Sony FE 85mm F1.8 E-mount lens reviews
reviews found: 16
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 85/1.4G Canon EF 85/1.8 USM Viltrox 85/1.8 STM ED IF (Canon RF-mount) |
price paid: | don't remember |
positive: | Sharp! Nice size, nice build, light weight No real flaws |
negative: | Can be a little clinical |
comment: | Got this one 2019 and was blown away. I decided to wait before writing this review. It still is great. The bokeh of the Canon and Viltrox are slightly nicer - but the Canon achieves this because of the lens aberrations. The Viltrox is much bigger, huge compared to the Sony. All in all the 85/1.8 is a great lens. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sony FE: 12-24/4, 24-105/4, 135/1.8 Tamron 35-150/2-2.8 |
price paid: | ≈$440 New |
positive: | Very sharp at f1.8 Small and light. Fast, silent and accurate focus. |
negative: | Could have had better close range, but it's so sharp one can compensate by cropping. |
comment: | Really great little lens when you need a walk around setup, usually the a7R4 without the battery grip. This and the 28/2 fits in a pocket, skipping a bag altogether. The Sony a1 50MP is missing here, but used this lens on that too with great results. |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Tamron 20mm f/2.8 FE Tamron 35mm f/2.8 FE Sony 50mm f/1.8 FE Sony 50mm f/2.5G FE Sony-Z 55mm f/1.8 FE Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 RXD FE Tamron 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6 RXD FE Minolta 28mm f/2.8 Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art Sony 50mm f/1.4 Minolta 50mm f/1.7 Tamron 90mm Macro f/2.8 Sony 135mm f/1.8 Sigma 17-35mm f/2.8-4 EX Minolta 24-105mm f/3.5-4.5 Sony 28-75mm f/2.8 SAM Minolta 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 RS Minolta 28-135mm f/4-4.5 Minolta 70-210 f/4 Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM Minolta 100-400mm f/4.5-6.7 APO |
price paid: | 700 (Cdn, used) |
positive: | Great IQ, quick AF, beautiful Bokeh, moderate size and weight, decent price. |
negative: | None at the price point. |
comment: | At portrait distances it makes a nice creamy background. Further away you can get a touch of swirl in your Bokeh. Sharp, quick AF, compact for what it is. Great IQ and colour. This lens hits all the points and I haven't felt any desire for something fancier, faster or more expensive. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Zeiss 85 1.4 (A mount) |
price paid: | £500 New |
positive: | Very sharp Lovely bokeh Small and light |
negative: | 80cm minimum focus distance is a bit long. Trying to do some product photography and realised in this scenario the 85 is pretty useless as my only lens between 35mm and 135mm (which each have much closer MFD. |
comment: | I still can't quite believe this lens. I had the Zeiss 85 1.4 on a-mount and after reading favourable reviews online, decided to go for the 85 1.8 before trying the 85 1.4. I never have tried the 1.4, so impressed by the 1.8's performance. Firstly, it is such a small compact lens. Only slightly larger than the 35 1.8 (which it is a perfect accompaniment to), and importantly a much smaller diameter lens to the zeiss. I have a peak design 6 litre sling bag and can carry the 35 and 85 on top of each other (with separator) on one side and A7iii with 135 1.8GM mounted on the other side. No way I could've done this with A mount, or given the size, the 85 1.4GM. As I said, I've never tried the 1.4GM, which presumably must be stellar, but the 1.8 is easily on par with my experience of the zeiss 1.4. The ISO capabilities of the A7iii easily make up for any loss of light from 1.4 to 1.8 and the images it takes a beuatiful. Lovely Bokeh, super fast AF with eye AF, in a tiny package. Really is nothing to dislike here. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Lensbaby Twist 60 F2.5 Sigma 65 F2 DG DN C Sigma EX 70 F2.8 DG Macro Samyang AF 75 F1.8 Kipon Iberit 75 F2.4 Samyang AF 85 F1.4 FE Tamron SP 85 F1.8 USD Canon EF 85 F1.8 USM Minolta MD 85 F2 Minolta Varisoft 85 F2.8 Sony 85 F2.8 SAM Tamron SP 90 F2.5 Macro Sony FE 90 F2.8 Macro G OSS Sigma 90 F2.8 DG DN C Canon EF 100 F2 USM Minolta AF 100 F2 Minolta MC 100 F2.5 Minolta AF 100 F2.8 Soft Focus Minolta AF 100 F2.8 Macro D Minolta AF 100 F2.8 Macro RS Sony FE 100 F2.8 STF GM OSS |
price paid: | 398 USD (used) |
positive: | Quiet linear motor 120 FPS tracking Linear response MF Hood included Lens Compensations "Dust- and moisture-resistant" |
negative: | Axial CA/purple fringing Very wide for an "85" Variation Unreliable AF Focus breathing Outdated aperture mechanism Lack of distance scale Metal surfaces Plastic filter threads |
