Sony AF 50mm F1.4 A-mount lens reviews
 tuanle#7383 date: May-2-2010 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I used to own this lens |
| compared to: | Sony 50mm 2.8, Minolta 100mm 2.8 Tamron 90mm 2.8 Sigma 20mm 1.8 Sony 20mm 2.8 Carl Zeiss Jena 75-200mm 3.8 Sigma 18-50mm 2.8 |
| price paid: | missing |
| positive: | Sharp, sharp like the Sony 50mm 2.5 Wonderful bokeh and color |
| negative: | MFD: 450 mm |
| comment: | Wonderful lens! I hope that the MFD can be shorter. Sharp like Macro lens (sony 50, Min 100, Tam 90), but could not move closed to the object. Nice coating, Up to now I have no concern about the flare. |
; 10MP| pcarmalt#7225 date: Apr-1-2010 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Sigma 17-35 F2.8-4 EX DG Sony 20 F2.8 Sony 24-105 F3.5-4.5 Tamron 28-75 F2.8 Minolta 28-135 F4-4.5 Minolta 35-70 F4 Minolta 35-105 F3.5-4.5 Old Minolta 50 F1.7 RS Minolta 70-210 F4 CZ 85 F1.4 Sony 100 F2.8 Macro Minolta 100-300 F4.5-5.6 APO Minolta 135/2.8 |
| price paid: | GBP 200 |
| positive: | + Compact, can take anywhere + Beautiful "old Minolta" colour + Fast, accurate AF + Sharp from F2.8 and usable from F1.7 + Good FF performance overall + Circular aperture |
| negative: | - MFD could be better - Contrast and sharpness wide open not perfect - Bokeh not as smooth as top primes (still better than most zooms) |
| comment: | Compared to Minolta 50/1.7 RS, there is little to no difference in centre sharpness, colour, contrast, AF from F2 up. Only the corners are better on 50/1.4. Also, 50/1.4 is a bit more bulky due to the hood. Really great both on APS-C and full frame however range is more useful on full frame in my opinion (On APS-C it's an in-between focal length, either not wide enough or not long enough) Clearly better than any of the above zooms @ 50mm. Sharper at F2.8 better than the Tamron zooms wide open and the colours are better especially skin tones. Sharpness is only bettered by CZ85/1.4 amongst my lenses. Bokeh is not as smooth as CZ85 or 100 Macro. AF is much faster than those lenses however. MFD is not as good as many zooms... 450mm vs e.g. 330mm of Tamron 28-75. |
| metzzy#7195 date: Mar-29-2010 | |
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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: | minolta 50 f1.7 |
| price paid: | 500 SGD (new) |
| positive: | Fast. Super sharp at f4 onwards. Compact. Great for portraits. |
| negative: | sometimes it hunts in low light. tends to out of focus with my A700 at low light conditions. |
| comment: | A must have. This lens has wonderful IQ. |
| hashbrown#7156 date: Mar-25-2010 | |
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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 24-105 Sigma 17-70 |
| price paid: | Ł300 GDP (new) |
| positive: | Very sharp still fine at f1.4 compact |
| negative: | missing |
| comment: | A really lovely sharp lens. I use it mostly in the studio where it is really hard to fault. Pin sharp from f2 but even at f4 it is as sharp as a kit lens. Very useable. Great value for the quality of pictures it takes. Pity it doesn't have a metal body but then this is reflected in the competitive price. |
| Apocalypse_later#6989 date: Mar-3-2010 | |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.4 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Sony 70-300G Tamron 17-50 Minolta 135 2.8 |
| price paid: | 250 € new |
| positive: | Size and weight. Solid. Good hod and focus ring. Very good from f2. Nice bokeh, fantastic colours. No distortion. |
| negative: | 1.4 is usable but soft. Focus ring moving during AF. AF could be a bit better. |
| comment: | Very light, very smmall, very solid, sharp from f2, and very very sharp from f2.8, very good colours... I like it very much. Is soft at 1.4 but still can use its pictures. I only don´t like the focus ring moving during AF. Could have CA and flares problems sometimes with hard back light. |
| pismo923#6795 date: Jan-22-2010 | |
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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: | Minolta 50 f1.7 Minolta 24-105 |
| price paid: | 320 CDN |
| positive: | Excellent image quality Very sharp at f2 superb @ f4 Nice bokeh and colors Small and discreet |
| negative: | None really for the price paid. |
| comment: | I have had this lens for almost a year now and it is used exclusively on my Maxxum 7. I really appreciate how discreet this set up is. My copy is very sharp and is capable of superb images. I sold my 50 1.7 after getting this - no regrets at all. |
| Vancouver#6792 date: Jan-21-2010 | |
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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: | missing |
| price paid: | 350 CAD$ |
| positive: | 1.4 Sharp even at 1.4 |
| negative: | not exactly cheap |
