If 24LII and Zeiss 21 ZE were the same price which would you get?

Following my previous how to get something close to a Zeiss 21 ZE for less I have pretty much decided to go either 24L mkII or Zeiss 21 ZE.

Now, I can get either for the same price so am going round in circles. One has great f/1.4 and AF - the other has amazing IQ. Eeak.

I am leaning to the Zeiss but then I keep leaning back to the 24L.

Has anyone got both and can give some good comparisons and views?



Mike

What do you Shoot? If your shooting events... you need autofocus...

If landscapes, go for the zeiss.

Environmental portraits.

I would say the zeiss! It blows the 24L away in terms of IQ. Zeiss rendering mmm

But it's up to you. Do you need AF? Do you need f1.4?

I pick the Zeiss 21ZE purely because of the zeiss look , i liked the 21ze images floating around & can live without AF , and... environmental portraits is what Id like to do with it too.

brownbugger wrote in post #9438915
I pick the Zeiss 21ZE purely because of the zeiss look , i liked the 21ze images floating around & can live without AF , and... environmental portraits is what Id like to do with it too.

I'm pretty sold on the Zeiss though the wait is a few weeks. I'm going to sell my 16-35L to help raise funds

echo wrote in post #9438627
Following my previous how to get something close to a Zeiss 21 ZE for less I have pretty much decided to go either 24L mkII or Zeiss 21 ZE.

Now, I can get either for the same price so am going round in circles. One has great f/1.4 and AF - the other has amazing IQ. Eeak.

Has anyone got both and can give some good comparisons and views?
Mike

I have the Zeiss 21 ZE and Canon 24 TSE II on a 5DII. Based upon threads where the two lenses were owned together, the TSE has IQ slightly better than the 24 II based upon lack of CA, especially in the corners (due to the larger image circle). So I think that the 24 TSE without movements is a reasonable comparison with the Zeiss. The 24 is reasonably wide, but for me, the TSE seems to get a lot of its WOW factor from the TSE movements. The high IQ of the TSE retains the detail really well. Now the Zeiss certainly has that WOW capability as well, and the extra FOV helps in that expansiveness feeling. As a super good, fast lens it also is extremely sharp at f2.8 and has this quality of retaining lots of DOF despite the wide f stop. Then there is the Zeiss microcontrast that seems to create the "rendering" that many prefer. However the downside is vignetting at F2.8. I never noticed the mustache distortion at all in landscapes, but am using PT lens in Raw conversion which corrects both vignetting at distortion automatically. I do not consider MF to be an issue at all in a WA lens like this.

so in conclusion I would recommend the Zeiss 21 over the Canon 24 II. The Zeiss is more unusual in its presentation, and has qualities that make it stand out. The Canon is a good lens, its just not as special in its emotional impact.
Mike K

Thanks for your summary Mike. The vignetting wide open isn't that much of a worry to me as I tend to add some vignette anyway in a lot of what I do but from what I can see, once stopped to say f/5.6 it's a stunner.

MF isn't a worry but the 5DmkII isn't an Olympus OM-1n in the viewfinder department so will depend on the live view.

get the 24L. if you find it wanting it's easier to resell, then you can get your ZE

banpreso wrote in post #9442456
get the 24L. if you find it wanting it's easier to resell, then you can get your ZE

I'd like both as both are different animals. It's a bit like owning the 24-70L and the 24-105L, both great at what they do best even though they overlap.

The reason for hesitating is that I had the 24L mkI and it was good but after the novelty wore off the shortcomings became annoying such as the lack of real sharpness wide open and the soft borders at wider apertures. That said I used it on a few shoots and it ended up getting me a few covers.

I'd say it comes down to AF as much as anything. My TS-e 24 is my first MF lens, and for me manual focusing 24mm is a bear for anything other than landscapes and closeups. If you can go without AF, might as well get the Zeiss and play, if not...

I bought 24L II twice and returned it both times. Probably my biggest
disappointment ever. I was expecting a miracle, so much hype etc...
The lens has tons of CA, doesn't get clean even at higher f and has an average bookeh.

I own Zeiss 21 ZE and it is the most spectacular, amazing, outstanding lens
I have ever touched. No contest.

For quite many Zeiss 21ZE shots, visit my recent Italy gallery:
http://www.lightandpic​tures.com/Italy/

Andrew

Very impressive Andrew

Never tried the 24LII but the 21 smokes.

banpreso wrote in post #9442456
get the 24L. if you find it wanting it's easier to resell, then you can get your ZE

In that case rent before you buy to avoid the hassle.

banpreso wrote in post #9442456
get the 24L. if you find it wanting it's easier to resell, then you can get your ZE

In that case rent before you buy to avoid the hassle.