Sony Zeiss Planar 50mm F1.4: Long Term Review | 4K
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- Опубліковано 8 вер 2024
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Keywords: Sony 50mm, Sony, 50mm, Carl Zeiss, Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 Planar T*, ZA, Sony FE, 50mm f1.4, Carl Zeiss 50mm f/1.4 Planar T*, Sony 50mm f/1.4 Carl Zeiss, Sony 55mm Review, Test, Comparison, Video Test, AF, Autofocus, Bokeh, Sample Images, Real World, Hands On, 4K, Zeiss 55mm f/1.8, Sonnar, Sony A7R3, Sony A7RIII, Sony a6500, a6500, a7R3, a7RIV, a9
I've been on the fence with this one and the 55 for over a year. This video has given me the confidence I need about about the 1.4. Thanks Dustin!
I’m glad it helped out.
I love seeing your opinions long term. You have the best lens reviews on the web.
Thank you.
Another quality evaluation. Your reviews and methodology are a benchmark that many other reviewers should aspire to.
Thank you very much.
I'd have to count, but I own ~15 native Sony lenses. This one is my favorite. It's so sharp that it still surprises me from time to time when I switch to it after shooting something else. Outstanding video lens too as long as your audio is off camera...it is noisy.
That sounds fair to me.
They cannot be more wrong about the 55mm F1.8. I have used both, and the 50mm F1.4 ZA is by far the superior lens. It does very well optically, sharpness is amazing even with the Sony A7r IV.
Agreed.
What about low-light AF performance? I have the 55mm currently, and have considered upgrading. Think it would be worth it? Or, maybe best to wait on Sigma to possibly release a 50mm 1.2?
Trippalhealicks sigma has been doing poorly with their af for sony recently
I have the same experience. The 55 is not a bad lens (weight and size advantage) but the 50 is much better in IQ.
Been using this lens for 3 years now as my main Portrait shooter,,
but watched the entire review anyway.
Sometimes it is nice to hear affirmation of your buying decision.
@@DustinAbbottTWI well, then I guess it was good that it was a positive review =) hahaha
Hi from Kyiv Ukraine. I bought this lens with your recommendation around 12 months back after watching your review on the 50s. If I remember I sent a comment and asked which you would recommend. Very solid performer and I like the images it produces. I watched this whole review anyways to see if anything had changed.
Not much has changed....:)
A very good and truthful review.
Totally agree, I used to use the 85mGM F1.4, but since using the 50m F1.4, love it and use it all the time
Always good to hear that my experience is matched by others.
How is the focus performance of the 85 compared to the 50?
They are roughly the same, though I think the GM might focus slightly more consistently (1-2% difference).
Ok. Thanks. That was my suspicion, so I never got the 85 GM, I Just kept the 1.8 which is very nice
As an early user of the A7ii then (now using A7iii and A7Riii), the Sony/Zeiss 55mm 1.8 was all the rage from reviews and DXO. I went ahead and purchased it and it’s a great lens. Although I preferred my Sony/Zeiss 35mm 1.4 personally. But much later on, I had the liberty to borrow the Sony/Zeiss 50mm 1.4...I immediately saw a massive different in image quality and rendering. It’s almost hard to describe let almost something that can be measured but everything was better. The lens blows away the 55mm 1.8. I too was very surprised by my findings because of all the hype and praise of the 55 1.8.
That's pretty much my conclusion. I never got why people claimed the 55mm was better. It's a perfectly good lens, but doesn't have any particular charm.
Thanks Dustin, your long term review push me to buy a used 800 euros Sony Zeiss 50 mm f1.4 instead of the new Sony 50 mm f1.2 GM. Your evaluation methodology is credible and convinced me!
Enjoy your lens. It does have a very nice degree of image quality.
I'm always checking your reviews for the following reasons:
- full thorough content
- inspiration for my own channel on how to review things
Just wanted to thank you and might try this lens as well and make a video of it :)
Greetings from The Netherlands!
Best of luck to you.
