In an age of precision, Zeiss aims to meld unique character with versatility with its new Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses crafted to capture the soul of cinema.
With its Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses, Zeiss wants to start a new cinematic era. These lenses look to combine high-end precision with artistic depth to deliver an exclusive “Radiance” look.
The “Radiance” look combines controlled, artistic blue flares and warm color tones, creating a rich, cinematic aesthetic that enhances skin tones and deepens shadows for a vivid, dynamic image. Designed to stand apart, these three T2.9 lenses — the 15-30mm, 28-80mm, and 70-200mm — aim to make every frame a masterpiece, with unmatched optical quality and stylistic warmth.
Zeiss has always pushed boundaries in cinema technology, and these lenses join the company’s celebrated Supreme line. They are unique in their ability to match the Supreme Prime Radiance lenses with a similar color warmth and controlled blue flaring, both hallmarks of the Zeiss T* blue coating. The T* blue coating aims to achieve subtle, controlled flares that give a cinematic edge without distracting from the core visual. Under normal conditions, the lenses render with no extra flare, but when directed light hits the lens, it creates a blue highlight that enhances color contrast and adds a layer of drama to the scene.
The controlled flare from the T* blue coating should provide cinematographers with more than aesthetics. It should help create a warm-to-cool contrast, heightening skin tones and deepening shadow detail. This contrast is desirable for high-end productions in which subtle variations in warmth can distinguish an emotional beat or set the tone for a story.
The Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses’ unique selling point within Zeiss’ lineup is their ability to offer focal length flexibility without sacrificing image quality or consistency. With cinema lenses, consistency from frame to frame, regardless of the lens used, is paramount, so Zeiss’ engineers have focused on ensuring the new zoom lenses match the company’s existing Supreme Prime lenses.
“With the new Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses, we offer the only modern cine zoom family with a very characteristic look that not only matches the look of Zeiss Supreme Prime Radiance but is also well suited to be used with other prime sets such as regular Supreme Primes to add nice flares and thus provide more creative versatility on set,” says Christophe Casenave, Head of Business Unit Cinematography at Zeiss. “They even match nicely with some vintage lenses like Canon K35s. Overall, this ensures a cohesive look for productions that want to combine both prime and zoom lenses, enhancing the creative potential for filmmakers.”
Each Supreme Zoom Radiance lens is designed with standardized ring placements for iris, focus, and zoom, along with a 114mm front diameter. This enables cinematographers to swap between Supreme Zoom and Supreme Prime lenses without adjusting their setups. The consistent ergonomics reduce friction in the filmmaking process, especially crucial when teams are working against tight deadlines.
The Zeiss Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses are equipped with the Zeiss eXtended Data technology, which supplies crucial metadata concerning vignetting and distortion frame-by-frame. This simplifies post-production workflows for VFX and virtual production. Integrating this data makes for a more fluid transition from shooting to post, as frame-by-frame data provides the consistency needed for virtual effects to align with the physical lens characteristics, saving time in digital alignment and calibration.
For those working with ARRI cameras, the new Firmware 1.90 gives even more. It enables automatic transfer of lens scales and depth of field data to ARRI Hi-5 and WCU-4 hand units, eliminating the need for manual calibration.
Pricing and Availability
Like their prime lens counterparts, the new Zeiss Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses do not come cheap. While Supreme Primes range from $20,000 to just over $30,000, the Supreme Zoom Radiance lenses start at $44,000. The 28-80mm T2.9 and 70-200mm T2.9 are each $44,000, while the 15-30mm T2.9 is $49,500. The lenses are also available in a three-lens set for $125,000, a $12,500 savings compared to buying them separately. All three lenses are anticipated to begin shipping in April.
Image credits: Zeiss
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