New Cinema Lenses: ZEISS Aatma - Nine T1.5 Focal Lengths with a Nostalgic Look
[10:37 Wed,11.February 2026 by blip]
With Aatma, ZEISS has introduced a new series of cine lenses that aim to combine the advantages of modern optical design with "nostalgic image characteristics." The resulting look is reminiscent of classic ZEISS lenses and offers a soft rendering of skin tones with reduced contrast, gentle and lively focus transitions, and a rich bokeh with a subtle soap bubble effect.
ZEISS Aatma
A set of nine T1.5 focal lengths (18mm, 25mm, 35mm, 40mm, 50mm, 65mm, 85mm, 100mm, and 135mm) will be released with PL-mount (LPL optional). They weigh between 1.2 and 2.3 kg and cover a large format image circle of 46.3 mm.
Nostalgia Through New Optical Design
While the trendy vintage look is often achieved through flare-inducing coatings (even with Zeiss's own Radiance series), the Aatma lenses were completely newly developed to achieve the image characteristics partly through very deliberate tweaking of aberrations, for example. These are usually corrected as perfectly as possible in optical designs, but they can also be used to deliberately produce a special behavior—according to Zeiss, this includes, as with the Aatmas, an extended depth of field, soft focus shifts, soft skin rendering, or a special bokeh.
Thus, the Aatma lenses—the name is derived from the Sanskrit word for "innermost being," "self," or "soul"—are intended to offer characterful images with a high-end touch. The mechanical design, on the other hand, is intended to meet modern ZEISS standards—the lenses retain the proven shape, size, weight, and usability of Zeiss's current premium cine lenses and support ZEISS eXtended Data (XD) technology. They are fully integrated into the ZEISS CinCraft ecosystem for efficient workflows for visual effects, camera tracking, and virtual production.
The nine Aatma lenses are available as a complete set as well as individually. They can be ordered now, with delivery expected to begin in June 2026. Prices are not mentioned (they are most likely to be quite high-end as well).
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