I'm revisiting this review to refresh my memory on the excellence of this lens. With the recent release of the 50MM F1.2 GM I hoping to find a gently used copy of this gem on the used market. Always had a certain affection for this venerable focal length, as many of my age bracket learned the hobby/profession using the 50 MM wide aperture kit lenses.
I agree that this could be a great time to pick up a used copy of this lens, as there should be more of them on the market now.
Thanks Dustin - great review and glad I received a 2nd hand copy of this lens. There was a recall on certain earlier models by Sony on this lens for a 'fog' issue that was impacting image quality with regards to contrast and resolution. Maybe some of those earlier tests had a bad copy. Fortunately, I was able to get mine repaired just before the expiration in Dec. 2019. Great lens!
That's interesting...and it could be the reason for the results that don't agree with mine.
Bought this after your first reviews. Because of the slow and "noisy" autofocus I thought I had got a bad copy. Sadly I think they are all like that. At the time my reference was the 85 1.8 and a 200 GM. I also have the 35 1.4 zeiss now, and that's SO much better in this regard. Optically I love both. If the 35 had a custom button and af/mf switch it would be perfect. If the 50 had the same focus performance as the 35 and a custom button, it too would be perfect. Oh, and the lens hood from the 35, also much nicer.
The 85mm GM isn't really any better. The best focusing GM lens is the 135mm F1.8, which is amazing.
Thanks Dustin! Great review as usual - the 50mm f/1.4 is definitely on the wish list under the "indulgence" category!
That's a fair assessment.
I will be waiting excitedly to watch your review of the Sony 50mm 1.2 when it comes out!!
You and me both!
@@DustinAbbottTWI very curious to hear about price, weight and focusing!
I bought this lens a month or so ago. I bought it for the 1.4 aperture, better bokeh quality and better LoCA than the 55 1.8 I've been using for 3 years. I had always wanted this lens but your reviews did help me make the decision. I have to agree with you on Focus. The 55 1.8 has better focus, and the 50 1.4 does seem a little off sometimes for no apparent reason on my a7r II. I'm hoping that that improve some when I go to the a7riv. As for sharpness, it is better than the 55 1.8 at low apertures. Especially in the center. If you go to the lensrentals review, he only test the lens wide open, but at 40 and 50 lines per millimeter, there is a deep belly in the T lines MTF. This is the only place the 55 1.8 is better, and in the real world I'm not sure if I see that softness or not.
Agreed on the midframe "softness"...which I don't see in either my testing or the real world.
I personally would choose today the Sony 50mm 1.2 GM. It is more expensive, yes, but it is also fully compatible with the Sony A1. This Zeiss on the A1 cripples the A1 to 15fps or 20fps. Still a lot, no doubt but I dont think there is a meaning to get a lens which does not allow to make use of the A1 at full extend.
That's a fair point.
Hello Dustin, thanks for this review, and I do want to be permitted to add/comment the following:
a) I got myself the SEL85F14GM and do seem to experience in AF-mode that sometimes there's the tendency to have the focal plane slightly shorter than one would think, using contineous AF, just as you comment. Yes, I do only have the A7ii, i.e. not what is today within the Sony range any longer state-of-the-art.
b) I also do have to say the SEL85F14GM is the loudest from the perspective of AF-noise. Still audible, but less noisy is the SEL55F18 and totally quiet is the Batis 135mm. On the Batis I am also experiencing what I am describing above in terms of focal plane "non-fit".
c) Your review covers nicely the SEL50F14Z, but it would have been really great if you'd one 1-on-1 comparisons with the SEL55F18, .e.g. the Siemens star work at 12 mins 48 sec would have been useful and some of the "real life" images. Yes, both could/should be done on the A9.
d) Finally, I am curious how in your eyes the SEL50F14Z compares with a "native E-mount" from Sigma with F1.4 and 50 mm. Yes, pls let us have a 1-on-1 comparison.
Hi Hubert, basically everything you've asked for is available on my channel already. Look back at my previous reviews of the SEL50 or SEL55 and even of the Sigma 50mm F1.4 ART and you'll find those comparisons.
