Zeiss Sonnar 55mm f1.8 review
The Zeiss Sonnar 55mm f1.8 was released in 2013 for Sony E mount, as
part of the line of lenses produced in collaboration between the two brands,
that unfortunately doesn’t have the best reputation.
The lens is made of metal, it weights 281g, it is 70,5mm long and it has an external diameter of 64,4mm, with a 49mm front thread.
The iris has 9 blades, the aperture lacks a physical control and it goes from f1.8 to f22 - without half steps.
It has a 7 elements in 5 groups design, with a concave front element.
The focusing ring has a shallow texture, it is electronic without hard stops, very smooth with good resistance and minimum focusing distance is 50cm.
It has a very minimalist and sleek design that I appreciate, along with the small size and light weight. So light in fact that once it is mounted on the camera you don’t even notice the most of its weight is in the front.
Sharpness wide open is good but not exceptional all over the frame, with minimal vignetting. By f8 it gets sharper but still lacks some of the finer detail. There is some chromatic aberration in high contrast areas at the widest apertures. Colors are natural with good contrast, but lacking in saturation and it does a great job at preserving details both in the highlights and shadows. Specular highlights have onion rings and backgrounds are very soft with some occasional nervousness. Flares are bright green but not too strong and it doesn’t lose much contrast when shooting towards a source of light.
It has been more than five years since I’ve reviewed a modern lens and it did feel a bit like cheating, but it was also a welcome change.
Anyways, the Sonnar is good. It has good contrast without sacrificing highlights or shadows and the chromatic aberration wide open and low saturation give it a bit of character.
For my taste it is a bit too soft at 1.8, but as soon as you stop down a little it gets very sharp.
The lens is made of metal, it weights 281g, it is 70,5mm long and it has an external diameter of 64,4mm, with a 49mm front thread.
The iris has 9 blades, the aperture lacks a physical control and it goes from f1.8 to f22 - without half steps.
It has a 7 elements in 5 groups design, with a concave front element.
The focusing ring has a shallow texture, it is electronic without hard stops, very smooth with good resistance and minimum focusing distance is 50cm.
It has a very minimalist and sleek design that I appreciate, along with the small size and light weight. So light in fact that once it is mounted on the camera you don’t even notice the most of its weight is in the front.
Sharpness wide open is good but not exceptional all over the frame, with minimal vignetting. By f8 it gets sharper but still lacks some of the finer detail. There is some chromatic aberration in high contrast areas at the widest apertures. Colors are natural with good contrast, but lacking in saturation and it does a great job at preserving details both in the highlights and shadows. Specular highlights have onion rings and backgrounds are very soft with some occasional nervousness. Flares are bright green but not too strong and it doesn’t lose much contrast when shooting towards a source of light.
It has been more than five years since I’ve reviewed a modern lens and it did feel a bit like cheating, but it was also a welcome change.
Anyways, the Sonnar is good. It has good contrast without sacrificing highlights or shadows and the chromatic aberration wide open and low saturation give it a bit of character.
For my taste it is a bit too soft at 1.8, but as soon as you stop down a little it gets very sharp.
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