Decades ago, fast zoom lenses had a maximum aperture of f/4. When AF SLRs emerged, the speed increased to f/2.8,…
Browsing: Sony
Sirui may not be a household name among photographers yet, but the company has been a player with the cinema…
The FE 100mm f/2.8 macro GM OSS is Sony’s 2nd generation macro lens for the E-mount system. It supersedes the…
Tamron has a long tradition of making “super-zoom” lenses. They released the first of such lenses back in 1994 -…
Introduction I suppose that the readers of this article will fall into two categories – one group will be bored…
The old Sony FE 85mm f/1.4 GM is a good lens. However, it isn’t exceptional. Sony got the message and…
New, dedicated APS-C format prime lenses from OEMs have become a bit of a rare sight outside the Fujifilm ecosystem.…
Thypoch (derived from “Thy” = “your” and “Epoch” = “era”) is a fairly recent addition to the fleet of Chinese…
A little while ago, we already tested the Viltrox AF 35mm f/1.2 LAB FE in both Nikon Z and Sony…
A little while ago, Sigma released the second iteration of its interpretation of fast standard zoom lenses – the Sigma…
Today, we are discussing something very different. It’s rare that a fast, long tele prime lens finds its way into…
The 85mm f/1.8 class is very crowded, especially in Sony E-mount. One of the lesser known brands playing in this…
Introduction Tamron has had quite a run during the last few years with an increased market share – it seem…
Apparently, Viltrox isn’t finished releasing lenses in 2025. This time, we’ll explore the Viltrox AF 50mm f/1.4 FE Pro, a…
Viltrox loves prime lenses. So much so that they had 3 different lineups for different user groups: low-budget “AIR,” high-quality…
Introduction We’ve seen many ultra-wide lenses during the last few years, but there’s probably always room for another one. So, let’s…
Introduction It almost feels as if we are an exclusive Viltrox testing lab, given all the lenses that we have…
Let’s revisit the Forgotten Gems League again. 135mm lenses aren’t overly popular, and that’s despite the fact that these are…
Introduction It appears that Sony can’t get enough ultra-wide lenses. The next one in line is the Sony FE 16mm…
Viltrox is obviously busy ramping up their high-speed prime lens offering. Recently, we reviewed their great AF 35mm f/1.2 LAB…
Introduction The Sony designers are big fans of ultra-wide angle lenses, it seems – because there are so many of…
Once again, we are pursuing the “need for speed” – this time with the Viltrox AF 35mm f/1.2 LAB FE.…
The next Viltrox lens arrived – the Viltrox AF 50mm f/2 FE Air, a full-format standard prime lens. It carries…
Most lenses are rather simple things – at least from the outside. They have a focus- (& zoom-) ring and…
Sigma took their time to release the lens, but the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG DN OS Sports is finally here…
Fast 135mm lenses live a bit of a wallflower existence compared to their more popular 85mm f/1.4 cousins. For portrait…
We have become quite fond of Viltrox lenses lately. Especially their higher-end offerings have impressed us with a combination of…
Introduction One of the differentiators of Sony’s E-mount is the triple-grade lens lineup. Besides the budget and professional GM lenses,…
What’s better than a fast lens? Yes, a faster one. That’s also the motto in this review of the Sony…
Introduction The Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM was a good first shot when it came out, but it’s also a…
Sigma has a wide variety of ultra-fast lenses in their lineup. Among them is the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 DG DN…
Whenever a new pancake lens arrives in the lab, I’m getting pretty excited. Sure, their on-paper specs are never impressive…
Most of us just love high-speed lenses. And if it’s a 35mm lens, that’s even better. When it comes to…
Introduction A short while ago, we reviewed the Viltrox AF 56mm f/1.7 X in Fujifilm X-mount – with rather surprisingly…
Some may not understand it, but from a personal perspective, yours truly has long waited for a “premium” super-ultra-wide prime…
Introduction Sigma’s Series I lenses are a lovechild of their engineering department. These aren’t your typical high-spec prime lenses. Instead,…
The Sigma 16-28mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary is Sigma’s second ultra-wide zoom lens for full-format mirrorless cameras, after the more…
70-200mm f/2.8s are among the most popular lenses among enthusiast photographers – for a reason. They are fast enough to…
Our Patreon supporters can fine the RAW test data here: Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II
Introduction Some of the OEMs now offer ultra-wide zoom lenses with some coverage into standard focal lengths. In Sony land,…
Introduction In the last 5 years or so, the ultra-wide lens market has gone bonkers. During the DSLR era, 14mm…
Introduction Tamron had quite a run in recent years with rapid releases of new lenses for mirrorless systems. Obviously, they…
Introduction Time flies also in the mirrorless camera world. Some of the lenses released early in this era are getting…
Introduction The Samyang AF 12mm f/2 E has been on the market for quite some time, so we are a…
Introduction Samyang has been a lens manufacturer for quite a while but only recently released their first zoom lens -…
Introduction Having multiple lens grades to choose from is great from a consumer perspective. Sony knows this as well and…
Introduction In an era in which long tele zoom lenses are reaching 600mm, the 100-400mm class may almost feel dated,…
Introduction Many of us know the problem – sometimes wide and fast just isn’t wide and fast enough. And then…
Introduction Most of us start photography with an affordable camera kit. This will be sufficient for a while, but eventually,…
Introduction For decades, full-format standard zoom lenses have been confined to the 24-XX or 28-XXmm range. This only changed very…
Introduction Fast 85mm f/1.4 lenses are hot commodities, but the OEM options tend to be on the expensive side. However,…
Introduction Third-party vendors have a difficult task when it comes to super-tele zoom lenses in Sony E-mount. There’s a behemoth…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published December 2022 Introduction Tokina was and still is a powerhouse when it comes to ultra-wide…
