Sony AF 50mm F1.4 A-mount lens reviews
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 3 distortion: 5 flare control: 4 overall: 4.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 50mm 1.7 RS Sony 85mm 1.4 SAL |
price paid: | 350$ |
positive: | Sharp Fast and accurate focus Lovely bokeh |
negative: | Build quality is not enough for the price paid. |
comment: | This lens is very sharp and very good to do portraits or studio work, the lens is sharp even wide open, stopped down to f2 or f2.8 it is simply superb. The bokeq is also great. The only regret about this lens is the build quality, optically this lens is very good... but build quality should be better for a 50mm 1.4 at that price. Well, just the update when using the lens on the A900... just superb... it's even better... I expected a disaster on the borders or even just out of the center but it's not a disaster at all... it's soft but enough, of course stopped down to 2.8 it turns to be great on the FF. |
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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: | - canon 50mm f1.8 - minolta 28mm f2.8 |
price paid: | 400 CDN (new) |
positive: | - Small, compact - nice touchy-feely - optics are great |
negative: | - rubber grip feels good to touch but seems cheaply made |
comment: | I use this lens exclusively (ok, about 90%) for portrait shots, and am never disappointed. spot on focus, very sharp, and since it's nice and small, it doesn't intimidate the subject when you point it at them. a must have for anyone doing close range people shooting. I bought it new, but have always felt a little ripped off...sony is charging too much for this, but, it's a good lens, so what the heck. |
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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: | Minolta 50mm f/1.4 TAMRON 90mm f/2.8 Di TAMRON 17-50mm f/2.8 Di-II |
price paid: | $325 |
positive: | Sharp and light |
negative: | Nothing I would comment on |
comment: | This lens is remarkably clear and fast to focus. It is the lens I go for in my studio work. The Minolta 50mm f/1.4 is just slight less sharp, but BOTH lenses do the job. Cost wise ... the Minolta is your choice. It really depends on how close your are inspecting your shots to determine whether the SONY is worth the extra $200. Flip a coin. The TAMRON 90mm is reknown for its sharp image and the SONY produces an equally sharp image for its focal length. Bokeh is what I would expect of a lens with this wide an aperture. Certainly greater than either the 90mm or the 17-50mm f/2.8s are capable of. |
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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: | - Sigma 30mm F1.4 |
price paid: | 320 Euro (new) |
positive: | - Small - Light - Fast focus - Good focus in low light, much better than Sigma 30mm - Decent build |
negative: | - Small, but again also positive - Flare controle could be beter - Colors a bit cold, but pretty accurate |
comment: | I traded my Sigma for this lens and no regret. This lens focussus much better in all circumstances, but especially under low light. I really like this lens. It's a bit more portrait than the Sigma, but I can live with that! I had two samples of the Sigma, first bad backfocus, second was good, but couldn't get a decent AF lock under low light. I also like the F1.4 performance much more than the Sigma's. All in all a better lens, faster, more compact, lighter .... My advise when you can overcome the more tele of the 50mm get it NOW! |
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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: | Sig 30/1.4 Min 28/2.8 Kit Lens |
price paid: | retail |
positive: | - sharpness - bokeh - colors - great control of DOF |
negative: | - nothing |
comment: | It fits nicely on my A100. Keep it light and discreet. Great lens. A piece of glass you can rely on. |
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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: | missing |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Fast focus Fast 1.4 Sharp Good IQ |
negative: | Build Expensive compared to other possible lenses on market Seldom used indoors on APS-C, since it becomes 75mm |
comment: | Good lens, though clearly Sony is focusing on full-frame lenses in my view (good news for pros, maybe less for the amateur) (ties in with the new flagship model). Clearly designed for indoors with available light, but on the APS-C sensor it becomes 75mm and so is not very wide. Good IQ and can do some good bokeh. It's also sharp wide open (you expect that of a prime though). Build is not nice for the price. The focus ring is not very wide and is rubber. At least the mount is metal (not like the kit lens). Sony Alpha 100 Minolta - AF 80-200 F2.8 HS APO G Tamron - SP AF 17-50 F2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical Sigma - 18-200 F3.5-6.3 DC Sony - AF 50 F1.4 Sony - AF DT 18-70 F3.5-5.6 Sigma - EF 500 DG SUPER |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 2 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 3.6 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 MF |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Great bokeh and sharp. I have an old Nikon F3/T with a 180mm f/2.8 ED telephoto and it gets the same kind of effects (bokeh and sharpness) |
negative: | Shoddy build. I got a piece of rubber coming off the lens near the AF ring. Have to tape it down. Ugh. |
comment: | Build quality on this lens is poor. I just look at the old Nikon MF lenses that I have. They are built to take it. Perhaps the CZ lenses will have a better build quality. Sharpness is wonderful tho'.. and the bokeh gives me chills. Love it! |
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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: | missing |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Better sun shade than the Minolta Version. |
negative: | Sharpness could be a tad better, compared to the Minolta 85/1.5 and the Minolta 28/2+35/2. Focus ring could be wider. |
comment: | Pretty much what you expect of a 50/1.4 - compact, decent image quality. |
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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: | missing |
price paid: | MYR 1650 |
positive: | sharpness, fast f1.4, bright, AF, colour of image, bokeh, lower exposure shadow details(probably a100 DRO helps) |
negative: | built of plastic, focus ring not smooth and limitedly too short for comfortable focusing (but happy with the image results) too expensive for its built and performance (there are other cheaper brands with on par performance) |
comment: | What made me bought this lens was bcoz I need the f1.4, I was'nt very sure initially that this lens will be sharp at full opened based on the reviews I read from various sites. Therefore, I went around to look for shops that have ready stock at hand for test before I bought. When I looked at the image of the 1st test shot taken with this lens at the shop using only ambient light of the shop, I was amazed by the sharpness of the subject in focus and the bokeh that it produced. The sales person encouraged me for a few more shots at various aperture and the images were all great. Of coz the camera AF might end up with images of either back/front focus issues due to its focal length but with MF plus a sharp eye solved all that problem. So it's one of my prefered potrait lens at the moment. Images crops do show finer details which convinced me the good perfomance of this overpriced lens. |
