Zeiss Planar T* FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA Review

Zeiss Planar T* FE 50mm F1.4 ZA Handling and Features

The lens was provided for review with the Sony Alpha A7R II body and the 782g lens makes it a heavy and fairly bulky package that offers little if any physical advantage of bulk over a small traditional DSLR with, usually, a far more compact 50mm f/1.4 lens. However, the lens balances very well with the A7R II, especially when used with the EVF as opposed to the rear screen. A solid metal bayonet mount secures the lens firmly to the body, albeit with a minute amount of rotational play when clicked into place. Although this won't have any effect on the actual use or performance, it is interesting that so far this has not been seen with any of the third party lenses tested on this camera range.

Starting at the front of the lens, the bayonet fitting for the provided petal lens hood encloses a 72mm filter thread. The hood clicks into place precisely, but the actual plastic used is somewhat thinner than the other Sony/Zeiss hoods that we have seen. The actual lens itself is manufactured to a very high and precise standard, all controls operating smoothly with no play whatsoever.

The 11 diaphragm blades can be clearly seen, providing an almost perfectly circular aperture. With this lens the aperture is always at the setting dialled in, both for viewing and for the actual exposure. This does not seem to have any detrimental effect on focusing as the action is fast and very accurate. Focusing is also extremely quiet, thanks to the SSM (Super Sonic Wave) motor.

The focus-by-wire manual focusing ring is generously wide and very smooth in action. There are two switches, one to select AF/MF and the second to deselect the click stops on the aperture ring, a feature especially useful for video shooting. There is a choice of method for selecting the aperture. The beautifully engineered aperture ring is click stopped in one-third of a stop increments or, if set to the A mark, the camera can be used to set the value instead.

The lens specification is 12 elements in 9 groups, a design rather more complex than the original Planar that it is based upon. It includes one Advanced Aspherical, one Aspherical and one ED (extra low dispersion) element. IF (Internal Focusing) means that the lens does not rotate nor does the length change as we focus down to the 0.45m (1.48') closest distance. This gives a maximum magnification of 0.15x. This is exactly what would be expected from a traditional 50mm lens. The weight of the lens is quoted as 778g, and actually measures at 782g, less caps or hood.

Lens coating is the well known Zeiss T* and the lens is dust and moisture resistant, a very welcome feature.

In terms of handling, there are no negatives or glitches to mar the smooth performance from the lens. The switches are well placed and firm enough in action to avoid accidental operation. The aperture ring is an amazing example of engineering, so very precise and with perfectly firm detents. The irony is that ergonomically I prefer to control the aperture from the camera, not such a tactile experience but for me more efficient. Others may disagree, and the choice is there.

There is no doubt that the lens is built to a very high standard, which bodes well for the performance.

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