Reddit reviews Sony 55mm F1.8 Sonnar T FE ZA Full Frame Prime Lens - Fixed

Hello,

I need to help a friend of mine taking some good shots of her "street style" during the fashion week, it's in few days and the photographer who is supposed to do it just canceled so I am the only person available.

I have very little knowledge in photography and started learning and exercising for the last few week, I understand the basics of ISO / Depth of Field / Shutter speed.

The camera I have on me is a Sony A600, with a single lens of "FE 1.8 / 50", I am able to take some acceptable pictures but they're not that great and it requires some distance from the object.

I made some research and found a tutorial on this blog https://www.notjessfashion.com/the-ultimate-camera-guide-for-bloggers/ - I would love to take pictures like these.

I have only 2/3 days to learn some nice features when taking pictures and order any lens if I have to.

On the article above, the blogger suggested theses lenses :

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00U29GNBO/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FSB799Q/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01IALYGU0

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BESR5KO

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BESQYJW


I do not even know what is the difference, can somebody please assist me on the best lens to purchase and if you have any tips to share ?

Thank you a LOT.

I heard there were no dumb questions.

Why is this lens 200$ and this lens 900$?

Comparison

Amazon had used and refurbished items at a great price, and they are covered by Amazon's guarantee and refund policies.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/ol/B00FSB799Q/ref=mw_dp_olp?ie=UTF8&condition=all

The $667.99 one looks good based on seller rating, and free shipping!

If you want to keep the camcorder style, the DVX200s sound great. If you want to switch things up a bit, you could get 2 Sony A7sii and a few lenses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Jw, is it this one?
https://www.amazon.com/Sony-55mm-Sonnar-Frame-Prime/dp/B00FSB799Q

Both of those are APS-C Crop lenses and would end up making your image quality suffer because of an auto crop.

Its hard to tell what focal length exactly the photographer is shooting just from pictures but you probably want a 50mm or maybe even an 85mm.

The options for this kind of setup are fairly wide, even for sonys smaller selection of lenses:

28mm 2 FE $450

50mm 1.8 FE $250

85mm 1.8 FE $600

Now for pricey options:

35mm 2.8 FE $800

35mm 1.4 FE $1600

55mm 1.8 FE $1000 (this is actually a really nice portait lens, a good medium length, and is considered by many to be one of the sharpest for the money)

50mm 1.4 FE $1500

85mm 1.4 FE $1800

Then there is a whole lineup of Zeiss Batis, Otus, and etc lenses in various focal lengths you can look into if you have more money.

But honestly If you are just looking for a good working portait lens i think Id suggest a zoom like the new Tamron so you can get more options.

Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 $800

Or if you are loaded:

Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM $2200

I personally only own the 50mm 1.8 FE out of these and it works alright but I notice it not to be very sharp under F2.2 and seems to gain a lot of Chromatic Aberration. But it doesnt mean its not a good prime to just have on the camera most of the time.

This one.

Hi /u/joshwoodward - I agree with /u/1timer - the situation with Sony native lenses is not very good. The only lenses that meet your requirements are the two Sony system primes - the [$798 Sony Sonnar T FE 35mm F2.8 ZA] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FSB79KU/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00FSB79KU&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) and the [$998 Sony Sony Sonnar T FE 35mm F2.8 ZA] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FSB799Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00FSB799Q&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) - but buying both of them will take you well over your $1000 budget limit.

If you want a 4K camera, a [$1698 Panasonic GH4] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I9GYG8O/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00I9GYG8O&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) plus a [$1000 Panasonic 12-35mm (24-70mm equivalent) constant f2.8 lens] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00843ERMW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00843ERMW&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) might be a better value for your money.

Good luck!

Bill

> I'm hesitant to spend 2k+ on a body alone. Would I be wise to pay 798 for the A7 body and use the rest of my 3kish budget to buy lenses?

Completely understand your hesitance to spend over $2K on a camera body, /u/cgonz329 - but, sadly, that is what a decent professional camera costs these days.

Yes, investing in lenses is important, but high quality glass can't compensate for the A7's limited 1080p resolution, pixel binning and inadequate low light performance.

Plus, your competitors in the Florida marketplace are shooting with 4K low-light camera bodies that cost $2K minimum, as seen here:

• [Jewel + Sean | Wedding Trailer | Orlando, Florida by THIRDRE3L Cinema] (https://vimeo.com/259254375) (1080p - shot with the A7s II)
  
  I'm not suggesting you spend all of your money on a camera body, but with a $3000 budget, you can afford a decent camera and lens(es) - perhaps a [new A7 III body] (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Full-Frame-Mirrorless-Interchangeable-Lens-ILCE7M3/dp/B07B43WPVK//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) with a [Sony 24-105mm f/4 FE lens] (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Frame-24-105mm-Standard-Zoom-Camera/dp/B076V9P58R//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) for a total of $3296.
  
  Or, if that's too much of a stretch for your budget, an [A7 III with the 24-70 f/3.5-5.6 kit lens for $2198] (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Full-frame-Mirrorless-Interchangeable-Lens-ILCE7M3K/dp/B07B45D8WV//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) plus an [$898 Sony 55mm f/1.8] (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-55mm-Sonnar-Frame-Prime/dp/B00FSB799Q//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) or a [$198 Nifty Fifty] (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-FE-50mm-F1-8-Lens/dp/B01DLMD5O6//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20).
  
  Either way, you will get better results than from the original A7 body (or even the A7 II).
  
  The A7 III has wide dynamic range (as seen [here] (https://youtu.be/aCr2lfMoMPY)) and is a very capable low light camera (as seen [here] (https://youtu.be/qlUHz9KucF0)).
  
  Hope this is helpful and good luck finding the right camera for your needs!

I recently purchased an a6500 that came with this 50mm lens. I'm really digging this, but I want a lens that I can shoot video with. Anyone know of a great zoom lens that will work for me? Thanks!

Sony a7R ii with Sony Zeiss 55 f/1.8
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZDWGFR2/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1457213494&sr=1&keywords=a7r+ii
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-55mm-Sonnar-Frame-Prime/dp/B00FSB799Q/ref=pd_sim_421_6?ie=UTF8&dpID=41Edmp8b1CL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0Z82SEMXM8F7KGJJ9S4H

Audio Technica AT2020+

Just to clarify - "full frame" refers to the size of the sensor. It's a property of the sensor inside the camera. Your a5100 and your old Rebel both have APS-C (i.e. not full frame) sized sensors. Hopefully this will make it clearer.

Lenses can be designed for any sensor size, including APS-C and full frame. The APS-C sensor size is also known as "crop". If you use an APS-C (crop) lens on your a5100, the image will cover the sensor exactly. If you use a full frame lens, the image will be larger than the sensor, so it'll look more zoomed in than it would if you used it on a full frame camera.

"Crop" is not something to avoid; it doesn't mean you're losing part of the image or anything like that. Your camera is designed for "crop" (APS-C) lenses, and you should use those unless you have some special reason for wanting a full-frame lens which will be larger, heavier and much more expensive. FYI there is no Sony full-frame 50mm f/1.8 - do you mean the 55mm f/1.8? There is an APS-C 50mm f/1.8, however.