Sony DT 50mm f1.8 SAM Lens

anthony566 · 25-08-2009, 8:44 PM

Im looking at getting a portrait lens and was thinking of the Sony 50mm F1.8, does anyone have this lens and if so whats it like wide open and at 2.8 ? if you have a few images could you post them.

anthony566 · 26-08-2009, 9:01 PM

Found a few reviews on the tinterweb and for £129.99 you cant go wrong really, should have it in a few days.

Jonstone · 27-08-2009, 5:49 AM

I have one and its a great lens.

It doesn't feel very substantial but that makes it nice and light and it takes great portrait shots, you will be pleased with it I am sure.

Be careful though if you are thinking of putting a filter on it though, I bought mine second hand off the forum from Chris_M who had put a uv filter on the front and I found it was causing a fair amount of lens flare.

anthony566 · 27-08-2009, 6:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonstone

I have one and its a great lens.

It doesn't feel very substantial but that makes it nice and light and it takes great portrait shots, you will be pleased with it I am sure.

Be careful though if you are thinking of putting a filter on it though, I bought mine second hand off the forum from Chris_M who had put a uv filter on the front and I found it was causing a fair amount of lens flare.

Thanks for that Jonstone, do you have any images i could look at ?

chrism_scotland · 27-08-2009, 9:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonstone

I have one and its a great lens.

It doesn't feel very substantial but that makes it nice and light and it takes great portrait shots, you will be pleased with it I am sure.

Be careful though if you are thinking of putting a filter on it though, I bought mine second hand off the forum from Chris_M who had put a uv filter on the front and I found it was causing a fair amount of lens flare.

I didn't even realise there was a filter on the front! Never used it myself as it coincided with me selling my A700 but it seems a nice lens construction wise.

Jonstone · 27-08-2009, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anthony566

Thanks for that Jonstone, do you have any images i could look at ?

Some sooc, no cropping. The ones outside were taken with them rolling down a hill so there was a fair bit of movement and the camera was in af mode, wide open apart from the last one

Some with a little processing/cropping

One with a lot of cropping

In fact it was the only lens I took on holiday so everything in my flickr stream after the bubblegum shot is taken with it, hope this helps

anthony566 · 27-08-2009, 11:33 PM

Fantastic shots ....... I can see im really going to enjoy this lens when it arrives

RatJones · 29-08-2009, 3:14 PM

Nice shots, last one is my fav, amazing detail in the beads of water

Jonstone · 29-08-2009, 6:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RatJones

Nice shots, last one is my fav, amazing detail in the beads of water

I was surprised by the sharpness of that one considering how much it is cropped

Wiggler · 30-08-2009, 7:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonstone

I have one and its a great lens.

It doesn't feel very substantial but that makes it nice and light and it takes great portrait shots, you will be pleased with it I am sure.

Be careful though if you are thinking of putting a filter on it though, I bought mine second hand off the forum from Chris_M who had put a uv filter on the front and I found it was causing a fair amount of lens flare.

I'm about to get one of these and am looking forward to having a play when i get back to uni :D

anthony566 · 30-08-2009, 7:57 PM

Well i really hope mine is here on Wednesday

Jonstone · 31-08-2009, 1:38 PM

One thing I did find a problem with when I first got this lens was getting a good focus.

Wide open its quite unforgiving on focus, as any similar lens will be as the dof is very small.

I reverted to auto focus for a while in desperation which was producing perfect shots so I knew it was my ineptitude and not the lens that was at fault.

I'm getting the hang of it now I think but I do have to be a lot more precise than I did with my old 2.8 which is obvious I guess.

lordsmurf · 31-08-2009, 1:58 PM

A 50mm f/1.8 prime is a beautiful lens for portrait work, especially on a non-full-frame body.

On a full-frame 35mm body, look at a 70-90mm length prime instead.

anthony566 · 03-09-2009, 4:31 PM

Well it arrived today, and what a dinky little lens this is... very light seems to focus nice and fast and with the very small play ive had with it it's prity quiet and does not hunt ( so far ) ill try and get some shots this weekend but all in all a very nice lens for £129.99

p1tse · 03-09-2009, 8:05 PM

would it fit my sony a300?

how does it compare to the minolta 50mm?

will i see much benefit over my tamron 28-75 f2.8 or save the money for something else

anthony566 · 03-09-2009, 8:58 PM

Yes it will fit your A300, i have no idea if this will give you anything over your tamron 28-75 f2.8 as I have never used that lens, check out the Dyxum Lens section for reviews. A-Mount Lens Index - Dyxum forums

eddiewood · 03-09-2009, 9:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by p1tse

will i see much benefit over my tamron 28-75 f2.8 or save the money for something else

I reckon not.

My Sony 50mm f1.4 is sharper than my new Tamron 17-50 at 50mm, even at say f5.6, but only just.

Don't buy it without first going to Jessops to take some test shots to compare with your Tamron.

Wiggler · 07-09-2009, 5:29 PM

picked up one of these today

been having fun taking a few test shots...

btp3473 · 11-09-2009, 11:08 AM

i am thinking of getting the minolta version of this sony DT 50mm f1.8 SAM Lens it is used but in vgc does anyone have any thoughts would the minolta be better than the sony many thanks darron

eddiewood · 11-09-2009, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by btp3473

i am thinking of getting the minolta version of this sony DT 50mm f1.8 SAM Lens it is used but in vgc does anyone have any thoughts would the minolta be better than the sony many thanks darron

If they are similar in price I would get the Sony.

Faldrax · 11-09-2009, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by btp3473

i am thinking of getting the minolta version of this sony DT 50mm f1.8 SAM Lens it is used but in vgc does anyone have any thoughts would the minolta be better than the sony many thanks darron

The user reviews seem quite positive on the new 50 f1.8 SAM, so if the price is similar it may be a better option (as you'll have the benfit of waranty).

My only concern would be longevity for the newer lens - it is a plastic rather than metal build, including the mount, and has the new SAM rather than the traditional screw drive. The minolta has been arround for a long time and many still perform flawlessly - will the same be true for the newer lens in 5, 10 years time? (Of course, it coudl be argued that for the price you can afford to buy a new one every 5 years

Pirate!! · 12-09-2009, 1:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by btp3473

i am thinking of getting the minolta version of this sony DT 50mm f1.8 SAM Lens it is used but in vgc does anyone have any thoughts would the minolta be better than the sony many thanks darron

Ahoy!

That may depend on whether you want the FF Minolta f/1.7 or the Sony f/1.8 for the cropped sensor. The former ought to be dropping it's price like a brick. That said, if you have anyone going to the USA that can take delivery, the current price for the f/1.8 is circa £89.00 delivered via Amazon.com at current exchange rates.