my set of Otuses. And thennnnnn, these drop lol. Gotta save up some more now.

[@MrJonnySplash]

How do they compare to the Otus lenses?

[@williamfrancecamera]

Would you consider this as Zeiss following after Cooke in terms of producing more cost friendly versions of their glass? Im all for this revolution and hope they're at the expo next week

[@docbenway0]

Seems like this is a broad industry trend. Even just 20 years ago, no one would personally own a cinema grade camera, and only a few DPs and companies owned cinema lenses. Zeiss came out with the CP2s in 2012 to serve this new price-sensitive owner-operator market-- I'd think Cooke is only now following them. And both companies are newly trying to design lenses for a mirrorless world.

[@johnclay7644]

impressive lens informative video thanks CVP.

[@karateklubben]

I would love to see this lenses be compered to Sigma FF primes. They have almost the same specs.

[@chrisniswonger]

All the next mirrorless mounted cinema cameras MUST have locking mounts. Mount play will be a huge issue if they do not.

[@sanluca-eva]

I think the tokina vista primes are a step better, but without electric contact. Would be nice a comparison.

[@alexcristescu8604]

Hard to beat the Tokina Vista Primes in terms of performance and price but they sure are heavy and big compared to these offerings.

[@RileyEndicott]

Great video! Hopefully we get an RF mount soon!

[@gabrielmachadobsb]

When comparing the Nano Primes and SP3s, could you throw the Nisi Athenas in as well? Would be interesting to see how they stack despite the price difference

[@nebukadnezzar3578]

If Zeiss Supreme Primes are one of the most sought after/rented lenses, I wonder where Arris Signature Primes stand popularity wise… Would be amazing to know 😅

[@АнтонДжулай-к5р]

Zeiss nano prime vs Canon cine rf mount , who is the best ?

[@Journeywiththehintis]

Are the burano realy identical to the venice 2?

[@heyheyhey520]

I’ve always wanted rehoused Nikon glass like at 1:20

[@Dlowreyjr01]

Seems like lots of people want to see a Nano vs SP3 comparison. Outside of form factor and mounting options, it’s kind of comparing apples to oranges. These are designed to perform the modern/sharp Zeiss look, while the SP3’s are more Panchro/vintage look. Two different tools. I’d rather see a Supreme, CP3, Nano tested even further.

[@BerlinBK2662]

But why those chromatic abberation are off the chart???that's borderline unacceptable...watch at 2:56 ,those green and purple line,(or cyan and violet) they don't look good....

[@TwatMcGee]

I think its a combo of them being wide open, with the compact design. They seem to be a lot better closed down. They're also fairly cheap too, they are around the same price as sigma's cine lenses.

[@docbenway0]

These tests are designed to highlight weaknesses. I don't find CA distracting in the practical shots, and I also would try not to shoot super high contrast subjects wide open with most lenses.

[@brandonpeterson40]

These Nano Primes look really good and are worlds better than Cooke SP3! I actually really like the flares on the Nano Prime. Nice amber and rainbow hues

[@lorenzogattaldo3764]

lucky you to have a CP3 18mm opening up to T2.1

[@Mionwang]

Does this mean that the Venice 2 review is coming soon too?

[@Journeywiththehintis]

Realy waiting

[@BillTettly-vc3hw]

Sigma FP review? Good idea. I would do it my self but I have zero cinematography skills so it’s on you (I’m talking about a review with real cine lenses and comparisons which don’t really exist)

[@airfilm_it]

please compare with CP3!

[@Slipsch]

I like the cooke SP3 look more but wish they were T1.5 like the Zeiss.

[@docbenway0]

I'd love that, too. To be fair, though, Cooke has rarely prioritized speed. Did they even offer t1.5 lenses before the 5i set in 2009? (Their prior flagship set, the s4s, were t2.)

[@Kudinovfilms]

bro whot is cilorcorrection, maybe have a lut please

[@terrymcnavage5104]

Would these work on a Sony a1 II

[@VanisleG]

I gotta say, it’s weird that any set of cine lenses coming out (non-anamorphic) would still have focus breathing much at all. Especially as high end as Zeiss. It’s a shame that there are photography lenses outperforming these, and it’s obviously zero competition when you have compensation features enabled too. Love everything else though! Maybe minus some of that CA…

[@MonigMedia]

Cooke now Ziess, I can't wait till Panavision gets in on the mirrorless movement.

[@deonvnzl]

LOL

[@Warren-g8t]

Since Panavision has NEVER sold any of their amazing lenses to the public you'd be waiting a very very very long time!!!!!!!🤣

[@brandonpeterson40]

The 24mm and 100mm need some work in terms of being up to par with the others in the set. Perhaps you didn't get great copies or maybe this is a widespread manufacturing issue. The skewed flare of the 24mm is unacceptable, I would reject that lens. The 100mm has way too much magenta fringing. Other than that, these lenses are amazing for the money and might be the new Otus killers since they appear to have smoother rolloff. I still love Otus's though for performance in resolution and optical consistency. I would say Otus are optically superior but these Nano Primes have some nice characteristics in their flaws. Also, Nano are made in Japan so they are kind of a budget Zeiss in that regard.

