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.

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!

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!

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.

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

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

Thanjs for your hard work testing these

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

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..🙏

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

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.

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

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

Great information. I like the format!

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

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😉

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

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

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

Great video. Very helpful!

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

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 :)

Thank you, T&C for sharing wisdom.

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

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? :)

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

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

thanks as always - such a detailed review ❤

Thanks for sharing another wonderful video like always 👌👏

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.

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 〜

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

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.

SO cool to share the spreadsheet!

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

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

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

lots of effort. thank you 🙏🏼

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"!

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

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

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.

Thank your for your great work

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 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).

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

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.

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 ?

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

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!

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.

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?

Great job!

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

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...

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

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

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

This is a great comparison!

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

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

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 ...

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.

Great video thanks saludos Ibera

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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!

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 😅

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

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 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.

Do a 35mm Sony comparison video like this please!

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.

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

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

I’ve the F2.5G and the F1.4 GM and great 😊

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?

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.

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.

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

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?

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

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)?

I got the Sony 50mm 2.5G, have had the 55mm some years ago. I have to say, its really sharp, its super fast, it's awesome! This videos helped me choose, I would have not gotten it if it was not for this video and I would most likely have gotten a slower lens which honestly wouldnt fit my needs as much as the 2.5G does.

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

How about the sigma contemporary 45mm?

Wanna know how good the Sony Planar 50mm F1.4 really is? Ask other KZfaqrs: Dustin Abbott, Julia Trotti, Christopher Frost, Steve Huff Photo & HiFi, Felix Jaeger, Stewart Media Digital, Gerald Undone, Chris Turner Photograper, Matt Jackson, Georges CamerasTV, PM-R TV. Even if Tony & Chelsea keep using the same bad copy I don't understand how its all metal and glass 'Zeiss Planar' build scores just 4/10 compared to some of these plastic lens in Design & Size. It also scored 100% (based on 37 photos) in their 'Sports test' but only got 5/10 score which doesn't make sense.

Thanks for the comparison Tony. We are just finalizing our own review of the Samyang 50mm f/1.4 MKII and our corner sharpness looks way better. I suspect you got a bad copy because our sample is very sharp even at f/1.4 (we were kind of surprised actually by how good it was wide open especially compared to the old 55mm Sony Zeiss in the corners...).

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

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.

The 50mm f1.2 is a magical lens. Sharpness, micro contast, tonality and colour. It has it all. I picked up mine in the UK for £1500. Considerably cheaper than the £2000 RRP