MrTMan wrote:
Personally, after looking at all the sample pics that have been very kindly posted by Fred, Guy and ecarlino (as well as the pics on other sites), I've decided that I'll be buying this lens.
The bottom line is that I don't find the output of the 55/1.8 on par with what I'm getting from my 35/1.4 or Batis 85, and consequently I don't use it all that much. The 50/1.4 might have harsher bokeh in some circumstances, but I think it might more than make up with it with better contrast and clarity. In that respect it reminds me of the Touit 32 I used to have for APS (also a planar design), which is a lens that I really enjoyed.
The difference in clarity/contrast might not be dramatic between the 50/1.4 and the 55 (and it usually never is when comparing two very high performing lenses), but I've found that even subtle differences in image quality can make a very large difference in how much I enjoy the pictures that are coming out of a lens.
For example I recently sold my 35/2.8 in favor of a Loxia 35 (for the times when I don't feel like carrying around the 35/1.4) and I'm seeing a huge difference in how many keepers I'm now getting, even though a side by side comparison of the Loxia and the 2.8 would suggest that the differences are mostly subtle.
Now I just have to figure out whether to order from B+H or wait for it to show up locally...
The 50/1.4 ZA is technically better than the 55/1.8 ZA. It captures images free of aberrations straight out of the camera and do not need any software intervention.
On the other hand, the 55/1.8 ZA is a very capable lens but in many situations needs final touches in post-processing to minimize aberrations like vignetting, LoCA and CA. There is also a need for a global contrast increase for certain scenes. So, it's a lens capable of superb results but it's more software dependent.
As you can see from the samples I posted, they render differently. They have different optical designs and I dare to say, different photography needs. I see the 55/1.8 ZA as a great choice for portraits: It's longer, slightly lower in contrast with smoother rendering. The 50/1.4ZA seems to be a more general lens with more bite and presence that works great for many different types of photography. Its bokeh can be a little harsher depending on the background (foliage for example), so experienced photographers will keep that in mind.
You can't go wrong with either lens and Sony shooters have great tools at their disposal.
Agree . I think the trick is stay away from foliage with the 50. I'll test this in other scenes when I get home in a couple days. One thing you can do is also lower contrast too for portrait type stuff. Between the 55 and 50 you can bounce around quite a bit in post .
Thanks for your comments, Fred. My local retailer just got them in, so I pulled out my plastic and now have one in my hands. The only unfortunate part is that I have a very busy day at work, so it'll probably have to sit in the box until tomorrow. Though I just took some quick test shots at f/1.4 in the store, and the sharpness and contrast really jumped out at me, even through the viewfinder (it's always a different experience to shoot a lens for yourself vs looking at other people's pics). I think it has the "wow" factor that the 55 was missing for me.
Now I just have to figure out what to do with the 55. Will likely keep it for now as it's my smallest AF lens, and will see whether or not I bother using it again over the next few weeks.
I think my kit is complete for now, with the three Batises, the 35/1.4 and 50/1.4... and the Loxia 35 and the 55/1.8 for traveling light.
your examinations are discussed in a German forum too and there was a question regarding the playground images in post 18 at page 1.
The shutter speed of the 1.4/50 is 1/6400 where the bokeh suffers when the EFSC is turned on. The shutter speed of the 1.8/55 image is 1/2500, this is not critical and does not influence the bokeh.
Did you use the EFSC when doing these tests or did you use the mechanical shutter? If the EFSC was used, I'd be curious if the bokeh of the 1.4/50 improves in this comparison, for example with a grey filter. ...Show more →
FYI, EFCS has an effect on bokeh at high shutter speeds. Here is a description from the NEX-5N manual - this was dropped in later models like the A7/A7rII but I think it still applies:
"When you shoot at high shutter speeds with a large diameter lens attached, the ghosting of a blurred area may occur, depending on the subject or shooting conditions. In such cases, set this item to [Off]."
snapsy wrote:
FYI, EFCS has an effect on bokeh at high shutter speeds. Here is a description from the NEX-5N manual - this was dropped in later models like the A7/A7rII but I think it still applies:
"When you shoot at high shutter speeds with a large diameter lens attached, the ghosting of a blurred area may occur, depending on the subject or shooting conditions. In such cases, set this item to [Off]."
Thanks for this info snapsy. I will test this under the same lighting to insure the shutter speed is high.
It would be awesome if EFCS is the culprit here.
Wow, EFCS was indeed the issue with the 50/1.4 ZA rendering weirdness when shot wide-open!
The combination of high shutter speeds (I made sure to have it above 1/2000s) and "EFCS" set to "On" should not be used with this lens at f/1.4. The effects are not an issue at f/1.7 or smaller apertures.
Look at these 1:1 crops showing EFCS "On" (LEFT) and EFCS "Off" (RIGHT) at f/1.4
All that grinding of teeth over bokeh between 1.4 and 1.7 and it takes a Canon shooter to point it out. I learned something today...with A mount, Sony tells you to turn off EFCS with older wide aperture Minolta lenses when using fast shutter speeds.
mogul wrote:
All that grinding of teeth over bokeh between 1.4 and 1.7 and it takes a Canon shooter to point it out. I learned something today...with A mount, Sony tells you to turn off EFCS with older wide aperture Minolta lenses when using fast shutter speeds.
To be fair snapsy shoots Sony as well.
The question is, at what shutter speeds this starts to be a problem?
To be fair snapsy shoots Sony as well.
The question is, at what shutter speeds this starts to be a problem?
Sony's warnings about potential EFCS effects (ghosting, exposure errors) with large-aperture lenses at fast shutter speeds lead me to weeks of experiments and utility writing last year to find the source behind the issue. The result was several working theories but nothing conclusive. Here are links to my findings (I'm "horshack" on dpreview):
Fred sent me a email about this. I'm on the road but I stopped immediately to pull over and shoot some junkyard cars with it off. See if I can post from hotel tonight. Great stuff Fred
On screen it looks damn good. Let's see what computer says
Let's evaluate rendering with the lenses wide open and EFCS set to "OFF". (for both)
The 55/1.8 is still smoother but really not by much. I tested with the background close to the subject. This may change when the background is further way. (that's usually when a faster aperture lens has the advantage)
And now both at the same aperture (f/1.7 for the 50/1.4 and f/1.8 for the 55/1.8)
Focus was at exact same spot (best of 3 using 12.5x mag. for both lenses)
However, look at the contrast and sharpness advantage for the 50/1.4 image.
I am really surprised by the differences using second shutter... So to clarify -- is there a difference at lower shutter speeds?
I also have to say --- a substantial tradeoff in Bokeh for a little more center sharpness.
The second shutter on/off with the 55mm while a little difference-- not sure one is necessarily nicer or better than the other.. Not true with the 50mm wide open. I am not home but i would like to try the 85mm at 1.4 shutter on and off to see what happens
This is the last test with EFCS set to "off" for both lenses.
Both set at similar aperture (f/1.7 and f/1.8)
The 55/1.8 has the advantage on bokeh smoothness.
The 50/1.4 has the advantage on LoCA, contrast and sharpness, especially at f/1.7.
Basically this didn't change any of the finding on this thread. The main difference is that the 50/1.4 OOF rendering wide open + high shutter speeds is smoother with EFCS set to "off". So, there is no need to change from f/1.4 to f/1.7 for smoother bokeh. (actually f/1.4 is the smoothest)
I learned something today...with A mount, Sony tells you to turn off EFCS with older wide aperture Minolta lenses when using fast shutter speeds.
