[shoplink 10350 ebay][/shoplink]
Introduction:
Here is the next article about one of my possible future lens purchases. Generally what I am looking for are lenses with a high build quality (hate plastic lenses) and that are not too big. The NEX-5n isn’t exactly the ideal camera for big lenses. But what I also want is a lens that can cover a full frame sensor as I believe that we will not have to wait a long time until Sony releases a sort of full frame NEX camera. Unlike digital camera I feel very comfortable to spend my money on a good lens. Lenses do last forever and keep a reasonable value in time (sometimes they also gain value!). So after taking a look at the superb Zeiss Sonnar 50mm f/1.5 ZM lens (Click here to read the article). I searched and collected some reviews about the Zeiss Biogon ZM 35mm f/2.0 lens ([shoplink 10350 ebay]Click here to see it on eBay[/shoplink]). Of course this lens will work on a NEX via M to NEX mount adapter ([shoplink 8850 ebay]again here on eBay[/shoplink]).

Lens reviews on the Leica fullframe camera:
The Zeiss Biogon is a M-mount lens and there are plenty of reviews on the Leica M camera.
Ken Rockwell writes: “This Zeiss 35mm f/2 Biogon ZM is optically superb“. Daniel Valente writes: “I am happy to say that the bokeh is neutral and pleasant“. Diglloyd says: “It’s a no-brainer for any M shooter.” And Steve Huff also likes the lens a lot: “The lens is sharp, it has gorgeous rich color…and if you are one of those who love the 3D qualities of Zeiss then the Biogon will be right up your alley“.

Lens reviews and tests on Sony NEX cameras:
The lens performs extremely well on full frame cameras but how good is it on the Sony APS-C sensor?
The most important review has been made by Photozone: “The Biogon produced impressive quality figures in our lab. The resolution is good+ to very good at f/2 and reaches very good to excellent result beyond till diffraction is limiting the quality from f/11 onwards. Lateral CAs are well controlled and not overly field relevant. The bokeh fringing (LoCAs) is typical for such a fast lens. Distortions are basically absent. The most obvious weakness of the lens is the amount of light fall-off at f/2 which is quite a bit higher than average for a full format lens. The build quality of the Zeiss lens is superb thanks to an all-metal body and super-smooth controls.”
Björn Utpott just purchased that lens: “I finally know what my daily NEX-5N kit will look like: the Zeiss Biogon as my main lens with the Sony 16mm pancake in my pocket for the odd time when I need something wider.”
Image samples can be found on flickr made by kriswashington and shigerus.
Video samples can be found on youtube made by dai3smile and unboxing video made by denrusso.
To see how the NEX-5+Biogon combo looks check that picture on flickr. Ad here is the NEX-3+silver Biogon on flickr.

Conclusion:
Super sharp, super build quality and you can use it on any NEX camera (APS-C or FF) that will be available in future. It even works o my old [shoplink 10351 ebay]Minolta CLE[/shoplink]! This lens looks like a real winner!

Links:
Zeiss Biogon 35mm f/2.0 ZM on [shoplink 10350 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]. I is available in black and silver.
M to NEX mount adapter on [shoplink 8850 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].

P.S.: Feel free to send me your lens suggestions!!! Thanks!

And here we are. The NEX-7 shares the same A77 sensor. But are the results the same? Is the semi transparent mirror taking away some bits of image quality? DxOmark (Click here) tested the NEX-7 image quality and the answer is that the NEX-7 is by a tiny bit better than the A77. De facto it is the Sony camera with the best results to date (even better than the A900 full frame camera).

As you can see form the screenshot on top the NEX-7 has a slightly higher dynamic range an color depth than the A77 (but the difference is negligible). But High ISO results are visible better thna the A77. Only the A900 can beat the High ISO results of the NEX-7. Now imagine what a NEX-9 full frame camera could do :)

P.S.: Check for NEX-7 preorders at: [shopcountry 8454].

Luminous Landscape (Click here) updated their NEX-7 rolling review with a new image comparison: “the NEX-7 gives the photographer the choice of higher resolution and larger prints, or comparable resolution and comparable noise characteristics when compared to the NEX-5n, and both are presented at the same size. I should add parenthetically then in real-world photography, when shooting raw and doing a bit of NR in Lightroom, all ISOs up to and including 3200 are completely usable for most any purpose.”

And I agree withtheir lats editorial comment: “If you’ll allow, I’ll also make a small editorial comment on the whole question of high ISO noise. In my opinion too many people on brand discussion forums make too big a deal about high ISO noise. I suppose that it’s one of those things that lends itself to easy visual comparison, while topics such as dynamic range, colour gamut and fidelity are more complex, and less easily quantified outside of a lab.”

+1!!! ;)

P.S.: Here are the NEX shop links:

Sony NEX-7 [shopcountry 8454].
Sony NEX-5n [shopcountry 8452].
Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 [shopcountry 8450].
Sony 50mm f/1.8 [shopcountry 8448].
Sony 55-210mm [shopcountry 8444].
NEX-5n viewfinder [shopcountry 9110].

