Focal length and Canon vs Carl Zeiss question

[Svein Rune Skilnand]

Hi.
I am hoping this is posted in the right forum.

I have saved up for a long time and I am wanting to invest in some high quality glass for my current Sony F3 but I also want to use it in the future for 4K.

I know there are different opinions and scenarios out there but I am a documentarian telling stories as they evolve.

I have saved up to buy one lens and I am looking at 24/ 25 mm as my starting point as I think this would be a nice focal length to begin with. I am capturing the action normally by setting up my shot or follow the subject around. So my question is, does anyone have experience working on this focal length?

I am looking at the Canon 24 mm at one end and the Carl Zeiss 25 mm CP2 T2,1 or Duclosmodified ZF2 primes at the other. I am looking for real world experience on how they hold up, clarity and image quality. These are hard to come by here in Norway so unfortunately I cannot walk in and buy one. Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

[Dylan Couper]

Hi, I own a bunch of lenses in this range and can give you a bit of advice...

If you are on limited budget and can only afford 1 lens, you'd be much better off buying much cheaper lenses, but a full set of them.

For example, for the price of the Canon 24mm L, you can buy a Rokinon Cine 24, 35, 50 (and 85 if you buy used). These are pretty close to the sharpness of Zeiss when stopped down to f4, and fully cine-ized out of the box.

If you are a true documentarian, you know that content is everything, and the audience doesn't pixel peep, right? However, if images is everything, the Canon cine primes are the best in category in pretty much every category, sharper than the Zeiss CP2/ZE/ZF glass wide open... though of course, the most expensive.

Just my two cents. Also, if I was a doc shooter, I wouldn't buy primes, I'd buy zooms.

[Svein Rune Skilnand]

Thanks Dylan. That was a very good summary of lenses.

My hope is to build a good collection over time and invest in quality glass to last for a very long time. I bought a Vinten tripod a few years back and has never looked at another since.

I would love to buy some zooms, but they are very expensive. Especially for cinematic purposes, trying to avoid stills glass.

[Dylan Couper]

(Im slow to reply here, sorry)

Best route to go for your dollar if that's the case.

Used Zeiss CY or ZF Planar T 25mm with a cheap Sony adapter.
The CY and ZF have manual apertures and are shallow mounts meaning that you'll be able to adapt them cheaply to E, EF, MFT, etc... all the way down the road.

That's where I would spend my money, then about $50 to get them de-clicked (or DIY) and $10 for a permanent gear ring, $12 for an 82mm front ring, and you have 95% of the functionality of a $4000 CP2 for $600ish.