As one in the market I found much of use. Thanks for your insights.
I'm glad it helped out.
Absolutely agree, there is no way a Sonar lens is going to be sharper than a Planar lens
Hmmm, not sure where you're getting that from. The Zeiss 135mm APO-Sonar would beg to differ.
This lens was the last collaboration of Sony and Zeiss with e-mount or a-mount lenses. This lens was introduced in 2016. Afterwards no Sony Zeiss ZA lens has been introduced for Sony mirrorless or Sony SLT cameras.
Zeiss prefers its own lineup of e-mount lenses. However Zeiss still offers lenses for compact Sony cameras like the latest Sony ZV-1 vlogging camera.
Zeiss is not permitted to produce autofocus lenses for Canon or Nikon Cameras. Sony and Zeiss are friends since early 90's, long before Sony was thinking about entering the photo camera market.
Thanks for the info.
Also love the Voigtlander 50mm f2 APO sonnar!
That is a nice lens, too.
Thanks for the review and sharing! This is in my wish list though I already have MP50 and Batis 40 which serve my usage very well. One fun for me is the historical 50 dollar bill from my country at 12:47 bottom. I haven’t seen that for many years. Nice collections!
I've discovered a number of the bills I use are no longer in circulation.
Same here! Having Batis 40 right now, really enjoy the weight and relatively sharp optics. (used to enjoy using 24mm on Canon apsc body, 40mm is the closest on full frame)Still want a standard and classic 50mm lens.
Hi, is it possible if you can compare the Zeiss 50mm 1.4 vs the new sony 50mm 1.4GM vs the new sigma 50mm 1.4 GD DN. It would be awesome comparison since you have a great intensive review and expertise of the Zeiss 50mm. Thank you.
I don't have the Zeiss on hand anymore, but I do reference it in my review of the new 50mm F1.4 GM (which I'm working on).
Thank you Dustin this review is right on spot. I remember us talking a bout this lens before and again it's a keeper :) ps. my new keeper has been the Sigma 35 1.2 on the R4 mind blowing images. Always great seeing your reviews Dustin keep up the great work.
I do really like the Sigma 35mm F1.2. I would love to see Sigma push out a 50mm F1.2 ART on Sony.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Yes that might be very special your right. :)
Replaced the 50 Loxia with the 55mm f1.8 and I totally regretted the decision. My biggest disappointment about the 55 is the CA. Besides having AF, the Loxia is better in almost every way. Then I acquired the 50mm f1.4 and use it along side of the 55mm for a few months. Sold the 55. The 50mm f1.4 is so....much better in IQ besides the size and weight of course.
That is far more consistent with my own findings.
Each time I look in the viewfinder with that Planar I feel like it has already here an amazing look/glow that I never felt with the 55 (BTW that one had color aberration I found very strong).
(I'm also a fan of the 35mm f1.2 - btw with the same sensation to me - subjective? not so with GM 85, Sigma f1.4 105 even though I would "never" work without them )
There are some lenses that do have special rendering, and yes, I think this lens would count as one of them (the new Canon Rf 50mm F1.2L is even better in this regard).
@@DustinAbbottTWI Whow interesting. Thank You for this feedback and confirmation on that level ("unscientific but subjectively factual" lol)
best 50 for sony hands down
At this point I agree.
Dustin Abbott Sorry, disagree! 50mm f/2 Vogitlander for me!
This is my most used lens. I would love to see a Sigma 50 1.2.
Me too.
I own the 55mm f1.8 and am waiting for a Sigma 50mm DG DN or Sony 50mm GM (and the inevitable Abbott’s comparative review on those) to decide my upgrade path.
Outstanding as always. Not for me as I have the Voigtlander 40/1.2 and Sony 55/1.8.. I used to have the Canon 50/1.2L and this, by far , produced my favorite images. I keep thinking about repurchasing.
The Canon is nice...though more in the global look of images and less in the details.
