# Zeiss Announces Three New Milvus Series Lenses



## Canon Rumors Guy (Sep 8, 2016)

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<em>The lens family with manual focusing for DSLR cameras is now also available with focal lengths of 15, 18 and 135m</em></p>
<p><b>OBERKOCHEN/Germany, 08/09/2016</b> – Two super-wide angle lenses, the ZEISS Milvus 2.8/15 and ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18, and the telephoto lens ZEISS Milvus 2/135 have expanded this family of manual focus lenses for DSLR cameras, bringing the total number of ZEISS Milvus focal lengths to nine. “The ZEISS Milvus family of lenses is an invaluable investment for the future due to its excellent imaging quality and its large range, which now covers 15 to 135 millimeters,” says Christophe Casenave, product manager at ZEISS Camera Lenses. Delivery of the new ZEISS Milvus lenses begins at the end of October 2016.</p>
<p><b>For high-end DSLR cameras</b>

“The ZEISS Milvus lenses have been designed in particular to fulfill the requirements of today’s powerful digital cameras and those of the future thanks to their high imaging performance, even in difficult lighting situations,” says Casenave. The new lenses are characterized by a harmonious bokeh and very high degree of flare control due to the T* anti-reflective coating from ZEISS. Further optimization of the lens coating has also ensured less likelihood than ever of ghosting, flare or shading effects, even in critical lighting situations. And all ZEISS Milvus lenses come with a floating elements design, which compensates imaging errors at different distance settings.</p>
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<b>ZEISS Milvus for video</b>

The new ZEISS Milvus lenses also allow the user to create high-quality film shoots with a pleasing cinematic bokeh. “Due to their extremely high contrast rendition, the lenses fulfill the most modern video standards of 6K and higher, and have uniform color characteristics,” said Casenave. All ZEISS Milvus lenses have a focus ring with a very large rotation angle to enable precise focusing, and are made of comfortable rubber to ensure a good grip while focusing. The De-Click function on lenses with a ZF.2 mount lets cinematographers set the aperture in a soft and infinitely variable way so they can work professionally in changing lighting conditions. The ZEISS Milvus lenses’ robust full-metal barrel ensures long and reliable usage. In addition, the lenses are protected against dust and spray water. The robust metal lens shade is an integral part of the overall product design and included with all ZEISS Milvus lenses.</p>
<p>The new focal lengths of the ZEISS Milvus family are also compatible with the ZEISS Lens Gears, providing filmmakers with additional value-add. The ZEISS Lens Gears, which are made of high-quality aluminum with a hardened surface coating, slide into the respective lens and are attached to the focus ring by turning two counter-rotating rings through a simple mounting procedure.</p>
<p>The new ZEISS Milvus lenses in summary:</p>
<p><b>ZEISS Milvus 2.8/15:</b>

This super wide-angle lens with a field of view of 110 degrees allows every photographer to consciously compose using extreme perspectives. The lens has excellent imaging performance – even with an open aperture – thanks to the correction of color errors. Color fringing and distortion are minimal. This is all thanks to a ZEISS Distagon lens design with 15 lens elements in 12 groups, including two aspheric lenses, special glass with anomalous partial dispersion, and the floating elements design. A removable lens shade and the 95-millimeter filter thread also make this lens the ideal companion for special applications with additional slide-in filter holders.</p>
<p><b>ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18:</b>

This compact super-wide angle lens with a newly calculated ZEISS Distagon optical design has 14 lens elements in 12 groups, including two aspheric elements. The ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18 has a short close-up distance of 0.25 meters and internal focusing. With an angular field of 99.9 degrees, this lens is the ideal companion for landscape and architectural photography, as it allows creative shots to be taken using unusual perspectives. The filter thread has a diameter of 77 millimeters. The ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18 delivers outstanding imaging performance and very good distortion correction.</p>
<p><b>ZEISS Milvus 2/135:</b>

This fast telephoto lens delivers excellent correction of all color errors. Thanks to a large aperture and pleasing bokeh, it is the perfect lens for portrait photography from a medium distance. The angular field is 18.7 degrees. The short minimum object distance of 0.80 meters makes this lens even more versatile. It has an optical design with 11 lens elements in eight groups and, like the ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18, a filter diameter of 77 millimeters.</p>
<p><b>Price and availability</b>

The delivery worldwide of the three new lenses will begin at the end of October 2016. The lens shade is included with the corresponding lens. Sales prices are EUR 2,699 (including 19% German VAT) or 2.699US$ for the ZEISS Milvus 2.8/15; EUR 2,299 (including 19% VAT ) or 2.299US$ for the ZEISS Milvus 2.8/18; and EUR 2,199 Euro (including 19% German VAT) or 2.199US$ for the ZEISS Milvus 2/135. For ambitious cinematographers and photographers, a set solution is also available for up to six ZEISS Milvus lenses. A discount of 8% is available with the purchase of three to four lenses. Purchasing more than five lenses gives the user a 10% discount.</p>
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## ahsanford (Sep 8, 2016)

Zeiss continue to make the very best lenses... that few of us Canonites will use.

No AF = no sale, it's very simple for me. I'd only buy Zeiss glass for dedicated tripod work, which is only a small fraction of what I shoot.

- A


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## wtlloyd (Sep 8, 2016)

How much AF do you need at 15mm?


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## hubie (Sep 8, 2016)

ahsanford said:


> Zeiss continue to make the very best lenses... that few of us Canonites will use.
> 
> No AF = no sale, it's very simple for me. I'd only buy Zeiss glass for dedicated tripod work, which is only a small fraction of what I shoot.
> 
> - A



May change when Canon comes up with a camera with evf (focus peaking) and native ef-mount...


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## sanj (Sep 8, 2016)

I used to be the guy that bought the most expensive lenses until I realised that in real life there is no visible difference between the over priced and mid priced lenses.


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## TWI by Dustin Abbott (Sep 8, 2016)

I've been shooting with the 18mm and 135mm for a bit. I've got image galleries to both.

18mm: http://bit.ly/2csoGhc
135mm: http://bit.ly/2c1hYQ9

My 18mm Preview video is here: http://bit.ly/2cofpZh

I've only had the 18mm for a few days, but it seems promising. The 135mm is pretty much optical perfection; a very slight improvement on the Classic version, which was already one of the best lenses ever. Getting the Milvus build and weather sealing for the same price is icing on the cake, though the lens got a fair bit heavier in translation.


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## mperlson (Sep 9, 2016)

These lenses look amazing, but I'm curious as to why they would do both 15mm and 18mm, both at 2.8, at the same time. They seem very similar...


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## TWI by Dustin Abbott (Sep 9, 2016)

mperlson said:


> These lenses look amazing, but I'm curious as to why they would do both 15mm and 18mm, both at 2.8, at the same time. They seem very similar...



The 15mm is just getting a new build around an existing optical formula (weather sealing and a removable hood). The 18mm is a completely new lens. Zeiss already had an 15mm f/2.8, 18mm f/3.5, and 21mm f/2.8. The 18mm is replaced while the other two have updated designs.


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## TWI by Dustin Abbott (Sep 9, 2016)

My previous of the Milvus 135mm f/2 is up today: http://bit.ly/2c4RMXB


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