Buy used: $2,590.00
$12.30 delivery Monday, May 20. Details
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Used: Very Good | Details
Sold by Ace Photo
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comment: 200-DAY WARRANTY. The lens is in very good condition and in perfect working order. The front and rear elements are clean and free from marks or scratches. There is no dust inside the lens either. There are some cosmetic markings on the exterior of the lens, please see the photos for more detail. The focus ring is smooth and the aperture ring clicks as intended. The lens comes shipped with the front and rear caps, and lens hood. (Case 19 - Serial: 51515219)

Zeiss 55mm f/1.4 Otus Distagon T Lens for Nikon F Mount

3.5 3.5 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
$2,590.00
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
Brand ZEISS
Focal Length Description 55 mm
Lens Type Standard
Compatible Mountings Nikon F
Camera Lens Description 55 month

About this item

  • Apochromat: Because this lens is an apochromat, chromatic aberrations (axial chromatic aberations) are corrected with elements of special glass with anomalous partial dispersion. The chromatic aberrations are therefore significantly below the defined limits. Bright-dark transitions in the image are reproduced almost free of color artifacts
  • The ultimate in image contrast: Aberrations caused by extreme differences between shadows and highlights are particularly obvious in images captured at night. Thanks to the outstanding correction of lateral chromatic aberration, the floodlit facade is reproduced with absolute perfection.
  • No colour fringing: Sources of light located in front of or behind the plane of focus present particular challenges to every lens. In the case of the ZEISS Otus, longitudinalchromatic aberration is so low that practically no colour fringing occurs.
  • The medium format look: Thanks to its exceptional sharpness, the ZEISS Otus exploits the full potentialsof contemporary high-resolution sensors and rewards photographers with images characterised by breathtaking rendition of even the finest details.
  • Aspherical design: The aspherical lens design ensures consistent imaging performance throughout theentire focusing range as well as sharpness to the periphery of the image. The asphere's more complex surface profile can reduce or eliminate spherical aberration and also reduce other optical aberrations compared to a simple lens.
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Price$2,590.00$4,490.00$999.00-36% $526.95
List: $819.95		$1,358.00$449.00
Delivery
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Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16
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—
Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16
Customer Ratings
3.53.5 out of 5 stars15
5.05.0 out of 5 stars8
4.64.6 out of 5 stars852
4.84.8 out of 5 stars681
5.05.0 out of 5 stars6
4.84.8 out of 5 stars554
Quality of material
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4.8
4.8
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4.9
Picture quality
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4.7
4.8
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4.6
Auto focus
—
—
4.2
4.8
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4.8
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lens type
Standard
Standard
Telephoto
Standard
Macro
Wide Angle
compatible mountings
Nikon F
Canon EF
Canon EF
Nikon Z
Nikon F
Fujifilm X
lens design
Zoom
Prime
Prime
Prime
Prime
Prime
focus type
manual only
Manual Focus
Auto Focus
Auto Focus
Manual Focus
Auto Focus
minimum focal length
55 millimeters
85 millimeters
—
—
50 millimeters
—
max focal length
55 millimeters
85 millimeters
85 millimeters
—
50 millimeters
—
fixed focal length
55 millimeters
85 millimeters
85 millimeters
50 millimeters
50 millimeters
23 millimeters
real angle of view
36.7 degrees
23.71 degrees
28.6 degrees
—
38 degrees
63.4 degrees

Product Description

Zeiss Zeiss has introduced its first premium lens designed specifically for high-end, high-resolution DSLRs, the Zeiss Otus 55mm f/1.4. Zeiss has decades of experience designing lenses for both 35mm and medium-format cameras, and with the Otus, they've pulled out all the f/Stops. First, a bit of background: Over the last 10 years, most medium-format film camera users who migrated to digital adapted the 35mm sensor format. As the resolution of these cameras has increased, many lenses simply haven't kept up. High resolution revealed that edge sharpness was not as crisp as the center, and image quality changed based on the aperture used. Zeiss set about to create a new line of lenses that take full advantage of high-resolution DSLRs, with no design restrictions based on weight or size, using the best possible material. The result would be a line of premium-priced lenses capable of delivering the best possible images with little or no optical distortion. The Otus line was born, and the 55mm f/1.4 is the first product. The Zeiss Otus uses the APO Distagon design, which is a more complex design using more elements and Apochromatic design for sharper and contrastier images with fewer chromatic aberrations. Lower-end lenses have the Planar designation. Bold Claims, Sharp Optics Zeiss makes the bold claim, based on its internal MTF optical bench tests results, that the Otus 55mm f/1.4 is the best standard lens ever made by Zeiss and

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    Zeiss 55mm f/1.4 Otus Distagon T Lens for Nikon F Mount

    Zeiss 55mm f/1.4 Otus Distagon T Lens for Nikon F Mount

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    Customer reviews

    3.5 out of 5 stars
    3.5 out of 5
    15 global ratings

    Top reviews from the United States

    John Howard Oxley
    5.0 out of 5 stars If You Need This, You Need It Bad
    Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    A number of commentators have deemed this lens 'impractical' because of its size, weight, and lack of auto-focus. I would say that if you have a high-resolution DSLR like the NIKON D81o [as I do], or one of the latest CANON 5 models, this lens will enable you to get the very best out of your sensor -- once you master the focus, which is not hard to do, the results will be razor-sharp, and if your interest is in taking sharp images of large complex objects, then this lens is worth its price.

    Since my main interest is photographing warships, this lens' superb capability at handling lens flare [always an issue with sunlight on water] is simply an added plus. In the same vein, since I am not photographing rapidly moving objects, and intend using a tripod wherever possible along with timed/remote release, the weight and size of the lens become non-issues.