Introduction Sigma’s Series I lens series has a special place in our hearts here. The vast majority of lenses we…
Introduction Lately, Tamron had quite a run with lots of attractive new products as well as product updates, and a…
Introduction When it comes to camera gear, hybrid is the new black – thus, cameras and lenses should be aligned…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published August 2022 Introduction Autofocus lenses are still pretty rare beyond the mainstream players, but slowly…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published August 2022 Introduction At the time Sony announced their set (11mm f/1.8, 15mm f/1.4G, 10-20mm…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published July 2022. Lens sample provided by Meike. Introduction Fish-eye lenses may not be the most…
Introduction While Sony has been the undisputed leader in terms of the number of professional-grade mirrorless system lenses for many…
Introduction Every once in a while, many of us are feeling an itch for something exotic – a super-tele maybe,…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published February 2022 Introduction There is a general notion that full-format is the way to go…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published January 2022 Introduction So to finalize our little tour of Tokina’s new gang of three…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published January 2022 Introduction Recently, we reviewed the Tokina atx-m 56mm f/1.4 X in Fujifilm X…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published January 2022 Introduction The Tokina atx-m 23mm f/1.4 E is a moderate, wide-angle prime lens…
Introduction The Sigma 100-400mm f/5.6-6.3 DG DN OS is the mirrorless camera version of the highly popular Sigma 100-400mm f/5.6-6.3 DG…
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published December 2021 Introduction Laowa is playing it fancy again – not in terms of speed…
Introduction Following our review of the Tamron 35mm f/2.8 Di III OSD M1:2, let’s go a little wider with the…
Introduction In our last part of our Tamron prime lens review mini-series, we’ll have a look at the Tamron 20mm…
by Klaus Schroiff, published August 2021 Introduction Driven by their recent flood of AF lenses, Samyang has been rushing into…
Introduction It seems that comparatively slow-speed “budget” prime lenses are all the rage these days. A few years ago, Samyang…
Introduction Sony’s APS-C system has been a 2nd class citizen during the last few years. New native APS-C format lenses…
Introduction There is an almost mad amount of 35mm full format lenses available in Sony E-mount. As of the time…
Introduction Tamron has been an early adopter of the mirrorless concept so it’s not surprising that they are offering a…
Introduction The Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 Di III VXD is a member of Tamron’s own “holy trinity” of fast f/2.8 zoom…
Introduction Fast standard zoom lenses are incredibly popular in the photographic community – yet the surrounding design challenges in this…
Introduction Super-tele zoom lenses have been around for many years in the DSLR world. Especially Sigma and Tamron have a…
by Klaus Schroiff, published September 2020 Introduction Laowa has explored many extreme lens designs ever since they started in 2013.…
by Klaus Schroiff, published August 2020 Introduction During recent years, mirrorless lenses suffered from a disease – they got bigger…
by Klaus Schroiff, published July 2020 Introduction Manufacturers love to explore the extremes because that’s a way of differentiating their…
Introduction Sony has been pushing full-format E-mount lenses during recent years whereas dedicated APS-C lenses have been neglected. However, there…
Introduction Sigma seems to have hit a sweet spot with its “DC DN” trinity of fast APS-C/MFT format prime lenses…
Introduction It may seem a bit strange but these days full-format 28mm prime lenses are almost exotics. The unpopularity probably…
Introduction SIgma is maintaining a small set of three very fast prime lenses dedicated to APS-C and Micro-Four-Thirds mirrorless cameras…
by Klaus Schroiff, published January 2020 Introduction In our previous review, we covered the Viltrox PFU RBMH 85mm f/1.8 STM…
Introduction We have to admit that there was a rather embarrassing gap in our list of Sony E-mount lens reviews…
Introduction Sony has enjoyed quite a headstart compared to Canon R/Nikon Z but obviously they keep on pushing. Lately, they have focused…
by Klaus Schroiff, published September 2019 Introduction The Samyang AF 50mm f/1.4 FE (aka Rokinon) is one of the first…
Introduction While Sony E-mount lenses are nothing new for Sigma, it took them quite a while to design native full-format…
by Klaus Schroiff, published August 2019 Introduction One of the biggest controversials around mirrorless camera systems are the comparatively inflated…
Samyang (aka Rokinon) may not be a household name in the photographic world – yet – but the velocity of…
Introduction If you like (classic-)cars you may know the statement that there’s no substitution for engine displacement but more displacement.…
Introduction While mirrorless systems have been around for quite some time, the uptake by the “big 3” third-party lens manufacturers…
by Klaus Schroiff, published June 2019 Introduction As far as ultra-wide lenses are concerned, all the rage is about going…
by Klaus Schroiff, published January 2019 Introduction Laowa is one of the many small manufacturers that emerged over the recent…
One of the core components of a professional grade system is a fast medium tele-zoom lens – such as theSony…
Introduction If you want to play a role in the professional (full format) market you have to offer a variety…
Sony users can choose between a wide variety of different lens options nowadays, but selecting a standard zoom lens has…
Sony mirrorless camera users are quite blessed with a variety of medium tele prime choices. There are no less than…
Introduction Recently, we reviewed the Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 – as it turned out, it’s quite an awesome lens. However,…