Not directly related but I'd love to see a tutorial on how to test and save lens correction profiles. I've had to make a few for vintage lenses but am curious on your tips to nail the distortion fixes
That's probably doable...I'll just have to find an open slot!
I'll say here something that perhaps many will find absurd, and I should too (I am very sensitive to rendering, and pixelpeeking, and and and. However; many times when using Lightroom lensprofile correction (I don't mind blindly check auto-anti-colorfringing -but maybe I should give that a deeper thought one day) back to my point : As an 'average approach(!)' , most of the time I reduce by about 50% the amount of each (distortion and vigneting) proposed corrections - because above it often it feels like becoming a different photo. lol.
( I mean: Most of the time, with my lenses and work, LR auto profiles bother me of being to strong (I never shoot jpeg. In-camera I have lenscorrection disabled. For the rare filming I should perhaps enable them.) Of course for fine-tuning specific photos (lines or "shape of faces" it's an "entirety different matter" but/and I never relay on auto-corrections, any-ways.
I agree that there are a number of Lightroom profiles that are too aggressive.
Nice review! My favourite lens for the system
It is a nice one.
I'm glad to say this very important review . Thanks a lot
You're welcome.
It will be very interesting to see if there's a 50mm f/1.4 G Master lens, Dustin.
If Sony can get close to the 24mm's form factor, it will be a serious piece of glass.
I agree.
I have this one since the first days and never reget I bought it new.
People that have owned this lens all seem to like it.
A very, very compelling argument in favor of this lens that is so often disregarded as a bad one. Truly great pictures in this video! Also, where does your supply of beautiful cats come from?
Hi Jan-Hendrik - thanks for the nice feedback. I've owned two Bengal cats and really love them.
You had me at “meat bokeh”.
LOL!
Great review Dustin, your observations agree with mine. however one aspect with my copy is the mid frame dip in sharpness even when stopped down that I have always been disappointed with, especially noticeable given that center frame is so sharp. Another point I really like is the global rendering. I also own the Voigtlander 50mm APO. This is a special lens (obviously no AF).
Interesting. I don't see the mid frame dip on the copies I've either tested or owned. The APO50 is a lovely little lens.
Hello Dustin!
It's really a strange coincidence for me you publish your review today !
(Great review by the way, as always! :) )
In fact, I have had my own Sony SLE50F14Z for repair at Sony's French authorized repairer for the last two months.
They recently came to me saying they won't be able to repair the lens because they ccouldn't get the spare parts.
According to them, there was a fire in a factory in Thailand...
(What might be true and I'm very sorry for those concerned by this tragic event...)
Nevertheless, I got in touch with Sony because I was surprised there was no other option possible and because I wanted to know what will happen for me. I was expecting them to say that the situaiton was exceptional, I was ready to wait for months...but no, it seems fine to them no spare part is available. Indeed, their anwser was absolutelyastonishing:
"SONY cannot guarantee the availability of spare parts for a 2015 lens". (BTW, Mr. SONY, it was released in July 2016...)
And despite I proclaimed my astonishment, I got the exact same answer again tonight from their customer service.
Well, I bought my lens refurbed on November...2019. Unfortunately it came with a defect and I asked (why did I do that?!) repair instead of refurb to the seller.
As far as I know the lens is not discontinued, not replaced...not even rumored to be replaced!
And as far as I know it is one of the lens elligible for Sony PRO Support.
Astonishing...
Repair center and seller apparently discussed and I have to find a commercial solution with the seller...finger crossed.
I'm seriously invested in Sony G, GM and Zeiss lenses.
I'm far from wealthy, it took me a very long time to collect my gear, saving money, buying and resselling when I could afford the upper model.
And I'm frightened by the answer I got!
That is not a very positive response from their service. I know that Sony has worked to improve their service in various regions, and I've had a positive experience here in Canada. I'm sorry to hear that this hasn't been your experience!
@@DustinAbbottTWI
Thanks for your reply Dustin.
I finally got refund by the seller (Amazon Italy)...phew!
After an unspeakabkle mess between Amazon Italy, Amazon France (?), Cordon (offical Sony repairer) and Sony.
