Category Archives: lenses

Review: Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art

Introduction

sigma 40mm 1.4 art dg sharpness resolution contrast high 42mp a7rii a7riii bokeh za sony vignetting light fall off falloff
Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art on Sony A7rII

The Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art DG is one of the heaviest non-super-tele prime lenses and on first sight it also looks more like a serious tele lens than a medium wideangle. But is it also as good optically as it is heavy? Let us have a closer look!

Sample Images

sigma 40mm 1.4 art dg sharpness resolution contrast high 42mp a7rii a7riii bokeh za sony vignetting light fall off falloff
Sony A7rII | Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art | f/1.4
sigma 40mm 1.4 art dg sharpness resolution contrast high 42mp a7rii a7riii bokeh za sony vignetting light fall off falloff
Sony A7rII | Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art | f/1.4
sigma 40mm 1.4 art dg sharpness resolution contrast high 42mp a7rii a7riii bokeh za sony vignetting light fall off falloff
Sony A7rII | Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art | f/1.4

Continue reading Review: Sigma 40mm 1.4 Art

Review: Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF after the Firmware Update

The Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF is a lens of a very popular focal length / aperture class that was missing in the FE lineup from the beginning. When we released our review 6 months ago there were some serious issues and Zeiss released a firmware update some time later. Read our review to check if that could solve all the issues.

Sample Images

Sony A7III | Batis 40 CF2 | F2.5 | 1/80s | 400 ISO | David Mathar
Sony A7III | Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF | f/5.6 | full size
Sony A7III | Batis 40 CF2 | F2 | 1/50s | 500 ISO | David Mathar

Sony A7III | Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF | f/8 | full size

Sony A7III | Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF | f/5.6 | full size

Continue reading Review: Zeiss Batis 2/40 CF after the Firmware Update

Comparison: Sigma Art 35mm 1.2, 35mm 1.4 and 40mm 1.4

Introduction

comparison sigma art 35mm 1.2 1.4 40mm hsm dg dn review sharpness contrast bokeh infinity portrait coma
Sigma 35mm 1.2 Art DG DN – Sigma 35mm 1.4 Art DG – Sigma 40mm 1.4 DG

Sigma now offers the DSLR designs 35mm 1.4 Art and 40mm 1.4 Art and the newly designed 35mm 1.2 Art for Sony E-mount cameras. Let us find out what the differences between those 3 are and if there is a reason to get one of the bigger, heavier and more expensive lenses.

Continue reading Comparison: Sigma Art 35mm 1.2, 35mm 1.4 and 40mm 1.4

Review: Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD

Introduction

tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Tamron 17-28mm 2.8 Di III RXD on Sony A7rII

Tamron’s first E-mount lens was the 28-75mm 2.8. Compared to the 24-70mm 2.8 lenses Tamron decided to give up a bit of zoom range to realize an affordable and compact yet fast standard zoom.
This 17-28mm 2.8 shares these qualities on paper, so let us see if the optical performance can keep up with our expectations.
Last update 07/25/19: Sharpness Close, Focus Shift, Alternatives, Pro/Con table added

Sample Images

tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Sony A7rII | Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 | 20mm f/11
tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Sony A7rII | Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 | 28mm f/8.0
tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Sony A7rII | Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 | 28mm f/2.8
tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Sony A7rII | Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 | 17mm f/2.8
tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 2.8 review comparsion sharpness resolution contrast 42mp 61mp test sony a7rIII a7rII a7riv
Sony A7rII | Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 | 28mm f/2.8

Continue reading Review: Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD

Laowa 100mm f2.8 CA-Dreamer Macro 2x: A review

This lens costs $449. It’s a 100mm f2.8 macro, which focuses down to twice life-size. A feat no other lens in its class achieves. It also focuses to infinity. It claims to be apochromatic. How good can it be? Is it, as some suspected when they first heard about it, good for macro but only an emergency lens for infinity use? Or is it the deal of the century? I’m afraid I’m going to make you read further if you want to find out!

UPDATE at the end I have some info which might make the lens more attractive than most of my review suggests.

Samples

Continue reading Laowa 100mm f2.8 CA-Dreamer Macro 2x: A review