Sony does not currently produce a 24mm prime lens, really making the Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2 an interesting option.
Zeiss is often regarded as the luxury brand of third party lenses. Historically, Zeiss lenses have all been very expensive manual focus prime lenses. For over 10 years, Zeiss has had a partnership with Sony, allowing Sony to produce some autofocus lenses with the Zeiss brand, such as the Sony Zeiss 50mm F/1.4 lens. [My review here]. These lenses are not actually manufactured by Zeiss, and it’s not clear how much input Zeiss really has in the design. Some of the lenses are spectacular, like the Sony Zeiss 50mm F/1.4, while others are quite average.
For the Sony FE mirrorless system, Zeiss has been designing and manufacturing a lineup of lenses under the “Batis” name. To my knowledge, these are the first lenses actually fully produced by Zeiss that include autofocus. So at nearly $1100, is the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 a lens that Sony shooters should really be considering?
Body and Handling:
Bulbous body of the Zeiss Batis 25mm
Zeiss Batis — OLED depth of field window
Sony 12-24g, Zeiss Batis 25m, Sony 24-105g
The body design really stands out for a few reasons. First, the body is really quite bulbous with a large front element for such a short lens. In terms of size, I wouldn’t call this lens tiny. Yet, weighing in at 335 grams, it is light-weight. Build quality feels rather solid but clearly not metal.
The second thing that stands out is an OLED display for depth of field and focus distance. This only becomes active when you’re in manual focus. It seems more like a gimmick used to set the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 apart as a luxury item, as opposed to something especially helpful. I suppose if you often use manual focus, it has its use. The manual focus ring is smooth rubber where I would have preferred something with ridges for a better grip. There are absolutely no buttons or switches on the lens itself. Weather sealing is included in the lens. There is no optical stabilization but like all lenses, it will benefit from the internal stabilization system of most Sony mirrorless cameras.
Obviously, the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 purports to be 25mm where 24mm is the more common focal length. In practice, it might actually be a bit shorter than 25mm, I can’t see a difference between it and 24mm focal length images. Effectively, I doubt you would ever miss the extra 1 mm.
Image Quality
Previously, I compared the Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2 to a couple zooms set to 24mm. [Here]. Not surprisingly, it could outshine zoom lenses. So let’s see how it stands on its own and whether it is worth $1100.
Vignetting
Batis 25mm vignette at f2
Batis 25mm vignette at f2.8
Batis 25mm vignette at f4
Batis 25mm vignette at f2 — lightroom corrected
There is a fairly significant degree of vignetting at wider apertures though easily corrected in lightroom. I’ve certainly seen worse but I was expecting a bit better given the large front element of the lens.
Distortion
slight barrel distortion
distortion corrected
The Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2 exhibits some mild barrel distortion that is easily corrected. It shouldn’t stop anyone from enjoying this lens.
Flare – Chromatic Aberration/Purple Fringing
Batis 25mm F2, back lighting but no significant color fringing
Good contrast and minimal purple fringing at f2
Limited flare at f8
Flare at F2 with Batis 25mm
Batis 25mm, some mild ghosting and flare at f14
limited flare and loss of contrast a f18
Flare is simply not a significant concern with the Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2. Zeiss coatings do a wonderful job maintaining great contrast even with severe back lighting. Sure, some flare is present especially at smaller apertures but it’s really very modest.
I typically test color fringing at the same time as flaring, as they arise in similar situations. At wide aperture, there is some extremely mild purple fringing. It is very very mild, far less of a concern than on lenses like the Sony 55mm F/1.8 [Reviewed here].
Sunstars
As a wide angle lens, I won’t even bother looking at the bokeh. But as a potential landscape lens, you may be interested in turning light sources into brilliant sunstars.
Here, the Zeiss Batis excels marvelously, with gorgeous sunstars at F8.
Background Blur:
Blur seems just a bit bit at F2
Stopping down just slightly and the blur is very soft and pleasant
You typically aren’t shooting at 25mm in order to produce background separation. In these examples, I had to get very close to the subject to produce narrow depth of field. The blur seems a bit nervous at F2 but very smooth at F3.2.
Sharpness
So far, there have been no serious objections to the image quality of the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2. Looking at the lens sharpness…
Starting with center crops [click for large]:
Batis 25mm center at F2
Batis 25mm center at f2.8
Batis 25mm center at f4
Batis 25mm center at f8
Before commenting, Center crops from closer focus distance:
Batis 25mm center at F2, slight purple fringe
Batis 25mm center at f2.8
Batis 25mm center at f4
Batis 25mm center at f5.6
Batis 25mm center at f8
As a foot note, you will notice the very mild purple fringing in the F2 shot which is completely gone by F2.8. Turning to the sharpness, the center of the frame is only good news. Centers are tack sharp wide open at F2 and sharpen up a bit further with stopping down.