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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: | missing |
price paid: | $349 USD (new) |
positive: | extremely fast, sharp, small and versatile |
negative: | price and made in china? comon sony! |
comment: | This is one of my favorite lens because the af is very fast, the pictures one of the sharpest I've shot with. I have no regrets with this lens, it's a must have in any setup! |
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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 AF 28-75mm F2.8(D) |
price paid: | 347E(new) |
positive: | Sharp, rich contrast |
negative: | overpriced |
comment: | Very nice and sharp lens |
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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: | Tamron 17-50 f 2.8 |
price paid: | 299 euros new |
positive: | sharp, Excellent in low light condition, light |
negative: | Maybe too small for big hands |
comment: | I really love this lens. I was a little afraid when Sony launched the first lens series, and I've tried this lens before buying it. Right now i shoot mostly with this lens and I'm really pleased. I've made a test with this lens and Tamron 17-50 2.8 from f 2.8 ---> 6.7. Tamron's a little sharper. Still waiting for Sonnar 85 1.4 to come, but the 50 F1.4 is a great choiche. |
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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 have experience with this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 50 F 1.7 , Sony-AF DT 18-70 F 3.5 -5.6 |
price paid: | 349USD(new) |
positive: | light , small , superb sharpness ,excellent in shooting without flash |
negative: | overpriced by 30 percent |
comment: | Excellent performance in low-light condition - very very impressive image sharpness and detail.This is the only lens I have found suitable for low light shooting of temple sculptures without using flash.It's ability to capture light in dark environments is amazing.I have never seen other lens as impressive as this in shooting (without using flash) sculptures made from Gabro stone or aerolite stone and fixed in low light environments. |
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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 have experience with this lens |
compared to: | 28/2, Tamron 90/2.8 |
price paid: | 300 USD (used) |
positive: | Small, light, excellent quality, bright |
negative: | Infrequently used focal length |
comment: | As small/light as the original 50/1.7 with a better hood and 55mm filter threads. Contrast/color is better than many lenses, I'm guessing because of digital coatings. Sharpness is incredible from f/1.7 on, f/1.4 is hit or miss sometimes giving a dreamy effect. Its hard to keep your fingers off the focus ring, and the hood moves in/out as it focuses too. Build of this lens and MF ring are great, gigantic step up from either Original or RS minolta primes. Distortion, flare, sharpenss, etc... its a 50/1.4 and lives up to its reputation. Beats the Tamron 90mm macro (non-Di) due to increased contrast. |
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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: | 28-75 2.8 |
price paid: | 340E(new) |
positive: | sharp, light, nice color |
negative: | Slightly underexpose |
comment: | Great lens, first I hesitated to buy it , but now I am so glad I did. It is a great , fast, sharp lens everyone should have. it fits great on my D5D and I have it always with me |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 4.9 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | Tokina 2.6-2.8/28-70 Minolta 2.8/100 Macro |
price paid: | 320 Euro (new) |
positive: | super sharp from f2 onwards, but also usable already at f1.4. small and lightweight. |
negative: | hard to keep fingers off the fucusing ring during AF, as lens is so small. |
comment: | very nice and sharp lens. Great for portrait shots. Highly recommended. wish that the lens had some clutch mechanism to unlock focus ring in AF. |
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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: | Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4.5 macro Sigma 24-135mm F2.8-4.5 |
price paid: | Ł290 (new) |
positive: | sharp and bright light-weight |
negative: | slightly light build no autofocus throttle |
comment: | This is a great lens to use as an introduction to primes. It focuses very fast, and is great to work with. This is by far my favourite lens, mainly because I do a lot of low-light photography. My main qualm is that the lens does not have a throttle to stop the focusing ring from turning when it's in autofocus mode. Since the lens is so compact, this leaves very little space to grip the lens whilst using it. I found the easiest solution is to use the hood, which is a solid plastic ring, and grip on that. The build quality of the lens is not as great as it's image quality but then it isn't particularly expensive compared to other primes. The hood itself is the most tacky part. |
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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 have experience with this lens |
compared to: | 50/2.8(D) - 50/3.5 - 50/1.7 - 85/1.4G(D) - 28-75/2.8(D) |
price paid: | 349.00 |
positive: | Sharp, Rich contrast, Very nice build, Circular Aperture, Backward Compatible, Beautiful Bokeh, Highly attractive, Hood included |
negative: | though well worth the money, i would have liked to pay about $100.00 less |
comment: | close to a year ago, I worried about Sony taking over - my 2 main concerns were: #1 - Minolta, in my honest opinion, made not only some of the most innovative and fun lenses, but the most gorgeous from a physical and design aspect #2 - the 7D is the best digital camera made so far, period. why? - because, as a professional photographer, i would rather rely on buttons and switches (muscle memory) rather than LCD surfing. so far, Sony has put my soul to rest on concern #1 #2 has yet to be fullfilled anyhow, enough of my worthless ramblings!!! this lens is awesome...i have been using a Minolta 85/1.4 G (D) for a while for portrait photography. now, this is a bold statement - this lens (50/1.4) is AS good, if not better (for a lot less money) could I have gone mad? well, in my opinion 50mm is a much easier focal length to work with and this lens has bokeh that is just as pretty. there is a lot i could say, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder - i MUST recommend this lens highly, and Sony has made me very proud and happy - I shall stock up on Sony lenses!!!!!! |
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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