Ulitmate 2015 Cinematic Lens Kit Recommendations

Introduction

For the last five years I've been researching lenses, trying to determine the best combination of glass to build a kit of cinematic primes.  Comparing lenses and all their nuances is a difficult task and having changed camera systems several times I've yet to accomplish my goal.  I've also made decisions to go in a certain direction because I thought there were certain features in lenses that I needed only to be disappointed.  Most recently this was true with the Schneider Kreuznach Xenon FF-Prime 35mm.  I thought I really needed true cinema primes in my arsenal, only to find that the image quality from this lens was really behind much more inexpensive lenses.

Finally, I believe, I have found a true winning combination.  My decisions are based on quite a few factors and about five years of research, including image quality, cinematic feel of the image, build quality, price, and usability.  This kit is designed for a Super 35 sensor (a.k.a. the upcoming Blackmagic Ursa Mini 4.6K) with the intent of covering from approximately 15mm to 85mm (the full frame equivalent of about 24mm to 135mm).  Also, it is my intent to have the lenses be of the same line if possible to achieve a similar look at each focal length.

Deciding on the Brand

Basically my options for lenses that cover a Super 35 sensor and are compatible with an EF mount Ursa Mini boiled down to the following:

• Canon L Primes
• Canon CN-E Cine Primes
• Zeiss ZF Primes
• Zeiss CP.2 Primes
• Zeiss Otus Primes (supplemented by other Zeiss ZF primes until the Otus line is complete)
• Sigma Art Primes (supplemented by Zeiss ZF rimes until the Art line is complete)
• Schneider Kreuznach Xenon FF-Primes

I like the look of Canon L glass for stills, but I don't care for the warmer image for video and the L lenses have just about the worst usability on the list above.  The are mostly plastic, have a very short focus throw, and no hard stops at minimum or infinity focus.  Canon L glass is good and produces great skin tones, but I just don't think it's good enough to justify the hugely inflated price of the rehoused Canon CN-E cine primes.

Zeiss lenses have a very cinematic feel to them, with their excellent contrast and slightly cool temperature.  Build quality is solid and focus is smooth with a decent focus rotation distance.  The ZF lenses are mostly good, but not great, and the lineup is very inconsistent.  The 50mm is fairly soft compared to other lenses in the set and not so great until stopped down until about ƒ/2.8.  Some of the  lenses in the set are outstanding, some are just mediocre, and maximum apertures are quite inconsistent, especially once you get wider than 35mm.  Thus, ZF's would be a great choice, but still not perfect with too many holes in the set.  The 15mm is just decent, the 25mm is great, but is only ƒ/2.0, the 35mm is above average, the 50mm leaves something to be desired, and the 85mm is pretty good.  The ZF's are closer to what I was after, but still not quite the right fit.  CP.2's are basically just rehoused ZF's with different coatings, thus the same weaknesses still exist, just for 4-5 times the price and with better ergonomics. 

The Sigma Art lenses are excellent, but are far from full set at this point in time (only 24mm, 35mm, and 50mm) and lack that little extra something the Zeiss lenses add to the cinematic quality of the image.  Also, the focus ring is almost as bad as the Canon L series.

After considering the above, I was all but settled on the Schneider Xenon FF-Primes.  I bought the 35mm to start building my set, but, as you can see from my review of that lens, the chromatic aberration really makes the lens almost unusable below T/4.0 or T/5.6 in many situations without horrible purple and green fringing at any high contrast area.  Despite excellent build quality, the optics are just much too poor to warrant the price.

The Zeiss Otus 55mm and 85mm are considered almost unanimously to be the best full-frame still lenses on the market.  Sharp and contrasty even wide open with the Zeiss look and pretty great focus rotation for a stills lens, the Otus lenses are an interesting option albeit the furthest of all options from being a complete set.

With these considerations in mind, I decided to go for the Otus option.  Until the entire line is completed, however, I need to supplement my kit with lenses that match well with the Otus lenses.  Canon lenses produce too warm of an image to match Zeiss's cooler image, so they are not an option. Schneider Xenons actually match pretty well, but the chromatic aberration is just too much of a deal-breaking in my opinion.  Luckily, both the ZF's and Sigma Art lenses match the Otus lenses quite well.

Sigma Art 18-35mm ƒ/1.8

I had always intended to have only primes in my kit, but the Sigma 18-35 is truly an amazing zoom.  Looking at comparisons, the Sigma is sharper than the Zeiss 15mm and one and a third stops faster.  Being just 3mm longer than the Zeiss, it makes more sense to have this lens in my arsenal.  Incidentally, it also performs quite admirably against other ZF and Sigma Art primes in this range.  Considering it's less than a third of the price of just a ZF 15mm, this lens really makes a lot of sense in any kit.

Zeiss ZF 25mm ƒ/2.0

This one was a close call between the new Sigma Art 24mm ƒ/1.4 and the ZF 25mm.  Although the Sigma is a stop faster, the Zeiss ZF 25mm is one of the best lenses in the ZF lineup and a bit sharper than the Sigma.  With image quality fairly close, I'd choose the Zeiss due to the better build quality and better focus ring, even for about twice the cost.

Sigma Art 35mm ƒ/1.4

Here, the Sigma is considerably sharper than the ZF 35mm ƒ/1.4 or ƒ/2.0 models and exhibits less chromatic aberration.  Even though the Sigma is more difficult to focus with only a 90° focus throw, I think the added sharpness and the fact that I feel Sigma glass matches the Zeiss look well, this lens is the best fit for the price.

Zeiss Otus 55mm ƒ/1.4

The Otus 55mm has been compared by some to the Zeiss Master Primes for a fraction of the cost.  For the price of a Schneider Xenon-FF Prime, you get optical quality that tops just about any glass available for any camera system except very high end professional cine glass, in a package that is better than most still lenses, almost reaching the ergonomics of true cine lenses; the focus throw is 248°, so not too shabby, and the ZF model has an aperture ring (not declicked, unfortunately).  The only thing that could make it better is a few more aperture blades (it has 9).

Aside from being one of the sharpest lenses on the market, the main drawing point is its performance wide open.  Looking at some test charts at http://the-digital-picture.com, The is as sharp across the frame wide open as a Zeiss ZF 50mm at ƒ/4.0,  the Zeiss ZF 50mm Makro at ƒ/2.8, a Sigma Art 50mm at ƒ/2.0, and the Canon 50mm L at ƒ/5.6.

Zeiss Otus 85mm ƒ/1.4

The rationale behind the Otus 85mm is the same as with the Otus 55, and this lens is even sharper with even less CA.  Compared to other lenses, the Otus 85mm is as sharp wide open as a Zeiss ZF 85mm at ƒ/4.0, a Sigma 85mm at ƒ/5.6, and a Canon 85mm L II at ƒ/2.8.  This kind of performance really opens up low light possibilities.

Zeiss ZF 135mm ƒ/2.0

Finally, my lineup would be completed by the Zeiss ZF 135mm.  With sharpness and chromatic aberration control rivaling the Otus lenses and not much competition from other brands, this one is a no-brainer.