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Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
Sep 4, 2016
The Zonlai "Discover" 25mm f/1.8, the one with the aperture ring in the front, is well documented, but there is an almost $20 less expensive "copy" from Zhongheng, this one with the aperture ring in the back, that I can't find any information about, other than sales pitches on ebay. Has anybody have any experience with this cheaper version from Zhongheng?
Zonlai "Discover" 25mm f/1.8
Zhongheng "Discover" 25mm f/1.8
Zonlai "Discover" 25mm f/1.8
Zhongheng "Discover" 25mm f/1.8
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
There are a several "no name" lenses on the market with small adapters for Fuji but the IQ from them is mostly of poor quality especially at wide apertures. For a similar price you can buy an old 24mm f2.8 MF lens of very good quality with clear aperture markings and crisp click stops, good manual focusing and also distance and depth of field scales.
Try Minolta, Pentax or Olympus Zuiko for quality and price. Canikon lenses may cost a little more.
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
1
I actually have a Nikon AI 24mm f/2.8 with an adapter on my X-E1 [I'm mainly a Nikon shooter], but the whole contraption is fairly big and heavy, so looking for a much lighter and compact pairing.
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ttan98 • Senior Member • Posts: 2,454
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
I own the Zonlai 25mm[*], just did a search for Zhongleng , this is what i found,
//www.ebay.com.au/itm/AU-25mm-F-1-8-HD-Manual-Focus-Lens-Fr-Sony-E-Mount-NEX-6-7-5C-A6300-A6000-A5000-/401160342529?hash=item5d67050c01:g:MqYAAOSw0RpXlzXM
* Very good lens for the money very sharp in centre and slightly less sharp at the edge even wide open. I would buy it again. THe distortion is a fraction higher than normal but it can be corrected in post processing.
You can get the Fuji mount from this site:
//www.ebay.com.au/itm/DISCOVER-25mm-F1-8-Manual-Focus-LENS-f-Fujifilm-FX-Mount-Camera-Black-/182204175241?hash=item2a6c371389:g:ll8AAOSwIgNXvBH-
ttan98 • Senior Member • Posts: 2,454
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
1
Vic Chapman wrote:There are a several "no name" lenses on the market with small adapters for Fuji but the IQ from them is mostly of poor quality especially at wide apertures. For a similar price you can buy an old 24mm f2.8 MF lens of very good quality with clear aperture markings and crisp click stops, good manual focusing and also distance and depth of field scales.
Try Minolta, Pentax or Olympus Zuiko for quality and price. Canikon lenses may cost a little more.
You are wrong, the Zonlai 25mm is very sharp in the centre and less so outside WIDE OPEN, ie at f1.7. I own one I would buy it again. I paid US$120, a 2nd hand Nikon 24mm f2.8 costs more.
Rod McD • Veteran Member • Posts: 9,142
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
Hi,
Surely it's odd that both lenses from both manufacturers should omit f11 from their aperture rings? Both jump from f8 to f16. That smacks of them coming from the same source...... They look like two variants of the same lens with differing mechanical implementation.
You could get a used XF 27mm for around $200. Surely your XE1 is worth more than that?
Regards, Rod
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
In reply to Rod McD • Sep 4, 2016
Rod McD wrote:Hi,
Surely it's odd that both lenses from both manufacturers should omit f11 from their aperture rings? Both jump from f8 to f16. That smacks of them coming from the same source...... They look like two variants of the same lens with differing mechanical implementation.
You could get a used XF 27mm for around $200. Surely your XE1 is worth more than that?
Regards, Rod
Hopefully you're right, as the Zonlai is quite good for the money and everybody that has reviewed it has found the contrary-to-standard ring positions confusing. But it is not unusual for Chinese manufacturers to blatantly copy from their own local competitors given the total disregard for patent protection in the land. The Zhongheng sellers even post official Zonlai samples taken from Zonlai's website! Given the obvious mechanical difference between them and the slightly different colored sheen their front elements reflect in the pictures, probably from different coating processes used, I am swayed to believe they are not related.
I got my X-E1 for less than $200 about 3 months ago, in pristine condition and with an original battery that seems to hold amost 100% charge, so probably a low shutter count unit. I believe they are going for even cheaper nowadays and falling fast by the minute! Love the shooting experience and the colors, but having the Nikon D5500 now I hardly use the Fuji.
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
1
I can see why some people have this negative knee-jerk reaction when it comes to the cheaper knockoff lenses, and I agree that in most cases, the quality of these lenses is lacking. however, I own one of these Zonlai Discover 25mm lenses, and it is rarely off my camera. it has some quirks that I'd prefer it not have relating to the focus distance scale and some gliding "travel" in the focus pull, but it's really an imperfect little gem of a lens. I'm a fan of the ~40mm focal length, and I'm constantly impressed by the sharpness of the image at all apertures and the rendering of the out of focus areas. it's tiny, it's light, it's cheap, and it performs. be gentle with it, because I've heard that the build QC is inconsistent - some folks have reported that tiny knocks have disrupted the focus mechanism - but I can tell you that I accidentally dropped my camera in a park a few weeks ago, it landed lens down, and it shook it off and kept going.
