ZEISS is launching the Compact Zoom CZ.2 15-30/T2.9 at this year’s NAB Show in Las Vegas from April 7-10, 2014. The third member of the Compact Zoom family broadens the cine zoom line-up in the wide-angle range. From August 2014, the lens will be available for € 17,900 or US$ 23,900 (excl. VAT)*. The new zoom lens fills the wide-angle gap and complements the already available CZ.2 28-80/T2.9 and CZ.2 70-200/T2.9 lenses. It does not only offer extreme angles of view but also fulfills all the requirements for motion picture zooms: It stands out for its optical brilliance, as well as its distortion-free images.
The ZEISS Compact Zoom CZ.2 family of lenses sets new standards only experienced with fixed focal lengths from ZEISS. Equipped with this set of three zoom lenses, cinematographers can master an enormous range of shooting situations without having to resort to frequent time-consuming lens switches. For sophisticated filmmakers, the ZEISS cine zooms open up new creative possibilities. When working with a zoom lens, you can move a lot more quickly because you don’t have to change lenses and can make different shots from the same perspective.
The ZEISS Compact Zoom lenses are the only cine-style zooms in the world with full-frame coverage. All three zooms were calculated for the full-frame format of 36×24 mm. As a result, they are also compatible with image sensors larger than Super 35 (ex: image diagonal 31.5 mm) and therefore already ready to accommodate future developments in the field of growing sensor sizes. When the lenses are used on Super 35 cameras, users benefit from the positive “sweet-spot effect”: the image circle used by the sensor comes from the inner circle of the lens. As a result, the lens only uses that part of the illumination that has the highest quality in terms of sharpness, light and contrast. In line with the reliable and strict quality requirements that ZEISS lenses are subject to, all three representatives of the Compact Zoom family enable 4K capture.
The cine zooms from ZEISS are masters of flexibility whenever the goal is to achieve high-quality results with little lens changes. The optical balancing between ZEISS cine zooms on the one hand and ZEISS high-end cine lenses on the other fulfills filmmakers’ highest demands, whether they are making big-screen, TV, documentary, music video productions or feature films. All three zooms have a consistent aperture of T2.9, also making them suitable for situations with less available light. And thanks to the established ZEISS color matching, the lenses can be used in combination with the existing lens families ARRI/ZEISS Master Prime, ARRI/ZEISS Ultra Prime and ZEISS Compact Prime, with no additional color grading needed.
Over many years, ZEISS has been continuing to develop the bokeh – that special look of an out-of-focus area in an image. After all, bokeh is one of the most important characteristics of a lens. With special optical design and circular f-stop forms, ZEISS zooms here achieve a particularly harmonious result and depict out-of-focus highlights as circular without any bothersome artifacts. In addition, the Carl Zeiss T* coating – based on several layers in the nano field – ensures a visible reduction of stray light and reflections. The result: brilliant images with a three-dimensional effect.
A special protection against dust and spray water for rough use on the set underscores the high professional standard of these cine lenses.
The cine zooms from ZEISS deliver the well-known quality and performance for which ZEISS lenses have been known for decades. For cinematographers on smaller budgets in particular, it is critical to make safe investments in their equipment. On this point, the Compact Zoom CZ.2 lenses stand out strongly: due to the interchangeable mount system (IMS), with currently five different mounts (PL, EF, F, MFT und E), the lenses can be fitted without problems onto different camera mounts. As a result, the zooms can always be used on the latest camera models, and always in an optimal system mix.
All three lenses – the new Compact Zoom CZ.2 15-30/T2.9, the CZ.2 28-80/T2.9 and the CZ.2 70-200/T2.9 – will also be available as a complete set (without transport case) for € 44,999 € or US$ 59,900 (excl. VAT)*.