And Luminous Landscape (Click here) is writing a NEX-7 “rolling review”. It’s a very detailed and incredible useful ongoing test. An absolute MUST-READ!

One more NEX-7 news. I don’t know how reliable this info is but the Expensys website says the NEX-7 will be “Due Thursday 15th December”.

You can read a new complete A65 review at ePhotozine (Click here): “The camera has good battery life, and although there is no optical viewfinder with SLT cameras, the new OLED EVF is simply stunning and makes the view through the camera look excellent. Although it is difficult to show on the web, it would be well worth viewing for yourself if you still have doubts about switching from an optical viewfinder to an electronic viewfinder. Highly Recommended“.

Photographytalk (Click here) explains why the A77 was worty to wait. And there is an interesting “A77 myths and truth – diffraction test” post at Dpreview forum.

All new Sony cameras and lenses links:
A77 at [shopcountry 8461]
A65 at [shopcountry 8459].
Sony NEX-7 [shopcountry 8454].
Sony NEX-5n [shopcountry 8452].
Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 [shopcountry 8450].
Sony 50mm f/1.8 [shopcountry 8448].
Sony 55-210mm [shopcountry 8444].
NEX-5n viewfinder [shopcountry 9110].

The video on top has been made at BHphoto store in NYC. Enjoy!

P.S.: Sony will soon release a statement about the A77/NEX-7 production status. I guess the chance is low that we will see both cameras in Stock before Christmas. And only a few store accepting NEX-7 preorders. Check this search links: [shopcountry 8454].

[shoplink 10220 ebay][/shoplink]

I am having so much fun with my [shoplink 8452]Sony NEX-5n[/shoplink] that I am constantly looking for lenses I could purchase for it. Thought it would be nice to share my impressions about one of the lenses I am looking for. The [shoplink 10220 ebay]Zeiss ZM Sonnar 50mm f/1.5 lens[/shoplink]. You can see an image of the NEX-5n with that lens on Flickr. The reason why I am intrigued by that lens is that:
1) it has a super build quality
2) it has a perfect focal length for portraits (75mm on a NEX).
3) and it is relatively compact and fast.

The lens is not cheap, around $1200 on [shoplink 10220 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]. Plus you have to buy the M to NEX mount adapter ([shoplink 8850 ebay]here on eBay[/shoplink]).

Lens reviews
To start I read the presentation on the Zeiss website. I didn’t find any official review of the lens on a NEX camera. I only found some reviews of the lens used with the lovely Zeiss Ikon ZM. Ken Rockwell writes that it is “an easy lens to love: it’s just so small and fast! It’s not a lens for pixel counters. It’s very sharp at middle and smaller apertures where it matters, but trades sharper images for smoother images at the largest apertures. This 50/1.5 is superb for general photography and people pictures.“. And Luminous Landscape tested the lens on the Leica M9: “There is something else that the Sonnar and some other Zeiss lenses have, and that is a very pleasant 3D feeling to the pictures. It´s not as clinical as pictures with some of the ASPH-Leica lenses sometimes can get. It just feels very pleasant, for lack of a better word.”
I would say the lens performs very well on Fullframe cameras. But how does it look on a NEX camera with APS-C sensor?

Image and video samples on NEX:
I found that aperture test made by Janus that shows the bokeh look of the lens on the [shoplink 8452]Sony NEX-5n[/shoplink]:

I also found some nice NEX+Zeiss image samples here at Dpreview forum, pbase, flickr (whaker), flickr (Amselchen), flickr (Clarobuck), Clubsnap.

It looks like the lens is a real winner but I will wait to see the first tests of the [shoplink 8448]Sony 50mm f/1.8[/shoplink] before to consider to buy the Zeiss Sonnar lens. The Sony has autofocus and is cheaper. But on the other hand I love to work with manual focus and I like to buy lenses with super build quality (makes me feel it was worth to buy it). If only the price would not be that high!

—
Zeiss ZM Sonnar f/1.5 links at [shopcountry 10220]
M to NEX mount adapter on [shoplink 8850 ebay]eBay[/shoplink]

Andrew Alexander from SLRgear (Click here) tested what should be the best available NEX lens to date. I invite you to read his full review that includes some graphs to show the lens performance. As expected this is a wonderful lens! Andrew says: “Considering the price, you would hope that the Sony 24mm ƒ/1.8 Sonnar T* ZA didn’t disappoint – and happily, it doesn’t. Sharpness is excellent even wide open, and other factors such as chromatic aberration, distortion and corner shading are well-controlled. The 24mm ƒ/1.8 proves to be an able companion to the NEX camera.”
What can I say? Well done Sony! Now we want more of this kind of lenses!

Reminder: The lens will be in Stock early/mid December. There are only a few stores accepting preorders right now:
US: Sony, Adorama.
UK: Amazon.co.uk, Jessops, Sony.
Germany: Sony.
France: Amazon.fr, Sony.
Italy: Sony.
Netherland: Sony.