| comment: | I love this lens Good by itself at 1.4 but very good f2+ I was wondering if it was a worthy upgrade from Min 1.7. It is way sharper at wide aperture. Give better bokeh, digitally coated. To conclude, if you can get it a good price, go for it. You wont regret. If 50 isnt something you use much and the difference is an issue to you, stay with your 1.7 Update: I have owned this lens for several months now. It is still my very favorite. It is sharp in low light. Color is great. One thing I didnt mention in my previous review is the bokeh. As opposed to the 1.7, this lens give more round and smoother, creamier bokeh. I know it s 2 or 3 time more expensive but if you want a 1.4 lens, get this and stop being curious about it for the rest of your life. |
| walti#6715 date: Jan-8-2010 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Minolta 50/1.7 Minolta 50/1.4 |
| price paid: | 200 EUR (new) |
| positive: | Small, light & sharp |
| negative: | Focusing ring almost useless. |
| comment: | If you can buy this lens on cheap side, do it. I don't like the focusing ring but this should not be a problem for everyone. THE lens on FF and film cameras, not so useful on APS-C |
| Bob Socko#6682 date: Jan-5-2010 | |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Sigma 24mm f/1.8 Sigma 30mm f/1.4 |
| price paid: | 349 USD (new) |
| positive: | Fantastic colors, excellent center sharpness wide open, makes a good portrait lens on a crop-sensor camera. |
| negative: | Soft corners wide open. |
| comment: | This is my go-to lens for low light work and accurate color reproduction. The build is good - I believe there is some plastic in the design, but the lens feels substantial in my hand. Though a bit too narrow to be a traditional "walkaround" lens on a crop-sensor camera, the 75mm equivalent field of view makes it into an excellent portrait lens on those bodies. Though the lens has excellent center sharpness wide open, the corners are soft. Though this does not matter with what I shoot, it could be an issue for you. The Sigma 50mm f/1.4 does not have this problem, but is significantly more expensive. |
| Kaposi#6667 date: Jan-2-2010 | |
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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: | MAF 35-70mm F4 Konica Minolta 28-75mm F2.8 MAF 50mm F1.7 |
| price paid: | 236 EUR |
| positive: | - sharp - nice bokeh - fast AF - compact |
| negative: | - plastic - thin focus-ring |
| comment: | Ideal for portrait on APS-C sensor. |
| lelou#6623 date: Dec-23-2009 | |
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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: | SAL 18-200 SAL 11-18 SAL 100 M2.8 Minolta 70-210 F3.5-4.5 |
| price paid: | 350 EUR (new) |
| positive: | Fast Light Compact Sharp Fun to use Good bokeh |
| negative: | Difficult to focus properly |
| comment: | For now this is the lens I most often use with my camera. It is light and compact compared to the other lens I own. The focus on my A-100 is hit or miss. I often take 3 pictures, pulling the camera back and forward a few cm after focus lock, as the DOF is very thin. I take a large part of my pictures at F2.0 with this lens. |
| oldguy#6530 date: Dec-5-2009 | |
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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: | Sigma 24-70 Minolta 35-70 Tamron 18-250 |
| price paid: | 400 USD (new) |
| positive: | Very sharp. Very light. If this lens isn't on my camera it's in my pocket. Great at interior work where you cannot use flash. |
| negative: | I guess build. The same thing that makes it light makes it plastic, but a very worthwhile trade-off. |
| comment: | I don't own any other primes at this length. This lens compares favorably with the Sigma 70 macro and exceeds the Minolta 135 2.8 in sharpness. From the ratings, people seem more enamored with the new Sigma 50 HSM but the convenience and quality of this little gem make it invaluable. |
| boyracer#6392 date: Nov-16-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Minolta 50mm 1.7 |
| price paid: | $300 USD [used] |
| positive: | Sharp Fast focusing Good bokeh ADI integration Small and light |
| negative: | CA wide open |
| comment: | It's a nice prime, and thus far the only one in my kit. Don't have any other fast primes to compare it to besides the original Minolta 50/1.7, but it performs really well for me. I normally shoot from f2 onwards, but it's serviceable wide open when I'm looking for that extra stop of light [just be careful about it's slim DOF at 1.4]. Bokeh is really nice, but this is to be expected from primes. |
| B3PhotographyNC#6369 date: Nov-11-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | missing |
| price paid: | 369 |
| positive: | Super fast, sharp images even in low light Great for portraits and landscapes alike. |
| negative: | On the a700 has a lot of out of focus area at close range, so you have to be careful how you frame your shots |
