At last! The most rangefinder-like of the mirrorless camera systems has a 35mm equivalent lens! We’ve always been a fan of SLR Magic’s lenses here on the Phoblographer and when we received the 23mm f1.7 in the mail, we were super stoked. It renders a near 35mm field of view on the cameras. Though Fujifilm themselves will be releasing one later on from the publishing of this piece, they were beaten to the cake by SLR Magic. We’ve spent a couple of days with this lens since seeing at Photokina, so far and we have to say that this one makes the X Pro 1 feels like the Leica cameras that I was trained on.
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When we began the review of the Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 SP Di VC USD, we pondered which type of photographer would purchase a lens like this. It is a clear competitor to the equivalent offerings from Canon, Nikon and Sony but isn’t as expensive. Most professionals tend to go for a a primary brand vs a third party (as per recommendation of the retailers)–although some third party lenses have made excellent tools and third party manufacturers in general are fighting back very hard in their recent revamps. I asked this question of myself as every day I packed my camera bag to go out and shoot.
But is this really a lens that you’d buy?
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Alright Canon fans–time to breathe…everything will be okay. Planet 5D found a report from DxOMark stating that when it comes to pure sharpness, the Canon 5D Mk III and Nikon D800 aren’t so far off from one another. To come to their findings, they test each camera with loads of lenses and when good glass was paired with the 5D Mk III, there was almost no difference between this camera and the its Nikon competitor. In fact, they go so far as to say that sometimes Canons’ 5D Mk III outdid the D800–and once again with good lenses.
But what about the D800E? That is the camera that was designed to take full advantage of the resolution. According to the report, “In future tests, it will be interesting to see if the Sony sourced sensor in the Nikon D800E variant with its altered (zero strength) OLPF (Optical Low-Pass Filter) is significantly more efficient at resolving detail or if it’s as a result of the differences in fill-factor (affected by RGB filter transmission, micro-lens design and circuitry) between the Canon and Nikon sensors.” So we’ll just have to wait and see.
What does this mean in real life? Well, it confirms that if you’re purchasing these cameras, you really should be springing for the better glass. When I first bought my Canon 5D Mk II, I purchased the nifty 50 with it–and in looking back I really shouldn’t have. Sure, it’s a nice starter lens, but in the end if you really want to take the full advantage of your camera’s capabilities you should go for higher end glass. If you’re sending your images to the web, who the heck cares? Most people can’t tell the difference. If you’re printing large or shooting for NASA though, then you might want to consider the findings.
Tamron recently refreshed their 90mm Macro lens to include VC–the company’s vibration compensation/image stabilization. We saw it perform very admirably in their new 24-70mm f2.8 lens and so naturally we went into the 90mm f/2.8 SP Di MACRO 1:1 VC USD review with high expectations. Prime lenses like this are known for their high image quality, but macro lenses are designed to be even sharper for the simple reason that many may stop down quite a bit in order to get subjects in focus.
Editor’s Note: in a previous version of this article, we stated that there is no weather sealing. After talking to Tamron, we learned that there is. We apologize for the confusion.
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Sigma’s first entry into their contemporary series is their new 17-70mm f2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM. The contemporary series is part of the company’s rebranding and a revamp in their quality control measures. Since it is a contemporary lens, it is also targeted at the APS-C sensor DSLR user. The focal length range also greatly appeals to the hobbyist along with the fast f2.8 aperture at the wider end. Add in Optical Stabilization and the brand new exterior and you’ve got yourself an aggressive repositioning in the market.
We tested the lens with the Nikon D7100 over a period of time. Traditionally, the site’s staff have been fans of the company’s primes–but not so much with the zooms. So is the new Sigma lens an award winner, or is it just some more fishy business?
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Rokinon recently announced that all of their cinema lenses would be available for NEX cameras, and then one day the entire lineup was all set and ready. While reviewing the Sony NEX 5R, we called in the Rokinon 24mm T1.5 cinema lens to test. Why specifically on the 5R? The BBC used the camera’s predecessor to film a web series and many people who purchase the 5 series of cameras usually end up using it as a video camera.
And why not? It has full 1080p out, 1080 60p and 1080 24p HD video footage. Plus it’s a Sony sensor.
Rokinon has been well known for their lens quality at a more affordable price. Very rarely does a lens of theirs go through our hands that we haven’t loved. But is this lens any different?
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