comment: | After lugging the Tamron SP 85mm F1.8 around last week I decided to make an offer for this lens. This was the most I've even spent on a single lens so far. It came out the same year as the Tamron USD and the list price was $150 cheaper than that lens--suggesting a lower end lens. Canon has discounted their EF 85mm F1.8 USM to less than half the price of this Sony. The first copy was "Made in Vietnam" were Tamron has a lens factory. The second copy is "Made in CHINA". As of 11/2023 this is the most up-to-date "85" lens in the Alpha system. It is the only one that supports 120 FPS on the A9III and 30 FPS on the A1. However the aperture mechanism doesn't support Silent Priority Aperture Drive in AF which also means the aperture will be locked in bursts at 60 FPS or higher. This lens continues the styling of the early FE lenses like the 1.8/55 Sonnar instead of matching more recent G and GM lenses. The anodized black finish looks nice when new. The alloy focus grip holds contaminates and the finish on the narrow ridges is easily marred. The front mechanical mounting surfaces which are likely to wear and break are plastic. There is an anachronostic MF override switch like the cheapest SLR lenses and a focus hold button like 1988 Minolta lenses. Thankfully there is no electronic aperture control. I purchased a second used copy after being disappointed with the AF-C performance of the Samyang on older firmware on the A7RIV. This copy has some issue with the upper left corner but seems slightly better aligned than the previous copy. It supports the fastest tracking of the stacked sensor cameras while the older FE 1.4/85GM is limited to 20 FPS and the third-party alternatives are limited to 15 FPS. Unfortunately, I have had AF issues using this lens on every camera I've used it on. In AF-S the A7III occasionally would confirm focus and not move when given an out-of-focus scene. It spends a good deal of time hunting in AF-S. It is quicker in AF-C but still often inaccurate. It did work better in AF-S on the A7RII. Adapted 85mm F1.8's focus much quicker in AF-S. The Samyang AF 85mm F1.4 hunts less in AF-S, though it is on its fifth firmware. There have been no firmware updates for the Sony lens. While it is pretty sharp wide-open there is a high amount axial fringing--similar to the old Canon 85mm F1.8 USM. The Background rendering stands out when compared with other 85mm primes. Some of this can be attributed to a shorter actual focal length. This is by far the widest "85" lens I have used. DXOMark reports the focal length to be 82.1 to 81.4 mm. Matching at preset infinity focus the 4/24-105 G OSS reports 78 mm and the 4/70-200 G OSS reports 76 mm. It does have more focal length than the Samyang AF 75mm F1.8 FE. It matches the Sigma 90i at about 1.5 meter focus distance and is a bit longer at MFD. This lens has some poor optical tradeoffs and is fairly unusable for action on a non-stacked sensor. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Samyang 85/1.4 |
price paid: | 450 USD (new) |
positive: | Test |
negative: | Test |
comment: | Test |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | A-Mount 85 mm 1.4 G RS |
price paid: | 600 € |
positive: | Very sharp from wide open Light weight Focus hold button for Eye-AF Very fast AF Price |
negative: | Wide open the uncorrected vignetting is over 2 stops |
comment: | In combination with an A7r3 auto-correction on and IBIS this lens is close to perfect. Just because I saw some comments: the lens has dust an moisture sealing and i didn't encounter any problems in the 6 months of heavy use. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Fuji 56mm F/1.2 on APS-C. Fuji 90mm F/2 on APS-C. |
price paid: | 499 USD new |
positive: | Superb portrait lens in natural light. I have not tested it with studio strobes. Programmable button on the lens (I use mine for eye focus) is brilliant. |
negative: | I would love to have an aperture ring on Sony lenses. But, using the thumb wheel is almost as fast. |
comment: | I didn't think Sony would be able to match Fuji for skin tones. I was wrong. With the proper custom white balance set on my A7II, this lens renders images which look similar to Portra film. For portraits, I actually like the more muted (and realistic) color gradations I get with this lens over the more saturated colors I get with my Fuji gear. I don't think you can find a better portrait lens on any system for this price. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sony E 10-18mm. Voigtlander FE 15mm. Batis 18mm. Batis 25mm. Zeiss 16-35mm f4. 16-35mm GM. Sony FE 28mm. Zeiss FE 35mm. Batis 40mm. Samyang FE AF 45mm. Sony FE 50mm. Sony FE 50mm macro. Zeiss FE 55. Sony FE 85. Samyang 85mm f1.4. Sony 85mm GM. Sigma A FE 135mm. Sony 70-200 GM. Sony 100-400mm GM. |
price paid: | £436.00 |
positive: | Well made and great form factor. As sharp as the Zeiss 55f1.8. Need I say more. |
negative: | Toy-town $1.00 hood that SONY has the cheek to sell replacements at £30. |
comment: | Great balance, sharp, detailed, well made, I could go on and on. For the money you can get the Samyang 85mm f1.4. It is sharper than the GM or Zeiss and equal to the samyang but in a smaller package. Recommended, but checkout the Samyang before you decide. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I used to own this lens |
compared to: | Sigma 1.4/85 Carl Zeiss 1.4/85 ZF.2 Jupiter 9 2/85 |
price paid: | 507 euro (new) |