| comment: | All of the pictures in this gallery were taken with this lens: www.B3PhotographyNC.com |
| RogerK#6315 date: Nov-3-2009 | |
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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: | missing |
| price paid: | 329 EUR (new) |
| positive: | Excellent lens, well built, great colours |
| negative: | Well, none actually |
| comment: | This was the first lens bought by me after trading in my Sony kit lenses 18-70 and 75-300 for the SAL18250. I love the 50 1.4 and used it very often to take pictures of my then 1 year old son (he's 2 now, btw). After buying the SAL1680CZ this lens is a bit less on my A200, but it stilll suprises me when I use it. It is sharp, the bokeh is great and I would recommend this lens as a portrait lens to anyone I know and who would ask me and I would like to keep as a friend. |
| Justas#6125 date: Sep-27-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 3 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | 18-70 kit lens |
| price paid: | 1200LTL (500USD) |
| positive: | Exellent sharpness, very good control of distortion, flare, nice color. |
| negative: | Very hard to focus with wide apertures, especially in low light, focusing is quite slow and not always accurate (but this is screw dirve) |
| comment: | A must have lens with wonderful IQ. It's quite soft at f1.4 and CA is often noticeable, however, optimal quality when stoped down to f2.8 and amazing at f4. It is exceptionaly lightweight, however, build quality could really have been better. |
| BenArcher#5852 date: Aug-14-2009 | |
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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: | SAL-1870 |
| price paid: | 495 AUD |
| positive: | Size/Weight Shaprness Low Light Ability |
| negative: | missing |
| comment: | My second lens for my A300. Much better than the kitlens is every aspect. Has taken at least 98% of my photos since I've had it (Just not quite wide enough sometimes). Sometimes I have backfocus issues below f2 at 1-2 meter range with this lens but other times it is fine. Have tried testing at minumum focus distance and it is spot on every time. I put this down to the A300's AF system not the lens. When in focus it is very sharp from f/1.8 and the center is still good at even at 1.4. Incombination with SSS the shots atainable indoors handheld are amazing. |
| PanicMix#5851 date: Aug-14-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 3 overall: 4 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | CZ16-80 Minolta 70-210 f/4 |
| price paid: | missing |
| positive: | ~small ~f/1.4 ~bokeh |
| negative: | ~flare control ~too short sometimes |
| comment: | I really like this lens in all situations. I've grown to love it, but sometimes it's not as flexible as the 16-80 or 70-210. I sometimes need a wider or longer shot. I get flare off and on, but the beauty of this lens is its compactness and sharpness. |
| DFadel#5739 date: Jul-21-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 3 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.2 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | CZ 16-80, SSM G, Sigma 20mm 1.8, Beercan, Sigma 105mm macro |
| price paid: | $340 USD |
| positive: | small, light sharp enough from f/2 on |
| negative: | soft wide open questionable build quality hood expensive for a 50mm |
| comment: | I bought this lens as a low light lens, and use it in combination with the 20mm Sigma (which gives f/1.7 on both the a700 and the 7D). Wide open is definitely soft, which is disappointing. f/2 is acceptable. I'm wondering if you are better off with the much cheaper f/1.7 or f/1.8 version. |
| crox#5738 date: Jul-21-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | SAL1870 |
| price paid: | MYR1070.00 (new) |
| positive: | * I love what the f1.4 can do. * Sharp if it's really on FF. * Colors are totally awesome! * No problem with the build to me. * Bokehhhhhhhhhhhhh! |
| negative: | * Sharp if from f4 onwards. * Grip is a little too rubbery. * A little soft at f1.4 * Really nice on FF. |
| comment: | I just bought this lens last weekend and I already fell in love with what it can really do. Was considering either this lens or the Tamron 17-50 f2.8. Bought this lens due to budget wise and it really is a bomb. What I can say about this lens is that it produces really nice colors and in term of sharpness, better on FF. Gotta say that this might be the lens that will stick on my A200 for a long time.(This is my only lens other than the kitlens SAL1870) I will keep the kitlens as an alternative use. Hardcore purposes. |
| gnhock#5577 date: Jun-22-2009 | |
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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: | CZ 24-70 SSM f2.8 Minolta 24mm f2.8 Minolta 50mm Macro f3.5 |
| price paid: | 300 USD new |
| positive: | Sharp, contrasty & clear Small and light weight Great for low light shots |