Because Cordon asked Sony to refund refund Amazon so they can refund me (what is great !)...but did not tell me an just let me without any information for more than a week despite they were supposed to call me back the very same day.
And apparently Sony did not refund the right Amazon entity! (I don't know if the error is on their side or Cordon...)
Sony was unable to provide me with any information...except they cannot guarantee part availability on such an 'old' lens :P
And Cordon let me deal with directly with Amazon Italy, but at the same time did not want t to provide me with evidence of the refund to Amazon because it's supposed to be confidential data.
A complete mess.
A disaster in term of communication.
Finally Amazon Italy paid anything and Sony made a gift to whatever Amazon entity they incorrectly refunded...
At least I got refunded...
This seriously questions my investment in Sony G, GM and Zeiss lens.
unbelievable experience...
The ONE THING I did love about this lens is that it is not an aspherics heavy design, which means almost no onion rings in the bokeh blobs. But, I sold it back and kept the 55. I just have a problem with unnecessarily FAT lenses. Like many in the Zeiss Batis line this is the very definition of a FAT lens with a narrow glass column. This could easily have been a 67mm filter thread lens or even a 55mm. But they made it really fat for whatever reason and the focusing system isn't even that good (the 55 is faster and quieter). In the end, I went to the 2/40 CF Batis which is in some ways no longer a "standard" lens and also a somewhat fat one. But at least that is a 67 not a 77 and it focuses down to 21cm which is useful. It is a full stop slower than the 1.4 planar, but it i not appreciably slower than the 1.8/55 which is good enough.
--
At the end of the day, I have one rule... everything I carry must fit inside the Photo Hadley (from 1994). At this time, that means the A7RII body, the 2/25, 2/40, 2.8/135, a polarizing filter, a HVL-F60M flash unit, a two sided folding reflector, a Cullmann Magic Edition 50 flat folding tripod, the charger, USB cable and a few spare batteries. I really wish Zeiss or Sony will make an optically uncompromising yet compact 3.3/25-50.
Interesting feedback. Yes, this is a fairly big lens, though it's not actually massively bigger than the lens you chose in the end. But I do think there is still room for an optically excellent 50mm F1.4 (and 35mm F1.4) that is reasonably sized in the Sony lineup. I'm hoping that Sigma will do something similar to what they did with the 85mm F1.4 DN there.
10:00 front focus - i had front focus with my Batis 85 and even new 24 1.4GM
I'm surprised about the 24 GM. I had great focus results with it.
@@DustinAbbottTWI I'm sure that my 24GM have FF. Most when I shoot a few meters
Thanks for this detailed review!
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you, excellent review.
Glad it was helpful!
Hi Dustin and his subscribers! I want to ask something. I’ve been thinking and holding my lovely canon 50mm f/1.2L for years and loved it. However, from its characteristics which one is better? This one or 50 1.2L? Thanks 😁
The 50L has a beautiful look to images, but this lens lens is a much higher performer in basically every metric.
good photo, good lens Sony Zeiss 50mm F1.4 za
It's a nice lens.
I totally agree. I think people are just simply looking for the next shiny new toy. I picked this way up use earlier this year. And I can tell you that it does an extremely good job. The focusing my act a little funny but I found a great workaround. All I have to do is when I'm doing a portrait is used flexible point and am I in focus hit rate his greatly improved with this lens. I hear some of the same arguments about the '85 g Master. People climbing is not as sharp as it should be in the eyes. Which is a bunch of BS. Again just people looking for the shiny new toy.
There's no doubt it is a sharp lens, though I do think the AF could be better.
@@DustinAbbottTWI I agree
How do the images compare to the Otus 55mm 1.4?
I've not done an Otus comparison. From what I understand, however, they are very close.
I just got this lens. It's phenomenonal but I'm quite bummed it doesn't have a focus lock button, especially since I've just dropped using back button focus.
Yes, unfortunately it predated the focus hold button.
