New Zeiss Batis 40 f2 lens

[Paulo Bizarro]

Announced recently, seems like a good/natural complement on the lens line:

https://lenspire.zeiss.com/photo/en/article/introducing-the-new-zeiss-batis-2-40cf

Any takers?

[chez]

I'm looking at the Batis along with the Voigtlander 40 1.2M with adapter. Already have the Sony 35 2.8, but do like a lens a bit longer.

Yes the Batis looks good and will most likely have the Batis signature sharpness, colours and contrast.

[kers]

I'm looking at the Batis along with the Voigtlander 40 1.2M with adapter. Already have the Sony 35 2.8, but do like a lens a bit longer.

Yes the Batis looks good and will most likely have the Batis signature sharpness, colours and contrast.

In a different size and weight department ( but not price) the Sigma 40mm 1.4 ART seems a very nice lens.
Sigma raves about it being their sharpest ART lens with beautiful bokeh.
btw Diglloyd will be testing the batis soon

[Telecaster]

I have a 40mm Batis on order. It's pretty much the lens I'd hoped Zeiss would use to fill the gap between their 25 & 85mm Batises. (45mm would've been ideal IMO but 40mm will do fine.) To my eyes lenses in this range, and their equivalents in other formats, give a "normal" rendering geometrically but with a little extra bonus coverage.

-Dave-

[chez]

In a different size and weight department ( but not price) the Sigma 40mm 1.4 ART seems a very nice lens.
Sigma raves about it being their sharpest ART lens with beautiful bokeh.
btw Diglloyd will be testing the batis soon

Have no interest in big heavy lenses no matter how well they perform.

[D Fuller]

I’d love to see a 60mm in this series next.

[Paulo Bizarro]

I’d love to see a 60mm in this series next.

Perhaps, who knows what Zeiss will come up next? They are very tight lipped about future releases, with some products being quite unexpected; e.g. ZX1 camera, or Loxia 25 lens.

In the meantime, Voigtlander have 2 very nice macro lenses, one is 65mm, the other 110mm.

[D Fuller]

Perhaps, who knows what Zeiss will come up next? They are very tight lipped about future releases, with some products being quite unexpected; e.g. ZX1 camera, or Loxia 25 lens.

In the meantime, Voigtlander have 2 very nice macro lenses, one is 65mm, the other 110mm.

True. But Zeiss has some good formulae to draw on. Both the 40 and 60 are in their cinema lens sets, and have been for decades.

[Telecaster]

I have both versions of the Yashica/Contax mount 60/2.8 Makro-Planar. The bigger one does 1:1 macro while the smaller "C" does 1:2. Both are terrific performers.

-Dave-

[Eric Brody]

The new Zeiss Batis has been enthusiastically reviewed by Lloyd Chambers, Imaging-Resource, Photography Blog, and a number of other sites none of which have tested eye-AF.

There's an extensive discussion on problems with eye-AF on Fred Miranda by folks in Europe who have actually received and used the lens. It seems, from the posts, that for some reason, eye-AF is inaccurate, with consistent front focusing. It is scheduled to start shipping in the US in 5 days. I have one on order from my local dealer. Since eye-AF is important to me, I plan to immediately test my copy as soon as I receive it and if the stories are true, it will be returned and it's back to the drawing board unless Zeiss/Sony can figure out a solution.

[Telecaster]

Never use eye-AF myself, but I imagine a firmware update should fix any issues. So far Zeiss has never, to my knowledge, issued a firmware update for a Batis lens…but they have for the E mount Touit line.

-Dave-

[Telecaster]

My copy of the 40mm Batis should arrive this coming Monday. I'll give it a workout, including testing eye-AF, and will likely comment on it somewhere in LuLa-land if not here.

-Dave-

[Telecaster]

Bitter cold day today here in "screw autumn, bring on the freeze!" Michigan. But here's a quick pic I took at f/2 earlier this afternoon with my copy of the 40mm Batis, which arrived yesterday. The lens is very sharp across the frame even wide open. There's a little corner falloff illumination-wise but very little drop in perceived resolution even in the far corners. Should be a terrific image maker!

-Dave-

[Telecaster]

Here's another 40mm Batis pic. Don't read too much into it: the lighting is uneven and it's handheld. But still…this is at f/2, at a focus distance of ~1.75m.

-Dave-

[Telecaster]

Yet another pic with the 40mm Batis…took it earlier this afternoon. Focus distance at ~30cm, with the lens auto stopping down to ~f/3.4 (I'm guessing as the actual aperture isn't reported). Some folks online seem to be bothered by the stopping down at close range, but I've included a full-res crop of the point-of-focus showing DOF to be very shallow nonetheless.

-Dave-

[hogloff]

Any chance of trying out eye AF with the 40. My understanding that's it's biggest Achilles heel.

[Telecaster]

Any chance of trying out eye AF with the 40. My understanding that's it's biggest Achilles heel.

I do plan to give Eye AF a spin. I've actually never used it with any lens on the A7iii. I always choose my focus point myself. 

-Dave-

[Telecaster]

In the meantime…here's a boring test pic from my backyard, taken with the 40mm Batis at f/5.6. Moiré effects visible all over the building. (The building's ability to expose aliasing is why I use it as an early subject for new lenses.) I wanted to post the pic at 4K res but unless I compress the crap outta the JPEG the resulting file is huge.

-Dave-

[32BT]

Dave, the pictures are a godd*mn insult to that lens' sumptuously beautiful contrastdrawing. Please, go out and take a decent image, will ya! No treebark, no brick walls, but something worthwhile. Pronto!

[Eric Brody]

Related to my comments above re reported eye AF issues on the Fred Miranda Sony Forum  ... I'm surprised that no one who actually owns the lens has tested eye AF and reported it here. I'm still awaiting my copy and that is the one thing that might make or break my purchase. My logic is that if there's an issue, I'll either await a fix or buy a different lens. It seems pretty simple, all one needs is a human subject, we all have eyes. An adult just needs to sit there and be photographed. I guess I am asking others to be my beta testers in the absence of any definitive tests from an authoritative reviewer such as Lloyd Chambers, who says he's awaiting another copy, Fred Miranda, who's also awaiting a copy, or Roger Cicala at Lens Rentals. If any of these folks review this aspect of the lens, at least as important as bokeh, and "nonagons." I'd be greatly appreciative.