No one complained " this lens is not everything to everyone"
Especially it's not dedicated to IR or Astro or whatever purpose the coastal optics was made for - it's just "normal photographic purposes".
And putting in perspective, Zeiss makes a cinematographic parfocal zoom 70-200/2.9 for nearly 20.000 $ and is able to sell it, I'm sure some photographers will enjoy it, against that zoom it appears to be bargain.
It's also a pretty cool "transform disadvantage to advantage" thing: Being not willing or not able - and hiding it behind marketing blah about superior manual focus and photographers want to decide about focus areas - to make an AF, they avoid customer complaints about "slow AF" or "less precise AF" and can always say: Look at the resolution numbers, this lens is best - if you're pics aren't, that's all your fault.
Now, besides LiveView which is nice for immobile objects, which chances a photog has to get all that resolution numbers out of the lens?
<ul class="bbcol decimal">[*]Only centerred subjects will benefit.
[*]It's not easy to adjust this screen accurately to this lens - I have such a screen and the AF "does always know better" - and unfortunately is right, because I did the fine adjustment. And can't fine adjust the screen to each lens.
[*]Each contemporary AF module is more sensitive than your eye if it comes to operating in dark conditions. That lens would be fast enough for dark conditions - unfortunately my abilities to focus it won't be. Yours?
</ul>
- The focus help (that's the term for Nikon, don't know about Canon), which are three tiny lights left lower side in the finder?
<ul class="bbcol decimal">[*]The AF point could be chosen out of all you see in finder. 39 or 51 focuspoints, isn't that enough?
[*]I would have to observe, if the desired object still is covered by the focus points (when not using a tripod or the subject is moving and therefore not cooperating). And my hand is no tripod.
[*]At the same time I had to watch the flickering LEDs in the lower left side. All with the same eye... It gives me a headache only thinking about :blink:. Why wasn't it possible to let the focus point itself switch from red to green, because I'm already staring at it?
[*]The focus help must be adjusted, like all the other lenses must be fine-tuned. It's comparatively easy to let the AF work and just push the button, then see what happened on a big screen while shooting tethered.
[*]The AF is fast setting the focus. I'm not. Turning the focus ring slowly will vary accuracy of the AF-module.
[*]I learnt with the Sigma dock, the fine-tuning is valid for just one distance between camera and subject. On another distance, it's possible that another finetune-setting would be better.
</ul>So, if one can't or doesn't want to use LiveView for each picture, he/she will have serial serious disappointments with a high price lens. But of course, one can get better pictures than the lenstip-guy. On flickr there are outstanding shots:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carlzeissle...otostream/ , as well portraits. Of professional models, used to hold an interesting pose until the photog finished focussing. Not much of those to be seen on the streets, though
The next question is what would make any other manufacturer with the money his designers are allowed to burn for a "normal" prime lens. Some of them would even offer AF
or manual focus B) how cool's that?
no danger to buy it.