Very good review
Thank you
Thank you for this video. Seem to have missed it when it came out. I actually own this lens but am wondering if the newly announced 50mm f/1.2 GM is a must have and wanted to see your review.
Do you plan to consider the new GM version now that it announced.
I'm hoping to compare the two first and then make my decision. If the GM is truly special, I would consider upgrading, but this is already a very good lens.
Nice review, thanks! A question, what grip is on the camera you have in your hand in the beginning of the video out in the nature?
It's from Smallrig. You can see my coverage here: ua-cam.com/video/M-cxhD0lTuA/v-deo.html
@@DustinAbbottTWI Thanks!
I find the same AF issue where the focus is slightly off on the Batis 85mm when using Eye AF (on a a73 and a7r3). I don't have the AF issue with the Sony 85 1.8 (or a Sigma 85 1.4 with mc-11 for that matter).
"The FE 50mm F1.4 ZA, like most recent Sony lenses, focuses stopped down at your selected aperture. This means that autofocus performance steadily drops as you stop down, since smaller apertures mean less light, and more depth-of-field (less phase difference) for the autofocus system to work with. By F9, phase-detect fails altogether, and you'll experience significant hunting in AF-C."
That's interesting, though it doesn't explain wide open performance and the occasional front focus at F1.4
Quality review. I am considering buying this lens but I already have the signa 24-70 2.8 dg dn art and I find that sharp enough but I do like the 1.4 for low light and some bokeh. Do you think this lens is better at 50mm than the sigma 2470 art in terms of sharpness? Thank you in advance.
The short answer is yes. It is sharper, and obviously gives you a lot of extra creative options before F2.8
Very impressive lens and excellent review. Would you recommend it with the Fuji xt3, for example, with an adapter? Thanks
I haven't done FE mount to Fuji tests, so I really can't give an informed opinion on how that works.
@@DustinAbbottTWI OK, thanks.
Dustin I have watched your review of this lens, of the GM, the sigma art 50, and the samyang. I am still uncertain which to get for portraiture with melt away away background. Can't afford the GM. Autofocus is not a major need, as this will be a one use lens (posed shots). Which do you suggest?
I'm about to release a review of the new Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 II; you may want to wait for that review to see if it might suit your needs.
Thanks for the long term review! Have been shooting the Sigma 40mm ART for some time.. love the sharpness, but just miss the feel of the 50. I am a pixel peeper and sharpness on my A7RIV matters (I'm a cropper,) between the Zeiss 50 and the Sigma 40 ART... who is the sharpness king? The Zeiss outperform in low light AF? Thanks
The Sigma might be a hair sharper, but not by any tangible margin. I think the Zeiss will focus a little better, but it isn't top tier, either.
55/1.8 Sonnar may not be sharper, but it achieves near par performance in a much lighter smaller package as will be more appropriate to some. That Sonnar is not your daddy’s canikon 1.8 value prime.
The 55mm is a good lens, but, for me, there is nothing special about its rendering.
@@DustinAbbottTWI "Roger Cicala over at LensRentals found the Sony 50mm F1.4 lens to be the sharpest centrally of any 50mm prime, outperforming the 55mm F1.8 ZA. However, peripherally, the 50/1.4 takes a plunge in terms of resolution, and the 55mm F1.8 pulls ahead. In fact, just 4mm out from center in the image circle, tangential resolution (which we assess by considering the highest frequency MTF trace: 50 lp/mm) drops below that of the 55/1.8. "
@@DustinAbbottTWI "The FE 50mm F1.4 ZA, like most recent Sony lenses, focuses stopped down at your selected aperture. This means that autofocus performance steadily drops as you stop down, since smaller apertures mean less light, and more depth-of-field (less phase difference) for the autofocus system to work with. By F9, phase-detect fails altogether, and you'll experience significant hunting in AF-C."
I've owned both the 55 1.8 and 50 1.4. while they are both sharp, the 50 1.4 is sharper, has better rendering, better micro contrast, better CA handling, the only 2 advantages of the Sonnar is that it is smaller and cost less. For the best results, with great pop The 50 1.4 is KING.