Of course, you are likely to use a 25mm lens for landscapes so let’s see how it does away from the center. Let’s look at the APS-C borders:
Batis 25mm border at F2
Batis 25mm border at F2.8
Batis 25mm border at F4
Batis 25mm border at F5.6
Batis 25mm border at f6.3
Batis 25mm border at F8
And borders from closer focus:
Batis 25mm border at f2
Batis 25mm border at f2.8
Batis 25mm border at F4
Batis 25mm border at f5.6
Batis 25mm border at f8
Not quite as sharp as the center but still no reason to complain. Wide open at F2, the borders are pretty close to acceptably sharp, just a minor hint of softness. By F2.8, the borders are tack sharp and reach optimal sharpness around F4 – F5.6.
Let’s see if the corners hold up well enough to shoot wide aperture landscapes..
Batis 25mm corner at f2
Batis 25mm corner at f2.8
Batis 25mm corner at f4
Batis 25mm corner at f5.6
Batis 25mm corner at f8
And close focus:
Batis 25mm corner at f2
Batis 25mm corner at f2.8
Batis 25mm corner at f4
Batis 25mm corner at f5.6
Batis 25mm corner at f8
The good new is that the corners are never atrocious. For smaller prints, you can easily get away with shooting at F2, where the corners are just a tad soft. By F2.8, the corners become acceptably sharp and by F4, they are looking pretty darn tack sharp.
Used between F4 and F8, you should get images tack sharp across the frame.
Overall:
A native Sony 24mm prime lens is something I’ve been asking for. [My Sony lens wishlist.] After testing the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2, I’m going to stop asking.
I confess that I have never previously owned a 24mm prime lens and I didn’t immediately fall in love with this lens. But the more I used the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2, the more it grew on me and has now become one of my favorite lenses.
In my assessment, it is one of the sharpest lenses I have ever formally tested, only behind the Sony Zeiss 50mm F/1.4. [Purchase the Zony Zeiss 50mm F/1.4 on Amazon]. The Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 really renders images beautifully, maintaining great contrast through all lighting situations.
[Updated 2019: In comparison to the Sony 24mm F/1.4 GM, the Batis compares quite well. The Sony 24mm F/1.4 GM is a bit sharper in the center and has a bit less color fringing. The Batis actually has slightly sharper corners, is slightly cheaper and slightly lighter.]
It can be an effective lens for environmental portraits and landscapes. The fast aperture makes it serviceable for astro-photograph though one would typically want a wider lens.
The only real current alternative is the Sigma Art 24mm F/1.4, which is about $250 cheaper than the Zeiss Batis and has a faster aperture, but it is also double the weight. Other than having a faster aperture, I doubt it actually can deliver sharper images.
[UPDATED: Sony has released their Sony 24mm F/1.4 GM lens, for about $1400. Faster than the Batis, only slightly heavier, and just a few hundred dollars more. See the Sony 24mm F/1.4 on Amazon / Adorama]
My initial gut reaction was that the price of the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2, at nearly $1,100, was over priced for a F2 lens. I feared it was overpriced just because of the Zeiss branding. But I was less bothered by the price when I looked at other 24mm lenses from other brands. The Nikon 24mm F/1.8 is $750, Sony’s A-mount 24mm F/2 is priced at $1400, and Canon’s 24mm F1.4 is $1549. So slightly more than Nikon’s native lens, $300 cheaper than Sony’s a-mount equivalent, and $450 cheaper than Canon’s F1.4 version. In light of the competition, I can’t really say the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 is overpriced.
[UPDATED 2019: In light of the Sony 24mm F/1.4 for $1,400, the Batis is a bit overpriced at $1,100. For just $300 more, you can get a lens that is a full stop faster than the Batis. Batis remains an exceptional lens but not necessarily a great value]
Paired with Sony mirrorless, I much prefer a lightweight F2 lens over a bulky heavy 1.4 lens. So the Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2 really hits the sweet spot of low weight and a price that is essentially fair. All while delivering absolutely stellar images.
Therefore, I can strongly recommend adding the Zeiss Batis 25mm F/2 to your Sony bag.
[Updated 2019: A big part of lens scoring is consideration of the other options. I initially scored the Batis as 9/10, a nearly must-own for Sony shooters. But the introduction of the Sony 24mm F/1.4 GM changes the equation. See the Sony 24mm F/1.4 on Amazon / Adorama. For just a little more than the Batis, you can get an exceptional lens that is one stop faster. The Batis remains a great lens but I reduced the score…..]
Rating [1-10]: Score: 8.5
[About my scoring: 9-10 is a superb lens which could have a place in the bag of almost every photographer. 6-8: recommended with caveats. 3-5: A compromised lens that may still be suitable for some shooters and situations. 1-2: Just stick to your phone camera]
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What is the minimum focus distance for the Batis 25mm?
The Batis 25mm allows you to focus down to a very close 20cm [7.87”], where you will have a very useful 1:5.2 reproduction ratio [0.19x].
What is Zeiss Batis compatible with?
ZEISS Batis autofocus lenses were developed specifically for Sony's* mirrorless camera series. The lenses are fully compatible with all Sony E-mount* cameras.