| negative: | missing |
| comment: | A "Must have" fast prime for any Sony/Minolta system. Easy to carry around. Body plastic build; not so sure of its durability over time. Good potrait lens on A700. Follows me out, either on body or as alternative [to 24mm or CZ24-70] |
| i2o3l#5244 date: Apr-15-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | - SAL1870 - SAL75300 - SAL16105 |
| price paid: | 485 SGD |
| positive: | - Sharp - Very Nice Bokeh |
| negative: | - Build |
| comment: | First of all, before buying this one, I've planned to buy a CZ135, but the limitation is the money I have :).. And then I read many forum and review about a good prime lens, including this site, and came out with the conclusion that this lens is worth to buy. When I went on a trip to singapore last week, I finally bought this lens with very good price, compared to one in my home country. Bought and tested it directly, the picture is so sharp at the center and got a really nice bokeh. the plastic build of this lens feel cheap, but the result is worth the dollar :) If you want to spent a little money to get a nice prime lens, buy this one, unless you can afford it, the other thing is CZ135 :) |
| Strider25#5240 date: Apr-14-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | missing |
| price paid: | missing |
| positive: | -Very Sharp -Really nice color rendition -Solid and well built -Nicely dampened focus ring |
| negative: | -The hood is kind of a joke. Not much other than that |
| comment: | I love this little lens. I use it mainly for portraits and indor lighting shots. I always get the shot i need and its always sharp. Stopped down a little from wide-open and the pics are even better. I highly recommend this lens to anyone |
| Anssisa#5147 date: Apr-2-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 3 overall: 4.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Sigma 50mm EX DG Macro Minolta 50mm F1.7 RS |
| price paid: | 245USD |
| positive: | - Sunhood - 55mm filter thread - Sharpness wide open |
| negative: | - Flare with really sunny pictures or with candle light |
| comment: | I had the 50mm F1.7 and at that time i was content with it, but thought that i did not need wide apertures. My photography as gone more event oriented, and lowlight is quite important nowadays. Thus i had to re-buy a 50mm, and i got a good deal a year and half ago for this Sony version. This on, just like the Minolta 1.4 adresses some issues that the 1.7 has; mainly larger filtersize and a proper hood. This lens is sharpness wise good enough for everything i do, even wide open, but flare can be found on sunny days or with candlelight, so only a "3" for that. A lens i can recomend over the F1.7 version, but Minolta or sony version? i do not think that matters. This is a great small lens, thats for sure. |
| Ayler#5130 date: Mar-31-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 3 distortion: 3 flare control: 4 overall: 3.6 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Minolta AF 50mm Macro f3.5 |
| price paid: | Ł260 |
| positive: | Decently sharp stopped down a bit. Fast focus. Good mid-range image quality. Good portrait and available light lens. Decently built. Hood included. |
| negative: | Far corners never sharpen up completely. Heavy barrel distortion close up. Poor close up performance around borders. |
| comment: | This was my first Sony/Minolta lens and I was expecting more from it. Build quality is decent and it focuses fast on the A900 (albeit noisily), but it's not better than the 50mm Macro f3.5 at infinity and suffers from heavy barrel distortion and curvature of field close up. After a long day putting this and the Minolta Macro through their paces, I've concluded that the Macro is just as good at infinity (although a few good stops slower) and simply much better focused under 1m (it's a macro, after all!). Plus it doesn't seem to suffer from chromatic aberrations, whereas the Sony slightly does. I haven't noticed that the Macro has slower focusing either. Hence, for me it's weighing the speed of the 1.4 against the better optical behaviour of the Macro and I'm leaning towards selling the Sony. |
| R1user#5105 date: Mar-27-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | CZ 16-80 Sony 70-300 G SSM Tamron 90 macro |
| price paid: | 350 euros |
| positive: | - Compact - Perfect for low light indoor - Fast AF |
| negative: | - bokeh at 1.4 is sometimes weird - too much plastic |
| comment: | Ideal for portrait indoor an APS-C sensor. Sharpness in the center of the frame is ok at 1.4 but strongly increases at 1.7. A must have if you can't afford a CZ prime! |
| popo#5084 date: Mar-23-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.4 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Carl Zeiss DT 16-80 F3.5-4.5 Tamron SP AF 90 F2.8 Di macro |
| price paid: | Ł280 (new Jun 2008) |
| positive: | Physically compact |
| negative: | Thin focus ring |
