 Great investment |
| Review Date: November 14, 2007 |
| Reviewer: P. Ciullo, Clinton Township, MI United States |
I bought this lens because I needed a "portrait" lens for my K/M 7D when my Sigma 28-70 f/2.8 EX "Pro" lens took a dump on me. The lens hasn't been dropped or anything like that (that I'm aware of) but it suddenly is always out of focus and won't focus at infinity at all ... but that's a problem for the Sigma people, so I digress.
In need of a good "portrait" length lens for my 7D I opted for this Sony 50 f/1.4. I'd had a Maxxum 50 f/1.4 years ago but had gotten rid of it shortly after getting a zoom lens. Big mistake. In any case, because my Sigma lens mentioned above was in need of repair and I had a portrait shoot coming up, I got this lens and I must say it's been a worthwhile investment.
Wide open the lens is tack sharp at point-of-focus. Stopped down between f/2.8 and f/4, doing head and shoulder shots of an average-sized adult the lens provides fantastic portraits ... nice contrast, beautiful color and of course very sharp with beautifully de-focused backgrounds.
I shoot a lot of film with Medium format Mamiyas (RZ67 and 7II) and have very high expectations for image quality. With the purchase of this 50 f/1.4 I realized I've been compromising image quality on my 35mm cameras (film and digital) by using "off brand" lenses like Tokina and Sigma. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that Tokina and Sigma make flat-out junk. Just that I didn't realize that the image quality could be better in my 35mm cameras.
Up to now I'd thought that the sensor in the K/M 7D was just mediocre. And, I'm sure that some would say it still is. But, I'm here to tell you that this 50 f/1.4 proved to me that the problems I've thought were all in the body were in actuality all in the lenses.
I'm in the process of replacing all my off-brand "Pro" lenses with Sony/Minolta and Sony/Zeiss lenses. Today (14Nov07) I purchased a Sony 16mm f/2.8 lens (SAL-16F28) to replace my 17mm Tokina lens. The Tokina lens just doesn't cut it when it comes to image sharpness and resolution. I'm hoping this 16mm will perform on-par with my 50 f/1.4. If it does then the next step is a Sony/Zeiss 85 f/1.4 and eventually a Sony/Minolta 80-200 f/2.8 (to replace my Tokina 80-200 f/2.8 ATX PRO).
I know some people aren't as critical as I may be about image sharpness, resolution and contrast. And for those people I say ... to each his own. But, my experience and expectations are very high and I feel there is no reason to compromise. Spend the extra money and buy the best glass you can ... because it does make a difference. |
A fast, bright and light-weight lens
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| Review Date: December 2, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Andrew Siew, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
This is my first encounter with a fixed-focal length lens from Sony. After having used the SAL1780 and SAL75300 zoom lenses with my alpha 350, I've finally decided to spend some money on the fixed-focal length SAL50F14, given the good reviews the lens have been receiving.
This lens costs about twice as much as the SAL1780 and a little more than SAL75300, but what it can deliver over the two zoom lenses are undeniable : clear bright pictures under gloomy weather and powerful defocussing effect at low F numbers (between F1.4-2.0).
At 50mm (75mm for APS-C DSLRS), the lens can easily fill the camera's CCD with an entire face without much distortion. Therefore, your subject can really stand out in your portraits while the small F number will blur everything behind away.
Chromatic abberation and purple fringing are invisible with my 14.2 CCD under normal usage, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that this lens contains neither Carl-Zeiss coatings nor ED (Extra Low Dispsersion) elements.
Should you get a chance to test this lens out before purchasing, do try it out. The blurring effect of the lens is so strong that it is visible on a 3" LCD, and the low F number lets you turn the ISO dial all the way down to 100 to capture plenty of low noise, high quality pictures in dimly lit environments. Under the bright sun and at a low F number, the lens will freeze just about any moving object by letting your shutter speed go as high as 1/4000. |
Sony is doing a good job with SLR
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| Review Date: July 8, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Sindri Hilmarsson, |
I bought this lens a while ago and have used it a lot, mainly doing portrait shots. I must say it surprised me, it's better that I had hoped. It's very bright, delivering clear and sharp pictures with great colors. I must say that compared to the Canon lenses of similar class, the Sony lens comes out victorious. I really think that the guys at Sony are doing a great job with their SLR camera.
(P.s. I'm not working for Sony or anything like that, I'm just really happy with my lens :) |
I Appreciate my Camera more now
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| Review Date: October 15, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Rishi Chhibber, San Jose, CA United States |
I bought this lens to try out with my Alpha 350 to take flashless indoor pictures of my ever moving 2 year old, and the results were Amazing!
The sharpness is way better than I had ever gotten with my kit lenses, and the speed of the lens makes sure that I get no blurs, or noisy dark pictures.
Strongly Recommended. |
great lens
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| Review Date: April 23, 2008 |
| Reviewer: G. Egri, Vermont |
| My first fixed lens. Great shots, super sharp, fast focus, light weight, but a little expensive. |
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