| Author: | | New Member Registered: July, 2008 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 3 | | Review Date: August 22, 2022 | Recommended | Price: $139.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Close Focus | | Cons: | N/A | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K3-II - Fujifilm XH-1
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For version: MC SONNAR 3.5 / 135 Carl Zeiss Jena DDR
Mount: Pentax M42 screw
Substantial metal build but lighter than Takumar. The lens has a nice built-in retractable metal lens hood. Aperture ring has effortless smooth clicks. Focus ring operation is accurate but not completely easy to move.
Has admirable rendering especially for close focus subjects like flora for which I use it with minimal post adjustments.
| | | | | | | | | | Review Date: March 21, 2019 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: N/A |
| Pros: | As new condition but still to be used in anger | | Cons: | None that I can read about | |
I was given a Praktica camera and kit which included this lens to sell on eBay. I wasn't really aware of the legacy lens thing and sold the Praktica camera and standard lens and some other bits but as this lens was in such good condition I thought I would sell it separately so did some investigation and put on eBay at a good price for me.
It sat there on eBay with a number of watchers but no takers and each time when at the desk I would take it out of the drawer and play around with it. Eventually took it off eBay and started down the road of looking for other lenses to keep it company and the rest is history.
Cheers
| | | | | New Member Registered: November, 2013 Posts: 14 | | Review Date: December 10, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $40.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | very sharp lens | | Cons: | very few CA's | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: k-s1 k-x k200d
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++ very sharp lens
+ high contrast
++ nertral color rendition
+ few CA's wide open
for macro shootings with macro tubes !
9.5 points | | | | | New Member Registered: November, 2018 Posts: 2 | | Review Date: November 25, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $25.00
| Rating: N/A |
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I have one that is Konica Ricoh mount version (KR mount). How can I make it to at least PK .. I would like to mount it on Sony E mount or Nikon F mount. Thanks!
| | | | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2018 Posts: 6 | | Review Date: June 21, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $100.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Minimum focus distance, affordable, sharp, nice bokeh with Zeiss colors | | Cons: | Very difficult to find one in good conditions | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 8
Value: 8
Camera Used: A7
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Tried four copies of the lens: two had stuck diaphragm blades, one had fungus and the last one had been dismantled and was unacceptably dusty. Finally found mine, but I paid the price.
Build quality is ok if you find a good one. The lens is quite small.
It's sharp with good bokeh even if only f/3,5. It has great Zeiss colors and can focus close to less than one meter, I don't know many other 135mm close focus... Well, buy it, but be careful especially with stuck/oily diaphragm blades.
| | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2018 Location: Paris Posts: 8 | | Review Date: January 26, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $80.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Clarity, IQ, COLOR rendering, unbelievable low price | | Cons: | Not pka but A/M switch | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 6
Value: 10
Camera Used: K1
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This lens is kind of bizarre...my version is a mint “electric mc Sonnar czj ddr 135-3.5”
Nice and Very good build even though not a Pentax k..It looks kind of poorman bigger FA77mm ...
When you look this m42 mount and the adaptation ring you have to put in your brand new K1 camera you just want to cry and start regretting ...😭
And think understand why such a low price
When you succeed mouting it on your camera you feel it s kind loosy fix and it will drop on the ground ( no locking) and you are afraid  🤪
First pic, wide open of course (because you let the a position switch...) and.....WOW wtf.....😎
You check the mount ....second pic ...same Wow😎
And etc....
The IQ/clarity/COLOR rendering at P.O. of this old thing is just unbeleavable.
I found the COLOR rendering and contrast much more strong and steady at P.O. during poor light/flat white sky conditions than my K135 F2.5 that I love too but in these particular conditions only I find it on the cools side COLOR rendering with low contrast scenes.
This lens is sharp equal from 3.5 to 8 !!!! Bizarre I told you.
