Zeiss Otus 100mm f/1.4 Review

This review was done on the Nikon D850, however, it should be applicable to the Zeiss Otus for Canon as well, especially the Canon 5DsR.

PhotographyBlog has tested the Zeiss Otus 100mm f/1.4 and has rated it 4 out of 5 stars.  Where they find it lacking is value for money and ease of use, which given its cost of $4990 and it's a manual focus lens on a DSLR, it's hard not to agree with that assessment.

They conclude;

When you nail the focus with a lens like this you are rewarded with some gorgeous shots. Bokeh which is fantastically rendered, including wonderful bokeh circles that you can get really creative with. It won’t be a lens you’ll want to use for every shot, but for those creative shots that deserve an extra special treatment, it’s a great option.

For those who want the very best in sharpness and are prepared to make not only a large cash investment, but also are happy to deal with manual focusing and all the issues that presents, you’re unlikely to find anything optically superior at this focal length than the Zeiss Otus 100mm f/1.4. If money was no object, it’d be high on our shopping list, but for those with more ordinary or modest budgets, it may be something to dream about but never own - you might perhaps consider renting one for specific occasions, such as a portrait shoot.

Otherwise, most ordinary photographers are likely to be better served by Nikon’s 105mm f/1.4 lens, a Canon 85mm f/1.4 lens or a Sigma 105mm f/1.4 Art lens, especially at the price.

Read the full review here

The Zeiss Otus 100mm F1.4 at a glance;

• EF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
• Aperture Range: f/1.4 to f/16
• One Aspherical Element
• Nine Low Dispersion Elements
• Apochromatic Sonnar Optical Design
• ZEISS T* Anti-Reflective Coating
• Floating Elements System
• Manual Focus Design
• Anodized Metal Barrel, Rubber Focus Ring

Pre-order it now