Putting the Zeiss 55mm f1.8 in 9th place completely calls this ranking into question. Zeiss' optical design produces beautiful images with great microcontrast and depth. Color reproduction is great, it's sharp enough wide open and nice and sharp stopped down one notch, produces beautiful bokeh/separation, and the only real flaw is that CA can be bad in certain lighting conditions.

Love the video . Wow you've now given yourselves a lot of future videos I.e. comparison of the 24s , 85s, 135s . Etc , but I will look forward to seeing them . Good luck.

Thank you for this, a lot of work went into the information and the video and this is the best comprehensive review on the 50mm lenses I've been able ot find. Thanks again, you both are awesome!

You guys are just great to watch. Makes a bad day a good for me...another great video.

such a well done video, you two are true masters of the craft. I don't even shoot Sony and I still watched all the way through!

I have the 50mm1.2 G-Master and i am blown away by it since the Beginning. Great Video. Thanks for making it.

I was waiting for something like that for long long time, thank you!

Thanjs for your hard work testing these

I am just a hobbyist and a dad. I own 50 1.2 but my go to lens is the 55 1.8, i like the pop and color contrast that it brings out.

For this to be the ultimate ultimate test you need to include: Rokinon mark 1, the sigma 45 f2.8, viltrox f1.8 and the sony f2.8 macro. At least in the spreadsheet if you can

I tend to shoot more macro and extreme telephoto than the normal focal length lenses, but I'm in the market for a nifty fifty for video on Sony full-frame. This video is a great primer in the available options. Thanks Tony & Chelsea!

This really helped, I'm actually goin for Sony 50mm F1.8..🙏

Great information. I like the format!

I switched from the 24 mm F1.4 GM and the 85 mm F1.8 to the 50 mm F1.2 GM and never looked back. I love the 50 mm focal length and paired with the A7C it's my perfect camera setup that I literally bring everywhere. I'm not bothered about the weight so I take it with me on Hikes, Travels, Holidays etc. That background separation is just so perfect with the F1.2 model and I love the feel and hefty weight of it. Plus that autofocus for fast shots of dogs and sharpness is really nice when cropping

THAT's such a value adding video for anyone considering a 45-55mm 👨‍🎓👍 PLEASE do that with all common focal lengths😍 What about next: common portrait primes ~85mm (75-90mm)? And after that, all common wider angle primes? as time permits😉

You guys are so great...awesome reviews...very helpful

I am currently agonizing over whether I want a 50mm prime, and which one to get. This is very clear and helpful! Thanks!

Thanks for the tips. You guys are legendary. The Northrups, the Bonnie and Clyde of photography tutorials.

As always, extremely helpful information and very useful, thank you. I'm currently shooting an A1. I have the 50mm 2.5 and took it to Italy last spring. I think your combined final thoughts are spot on. I'm debating whether to invest in the new 50 1.4, but leaning toward not. The results I achieved with the 50 2.5 in Italy were amazing. The light kit, especially when walking for days, literally, made a huge difference. I don't recall more than a couple of shots where I might have wished for 1.4 - but the end, didn't need it. You probably just saved me $1,298. For now :)

Awesome review! I agree if I was to have two 50mm Sony lenses it would the f1.2 GM and the f2.5 G Compact. I have the 40mm f2.5 and absolutely love the little gem, it performs so well, and is very versatile. I hope Sony releases an updated (new) 85mm f1.2 GM this year

thank you so much. It's really helpful for a new guy like me. Cant wait to see 35mm sony list

Yeah the 50ZA is a much better lens than your compromised copy led you to believe. It’s a very sharp lens, has very good contrast and rendering. I know it well, because I used it before the 50/1.2GM came around, which was an even better lens. But in your field i would only pick the two GM 50s over the 50ZA. Maybe the 50/2.5G for travel. But the ZA is easily in the top 5 when it comes to AF 50mm lenses for e-mount.

Great video. Very helpful!

Great review!) It will be cool to watch the same comparison with all the 24-70 that are made for SONY

Thank you for an awesome comparison. You are the best! I had a used Sony za 55 and I didn’t get the results people are talking about. Many images were slightly blurrred or misfocused. Recently I bought Sony 50 2.5 and the focus is fast and precise, micro contrast is excellent, it has very good colors and it has character. Plus it’s small and light. Button and aperture ring are a bonus. Dustin Abbott review of this lens is spot on.