    This is a specialized tool, and not every photographer will (or should) want it, but those who have needs which this lens meets superbly will not begrudge the cost -- and as a physical object, I think this has no peer.
    12 people found this helpful
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    George
    1.0 out of 5 stars One Star
    Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    phenomenal lens but only for CANON users - for nikon cameras unusable because of failing focus system
    3 people found this helpful
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    Luke Reid
    3.0 out of 5 stars I can't reproduce the quality in the corners - although maybe I got a bad one
    Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I can't reproduce the early release sample quality in the corners. Perhaps I got a poor lens, but there is no way this is the same lens in the early public tests.
    One person found this helpful
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    some guy
    4.0 out of 5 stars the new reference lens
    Reviewed in the United States on November 28, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Most common complaints:
    1. Manual focus is a deal breaker and makes this lens unpractical.
    Answer: a typical AF lens with MF option has a quarter turn focus rotation while this Otus has somewhere close to 320 degree focus rotation. An AF lens is designed for AF and of course MF will be hard, but this Otus is designed for MF. I have absolutely no issue with MF on this lens while shooting a moving baby. Sure, one might miss a shot here and there, but I have never achieved 100% focus accuracy on my AF-S and AF-I lenses either.
    2. This lens is too big and bulky.
    Answer: well, not really. the lens body is a bit shorter than a 24-70. With hood, the Otus is actually much smaller than a 24-70 with its ginormous hood. Let's be honest here, I bet most people who are looking at this lens right now do have one of those gold ring mid zoom lenses. If you don't mind the size or the weight of a standard zoom then there is no reason to complain about Otus' size. And be a man, if the weight of this lens scare you, how about doing some curls every night and bulk up your muscle a bit.
    3. This lens is ridiculously expensive.
    Answer: have you priced the latest apochromatic lenses with aspherical elements from Leica? Yeah..... NO, this lens is NOT expensive. you are getting a bargain actually. Quality glasses don't lose value. Look at the nikkor 58 noct or the nikkor 6mm fish eye.
    4. Value, nikon lens offer 90% of the performance for 1/20th the price.
    Answer: hmmm... not really. nikkor lenses aren't even close in color rendering, resolution, and micro-contrast at anything below f2.0. At f1.4, the Otus is as sharp as nikkor's f2.8. Color rendering is rich and saturated and micro-contrast literally "pops". Comparing the two doesn't really work, and no, nikkor won't give you 90% of Otus' performance.
    Why 4 stars.
    The focus value indication is not protected from dust (no cover). This worries me a bit and is a design flaw in my opinion.
    9 people found this helpful
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    Jim M.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Nothing comes close
    Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    If you want the absolute sharpest, most amazing image from a ~50mm, this is the lens. At the time it was texted by dxomark, it was the sharpest lens they had EVER tested (of all brands and focal lengths). It's for special use, and if this is your type of need, you won't be disappointed.
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    Ravi Narayan
    5.0 out of 5 stars The best lens available
    Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    The best lens available. The photos are crisp and extremely clear. AF is absent but absolutely not a problem. Definite one to have in your bag.
    3 people found this helpful
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    Busy Executive
    5.0 out of 5 stars Simply amazing
    Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2015
    In terms of pure image quality, this is the best lens in this focal length range you can attach to your Nikon. It's built to last forever, perfectly smooth and silky in operation, and it will give you stunning images that make the most of today's high-resolution sensors in pretty much any lighting. You can read the actual specs from the folks at DxOMark - in every regard, this is one absolutely stunning lens.

    Still, there are three tradeoffs you need to be comfortable with:

    First, of course, is the price...this lens is easily several times the price of the best Nikon offerings in this focal length range. If you're the type wanting Leica S medium format quality out of your D810, then you'll find the Zeiss a bargain - but in truth, the latest generation Nikon 50mm lenses offer 90% the image quality at a way lower price. If that last 10% is worth a few thousand dollars to you, then look no further.

    Second is the size and bulk...a lot of people use a 50mm lens because it's a reasonable compromise between size, flexibility and quality. The Zeiss is quite a bit more substantial than most lenses in this range - think twice as big and at least twice as heavy. If you want that 50mm lens on a smallish body, then the Zeiss will surprise you with its hefty size. It's much more like carrying around a Nikon 24-70 than a nice compact normal lens.

    Finally, there's the lack of conveniences such as autofocus or image stabilization. Zeiss makes some of the best manual focusing lenses, and this one is no exception. If you're the type (and your subjects allow for it!), this is a lens that encourages thoughtful, careful operation, and it will reward you best when attached to a solid tripod and carefully focused. Keep in mind that wide open (f/1.4) there's not much room for error, so you will definitely need to be adept at manual focusing if you plan to use this lens wide open.

    About the only thing that raised an eyebrow to me is a bit of vignetting wide open - there's definitely a visible, maybe 1-stop darkness in the corners. Nothing that can't be corrected - and indeed, sometimes this gives you a subtle way to highlight a subject in the center of the frame. Virtually everything else about this lens, from sharpness, contrast and color saturation to flatness of focal plane (important if you're into close-ups) and quality of the out-of-focus areas is topnotch.

    For me, this lens attached to a high-resolution camera like the Nikon D800/D810 is a terrific option. It's better overall than, say, a Leica with the top Leica lenses - Leica makes some terrific lenses, but in my opinion, the D810 offers a better sensor. Your D810 with the Zeiss lens is also in the ballpark of a medium format solution like a Hasselblad or Leica S while being way less expensive (and way more portable).

    If you're looking to get the best possible image quality from a 55mm lens, then this is the way to do it - definitely worth a look.
    14 people found this helpful
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