[@danielkanveshot3750]

Can I use on the 4D?

[@Slipsch]

I believe these lenses are made by Cosina in Japan just like the Otus.

[@giganadiradze]

CVP Central Venous pressure?

[@Pram4]

I use 360p but your camera make it looks like hd

[@Chips-Lab]

Awesome review as always. Would love to see the Nisi Athena to the comparaison video

[@EastonOliver]

Will there be a burano full review out soon?

[@CVPTV]

Was 31 minutes not enough? kzbin.info/www/bejne/fZXQcn5rlKpmeMU

[@EastonOliver]

@@CVPTV That was a great vid! Have probably already watched it 20+ times. I just ask because my pre-order is coming up and impressions across the internet are still very sparse. I know that video was produced in a short amount of time, so maybe “final impressions” would be a better video. Just anxious about the state of that IR pollution and some other questions, like compatible cards, best cages, etc.

[@CVPTV]

Ahhh awesome! You've convinced me, I think a final thoughts and stuff to think about when buying/using video could be useful!! It's on our list, thanks for the suggestion! Jake

[@Journeywiththehintis]

​@@CVPTV are burano and venice 2 identical?

[@enriquegonzalez2674]

Are these rehoused milvus?

[@benediktrs1263]

no

[@olindamedia]

Burano footage looks good here.

[@alexcristescu8604]

I think that was Venice 2 actually.

[@CVPTV]

It was a mix of BURANO and VENICE 2. Jake

[@iDealMedley]

Electronic contact? Is it for af?

[@docbenway0]

No, for lens data. (Watch from 10:14 for information on what data is pass through to the camera.)

[@shagral]

Great video and testing, as always, but that level of CA and breathing on lenses at this price point = hard pass.

[@Goonch92]

Throw in the DZO Vespids and Dulens APOs -- pretty please!

[@Journeywiththehintis]

Nice video

[@mattuhry]

Great Video - don't think this set is for me ... too expensive with too many trade offs - especially the breathing and CA.

[@mattiapalombi1597]

Cp.2 , Cp.3 and Nano Primes same lens with a different name.

[@girafingo9280]

Surprised they didn’t make an AF version as this is E mount

[@TheLostKuma]

4:12 oiy. edit, 14:50 really oiy

[@wlrohr1]

Worst inconsistent CA and focus breathing of any recent tests you have shown. What happened to Zeiss???

[@RawmanFilm]

They are Cheap, large Aperture, extremely compact cinelenses. this is by design.

[@picxlproductions]

E mount only is another fail just like the Cooke's were. To not have RF is insane to me with so many RED cameras out there.

[@silasgotsch4458]

i don't get why anyone would ever buy an e-mount cine lens. Even if you film with a Sony Camera, it doesn't make much sense.

[@picxlproductions]

@silasgotsch4458 It's like they're targeting FX6, FX3 and FX9 users. It doesn't make any sense what so ever. They can't feel selling a ton of them. The Cooke's would have been a hit had they made them in other mounts from the beginning. Now I have no desire to purchase them. Especially since they're charging another $500 per just to get another mount.

[@ShortStoryInspiration]

What about Sony Venice, burano, fx series, ronin4d, kinefinity, zcam, freefly specialty cameras… All e mount compatible. it makes sense E mount because it’s the most widely used mount right now. And open to be used by all lens manufacturers, both active and manual lenses. With mirrorless mounts the flange distance is what makes the smaller optical construction possible, with pl or EF the lens needs to be physically bigger. In RF no lens manufacturer other than canon can make an electronic lenses. The mount is just used by Canon and Red cameras, that’s it

[@silasgotsch4458]

@@ShortStoryInspiration Yes i know and i do appreciate the short flange distance on e-mount cameras. I shot on Sony cameras for most of my career. What i can't get behind for my personal investments is e-mount glass. As i don't rely on anything that needs communication between the body and the lens, i want to invest in a body that can adapt a lot of lenses and lenses that can be adopted on a lot of bodies. That's the reason why i don't like e-mount on cine lenses.

[@picxlproductions]

@ShortStoryInspiration Okay, I'm pretty positive this lens won't sell well and they'll be bringing out more mounts soon. Canon and RED is a very large group. Those other brands you named no one buys except Sony.

[@TLFILMS]

Cooke SP3 and now those, big brands are seducing filmmakers!

[@petrosianus]

first!

[@sotocine99]

onion rings, thats not supreme.

[@SuperJackBoom]

E-Mount… tztztztz