positive: | Sharp (even wide open) Light (for a fast 85mm) Custom control button on the lens |
negative: | MF experience (because of focus by-wire) |
comment: | Been trying to find a do-it-all 85mm lens for the last few years. Where the Sigma did do it for sharpness, I did not like the colours or bokeh. The Carl Zeiss was just not as sharp wide open, but liked its colours & bokeh. The jupiter 9 is a fine lens, but nowhere near a do-it-all lens, a very decent portrait lens, yes! For me this Sony 1.8/85 does-it-all. No real flaws (I haven't seen any bad CA, yet?). I am amazed by its sharpness wide open, just stunning, also into the corners. Colours are pleasant/neutral. Bokeh is smooth at portrait distance, a bit busy at longer distance. Images have POP & OK rendering (no, not like a 1.4 OoF nice). The custom button is a nice feature that I would like on all (AF) lenses. Manual focus experience is just not the same as any of my Loxia or vintage lenses, but I knew this was a trade-off so no complaining. I gave 4 rating on build because although light & compact the lens is build, to much plastic feel. CZ & Sigma are now sold, Sony + Jupiter are here to stay. If you are into the market for a 85mm on your Sony A7-9 series, this one is hard to beat on pure price&preformance ratio. update- using the 1.8/85 on the A7iii body the Eye-AF taking potraits feels like cheating, 99% in focus! |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | 90 2.8 85 Samyang 28-70g , 85 2.8 whatever |
price paid: | $599.00 |
positive: | Everything, really, Focussing, sharpness, weight and price. |
negative: | none |
comment: | Great lens. In the studio and out, no point plumping for Gmaster in my opinion but I would take one just for the aperture dial. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 100/2 CZ 85/1.4 (A mount) CZ 55/1.8 (APS-C & FF) |
price paid: | 450€ |
positive: | light & small AF/MF button build quality |
negative: | no OSS |
comment: | I made a first shooting with this lens It is just great ! I love the result it gives no specific issues after this shooting still perform great on my A7rIII |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | 85mm 1.4 GMaster |
price paid: | 599 Euro |
positive: | Weight and Smallness, Feel, IQ. |
negative: | nothing |
comment: | This is a great lens! For the money? Not only for the money! I love this lens. For studio-portrait-work I use the GMaster on a tripod, but I can't really see the difference in the photos between the two lenses. For daily work and for travelling, this is a must have. And the bokeh is awesome! Lovely! |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sigma 85mm F/1.4 SONY SEL55F18 Sony SEL2470F4 |
price paid: | €640 |
positive: | The lens perfectly matches the A7 size. It's light and well build. The Focus Hold button on the lens can be configured to start Eye AF. It's sharp, straight from F/1.8 and the improves (edges) towards F/3.5 I like the AF/AM switch that, compared to the sigma, doesn't flip all the time. |
negative: | The lens shows some CA, persistent in some situations. It requires manual intervention in Lightroom. It shows some flare, but nothing more then I expected. It has no OS, but using a A7Rii that doesn't matter much to me |
comment: | Given the price I'm glad I didn't bye the Batis 85mm, that was on my list first. I like the 85mm and 135mm length a lot and this replaces my Sigma (which was very good too). |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | None |
price paid: | £599 |
positive: | Price Performance Weight and balance |
negative: | Bokeh slightly less impressive than Zeiss and GM Not weathersealed |
comment: | Got this lens pretty much on release day. While I've not shot as many portraits as I'd like, I know from use it'll do an admirable job. AF is swift and accurate. Colours are good and bokeh attractive. Balance with A7ii is excellent and as body has ibis, not putting OSS as a negative. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | • Sony FE 2,8/90 mm Macro G • Minolta M-Rokkor 4,0/90 mm |
price paid: | 434,00 € |
positive: | • sharpness • size and weight • silent SSM-Drive • weather sealing • focus-hold button • AF/MF - switch |
negative: | • lack of OSS |
comment: | The Sony FE 1,8/85 mm represents a very good compromise between price, performance and weight. The quality of the 1.8 / 85 mm really comes into its own on a sensor with 61 MP: Sharp from f / 1.8, plus a great T bokeh. The fast and quiet SSM drive, the internal focusing, the focus-hold button, the AF/MF - switch and the sealing against dust and moisture are convincing. Build has only been rated "4" due to the lack of OSS. Conclusion: In terms of price, size and weight the Sony FE 1.8/85 mm is a welcome addition to the Sony lens-program and due to the offered performance highly recommended! |
reviews found: 16
rating summary

- total reviews: 16
- sharpness: 4.91
- color: 4.94
- build: 4.56
- distortion: 4.81
- flare control: 4.69
- overall: 4.78
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