@Foto4Max Comparing MTF charts for a more holistic comparison, while the planar has aperture-distance from center-zones in which it excels, but others in which it dips beneath the more consistent 55 sonnar. www.dpreview.com/files/p/articles/1256268419/sonysonysml.jpeg
Hi Dustin, did you had the chance to compare it to a contax zeiss 50mm 1.4? I'm trying to find my first autofocus lens for sony a7III for music video work. Hesitating between 24 1.4 vs 35 1.4 vs 50 1.4.
I haven’t used the older Zeiss lens.
Dear Dustin ! Can you tell me if the lenshood of the 50mm 1.2 fits on the zeiss 50mm 1.4 too ?
Unfortunately I never tried that.
Hi, i would like to ask if you tried updating the firmware of the lens? If you do, after updating did you notice anything different about the performance?did it improve? Hope you can share your thoughts. Thank you so much.
I believe that I had the most recent firmware of the lens at the time of the review. I can't remember a lot changing when I did the firmware update, however.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Thank you for your response. I am searching any review about the firmware update of the lens before I update mine just to make sure it will work fine or better. But unfortunately on google search, there is no review or feedback from users about the update.
Which one would you use for video on a gimbal? This or the 1.2 GM or the 1.8 Zeiss?
On a gimbal I would lean towards the F1.8 lens. Lighter is better still on gimbals, but, more importantly, a more compact lens often allows you more creative movements on a gimbal (like 360 degree rotations).
@@DustinAbbottTWI thank you! Makes sense :)
it is a 50 1.4 GM，just without the title。 too bulkey ，but thats not big deal for pros， expensive - but thats my weakness not lens‘s。
Fair enough.
I am currently using the zeiss 55mm f1.8 and enjoy using it. However, with a little bit of free money, I am planning to upgrade my "walk around lens" to a f1.4 lens.
I have a hard time choosing between the sony zeiss 50mm f1.4 and sigma art 50mm f1.4. Could anyone give me some advice on which f1.4 lens that I should buy next?
I would personally choose this one over the Sigma ART 50mm F1.4...though I'm hoping that Sigma will release a 50mm F1.2 to match their new 35mm.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Thz for the reply. I am also looking forward to a f1.2 version of sigma art 50mm.
I doubt I will ever sell it.
It's a lovely lens.
Such HEFT, I'm hoping Tamron or Sigma bring out a lighter 1.4, Interesting to see Tokina's 50mm 1.8 coming soon, but I suspect it's a Samyang it looks identical.
I suspect that Sigma has a 50mm F1.4 DN coming that follows the blueprint of the new 85mm...which will sell VERY well for them!
Dustin Abbott I’ve contemplated switching to Nikon just for their stunning 1.8 50! Hopefully Sigma can solve this! It’ll be a monster seller.
How does it compare to the Milvus?
A bit sharper and more corrected, not as nice of rendering and bokeh.
So is the Canon RF 50mm 1.2 better than this?? How much better??
I am trying to switch systems and i only buy primes..
Not sure if Canon R5 and Canon f1.2 primes are noticeably better than Sony G-Master f1.4 primes??
The Canon is better, but not by a huge margin. The Canon does have both nicer bokeh and more "magical" rendering, however. It is the first autofocusing 50mm that I've used that I would consider better than this lens.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Thank you Dustin. Yes the Zeiss seems to be very special!
Thank you for the videos, best reviews on UA-cam hands down!
Is it a linear focus pull or speed base focus pull?
I believe it is linear.
Have you had the 24gm long enough to form a long term opinion yet?
The 24mm was a loaner, unfortunately, so I know nothing more than what I did.
I think the only optical defect of the planar when compared to the sonnar is the mid-zone dip (see here: www.lensrentals.com/blog/media/2019/03/Planar-T-FE-50mm-f1.4-ZA_MTF_Average.png). Of course, the sonnar is not as well corrected for CA and has worse center and corner resolution so you would hardly call it a better lens-but if you WERE looking for a lens that had better optics I'd say the new 50 APO you reviewed would do the ticket (admittedly, however, at the cost of AF and a stop of light gathering potential).
