Hier mal beide Zeiss-50er im Vergleich der Testergebnisse von Photozone, getestet am DX-Body. (Copyright der Testcharts: Photozone.de)
Beide Ergebnisse liegen abgeblendet noch über dem Bereich "Exzellent", der bis 2.250 reicht. Am FX-Body fallen beide 50er sowohl im Zentrum, als auch besonders in der Randzone bei Offenblende ab, erreichen dann aber abgeblendet wieder den oberen Rand des "Exzellenz-Bereichs" und eine sehr gute Randschärfe. Wie man aus diesen Tests (und anderen, die ich studiert habe) ableiten will, das Planar sei eine "Gurke" gegenüber dem Makro-Planar und ähnlichem Schwachsinn, den man hier im Forum lesen darf, ist mir schlicht ein Rätsel.
Makro-Planar 2/50 mm:
MTF (resolution)
Traditionally 50mm lenses were and are still a benchmark for film as well as image sensors and the Zeiss lens is no exception here. The center resolution is already very good at max. aperture whereas the borders are a bit soft and also low in contrast. By f/2 the corners already recover significantly and the center heads towards excellent quality levels. Stopping down further unleashes the full resolution potential which can only be described as bitingly sharp. In fact the Zeiss beats all comparable Nikkors and sets a new (center) resolution record on the D200. It is quite safe to state that the Zeiss easily outresolves the 10mp Sony sensor.
Below is a simplified summary of the formal findings. The chart shows in line widths per picture height (LW/PH) which can be taken as a measure for sharpness. The chart is limited to the visually relevant LW/PH range of [750, 2250]. If you want to know more about the MTF50 figures you may check out the corresponding Imatest Explanations.
Planar 1.4/50mm:
MTF (resolution)
Macro lenses tend to be stellar performers and the Zeiss is no exception to the rule. At wide-open aperture the lens is already extremely sharp in the center whereas the borders are a little softer but still in very good territories. From f/2.8 to f/8 the edge-to-edge resolution is superb with a peak at f/5.6. Beyond f/8 diffraction is the limiting factor so even Zeiss cannot fool physics.
Compared to the Micro-Nikkor AF 60mm f/2.8D the Zeiss is quite a bit better at comparable apertures till f/5.6 whereas the Nikkor has an advantage at very small apertures. Due to diffraction neither is really good at f/22 or f/32 though. Nonetheless both lenses are outstanding in terms of resolution.
Please note that the test was performed at a distance of around 3m so it is not a macro test. Dedicated macro tests are not possible at this stage (not without a NASA budget anyway).
Below is a simplified summary of the formal findings. The chart shows in line widths per picture height (LW/PH) which can be taken as a measure for sharpness. The chart is limited to the visually relevant LW/PH range of [750, 2250]. If you want to know more about the MTF50 figures you may check out the corresponding Imatest Explanations.