Optically it’s quite razor sharp. . it has a common pb with sticky aperture blades so you have chance to end with f3,5 always
Focusing is ok but just not the confort feeling of the K ring
The cons :
the m42 screw mount with adapt ring no locking on the camera
Now I have 2 x135 to carry with me ....the K for 2.5 and trekking / unsteady walk conditions.... and this one for all others
I recommend strongly, smiles for the high grade results (and laughing /always checking the fix finally) guaranteed . Lot of fun using such anachronistic stuff but in fact better than the green button system of the M and K for my taste
Be careful with m42 to pk adaptator if first use and choose the right one for infinity focusing. Google it before for some hints. (Prefer to remove tiny screw and the small tit and let the 10$ adaptator ring on your lens....so easier and faster to mount and dismount of your camera)
| | | | | New Member Registered: July, 2016 Location: London, UK Posts: 5 | | Review Date: August 23, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $80.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharpness, colour rendition, bokeh | | Cons: | A bit slow | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Sony Alpha 7RII
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A coupla dozen of shots only and I'm already in LOVE with this lens. I wouldn't write a review so hastily, 2 hours after taking it out of the box, but I'm just so enthusiastic! I could only test it in very poor light conditions (it arrived tonight, and it was dark already).
The lens seems fabulously sharp, even on a 44 mega pix camera like the Sony Alpha 7RII (I give it *only* 9 for sharpness just because I keep the 10 for the modern Sony Zeiss 55mm f1.8 - which hurts your eyes from being so_sharp, and your wallet too, at £700).
I love the colours, bokeh seems very creamy. Mechanics & build top notch.
I paid a low price because the body looks a bit used, and the dust inside is a bit more than average. I bet it doesn't do anything, but I'll open up the lens & clean it - it's a relatively simple job on these old babies.
More in the next few days, with some time. But again - these Zeiss are a dream.
All pictures wide open (so to speak) i.e. f3.5
    | | | | | Pentaxian Registered: April, 2015 Location: USA Posts: 2,874 | | Review Date: May 23, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $150.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, Micro-contrast, Makes great black & white images | | Cons: | Only f/3.5 | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K1
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I just got through comparing five 135mm lenses. This CZY Sonnar won hands down!
Light weight, only four elements, no colored fringing wide open, terrific color, the best lens for black and whites that I own.
Wide open sharp from one side to the other, with truly incredible bokeh.
I currently own three of these lenses and plan to buy even more. All of mine are the "Zebra" version with a DDR on the front and with serial numbers around 9,386,000.
In a blind test, this lens from f/3.5 to f/16 will beat most $1000 lenses, yet you can buy it for under $100. A crazy bargain!
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: May, 2015 Location: Hampshire Posts: 892
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 12, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $30.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Has an A-M switch | | Cons: | | |
This is a quick review based on little usage of two lenses.
Both were CARL ZEISS JENA DDR MC S. S/N'S 106598 and 131184.
I like these lenses but there are some as good (and cheaper) in the K mount. As a M42 mount with the A-M switch it is easier maybe to focus and stop down than using green button metering. A K-A mount would be heaven (as would a wider aperture).
It is quite sharp, seems to provide good colour and seems to sell well on ebay.
I wish I knew why the MC in red seems to be important. An image taken on yet another grey day here in England, than you Pentax for shake reduction!
F8, 1/50s and a crop.
 | | | | | New Member Registered: August, 2016 Posts: 8 | | Review Date: November 18, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $85.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp,color | | Cons: | Flare in the backlighting | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 8
Value: 9
Camera Used: K5II
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This lens came to me as a second-hand, but the condition was quite well. Not a single scratch on the glass.The first thing that impressed me is that the sharpness is quite well even wide open. Actually I use f3.5 all the time and the outcomes are superb. Secondly, the color is rich and vivid. It does have some drawbacks :It flares when using in the backlighting, and the focus ring is not smooth. But in general this a great lens made in Germany.
| | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2014 Location: Near Berlin Posts: 1
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: May 25, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $140.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | sharpness, contrast, color contrast and reproduction, price | | Cons: | only 6 diaphragm blades, in addition highly reflective (not blackened), short and shaky built-in hood, disgusting focus ring | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 6
Handling: 4
Value: 10
Camera Used: Canon APS-C
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Own definition of points - using the above scaling: 5 = still good, 7-8 = good to very good, 9-10 = excellent
(10 = "100%" for technical aspects: such a immaculate thing does not exist)
About this as good as new copy: it was produced within the latest version at the end of 1980s in Saalfeld in the former GDR (therefore no "Aus Jena" export version) and
sold a short time later after the political changes from acquired inventories.
