It’s a good day for the Sony E-mount FF system. We finally got our first really affordable prime lens. The 50mm f/1.8 FE costs $249 at BHphoto. So let’s compare it against the other lenses of its class:

1) The [shoplink 46307 ebay]Nikon 50mm f/1.8G[/shoplink] costs around $50 less than the Sony and very similar size and weight. It has a more “complex” 7 elements in 6 groups lens design.

2) The [shoplink 46308 ebay]Canon 50mm f/1.8 II costs less (around $100 on eBay)[/shoplink] and is smaller. But it has a more “simple” 5 rounded blade construction and has no aspherical lens. And it’s really made of very cheap plastic to keep production costs down.

At the end it all comes down to image quality. If it beats the Nikon lens I would certainly call it a winner!

Some more news: Hands-on pictures at Dpreview

Store links:
FE 50mm f/1.8 at BHphoto. Adorama.
FE 70-300mm at BHphoto. Adorama.
RX10m3 at BHphoto. Adorama.

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SAR reader Egmont is the first that tried to use the Superb Otus 85mm lens on the Alpa and new Phase One back with Sony 101 Megapixel sensor. This is what he wrote to me:

“Since you guys seem to be big fans of both the Zeiss Otus 85/1.4 and the new Phase One 100MP digital back, I thought I would share this with you. A few days ago we tested the Otus 85/1.4 on an ALPA 12 FPS with Canon adapter and Phase One’s new 100MP digital back.

Full Size image sample can be downloaded via Wetransfer (Click here)

As you can see by the attached image shot at f1.4 of a good friend of mine, it seems to me that besides the vignetting at the corners due to the massive dimensions of the new Sony sensor, the Otus is more than ready for the 100MP+ sensors of the future! I was blown away by the revolving power of the Otus 85mm even at its biggest aperture….”

And if you wonder if the Otus can cover the full medium format sensor size area when you stop down the aperture. He says: “The vignetting is much more controlled at f4 and then almost all gone at f8. ”

You can download the massive full size image samples via Wetransfer (Click here). Be aware that it contains more than 1GB images!!!

Commlite ENF-E(1) Nikon F to Sony E Electronic Adapter Testing 04 on A6300

The new Commlite Nikon F Lens to Sony E-Mount Autofocus adapter on [shoplink 45489 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]. And here are two more videos showing the performance of the adapter on the new A6300 and on the A7rII.

00.05 Nikkor DX 10-24mm F3.5-4.5G ED – AF-S Mode
01.09 Nikkor DX 10-24mm F3.5-4.5G ED – AF-C Mode
01.53 Sigma 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM
04.23 Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 EX DG HSM
07.02 Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG MACRO HSM

And Commlite CM-ENF-E(1) Nikon F to Sony E Electronic Adapter Testing 05 on A6300 A7RII Carl Milvus (Youtube).

Preorders:
A6300 body at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops. Amazon.fr.
A6300 with kit lens at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops.
24-70mm f/2.8 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.
85mm f/1.4 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.

The A6300 is slowly shipping out. And with more people getting hands on it we also learn more about the A6300 issues. As with any new camera there are always things that are not perfect. I hope Sony will take note of those things and fix them via firmware upgrade:

Sony a6300 and HFR Slow Motion Video by Gary Fong on Youtube.
Extremely annoying issues with my new a6300! (SonyAlphaForum).
Sony A6300 with the Canon EF300mm f/4L IS and the EF500mm f/4L IS: 750mm f/4 & 450mm f/4 (Pmrphoto).
Sony A6300 review (rolling) – Striking image but nagging issues (EosHD).
A6300 – my first impressions (SonyAlphaForum).
Sony A6300 Low light test by John Sison on Youtube.
Canon 80d vs Sony A6300 – Low Light Video Test Review by Chris Winter on Youtube.

Preorders:
A6300 body at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops. Amazon.fr.
A6300 with kit lens at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops.
24-70mm f/2.8 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.
85mm f/1.4 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.

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CameraQuest posted the first image samples shot on the new

via Rangefinderforum.

Thanks Josh!

Tony Northup tested the new 24-70mm GM lens and made quite a statement at the end. He says he would rather pickup up that lens with the A7rII than an equivalent Nikon or Canon!

Preorders:
A6300 body at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops. Amazon.fr.
A6300 with kit lens at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. Amazon.de. WexUK. Jessops.
24-70mm f/2.8 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.
85mm f/1.4 GM FE at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy. Calumetphoto.de. WexUK. Jessops.

David Kilpatrick from Photoclubalpha had the chance to test the new Voigtländer FE 15mm f/4.5 lens. And he writes:

“I have to say this lens is just outstanding optically. It resolved such fine detail that on the interior view at night of the Resorts World mall, moiré patterns are thrown up by the pattern of pegboard type holes in the architectural ceiling surface. I’ve been testing lenses for over 40 years now and this is simply one of the best lenses I have used. This particular interior is almost like a 3D test target for lenses, too!”

The lens will ship by end of April at BHphoto and Robert White UK.