After all this time, I'm a bit skeptical that they WILL come out with a 35 or 50 GM-though perhaps its inevitable. My worry is that instead of trying to emulate the 24 GM with its record breaking compactness, great above average MFD, and sacrificing perhaps a tiny bit of bleeding edge optical performance to achieve that small size they'll try to emulate recent Canon and Sigma optics at all costs formula. But time will tell.
I don't actually see the midzone dip in my tests. I agree on your latter point, though. I too would love to see a slightly more compact lens.
@@DustinAbbottTWI oh wow, you could probably sell your copy to make up for most of the price of the 50 RF then lol.
Dustin Abbott well LR has the receipts (MTF test results). Did you publish these tests of yours? If not your tests are subjective, and possibly still quite valuable - but subjective to be clear.
You can find my comparisons in the Canon 50L review.
I am looking forward to a comparison of the SEL50F14ZA versus a native designed Sigma 1.4/50 (I once compared the SEL50F14 vs my SEL55F18, but I only had about 1 hour of time and did that on my Sony A7ii. In that comparison, I must confess, one had to search for the differences. Having said that, I know one needs to do some serious work with a lens to learn about its strengths and weaknesses. Manual focus with the 55mm is a daunting task, i.e. very difficult since the motorized focus is a bit of "jumpy". Zeiss did with the Batis 135mm a much better job. I don't recalling having had issues with the SEL50F14ZA in MF mode.)
It's definitely true that manual focus emulation has improved.
Do you recommend this lens for my A7RIV?
I do. It's extremely sharp on the RIV.
@@DustinAbbottTWI what about the sigma on the a7riv? Compared to this one?
Is this actually a GM lens? Does it focus well like a GM nice and fast and also have anti shake built in like a GM?
Optically, I could argue yes, but the autofocus isn't up to modern standards.
@@DustinAbbottTWI thanks for the reply. I use the 135mm 1.8 GM and i find the focus speed on it is great and virtually never miss a shot of big dogs even running really fast. I also have the 24-105mm and find the same although because its f4 it isn't as crucial for the focus speed as the depth of field is less shallow. I was considering this lens for indoor work where the target would be stationary or very slow moving so I guess the slower focus wouldn't be noticeable?
Sticking to my 55mm.. only because .. 1) I already have it and it's cheaper. 2) way smaller and lighter. 3) This focal length is not my go to.
Other than that.. I must say 50 F1.4 win over the 55 F1.8. No doubt about it.
Fair points.
Sony should make a clear zeiss line.
Like all F1.4 lens are zeiss ?
Dont really like some are Zeiss, and some are GM...
All the more recent ones are not Zeiss branded anymore.
A Canon advert played before this video 😂 they know. They know.
LOL - that's funny
Dxomark have lost the plot. Have you seen the review of the 35mm F1.4?
I haven't, but yes, I frequently see a huge disconnect between their findings and what I see in the real world.
@@DustinAbbottTWI other reviewers have suggested that they must have a unicorn copy because their measured sharpness for that lens is out of this world. Zeiss 35mm F1.4 for sony.
Yeah...I'm skeptical. They also ranked the 55mm F1.8 well above this lens, which they are alone in concluding. I think there are some fundamental flaws to their methodology, which is far too dependent on sensor and not enough on the lens itself.
1 minute 14, got somewhere better to be? haha
nice review thanks.
It was an insistent notification on my watch. My recording app will actually stop the recording if it is an incoming phone call, which is why I checked it. I've had videos ruined that way before.
I'm torn between this lens and the sigma.
Fair enough. I like this one better of the current crop, but I suspect that Sigma has a new design of a 50mm F1.2 or 1.4 coming, so I'd wait if you're not in a rush.
I don’t take anything that BSO mark says seriously.
They definitely have their own quirks
man that bride had one too many donuts lolllll
meat bokeh =D
:)
You're overexposed!
That happens when you have to set up before stepping in front of the camera.