Traditionally one of the best 135mm lenses for the 36mm-film format, however, the most useful optical performance is available, when stopped down at least f/5.6 or higher.
The high color contrast and intense, as well as pure colors are typical of this lens, with color slide film quite welcome characteristics (in digital image processing, this tends
to play a minor role), but an edged diaphragm and significant color fringing at high contrast details lead to a less beautiful reproduction outside the focal plane.
Compared to S.-M.-C. Takumar 1: 2.5/135 (Model II):
Very stiff focusing grip with extremely uncomfortable, needle-sharp bare metal pyramids, painful for the fingers (in this regard, the former, painted models feel a little more
"comfortable"); on the other hand, mechanical slackness is hardly to be felt; the Takumar here feels at worlds better, but also at the expense of a wobbly front barrel.
Slightly inferior imaging performance in the lower apertures (and thus far less contrasty than the also tested much older aluminum bare, "silver" Sonnar 4,0/135); does not
quite reach the sharpness in the center at closed apertures, but sharper, more contrast and less CA in the corners, overall a more homogeneous performance across the
entire image field.
MC SONNAR 3,5 / 135 CARL ZEISS JENA DDR
Variations
left: the model above, anodized and partially painted body, right: previous and "electric" model, completely painted body, different coatings
Overview
f/8 / APS-C / standard ooc jpeg file, scaled down on 1200x1800 of 5184x3456 image size, taken with the above, left model
Detail (100% crop)
 | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: November, 2010 Location: California Posts: 2,223 | | Review Date: January 2, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $200.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp wide open with contrast and good colors, small, built-in hood | | Cons: | rare, hard to find. | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Kx, K5, K3
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This is probably the sharpest and nicer 135mm lens (pardon me, SMC Takumar 135/2.5 Second Version and Pentax K 125/2.5, I am embellishing little here, but not too much), just a tad slower than the SMC Tak and Pentax. I will post some photos later. Here is one quick shot:
 CarlZeiss MC DDR 135mmf3.5 @f3.5 - Chair by Palenquero, on Flickr
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: December, 2010 Location: San Jose Posts: 25 | | Review Date: December 12, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $120.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | smooth handling, sharp, quality | | Cons: | screw mount & none | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 10
Value: 9
Camera Used: Pentax K-X
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I was really impressed when I read reviews about this lens and searched for it.
A year ago, I bought this lens. It is an M42 mount (Pentax) manual focus lens and I was wondering how to handle it while quick capturing.
It is very stable and smooth lens. If your eye sight is good, then this lens is the best for mid/long distance captures.
Once, I attach this lens to my K-X, I don't really wish to remove it. Even now I forgot my other lenses
I am not a professional photographer, so I can't give you all F stop output and suggestions.
Performance wise, its too good, I get what I want.
This beauty has inbuilt lens-hood too, I didn't know that and no one mentioned about it too.
This is one of the best lens from its era, and still can knock-out current lens family (If you don't compare with auto focus mode)
For camera lenses, it does matter "how you get and what you get..."
This lens didn't disappoint me, anyhow...
Some sample photographs (30% re-sized)
  | | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2015 Posts: 2 | | Review Date: October 22, 2015 | Not Recommended | Price: $54.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Contrast and Centre Sharpness | | Cons: | Distracting Bokeh, Chromatic Aberration | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 5
Bokeh: 3
Handling: 9
Value: 8
Camera Used: Sony A7s
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I tried two copies of the Praktica PB Mount version of this lens, with the hope of using it for some nice compressed landscape type shots.
The lens does have good centre sharpness and contrast and the build quality and feel were excellent.
Unfortunately there is quite a bit of Chromatic Aberration and the bokeh is quite distracting. Ultimately, although I didn't buy this lens especially for shallow depth of field work, it is kind of hard to avoid at this focal length, and out-of-focus areas have a distracting harshness about them.
I also found that this lens flares quite easily and that the built-in hood could do with being a bit longer.
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