Zeiss ZM (Leica rangefinder) lens review
Anyone shooting a Leica M8 (or any other M rangefinder or compatible camera) might want to check out black & white fine-art photographer Pete Myers’ review of the Zeiss 35mm f/2 Biogon T* ZM lens in the current Zeiss Camera Lens News (PDF). (Go to Zeiss.com/photo to see all the Zeiss offerings, and petemyers.com to see Pete’s work).
The rear element of the elegant Biogon design sits too close to the film/sensor to work for an SLR with its mirror box, and so the Zeiss 35mm f/2 Distagon that I’ve been using (an outstanding performer) is a Distagon design, another elegant design, but one which allows use on an SLR.
However, judging by the MTF chart, the Biogon is a cut above even the Distagon’s performance. Rangefinder wide-angle lens designs can be optimized without having to consider lens-to-film distance, and so rangefinder lenses can be as good or better performers than retrofocus designs for SLR cameras. However, it’s unclear how the Biogon performs on digital bodies (Leica M8), because of the increased angle of incidence to the image sensor.