I'm really interested in trying out this new Zhongheng version. if the IQ is comparable, and the distance and DOF scales are accurate, I'm adding one to my kit for sure.
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
In reply to ttan98 • Sep 4, 2016
ttan98 wrote:Vic Chapman wrote:You are wrong, the Zonlai 25mm is very sharp in the centre and less so outside WIDE OPEN, ie at f1.7. I own one I would buy it again. I paid US$120, a 2nd hand Nikon 24mm f2.8 costs more.There are a several "no name" lenses on the market with small adapters for Fuji but the IQ from them is mostly of poor quality especially at wide apertures. For a similar price you can buy an old 24mm f2.8 MF lens of very good quality with clear aperture markings and crisp click stops, good manual focusing and also distance and depth of field scales.
Try Minolta, Pentax or Olympus Zuiko for quality and price. Canikon lenses may cost a little more.
Like I said a Canikon will cost more. Minolta, Pentax and Oly Zuiko lenses of around 24mm f2.8 I paid about the equivalent of $65-70 US. The OLY is sharp across the frame - although I haven't pixel peeped the corners there is no obvious softness and OLY Zuiko lenses are very compact. I have OLYs which, including adapter are slightly smaller than my Fuji equivalents.
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ttan98 • Senior Member • Posts: 2,454
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
1
inlikeflynn wrote: I can see why some people have this negative knee-jerk reaction when it comes to the cheaper knockoff lenses, and I agree that in most cases, the quality of these lenses is lacking. however, I own one of these Zonlai Discover 25mm lenses, and it is rarely off my camera. it has some quirks that I'd prefer it not have relating to the focus distance scale and some gliding "travel" in the focus pull, but it's really an imperfect little gem of a lens. I'm a fan of the ~40mm focal length, and I'm constantly impressed by the sharpness of the image at all apertures and the rendering of the out of focus areas. it's tiny, it's light, it's cheap, and it performs. be gentle with it, because I've heard that the build QC is inconsistent - some folks have reported that tiny knocks have disrupted the focus mechanism - but I can tell you that I accidentally dropped my camera in a park a few weeks ago, it landed lens down, and it shook it off and kept going.
Your assessment is spot on. Some people with no experience ALWAYS making general remarks which are not applicable here. There are always exceptions.
I'm really interested in trying out this new Zhongheng version. if the IQ is comparable, and the distance and DOF scales are accurate, I'm adding one to my kit for sure.
I just correspond to the guy who sold me the Zonlai and now selling the Discover 25mm, he told me the glasses inside are same as those from the Zonlai, the main different is the focus and aperture rings are interchange.
I SUSPECT this lens and the Zonlai lens is a copy of a famous lens don't know which one.
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
In reply to ttan98 • Sep 5, 2016
ttan98 wrote:I just correspond to the guy who sold me the Zonlai and now selling the Discover 25mm, he told me the glasses inside are same as those from the Zonlai, the main different is the focus and aperture rings are interchange.
I SUSPECT this lens and the Zonlai lens is a copy of a famous lens don't know which one.
So by the information you have gathered, both lenses are basically identical, optically speaking? That sounds very promising. How much is your guy charging for the Zhongheng?
The optical formula inside the Zonlai is incredibly simple:
//www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=110
Usually such simple lenses are great for bokeh but not so much for CA, distortion, vignetting and peripheral sharpness, so they are great for subject isolation. The samples Zonlai provides are perfect examples of how to properly use the lens to best effect:
//www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=103
Would be great to have somebody who owns the Zhongheng version chime in or even better show some samples.
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
1
On Zonlai's website, the "About Us" page indicates that on 4/16 they finished initial optical formula design for their second round of lenses, on 6/16 they finished those lenses' exterior design and they plan to release them on 10/16. They also mention having produced more than 2K copies of the 25mm by 4/16. Something new is coming from these guys, and they seem to put their heart into the enterprise.
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Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
CaMeRa QuEsT wrote:ttan98 wrote:I just correspond to the guy who sold me the Zonlai and now selling the Discover 25mm, he told me the glasses inside are same as those from the Zonlai, the main different is the focus and aperture rings are interchange.
I SUSPECT this lens and the Zonlai lens is a copy of a famous lens don't know which one.So by the information you have gathered, both lenses are basically identical, optically speaking? That sounds very promising. How much is your guy charging for the Zhongheng?
The optical formula inside the Zonlai is incredibly simple:
//www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=110
It's a variant of double gauss design. The lens doesn't have any aspherical elements usually used to contain the spherical aberration. So it's likely suffers from SA. Look for 'glows' when shooting wide open. The resolution and contrast wide open is likely poor everywhere except in the center. It would be ok for a portrait lens, but 25mm FL isn't really suitable for that.
