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21/2.8 Distagon Main Page
The Zeiss ZF-ZF.2-ZE 21/2.8 Distagon bring the famed Contax 21mm design to Nikon and Canon users, with some unspecified improvements. The Contax design was very highly regarded and sought-after, and it appears that the ZF/ZE models live up that pedigree.
Field shooting shows that the ZF 21/2.8 Distagon is in a league by itself with respect to image color, contrast and sparkle/brilliance— gorgeous performance, at least if one is afforded the chance to see it in action over a wide range of subjects.
Advanced highly-corrected design
I wrote following paragraph a month prior to receiving the 21/2.8 Distagon for testing:
This is a well corrected lens. An astounding 16 elements in 13 groups is an exceptionally complex design for a prime (fixed focal length) lens. One can only hope that the quality control is in place to ensure alignment of all those elements, a significant manufacturing challenge that when not met will surely reduce the outstanding MTF characteristics of the 21/2.8 Distagon. The wise and/or paranoid might consider buying two copies of the 21/2.8 Distagon to reassure themselves that the optical performance of both copies is consistent.
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An astounding 16 elements in 13 groups