The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX and the Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
Size of a lens is an important deciding factor when comparing two lenses.Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 is the longer of the two lenses at 93mm. The Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX with a length of 60mm is 33mm shorter. On the other hand, the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX has a larger diameter of 73mm compared to Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28's 64mm diameter.
Weight of a lens is as important as its external dimensions, especially if you are planning to hand hold your camera and lens combination for longer periods. Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX weighs 340g, which means it is 180g (34%) lighter than the Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 which has a weight of 520g.
Lens Mounts
Both Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX has the Nikon F (DX) lens mount whereas the Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 has the Nikon F (FX) lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with these mounts are Nikon D3500, Nikon D7500 and Nikon D5600 for the Nikon F (DX) Mount and Nikon D6, Nikon D780 and Nikon D3500 for the Nikon F (FX) Mount.
Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX is also available in Canon EF mount.
Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 is also available in Canon EF and Pentax KAF mounts.
Focal Range
Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 35mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 52.5mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera. Carl Zeiss Distagon T2/28 is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 28mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 42mm.