Sony 20-70mm Review by ePhotozine: “an amazing and versatile option”

Preorders: Sony 20-70mm at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, FocusCamera, FotoKoch, Fotoerhardt, Calumet, WexUK.

ePhotozine tested the new Sony lens and concluded:

Our sensibilities and tastes in wide-angle lenses, and indeed what we now think of as ultra-wide, have changed dramatically since those first rather more conservative zooms of the 1970s. This is now a cinematic widescreen world and stills photography changes as our general perceptions also change. Sony has gone one step further here, and a lens stretching from an ultra-wide 20mm through to a short telephoto 70mm, focusing right down to almost half-life-size, is an amazing and versatile option for Sony A series users.

The f/4 aperture is no real obstacle in these days of high ISO cameras, where performance at mind-boggling values does not mean a huge drop in quality. In any event, this will help keep cost, size and weight down to more reasonable levels. There is a lot to be said for this new lens, be it for travel, street, general stills shooting, videography with wider shots for selfies and vlogging or stabilised video shooting. Highly versatile and Highly Recommended.

Tips for Portrait Photography, Using the Sony A7R V by Reza Malayeri

This is a guest post by by Reza Malayeri. All Photos are from by Reza Malayeri and used with his permission.

Tips for Portrait Photography, Using the Sony A7R V
by Reza Malayeri

The Sony Alpha a7R V is the first full frame Alpha camera to feature high-resolution imaging with AI-based autofocus. Sony has put its best technology into the A7R V, calling it the “best-ever image quality for an Alpha body.” In my personal experience, the A7R V shows superior performance when taking portrait photography.

Key Features of the Sony A7R V

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DpreviewTV: Sony 50mm F1.4 GM vs Sigma 50mm F1.4 DG DN Art

With the latest two 50mm announcement we now have 58(!) 50mm E-mount lenses according to this BHphoto database. Still, the new Sony and Sigma additions are welcome as both have very high quality and offer a tiny bit of differentiations: The Sony is super compact while the Sigma is a top choice when it comes to balance performance with price. Check out Chris take on both new lenses!

Sony 50mm F/1.4 GM at BHphoto. Amazon. Adorama. FotoKoch. FotoErhardt. Calumet DE. WexUK.
Sigma 50mm lens at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, FotoErhardt, Fotokoch, WexUK.

Sony 50mm f/1.4 GM review by Lenstip: “virtually without any flaws”

Preorder links: Sony 50mm F/1.4 GM at BHphoto. Amazon. Adorama. FotoKoch. FotoErhardt. Calumet DE. WexUK.

Lenstip tested the new Sony lens and concluded:

The Sony FE 50 mm f/1.4 GM was a surprise for me personally and for more than one reason. First, I didn’t expect such a launch, especially as less than two years ago the system got two other 50 mm devices. Second, I didn’t expect that a new 50 mm lens might be optically more complex than its faster brother, the FE 50 mm f/1.2 GM. Thirdly, I didn’t expect such a high price tag, amounting to 1700 Euro.

If you forget about these surprises for a while and focus on the most important thing, you can only praise the new Sony FE 50 mm f/1.4 GM as it is virtually without any flaws. Its physical dimensions are smaller than these of many direct rivals and yet its optical system is able to correct properly chromatic aberration, distortion, coma, and astigmatism. At the same time it is so exceedingly sharp in the frame centre that it is able to beat all resolution records with a healthy margin and, additionally, it offers excellent image quality on the edge of both types of detectors.

Significant vignetting is something we expected up to a point; as a kind of consolation we should add that the Sony still can outperform some of its rivals in this category.