What? Carl Zeiss Planar 1.4/50 ZF-IR (???)

[Macro_Cosmos]

Hello,

I was reading the manual of my new camera and saw something I couldn't believe existed.  In case I was imagining things, I looked it up online and found nothing.  Search results riddled with "this 50mm VS that".

So ZF means it's an F-mount which is expected since many industrial/scientific cameras use it, there's no rabbit ears in the image.  I can't find any information on ZF-IR "modern-ish" lenses from Carl Zeiss. 

Does anyone know of such an optic?  It'll be interesting to see how it performs versus a normal (ie non-IR) version.  I'm not sure how well the normal version performs in the IR spectrum but it probably doesn't work for NIR, and this one presumably does?  It's clearly not a render, so such a lens does exist.

Thanks!

[Akira]

I think I saw a section in the Zeiss official website dedicated to the IR series some years ago.  The optics of IR series lenses are essentially the same as those of the "Classic" series models.  The main difference is the coating optimized for the IR range, which is indicated by the lack of the red "T*" on the front ring.

[Macro_Cosmos]

I think I saw a section in the Zeiss official website dedicated to the IR series some years ago.  The optics of IR series lenses are essentially the same as those of the "Classic" series models.  The main difference is the coating optimized for the IR range, which is indicated by the lack of the red "T*" on the front ring.

Thanks Akira, I'll try and find more information.  I need this lens, or preferably the makro-planar 1:2 "macro" version for PV cell inspection.  An FN35mm (full-frame) 50mm on an FN22 camera is a bit too long, 35mm or 28mm might be nicer too.

Here's some more information.
Link: https://www.pco-imaging.com/fileadmin/user_upload/pco-publications/pco_pub_20101214_Laser_Photonics_scmos_camera_article_scan.pdf

Yep, PV cell EL, exactly what I need.  Now the problem is finding a copy.  To my knowledge, all class line of Zeiss DSLR lenses have been discontinued.   

[Macro_Cosmos]

https://www.zeiss.com/content/dam/consumer-products/downloads/industrial-lenses/datasheets/en/classic-lenses/datasheet-zeiss-planar-1450-industrial-lens.pdf
An IR version is mentioned here in one of the MFT curves, the one for F_no=4.
ZF-I denotes the industrial version.  I'll send them a message regarding the IR version's availability.
Looking at the transmission curves, the performance for IR on the standard version isn't at all bad, 35% at 1000nm is alright, probably 15% at 1500nm?  SWIR is 1000-2500nm.  Very nice, a standard version could be nice too.

[Bill De Jager]

It exists along with IR versions of the 25/2.8 and 85/1.4 Planar.  All are long since discontinued.

I actually bought this lens a couple of weeks ago... then realized that I really could not afford the price I paid vs. the value added for me personally.  Silly me... so back it went, unopened, to KEH.  Check their site daily and you might see it pop up for sale again in coming days.   Be warned that it will be expensive.

[Macro_Cosmos]

I actually bought this lens a couple of weeks ago... then realized that I really could not afford the price I paid vs. the value added for me personally.  Silly me... so back it went, unopened, to KEH.  Check their site daily and you might see it pop up for sale again in coming days.   Be warned that it will be expensive.

How much was it?
The Zeiss people finally replied, discontinued since 2018 -- bummer but I expected that.
Hopefully my friends in Taizhou finds some.  I'll probably consider the Dimension M4/3 for now.

[Bill De Jager]

Approximately US$2100.

[Akira]

There are

It exists along with IR versions of the 25/2.8 and 85/1.4 Planar.  All are long since discontinued.

According to Zeiss website, many of the classic series lenses are still available as industry lenses with locking screws for the focus ring and the aperture ring.

https://www.zeiss.com/consumer-products/int/industrial-lenses/classic-lenses.html

Daniel, if you are looking for such a specialized lens, there could be more dedicated lens from other manufacturers, I guess?

[Bill De Jager]

Daniel, if you are looking for such a specialized lens, there could be more dedicated lens from other manufacturers, I guess?

Over many years of infrared photography I've never heard of other manufacturers producing special IR versions of photographic lenses. On the other hand, scientific suppliers such as Edmund Optics in the U.S. produce many lenses designed for particular wavebands including the near IR and shortwave IR.  Caution is needed because many of these lenses are for small-format sensors and/or may only have enough resolution for machine vision uses.  These lenses are not optimized for photography-as-art and may or may not give a pleasing rendition when used for that purpose.

[Akira]

Over many years of infrared photography I've never heard of other manufacturers producing special IR versions of photographic lenses. On the other hand, scientific suppliers such as Edmund Optics in the U.S. produce many lenses designed for particular wavebands including the near IR and shortwave IR.  Caution is needed because many of these lenses are for small-format sensors and/or may only have enough resolution for machine vision uses.  These lenses are not optimized for photography-as-art and may or may not give a pleasing rendition when used for that purpose.

Bill, Daniel's purpose is to find the partial failure of solar panels.  Not for the IR art photography in which some of our folks here are interested.

Having said that, I mistakenly assumed that the sample image of the solar panel Daniel posted was a microscopic closeup.  If the image was taken at a rather normal distance, chances could be that an older single-coated MF Nikkor would serve you.

I have no idea of the requirement of the image quality for your purpose, so this could be totally pointless.  Nevertheless, there are some old MF Nikkors known to perform nicely without hot spot.  I've used a single coated preAi Nikkor 28mm f3.5 used with an IR90 filter that cuts at 900nm.

The first image was shot with D2H and the second one, with D40.  Both cameras were stock.

[Bill De Jager]

Thank you for the reminder, Akira.  I had forgotten about the genesis of the thread!

[Akira]

Thank you for the reminder, Akira.  I had forgotten about the genesis of the thread!

Bill, I'm afraid I may have misread your previous post.  I think your info is relevant.

[Bill De Jager]

Akira, no problem.  I think you made a good point.

Back to a question asked earlier, the non-IR 50mm f1.4 Zeiss tended to display a hot spot.  It also didn't transmit IR anywhere near as well as the IR version due to the coatings used. It's not really necessary to find a dedicated IR lens.  Many lenses do well in IR, though quite a few don't due to hot spots, flare, or other problems.