Distortion on VC 35mm 2.5 11 lens

Technical data for the three Zeiss ZM lenses currently offered can be downloaded from the Zeiss website here:

https://www.zeiss.com/camera-lenses...cts/zm-lenses/distagon-2815-zm.html#downloads

If you download the sheets you will see that among the three, the 35/2 Biogon ZM in particular is specified for vanishingly small linear distortion.

The 38mm Zeiss Biogon [Hasselblad] and the 35mm f/2 Biogon ZM are the same design. Both are rectilinearly correct.

in case it's useful to someone someday here's a comparison of the 35 skopar 2.5 and a summicron 35mm v4. Both at F 4, from an 8000 dpi drum scan.
I was mainly testing for resolution here, not distortion but if you look closely you can see the summicron has less barrel distortion.

Interestingly, when really pixel peeping on my resolution targets, the skopar out resolved the summicron at all apertures in the middle of the frame. Not by much but it won every time in a side by comparison. BUT as expected the summicron blows the doors off the skopar in the corners through F8, not even close...the second screenshot is from the upper right corner of the frame at 100%

Very good for 2K$ lens to be better at something from 250$ lens.
(Used priced)

full image, and center crop showing middle left target

a less scientific test using the same VC lens and a friends borrowed 35mm summicron Asph F2. curious if mods will take this down. some small rocks seem to evaporate on film version. However real test would be to make side by side full sized prints.

peter16 said:

curious if mods will take this down.

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Why in the world would the Photrio mods take this down?

You may also consider a summaron.
Here is a review:
https://kenrockwell.com/leica/35mm-f28.htm

I have no experience with that lens or the summicron. But experience does tell me that wide angle lenses are not their best wide open. So if using them stopped down to f4 for 5.6, why spent the extras money?
(I usually shoot at f16)

MattKing said:

Why in the world would the Photrio mods take this down?

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my last post is comparing a drum scan of film with a 24mp digital file from the Leica M240 – thought this was maybe supposed to be all analog shop talk

peter16 said:

my last post is comparing a drum scan of film with a 24mp digital file from the Leica M240 – thought this was maybe supposed to be all analog shop talk

Click to expand...

Just two ways of evaluating lens performance. Nothing particularly non-"APUG" about that.
Now if you were to stray into the digital image "capture" processes themselves - either scan or built into a camera - than you would have to pick the right areas of Photrio.