Zeiss Super Speed S16 Distagon 16mm T1.3

We don’t have a vetted photo of this one yet. Own a copy? Send us a packshot and we’ll credit you.

Covers Super 16 cleanly. The f/1.2 (T1.3) Distagons were the first 16mm primes designed with Super 16 in mind and remain the default fast primes for the format — sharp wide open with very little breathing. Their image circle is Super 16, which has no slot in this coverage scale; 2/3-inch is the nearest format they safely cover, and they will not cover Micro Four Thirds without a crop. Mk I versions have the triangular iris and no gears; Mk II/III are geared PL lenses.

Key specs

Focal length

16 mm

Max aperture

T1.3

Mount

ARRI Bayonet, PL

Image circle

2/3-inch

Close focus

0.2 m

Front diameter

80 mm

Weight

760 g

Field of view by sensor

Full frame

96.7° horizontal · frames like 16 mm on full frame

Super 35

75.8° horizontal · frames like 23.1 mm on full frame

Micro Four Thirds

56.8° horizontal · frames like 33.3 mm on full frame

What it goes on

Mk II/III are native PL (Mk I is Arri bayonet) and mount on any PL camera with a Super 16 or 2K crop mode; with a PL-to-MFT adapter they suit Blackmagic Pocket style sensors in crop. The 16mm-format 50mm must never be used on 35mm reflex cameras because of mirror clearance.

• PL camerasNativeALEXA 265, ALEXA 35, PYXIS 12K, PYXIS 6K +15 more
• Sony E camerasWith adapterRonin 4D-6K, Ronin 4D-8K, Alpha 1 II, Alpha 7 IV +13 more

  Wooden Camera E to PL · Vocas PL to E · Metabones PL-E. Solid and common. Support the lens — the E-mount is not built to carry a heavy cine zoom on its own.

• Canon RF camerasWith adapterEOS C400, EOS C50, EOS C70, EOS C80 +10 more

  Wooden Camera RF to PL · Canon PL-RF (C400 / C80) · Kipon PL-RF. Common; use lens support with heavy glass.

• L-Mount camerasWith adapterCinema Camera 6K, PYXIS 12K, PYXIS 6K, Ronin 4D-6K +6 more

  Leitz L-PL · Wooden Camera L to PL · Sigma MC-31. Common; use lens support with heavy glass.

• Micro Four Thirds camerasWith adapterMicro Studio Camera 4K G2, Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, Lumix BGH1, Lumix GH6 +1 more

  Wooden Camera MFT to PL · MTF PL to MFT. Works, with a 2x crop on Super 35 glass relative to full frame.

• LPL camerasWith adapterALEXA 265, ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, URSA Cine 17K 65

  ARRI PL-to-LPL Adapter. ARRI's own adapter, passes LDS / Cooke /i lens data.

• Nikon Z camerasWith adapterKOMODO-X 6K S35, V-RAPTOR [X] 8K VV, V-RAPTOR XE

  Wooden Camera Z to PL · Kipon PL-NIK Z. Common; use lens support with heavy glass.

• Canon EF camerasWith adapter· by flange mathsALEXA 265, ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, Pocket Cinema Camera 6K G2 +14 more

  8 mm of room for a plain ring. Check rear-element and mirror clearance before buying.

• Leica M camerasWith adapter· by flange mathsALEXA 265, ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, Ronin 4D-6K +1 more

  24.2 mm of room for a plain ring. Check rear-element and mirror clearance before buying.

• B4 (2/3") camerasWith adapter· by flange mathsURSA Broadcast G2, URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2, AJ-CX4000

  4 mm of room for a plain ring. Check rear-element and mirror clearance before buying.

• Nikon F camerasWith adapter· by flange mathsURSA Mini Pro 12K, URSA Mini Pro 12K OLPF, URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2

  5.5 mm of room for a plain ring. Check rear-element and mirror clearance before buying.

See every camera this lens fits →

Sources: hdgear.tv, cinematechnic.com, cinematechnic.com