Perfect timing! I am traveling to Europe in the next few weeks and do not want to take my heavier cameras/lenses as this isn't that kind of trip. I can't possibly travel without some kind of camera so I picked up a gently used Sony A7C and am now looking for a lightweight but decent 50mm lens to plant on it. I have heard/read such great things about the 55mm, and now that you give the 50mm 2.5 such high marks, I may look into that. Thanks, Chelsea and Tony, for a great overview of the "50's"!

Thank you, T&C for sharing wisdom.

Such a pity you couldn't include the Sigma 50mm F/2 DG DN Contemporary in the comparison. Maybe in a future update of this ranking? :)

This was an awesome review. I wonder if you got a bad copy or a damaged copy of the size 55 because compared to the Sony 50 1.8 it's leaps and bounds ahead after using an working shooting situations.

Thanks for sharing another wonderful video like always 👌👏

Great vid! Although tbh I preferred the separation at f/5.6 to the f/1.2 at the beginning.

HI Tony, i got a sony a7iv a year ago, and went on a trip to capture northern lights, after learning it for a 10 months. i suprosed to see SNQ mode does not let me go down below 1/50 shutter sheepd, but if i put camera on picture mode, turn on the imaging edge app and then change to snq mode, it lets me do 4 seconds or even 2 second videop capture. it works h as hit and miss. not sure when it owuld work and when its not, did you observe this on your camera ?

I have the rokinon 35mm 1.8 (and the 18f2.8) and love em. Haven't noticed any problems with either.

I have both the 1.2 and the 2.5, I use the 2.5 way more. Its such a fun and pleasant experience, also cute. The 1.2 is a photoshoot machine, but I wish I had the 1.4GM personally as maybe then I'd take it out more often.

SO cool to share the spreadsheet!

Was there more CA on the GM 50 1.2 vs the 1.4? Looked like you were pointing that out at the end.

Love the extensive video, though I'm surprised (shocked!) by you're rating of the famous 55/1.8... my copy was outstandingly sharp, and I used it extensively the first 2 years of my career.... Oh, and by the way, Tony, your look at the camera when Chelsea was saying 'it's-so-cute, it's-so-cute!' was classic LOL

A few thoughts - My experience with the 55 1.8 was that it was at least as sharp - very sharp, and much better than the 50 1.8 in other ways. The 50 1.8 was my first FE lens, it was the next and first I got rid of. It was Noisy and Slow. I loved my 55mm, which was sharp and light. I used it for astro. It was sharp enough. I sold it to a friend and I miss it! Last year I bought the 50mm 1.4 Sony Zeiss because I couldn’t justify the 50 1.2. My version of the 50mm 1.4 Sony Zeiss is sharp and pretty amazing. Astrophotographers use it because it is sharp (enough) across the frame. I picked mine up from keh around 800. I have an observation after buying and selling through KEH over the years: lenses that were beat up and cheaper (bargain to excellent) can be a fantastic value - they may have been used by a pro, and kept and used because they are sharp. My wish list - I love the idea of that 50mm 2.5 for a walk around travel lens, so with an unlimited budget I’d get that and the 1.2 as well. Great suggestion. Thank you for your review - I always enjoy and appreciate your perspectives!

thanks as always - such a detailed review ❤

My first Sony lens was the 50 mm 1.8 and it was a good option to start with, now I have the Sony 50mm 1.4 GM and I am happy with the result, that lens is amazing

What’s the best reasonably priced zoom lens for the Sony ZV-e10 that gets as wide as 15-18mm and zooms to 60 or more mm? Or do you all have a video you could direct me to? I’m in the market and trying to do some research. Thanks!

What about the Viltrox 50mm f1.8? That was one I was considering when I was shopping this focal length.

