Zeiss 35mm f/2 vs Zeiss 35mm f/1.4
Let’s take a look at how the Zeiss 35mm f/2 compares to its bigger brother, the 35mm f/1.4:
The more expensive Zeiss Distagon T* 35mm f/1.4 is not a very sharp lens at large apertures, as can be seen from the above graph. In fact, when I compared the performance of the lens at f/2 to that of the Zeiss Distagon T* 35mm f/2, I was surprised to see that the latter outperformed its bigger brother optically. Only at f/2.8 was the 35mm f/1.4 able to somewhat catch up. Stopped down to f/4.0 where both lenses perform the best in the center, the Zeiss 35mm f/2 still showed superiority in the corners, although it did show some issues with field curvature.
Overall, while both lenses are quite sharp optically, I personally prefer the Zeiss 35mm f/2 to the f/1.4 version – it seems to provide better value in comparison.
Zeiss 35mm f/2 vs Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art
Let’s now take a look at how the lens measures against the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art:
Without a doubt, the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art is a strong lens with serious performance characteristics. Look at its wide open performance and compare it to the Zeiss 35mm f/1.4 presented earlier and you will see why it is such a great lens. Its optics are superb and the consistency of its performance at different apertures is quite impressive. Still, the Zeiss 35mm f/2 is a serious contender in terms of wide open performance and its sharpness in the corners is a bit stronger at large apertures.
Zeiss 35mm f/2 vs Nikkor 35mm f/1.4G ED
Let’s see whether the Nikkor 35mm f/1.4G ED can challenge the Zeiss 35mm f/2:
It is pretty clear from the above that the Nikon 35mm f/1.4G ED just does not shine optically when it comes to sharpness – its performance is not good wide open and even when stopped down, the Zeiss 35mm f/2 clearly outperforms the Nikkor in the center…
Zeiss 35mm f/2 vs Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G ED
The last comparison is with the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G ED lens designed specifically for full-frame cameras:
At maximum aperture, the Zeiss 35mm f/2 is sharper than the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G ED at f/2. Stopped down to f/4 and smaller, both lenses behave very similarly in terms of sharpness, although my sample of the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G ED did demonstrate superb sharpness in the center at f/4 that surpassed that of the Zeiss.
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