| comment: | Sharpness is ok for a prime but not amazing. Not unusual for a big aperture it suffers from some longitudinal CA and haloing from OOF point sources, but worth it to get the big aperture shallow DoF. |
| dr4gon#5030 date: Mar-14-2009 | |
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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: | Minolta 50mm F/1.7 Tamron 17-50mm F/2.8 Sony DT 18-70mm F/3.5-5.6 |
| price paid: | 349 USD (new) |
| positive: | F/1.4 Bright aperture for low light and buttery smooth bokeh Extremely sharp from F/2.8-F/5.6 throughout Small and Light |
| negative: | Focus ring turns when auto focusing A bit noisy (subjective), too bad it's not SSM. |
| comment: | This lens has so many uses. It's such a great little lens. At F/1.4 you can get shots without bumping up the ISO when it's dark. At F/2.0, it's decently sharp and by F/2.8-F/5.6, it's incredibly sharp. This is a classic Minolta-designed lens from the film Maxxum days so it has the characteristic bokeh and color you'd expect from such lenses with the addition of multi-coatings which cut down on flare and CAs. Despite the plastic body, it feels very solid. It features a metal mount, nice smooth rubber focus ring, and slightly recessed front element. The hood fits well and does a great job reducing flare (a hundred times better than the old Minolta pull-out hood). The 55mm front filter thread is convenient with the Sony system (kit lens, 100mm macro, etc...). The AF is fast, a bit noisy, but is spot on. The DOF can be quite small, but that's the beauty of such a lens. I wish it had SSM like the Canon 50mm F/1.4 USM and Nikon 50mm G F/1.4 AF-S, but Sony is still developing and adapting their Minolta line. The first lens I got was back focusing so I returned it and got this from Amazon. I noticed that my front lens cap on the new lens was solid black with SONY on the front. The previous lens, which I suspect was newer just had the Sony a on the front (which I prefer). In comparing this lens to the Minolta 50mm F/1.7 lens, I found this to be much sharper and usable (because of the extra 1/3 stop). I originally had the Minolta 50/1.7 but sold it since the Tamron was sharper and got this since it was new, had a brighter aperture, and the updated coatings. It is a little bit sharper than the Tamron 17-50mm F/2.8. Against the kit lens, it's miles ahead, obviously. This is perfect for low light photography, walk around, portraits, and pretty bokeh. Pictures of the lens: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr4gon/sets/72157612626392976/ Video unboxing at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCPXoHSw14c |
| wesleysa#4968 date: Mar-5-2009 | |
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sharpness: 5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.4 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | 18-70 kit lens 70-210 f4 beercan |
| price paid: | missing |
| positive: | Small size/weight F1.4 Build quality Sharpness |
| negative: | Slightly cool colour? |
| comment: | I have great fun with this lens. It is my first prime so maybe I over-estimate it but in my eyes its alot of fun. I have not (thankfully) come across any focus issues as others have found. The build quality is great, a nice solid feel despite it being plastic. Tack sharp by f2, it is really quite difficult for me to mf @ 1.4 to guage sharpness:-) It really does bring night-time photography into your grasp though, with a bit of light you can go handheld no problem. The hood is very good, although if reversed can get in the way if the camera is auto-focusing, this is due to the small size of the lens though, not really the hood's fault. Compared to the beercan the colours are a little cool, but this is easily corrected, so im really not fussed. The real advantage to this lens, for me, is its size. It turns a bulky dslr into something that could almost pass for a compact camera. And for this reason my a200 seems to accompany me alot more often with this lens attached. |
| SerdarA#4762 date: Jan-29-2009 | |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I used to own this lens |
| compared to: | missing |
| price paid: | 270 USD (new) |
| positive: | - Compact - Perfect for low light - Fast AF |
| negative: | - Soft wide open |
| comment: | This one was my first lens purchase after I bought my A300 (Coincidentally, the day my kit lens retired to a storage box). Although my lens collection has grown considerably since then, this little lens is by far my favorite. Nowadays, I mostly use it for taking pictures of my baby girl and I can't think of any better lens for this purpose (unless you are willing to spend upwards of a grand on CZ primes). |
rating summary
- total reviews: 138
- sharpness: 4.70
- color: 4.78
- build: 4.20
- distortion: 4.79
- flare control: 4.49
- overall: 4.59
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