Definitely in love with the f/1.2 GM. Depth of field is a compositional element. Love shooting portraits with it, shooting through foreground flowers and foliage, and at the same time, blurring out distracting backgrounds. Creates really 3 dimensional images

Thanks guys! How about a video on the best lens collection? Is the holy trinity still the best option? I always use a 2 body set up so I'm toying with the idea of replacing my 24-70 & 70-200 with the Tamron 35-150. Or maybe 3-4 prime lenses (I had a last minute job and I only had a 24mm, 50mm and 85mm on me - really enjoyed it).

thank for the video. please make all 85mm sony lenses comparison next.

Hello Chelsea & Tony, thanks for this info, great presentation. One question though; as an old fashioned analog shooter i' am still used to focus manually. Please also make a comparision between the AF & MF 50 mm. lenses available for Sony full frame (macro lenses included) to mainly compare picture quality?? NB. Perhaps you could also throw in the greatest vintage lenses from the main stream analog camera brands?

I have the 50/1.2GM and I love it for the images it creates, but less happy about the form and weigth factors, hence I tend to reach to my Voigtlander 50/2 APO when subject movement is not a concern. Of course I know I have to optimise the choice for the purrpose, nevertheless, I tend to use the much smaller and lighter APO more often without sacrificing image quality for a moment.

I traded my kit lens for the 35 f1.8 DX (50mm FX equivalent) and it’s on my camera most of the time. Only comes off when I use the telephoto or wide angle lens, which isn’t very often.

I have the 50 1.2 GM and I love this lens.

This is awesome review. Any chance of a review in another focal length like 35mm or 24 ish mm?

I know it would have lost on autofocus, but would have been nice to know where the 50mm macro Sony lens would've fallen.

6:30 A T-stop comparisson would be interesting in terms of low light ability, but kind of deep into detailes. Thanks again!

One your best videos. I love you two. Thank you.

I own, not the 50mm, but the 40mm f/2.5 and it hasn't disappointed me once - so sharp, incredibly fast af, love it 〜

THANK YOU FOR THE COMPARISON!!! I am most interested in the autofocus tracking between my current 55 1.8 and either the Sigma or the Rokinon (budget)... There's a major distance in focal plane size also to take into account, I ran some quick numbers on a DOF calculator and it's roughly 20% less from 1.8 to 1.4, and I haven't checked the 1.2 change yet. The Sony 50 1.8 I had was absolutely terrible, sharpness / fringing / loss of contrast. I actually shot my Canon 50 1.8 through an adapter instead lol. Also, the sample sizes in your tests are much different, so it's hard to draw a strong conclusion... I imagine this was a VERY tedious thing to test though lol maybe I'll just rent them both or buy and return one lol @1.8 2' - 0.05' = 0.6" 4' - 0.20' = 2.4" 6' - 0.46' = 5.52" 8' - 0.82' = 9.84" 10' - 1.29' = 15.48" 15' - 2.93' = 35.16" @1.4 2' - 0.04' = 0.48" 4' - 0.16' = 1.92" 6' - 0.36' = 4.32" 8' - 0.65' = 7.8" 10' - 1.02' = 12.24" 15' - 2.32' = 27.84 Focal Plane Size Differences: 2' = 25% 4' = 20% 6' = 21.74% 8' = 20.73% 10' = 26.47% 15' = 26.29%

Could you use a camera as a dash cam as a lot of the dash cams qualities are not very good and at what price would you need to go how could you mount it and what would be the settings.

I'm a Canon shooter so I'm biased, but a comparison between all EF and RF 85mm (Canon/Sigma/Tamron/etc) or even 50mm lenses would be nice! I'm personally quite happy with my EF 85mm F1.8 USM right now, but more light or closer and faster focusing and IS would all be great for portraits or product photography and especially for doubling as a night time wildlife lens

will you be updating the list with the sigma 50 1.2?

I'm very curious to understand what kind of sports and at what distance from the subject a 50mm can be used for? Even indoors 135 is for me way too short. Now obviously if the idea is to shoot a skater jumping from beneath him, then even a 15-30 will do, but that's not common situation at all...

lots of effort. thank you 🙏🏼

I keep ALMOST pulling the trigger on the new Sigma DG DN. But I’m tempted by the new GM. I just wish the Sigma was a bit smaller, with a bit less CA. In some reviews I’ve watched, it can be pretty intense.

