This looks interesting. Wonder what's up?

Digital rangefinder?

Zeiss wideangles in Canon EOS mount?

I bet its Zeiss glass with an EOS mount... I can't find the article but I remember Micheal hinting at that a couple of months ago... Hope its true...

Looks like a clever way to spark discussion in internet-land, and hence publicise a forthcoming product. These marketing wonks will try anything ...

Leif

Other documents found on the Zeiss website before they were meant to be seen point to new lenses in Nikon F-mount. F-mount is out of patent and easy to use without any cooperation from Nikon, whereas EF mount lenses made without Canon's cooperation (like those from "pirate" Sigma) sometimes run into problems when Canon changes the firmware.

As with all good digital photography rumors, the DPReview forums offer vast amounts of mostly misguided speculation and a few facts.

The official news comes tomorrow (Dec 21), so perhaps we should wait. But is is fascinating seeing the strange directions that the guesses go: Canon, Nikon going back to 35mm format, Nikon collaborating with Zeiss' attempt to compete with Nikon's own lenses, Nikon needing Zeiss lenses as their own are not good enough ...

I'm told they're called ZF mount. I believe Nikon is going to grace us with a FF in the coming year. Wide new primes are coming from Zeiss is the speculation.

bob

And I am SO ! They do the F-mount and not the EOS mount? Who has been buying all their old Contax stock but us Canon users, and this is how they repay us our appreciation?

Thanks a bunch, Uncle Carl!

That's it. I'm selling all my Zeiss lenses right now ... OK, maybe not right away, but pretty soon anyway ... oh, who the hell am I kidding ...

Canon bodies can use current Zeiss lenses with an adaptor, but Nikon bodies can't due to the increased lens mount to sensor distance. So maybe this is the reason why they chose Nikon. Any lens with an F mount could be used on a Canon with an adaptor but the converse is not true.

Alternatively, Canon have realised where its at, and hence ignored Canon ...

Leif

The anouncement page states Dec 28th. One week from Wednesday.

12-22-05 This is now incorrect. Apparently, each week is a new banner witil the final announcement to be made sometime in ??.

Not much of a secret anymore. Might as well spill the beans Zeiss!

bob

There are ways to mount Zeiss lenses on Nikon bodies, using kludgy adaptors; I think actual messing with the bayonet claws is involved, and the adaptors are permanently attached to the lens.

Anyway, leaked photos suggest that the real reason is that the Carl Zeiss ZF lenses will be very traditional looking manual focus primes with all mechanical, non-electronic coupling. Canon's EF mount does not have mechanical aperture coupling, so clumsy stop down metering is required.

If so, the target market seems to be traditionalists who previously bought Zeiss branded lenses for Contax 35mm SLR's. Thus it goes with the revival of the Zeiss Ikon rangefinder and release of new ZM lenses in Leica M-mount following the discontinuation of Contax rangefinders.

Well yes of course. I once had some movie camera lenses that had been adapted for the Nikon F mount, by replacing the lens to camera part with some specially made ones. But the point about this is that it costs a fortune to do unless you are or know a competent machinist with access to a lathe. And it usually limits you to stop down metering.

Leif

Yes, that seems to be a major point here: Zeiss lenses that function normally on mainstream SLR's, meaning at least normal metering and aperture control, if still manual focus. This is far easier for Zeiss to do independently for Nikon F-mount (or Pentax K) than with the electronic aperture control of the mounts now used by Canon, Olympus and K.-Minolta.