Zeiss 28ZE with 5DMkIII Question

Hi,
I'm just curious if anyone here is using the Zeiss 28 F2.0 with 5D Mark III. I'm tired of waiting for canon to make a good prime faster than f2.8. In fact, I got a response for them last week that they don't have any plans to replace their 28 F1.8 any time soon.

I shoot events indoors without flash and need F2.0, so Zeiss seems to be the way to go. I'm not interested in Sigma's 28 until they at least update it.

So, do any of you use it in low light for candid photography? I'm used to manual focusing with film rangefinder cameras, but have never used manual focusing with DSLR. Is there any focus confirmation with 5DIII and Zeiss lenses? My main concern is shooting manual focus indoors at f2.8. I don't know, maybe it's easy enough to see what's in focus and what's not in the viewfinder.

Ultimately, I'll probably rent the lens at some point, but wanted to ask for your experiences first.

Thanks

Can't say anything about this particular lens, but as I own a few Zeiss with ZE mount, yes the focus confirm works very well. In the end all depends in the camera ability to "find" the contrast AF point.
The focus ring is very well balanced and damped, much better than Canon's MF lenses - i.e. TS-e type.
You should rent the lens first before buying - I did such with the Zeiss 135mm, and made me realize that would not be a great choice for street photography as I intended, due to lack of AF. The others I have are a macro and UWAs, so no issues there.
ps: I use a 5Dmk2 and 1dsmk3

Thanks Phil!
Yes, I understand about longer focal lengths for street work. I would not attempt it for longer than 50mm without a really good mechanism built into the camera (say, a rangefinder or a special screen).

Can anyone confirm if there is focus confirmation with 5D mk3 and Zeiss ZE lenses?

Thanks

Nope - because I don't have that model.
BUT I have no doubt it will work, as all the zeiss ZE models DO have the electronic connection, for exif and af.
Now, regarding 5Dmk3 ability to MF...that's a can of worms. The OEM focusing screen is not the best for MF, and probably you will have to fiddle with the settings a bit - I had that experience when test-driving a 1Dx with zeiss glass

FYR:
http://lenses.zeiss.co​m …-lenses/distagont228.ht​ml
http://www.flickr.com/​search/?q=28mm%20ze

Good info, thanks. I guess I won't know for sure until I rent one and see for myself.

i have that combo... just sold mine because I mainly shoot kids who moves a lot and my manual focusing skills can't keep up.

focus confirm works well if you can find good af spot.. and if you are close to subject it will be a challenge getting it in focus at f2 especially if the subject doesn't keep still.

it's a shame that 5d3 does not have replaceable focus screen because focus screen helped me a lot when I had 5d2. just looking at viewfinder, I cannot tell if it's in focus or not. I must rely on focus confirmation light. good luck. it's really nice lens. so sharp.. and so.. good looking too.

Thanks brambo76!

brambo76 wrote in post #16771680
it's a shame that 5d3 does not have replaceable focus screen because focus screen helped me a lot when I had 5d2.

It can be replaced, you just need to remove a couple of small screws and take extra care. Search on Google and YouTube and you'll find plenty of info.

Thanks for responding,
Changing the focusing screen maybe a tough decision for me to make because I'll still be using autofocus for 85mm and 135mm lenses. I read that putting a different focusing screen degrades low light autofocus.

Have you considered using live view with manual focus lenses?