That 50 2.5G is definitely the travel lens choice from Sony. Hmm, but I currently own an APSC 50mm F1.8 from Sony and sometimes I use it for make-shift portrait lens when I just need a shot or a 50mm backup lens. I am still kinda waiting for Sigma F/2 if it will come out at a later time. I have been using sigma 35mm f/2 C but ya, it will be so great if Sigma C series lens for the 50mm can have a iris click lock all-in-one-switch with a string bolt insertable for the magnet lens cap and comes with a tri-switch design and a body slightly bigger or around same size of the 35mm C then I would just grab that future lens.

Could you please put samyang 45mm f-av on the menu? What ranking would it be?

I got the 500mm f/1.2 back in December! I don’t regret that purchase, however I would probably have gone for either the new Sigma f/1.4 or even the new Sony f/1.4 if I was buying today, purely based on the cost

Thank your for your great work

Thanksk for being inclusive, many reviews we see on internet is just for the top of the line always and you usually include options for budgets. Would be interesting to see entry and mid range bodies too like the Nikon Z5 ...

As important price is as a factor (THE factor for many), it gets in the way during comparisons. Comparison ratings should be decided on the fictive assumption of "you can have either one of theses lenses one year for free, but you have to give it back at the end, cannot sell it and cannot have one of the others during this period. What would be your rating or choice then?" rather than ending every column with "but it's xyz bucks more expensive" or "not sure if this bokeh is worth zyx extra dollars". Otherwise price becomes THE only factor and you may omit the rest of the comparison. Consider price only after you found your top three liked lenses without looking at price. OR - you consider a probable reselling value after three years and compare costs rather than initial buying price.

What about the 350 dollar OSS 1.8? Is that the same as the one thats 250 but with stabilization added?

I love the f1.2 GM. But, if I didn't already have that lens, I would buy the f1.4 GM.

Interesting! I always thought that there might be slight sample variations as some other reviews place the 50mm f1.4GM ahead of the f1.2? The f1.4GM is on my 'buy soon' list - I'm just waiting for a good deal as it's currently almost the same cost as the f1.2 GM here in the UK. The reduced weight and heft (f1.4 vs f1.2) for just a slight loss of speed/bokeh are a good trade off IMO. I also heard that the edges were as good as the f1.2, but clearly not with your examples and tests? If/when I buy then I might retire/sell my 55mm f1.8. I may now need to look again at more tests between the f1.2 vs 1.4, but had thought the matter decided in my own mind. I bought my 55mm Zeiss f1.8 5 years ago on switching to Sony. I like it a lot (compact size and always seemed sharp) but not used for 1-2 years now and from memory the close focus shooting range was disappointing and limiting. I passed on buying a GM 24-70 mk1 (heft, cost, perceived indifferent performance) and instead bought a 24-105 G (mainly travel/convenience) but typically packed the 55mm too, for low light capability. But, after buying a 35mm F1.4 GM (lovely sharp lens, esp. for environmental portraiture) I tended to use that or my 24mm f1.4 prime instead of the 55mm. After the 24-70 GM mk2 came out, I bought that as my 3rd 'trinity zoom' (excellent) sold my 24-105 and haven't used my55mm since. So now I'm looking for a really great 50mm and had thought the f1.4 GM a better choice, on balance, than the f1.2 GM. Absolute cost isn't an issue for me, although I won't just pay any old 'asking' price and try to 'buy smart'. I suspect if smaller/lighter then it might just get packed and together with my 35mm GM prime may mean I don't always travel with a 'default' 24-70 zoom. I guess I'm lucky to have choices.

The sony 1.4 gm and 1.2 gm which one would you pick?

I am surprised to not see the Sigma 50mm f2 DG DN Contemporary in your lineup, can you share why you did not pick that lens which usually has good reviews, I am in fact very interested in this one?

Question... Is it worth shooting f4 for the OSS? or... more worth it if I shoot f2.8 or lower for better Image quality and low light performance? A7IV wedding videographer

Final selections are exactly what I had in my mind :) 1.2 for Work and 2.5G for Travel!

The 55/FE is still an all-time favorite lens.