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
Digging deep into Alibaba's cave [!!!] it seems that the OEM-er for both versions is one "Shenzhen Golden Vision Technology Co., Ltd.", they just slap their customer's name on the final product, though Zonlai probably had a hand in their version's design.
Anyways, I found an even cheaper alternative from the manufacturer of the infamous Fujian "C" mount CCTV lenses. They have come out with a 25mm f/1.8 of 8 elements in 6 groups, with much wider front and much smaller rear elements than those of the "Discover", like the retrofocus designs of wide angle SLR lenses:
//focusafe.en.alibaba.com/product/60460461902-212426950/Fujian_25mm_New_Style_FX_Mount_Camera_Lens.html?spm=a2700.7803228.1998738836.186.CERsF1
There's absolutely no info of this lens in the web other than Fujian's sales pitch, and even that is limited, with no sample pictures at all. Guess I'll be the first one to review one, at least in the occidental world. Wish me luck!
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ttan98 • Senior Member • Posts: 2,454
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
Carl Mucks wrote:CaMeRa QuEsT wrote:It's a variant of double gauss design. The lens doesn't have any aspherical elements usually used to contain the spherical aberration. So it's likely suffers from SA. Look for 'glows' when shooting wide open. The resolution and contrast wide open is likely poor everywhere except in the center. It would be ok for a portrait lens, but 25mm FL isn't really suitable for that.ttan98 wrote:I just correspond to the guy who sold me the Zonlai and now selling the Discover 25mm, he told me the glasses inside are same as those from the Zonlai, the main different is the focus and aperture rings are interchange.
I SUSPECT this lens and the Zonlai lens is a copy of a famous lens don't know which one.So by the information you have gathered, both lenses are basically identical, optically speaking? That sounds very promising. How much is your guy charging for the Zhongheng?
The optical formula inside the Zonlai is incredibly simple:
//www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=110
Do you own one, you are wrong, it suffers a slight CA and vignetting not severe. The image quality is sharp[also contrast and color rendition is good] in the centre and towards the edges WIDE OPEN at f1.8. However the distortion is higher than normal but can be corrected post processing.
ttan98 • Senior Member • Posts: 2,454
Re: Two "Discover" 25mm f/1.8 lenses from two different manufacturers?
CaMeRa QuEsT wrote:ttan98 wrote:So by the information you have gathered, both lenses are basically identical, optically speaking? That sounds very promising. How much is your guy charging for the Zhongheng?I just correspond to the guy who sold me the Zonlai and now selling the Discover 25mm, he told me the glasses inside are same as those from the Zonlai, the main different is the focus and aperture rings are interchange.
I SUSPECT this lens and the Zonlai lens is a copy of a famous lens don't know which one.
He told me US$90 incl postage. When you are ready to purchase I will give you his details.
The optical formula inside the Zonlai is incredibly simple://www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=110
Usually such simple lenses are great for bokeh but not so much for CA, distortion, vignetting and peripheral sharpness, so they are great for subject isolation. The samples Zonlai provides are perfect examples of how to properly use the lens to best effect:
//www.zonlai.com/col.jsp?id=103
Would be great to have somebody who owns the Zhongheng version chime in or even better show some samples.
bs1946 • Veteran Member • Posts: 7,984
China's version of Samyang
This is probably the no-name Chinese equivalent of Samyang. Selling under their own name and rebranding for resellers like Rokinon and Bower. The fact that both lenses are missing the same f-stop says they came from the same place.
Fuji, Olympus, Panasonic, Sony, and probably Nikon and Canon are all building lenses or cameras in China and while they're overseeing everything, the quality is as good as the gear made in Japan. Plus, if you have an iPhone, it was made in China as well.
It was only a few years ago that people were talking about how bad Samyang was and a lot still are, even though there newer lenses have superb image quality. I'm old enough to remember that the same was said about buying from Sigma, Tamron, or Tokina. If these lenses are passible now, they may be excellent in a few years or they may be gone.
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Rod McD • Veteran Member • Posts: 9,142
Re: China's version of Samyang
In reply to bs1946 • Sep 5, 2016
Hi Bill,
Yes, it's interesting to speculate about Chinese lenses. Sooner or later, one of these new optical firms will turn out some really top glass and people will have to take notice instead of writing them off generically as knock offs, poor quailty etc before they've been objective enough to try them. Every firm has to start somewhere. Even Leica and Fuji did. Once.
Laowa seems to have achieved a little respect in recent years. And Handevision has just started selling its line of five all-f2.4 lenses announced last year. They're allegedly German designed to a high grade. And they aren't cheap. I'd like to see how the 50/2.4 and 75/2.4 perform because they come in Fuji mount and Fuji themselves don't [yet] offer any primes in that ball park. Hopefully someone will review them.
Cheers, Rod
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