Carl Zeiss MAKRO PLANAR T* 50mm F2
Review and Photo example of the Macro Planar T* 50mm F2.
Table of contents
Gallery
- The examples were taken with the KODAK DCS Pro SLR/n.
Review
1．Overview
The MAKRO PLANAR T* 50mm F2 is a macro lens for SLR cameras released in 2007.
The main specifications are as follows, and details are listed in the table.
- Maximum aperture: 2
- Lens construction: 6 groups, 8 elements
- Aperture blades: 8
- Minimum focusing distance: 0.24m
- Hood: Dedicated bayonet hood
- Lens color variations: Black
2．Usability
The MAKRO PLANAR T* 50mm F2 is a Carl Zeiss brand macro lens manufactured and sold by Cosina.
It is a half-macro lens that can get as close as 0.24m with a planar rear group and a lens for close-up photography. The eight aperture blades are not circular but a loose octagonal shape, and the lens mounts are ZF for Nikon Ai-S and ZE for Canon EF.
I chose this lens from among the F-mount lenses when I bought a used Kodak SLR digital camera DCS Pro SLR/n. I remember that I chose this lens because it had been a long time since I had bought a macro lens at the time, and the lens price was cheap. Personally, I like the Cosina Zeiss designs from this era, and it looks beautiful when attached to the DCS Pro SLR/n.
The helicoid is a little heavy, but this level of resistance makes it easier to use a macro lens, and I never had trouble focusing. This may be influenced by the sensor of the camera used and the image creation, but since the F2 is bright for a macro lens, the image is not very sharp at full aperture, and the cat’s fur is softly depicted, and the distant scenery is depicted in a painterly way rather than with an emphasis on resolution. Of course, it becomes crisper when narrowed down, so it is a lens that can be used appropriately. It is a versatile lens that can be used for long-distance and close-up photography, and the foreground and background bokeh are not noisy, so I liked it as a standard lens.
3．Summary
In conclusion, to sum up the MAKRO PLANAR T* 50mm F2, it is a macro lens that is a little loose at full aperture, but becomes crisp when stopped down. The coating has also evolved, and there are no problems with depiction in backlighting, making it one of the recommended macro lenses that will leave you satisfied even with a 35mm full thirds sensor. The same lens configuration has been leased for three generations, so there is no problem with obtaining it.
Specification
The MAKRO PLANAR T* 50mm F2 has been updated from the first to the third generation.
These lenses may have changed due to the evolution of the coating, but the lens structure is the same.
- The first generation is this lens (ZF, no electronic contacts and ZE, with electronic contacts)
- The second generation was changed to ZF2 in June 2010, which added electronic contacts (Nikon Ai-S with CPU) to ZF
- The third generation was changed in July 2016, and the exterior was changed and the name was changed to Milvus 2 / 50 (ZF and ZE)
There are several prefixes used for close-up lenses, and Carl Zeiss uses “MAKRO”, which means “large” in German. Many other manufacturers use “MACRO”, which means “large” in English. Nikon uses the prefix “MICRO,” which means “small,” as the prefix for close-up lenses, and each company’s individuality is reflected in the way they are written, but I think the variation in writing can be confusing to people who are not particularly interested in camera lenses.
| Items | Value | Note. |
| Focal length(mm) | 50 | |
| Max aperture | 2 | |
| Min aperture | 22 | |
| Lens Construction | 8elements in 6groups | |
| Leaf blade | 8 | |
| Min distance(m) | 0.24 | |
| Lens length(mm) | 107.6 | |
| Max diameter(mm) | 72 | ZF |
| Filter Size(mm) | 70.4 | ZF |
| Weight(kg) | 500 | ZF |
| Release date | 2007.3 |
Reference links
Update history
- 2025.6.19
- 2024.07.03:update
- 2024.03.04:update
- 2023.05.15:First draft
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