zeiss 21mm and canon 35L . .

Are they too close in your opinion???

I'm thinking on buying a wideangle, probably a zeiss distagon 21mm; i don't need a superwideangle, i want just a wide angle prime for landscape.

Do you think this 21mm is too close to the "standard" 35L on my 1D MKIII?? is a 18mm distagon better in terms of focal lenght???

Go for it. The 21 Distagon is certainly a better performer than the 18mm and is significantly wider than your 35L. I don't see a problem in having them both. I was even debating having the 21mm to compliment my 24L II. Yes it's different application altogether.

There's a big difference between 21mm and 35mm (and a noticeable one between 18mm and 21mm). Do you already HAVE the 35L? If so, do you often feel like you want to go wider?

If you feel like laying out a bit of extra cash, you should either rent the Zeisses for a while or buy an old Nikkor 20mm (sub-$100) and see if you like the focal length.

i already have the 35L, on my aps-h camera, i use it for walkaround standard lens..

Well, I'll say that I have a tiny little 28mm (which is what the 21mm would be on APS-H) prime that I carry with me, and that coupled with my Sigmalux (50mm) make a very solid walkaround combo. Of course, I rarely find myself wanting to go wider than 28mm, so YMMV. I think that 28mm is a very good "general wide" FL - you can fit a lot into the frame but you don't have nearly as many composition issues as you would with an ultrawide.

So as someone who does more or less what you're thinking of doing in terms of FL, I can say that it's a fine solution. I went to Paris for a weekend about a month ago, and opted for the Sigmalux/28mm combo over my 24-105L. I took about 200 shots, I'd say 120 or so with the 50mm and 80 or so with the 28mm. So they both got plenty of work.

Actually, here are two terrible shots I took for basically this exact purpose (comparing the FLs). Fairly substantial difference if you ask me. 28mm is first, 50mm is second (duh!)

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I have been using them both, they aren't similar. Numerically it s only 14mm but that creates an entirely different field of view. 21mm to 35mm is way different than say 100mm and 114mm.

Not similar at all. Even my 35L and 24L gives a totally different FOV.

I have no affiliation with Lensrentals.com, but I have had many excellent experiences with them. Anyway, they have a "try and buy" program for Zeiss. If you rent Zeiss lenses they apply the amount of a 4-day rental toward the purchase of a new lens. They are a registered Zeiss dealer, according to their website as well. Might be worth looking into.

And beyond the FOV, there's a different look from the Zeiss. I love my 21mm Zeiss for landscapes. Walked around Cape Cod with it on my 1d4 this past summer and above the tree line on Mount Washington a couple of weeks ago.

hieu1004 wrote in post #11814879
Not similar at all. Even my 35L and 24L gives a totally different FOV.

I second this.

I opted to go with a different lens for my wide prime, but you can't really go wrong with the Zeiss 21.

ken2000ac wrote in post #11815915
I second this.

I opted to go with a different lens for my wide prime, but you can't really go wrong with the Zeiss 21.

Do you mean your TS-E 24 II? I have the 35L and it's a lovely lens, but eventually I'd like to get back into landscapes and I've heard rave reviews about the TS-E, esp. on the 5D2.

rishu_pepper wrote in post #11815965
Do you mean your TS-E 24 II? I have the 35L and it's a lovely lens, but eventually I'd like to get back into landscapes and I've heard rave reviews about the TS-E, esp. on the 5D2.

Sorry if this derails the thread, but yes x 1000. I can't say enough about the TS-E 24L II. I highly suggest having a thorough look through the sample photo thread. Additionally, feel free to browse the shots from this lens on my Flickr, all of which are original resolution.

It's embarrassing how much I sing the praises of this lens, but I simply find that it's just that good.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and examples . . .

In fact what i'm looking for, is a fixed wide angle to combo with my 35L, and use them for every kind of photo where a standard or a wide angle view is needed.

So, with the zeiss 21mm i will have a 27mm - 45mm combo, that sound good!

i pass every zoom, in particular the 16-35, cause for laziness, i'm sure, i would not use my 35L anymore . . .except for low light photography . . .but i don't want to usa a 1k lens just for that . ......... am i wrong?