Zeiss 70-200 f/2.8 Coming to Canon for NAB 2012?

[Canon Rumors]

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Zeiss 70-200 f/2.8 ZE Mount Zeiss is rumored to be announcing a 70-200 f/2.8 at NAB in Las Vegas next month. This would be the first zoom lens Zeiss has produced for the ZE and ZF mounts.

Expect Zeiss to also announce new Cine CP.2 lenses at NAB.

Source: [PR] via [PG]

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[Tijn]

Woah, what an image.

Is it correct that Zeiss lenses only focus manually? It'll be interesting to see the image quality on a Zeiss zoom lens.

[DzPhotography]

Woah, what an image.

Is it correct that Zeiss lenses only focus manually? It'll be interesting to see the image quality on a Zeiss zoom lens.

yes, most (not to say all) have man.focus. Be prepared to fall off your chair when you see the price...

[photogaz]

The Canon version is so sharp and perfect I really doubt this can better it.  Even if it is Zeiss.  Might be alright for Nikon folk though!

[dstppy]

Woah, what an image.

Is it correct that Zeiss lenses only focus manually? It'll be interesting to see the image quality on a Zeiss zoom lens.

I couldn't imagine Zeiss would start adding AF for Canon now (but it'd be nice).

This particular lens might make a few MF converts out of some of us though if it's typical IQ . .  .

I guess that also depends if it's priced at the same point as other lenses and we can get away with a small mortgage on a 2-bedroom home or if it'll be bumped up to a 3BR-3Bath situation 

[dolina]

Where did the product mock up come from?

I hope it has AF. MF prime is one thing but a MF zoom is another.

[JR]

I hope it has AF. MF prime is one thing but a MF zoom is another.

+1, with AF this would be an amazing lenses indeed! 

[Ellen Schmidtee]

The Canon version is so sharp and perfect I really doubt this can better it.  Even if it is Zeiss.  Might be alright for Nikon folk though!

Possibly Zeiss is aiming at cinematographers, say by making it parfocal?

[Pyrenees]

Where did the product mock up come from?

I hope it has AF. MF prime is one thing but a MF zoom is another.

You mean, MF wide-angle is one thing but a MF telephoto is another - anyway, I get your point ;-)

Seriously though, 70-200mm is a great focal-length range for many portrait 'togs. For these Guys, AF is very handy if you're using shallow DOF and/or zooming at the longish end. I'd be a bit surprised if it doesn't have AF, even though that would be a first for Zeiss.

[frisk]

I'm sorry if any Zeiss fans find my opinion insulting, but to me this looks like yet another solution to a non-existing problem - at least as far as Canon cameras are concerned.  I am not even going to consider the possibility that this would be a Tamron/Tokina "cheap" alternative - this is Zeiss, after all - so the only way to market this lens would be on the basis of quality.

Now, the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 IS II is good.  Really, really good - so good in fact that a "better" lens would probably not produce any meaningful improvements for most users - so why should anyone want this lens - for the "snob" factor, yes, but what else?

Then there is the issue of IS and AF - sure, a MF lens like the 15mm one may be just fine, but for a zoom?  This lens would need AF to be competitive - otherwise it would just be a way for people to show that have more money than common sense.

[dadgummit]

Where did the product mock up come from?

I hope it has AF. MF prime is one thing but a MF zoom is another.

Yeah, the type of person who will reach for a 70-200 is probably not shooting something that can be manually focused.  Unfortunately that would open up all of the "my 3rd party lens does not focus correctly" forum posts.  Which I would think is one of the reasons Zeiss has stayed away from AF in anything but sony.  Looking at the price of the new Zeiss 15mm f2.8 I would guess a 70-200 f2.8 would be double Canon's or Nikon's offerings. 

Though looking at the excellent build quality and IQ of my Zeiss lenses it would probably be a magnificent lens.

[woofmeow]

It seems it will be a cine lens, no?

[dilbert]

Important information has been lost in the story blurb on this website.

From PR, comes this quote:

"Zeiss announced on Facebook and Twitter their plans for new cinelenses for 2012: new compact, lightweight zoom and prime CP.2 lenses plus a new line of anamorphics lenses."

Thus the zoom lens is not in the same category that the Canon 70-200L IS II is in.
It is not meant for photographers, but instead for videographers.

Zeiss lenses are always more expensive than Canon's but in this case, Canon doesn't have an equivalent cine lens. Given that their 70-200/2.8L II is less expensive than the 28-300L and that there is a 30-300 cine lens from Canon that is $47,000, anyone want to place bets on whether that lens from Zeiss will be under or over $50,000?

[dilbert]

This story is badly worded on this website. Given the attached picture (if that is of the new 70-200 Zeiss) then it is quite clear (from the distance markings on the lens) that it will be a cine lens.

The story blurb says:

Zeiss is rumored to be announcing a 70-200 f/2.8 at NAB in Las Vegas next month. This would be the first zoom lens Zeiss has produced for the ZE and ZF mounts.

Expect Zeiss to also announce new Cine CP.2 lenses at NAB.

What it should say is this:

"Zeiss is rumored to be announcing a 70-200 f/2.8 cine lens at NAB in Las Vegas next month. This would be the first zoom cine lens Zeiss has produced for the ZE and ZF mounts.

"Expect Zeiss to also announce two other new Cine CP.2 lenses at NAB."

[dadgummit]

This story is badly worded on this website. Given the attached picture (if that is of the new 70-200 Zeiss) then it is quite clear (from the distance markings on the lens) that it will be a cine lens.

The story blurb says:

Zeiss is rumored to be announcing a 70-200 f/2.8 at NAB in Las Vegas next month. This would be the first zoom lens Zeiss has produced for the ZE and ZF mounts.

Expect Zeiss to also announce new Cine CP.2 lenses at NAB.

What it should say is this:

"Zeiss is rumored to be announcing a 70-200 f/2.8 cine lens at NAB in Las Vegas next month. This would be the first zoom cine lens Zeiss has produced for the ZE and ZF mounts.

"Expect Zeiss to also announce two other new Cine CP.2 lenses at NAB."

That makes a whole lot more sense.   In this case it looks like it would be a winner.