Rokinon 50 1.4 II is amazing, its my favorite 50 for the sony should had been higher up imo but great video otherwise! And one thing that rokinon has over the sony is that Rokinon has pretty much no focus breathing while the sony ones breathe heavily, so its great for video.

thankute professors! I am going to buy my first fullframe fifty soon

I passed on all those lenses and went for a Sony FE 40mm F2.5 G. My only uses for this focal length is for street and landscape, so I wanted something small and with minimal distortion.

Great job!

This is a great comparison!

The zeiss 55 1.8 is one of the sharpest lens ever made it should me number 3 About the sigma design 3/10 ? It feels actually as premium as the gm, at least they tell the image quality was as good as the Sony 1.4 gm. It was also weird to see the 2.5 before the sigma and the zeiss 1.8 😅

I have the 1.8 and admittedly it is on an a7 mark one, but one problem I am always had with it focus hunting. It can be excruciatingly slow if you find focus.

Thanks for the detailed comparison! Last week, I ordered a used 50mm f/1.2 using money I got from selling other lenses I didn't use as much, including my old 55mm f/1.8. I also had way too many 35mm lenses, so I sold all of them as well, except for the 35mm GM and the 16-35mm GM. I'm really excited to walk around at night with the 1.2!

How about the sigma contemporary 45mm?

But these are NOT all the AF 50-ish lenses for Sony? What about Viltrox AF 50 f/1.8, Sony FE 50mm F2.8 Macro, Sigma 45mm F2.8 DN DG (since you included the 45mm Samyang)?

Love this. Can you do this 50mm comparison for Canon?

I have the Zeiss Planar 1.4 and Samyang/Rokinon 45mm f1.8. The first blows away the plastic FE 50mm 1.8 any day, no doubt… It is a lemon Zeiss for sure. The Planar is little softer than GMs but a vastly superior optics than the others. The Samyang 45 is better optically and much faster in AF departament than the clunky FE 50mm f1.8, specially with the last Samyang firmware update. While I enjoy travel with size and weight of Samyang 45, the Zeiss much better optically.

Sony 50 1.2 GM is my go to prime. Super sharp, super fast and it produces super images in the studio and in natural light!! I also love my 35 1.4 GM. However, I did return my 85 1.4 GM to B&H. It sounded like a chain saw when the ridiculously slow focus motors churned away. Also had a horrible time getting it to lock focus in only moderately low light :( I am wondering if I got a bad copy of the 85?

I shoot wedding ceremonies in harsh sunlight… I’m talking harsh beach sunlight in CA that I cannot help. My Sony GM and Sigma glasses are trash in harsh lighting. My go-to is the Sony Zeiss 1.4 ZA Planar. I’m surprised it’s last place on your list lol. Would love to have you both cover subjects in harsh sunlight as a category.

Great Vide. Can you do this for Canon? Plus i think a great video whuld be the all common lens's photographers get, Like a wide the 50 or 85 and something like the 70-200. Its a pretty good tughrohl video and not much kind of videos like this out there.

Nicevidro, thanks. You forgot the sony fe 50 mmf 2.8 macro...

Nice way to compare lenses. For the next comparison, I'd like to see more points assigned to the rendering itself, like the rendering of the transition area. Now there's "bokeh" but it's probably just the bokeh balls. Sometimes Chelsea said that the bokeh balls are smaller than they should be => it can be 2 things: the lens might be a bit wider than 50mm, and it could also be more then f1.4, or a combination of both. I'm not sure I would subtract points for being a bit wider.

I already have the 1.2. And I bought it used from a fellow Sony photographer at a bargain price close to the price of the 1.4 GM. But if I didn’t already have the 1.2, I’d definitely buy a 1.4.

12:08 you said the 50/1.2 AF hit rate is better with better motors, but in the spreadsheet the 50/1.4 has 100% hit rate vs 91% for the 50/1.2

Thanks for the interesting comparison, I agree with the conclusions. For a manual focus 50mm, I really like the Voigtlander 50mm f2 Apo Lanthar, incredible lens.

Do a 35mm Sony comparison video like this please!

What about crop lens 50mm f1.8 oss ?

Agree 11:19 if its just a bit heavier aperture > weight

Would the new Sigma 50 f1.2 take first place?

What about the Sony 50mm f2.8 macro?