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Zeiss Loxia 50mm f/2

JimmyD

By JimmyD,
in Sony Alpha Full Frame Lenses

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JimmyD

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Picked up my Loxia 50mm today and took a few quick shots. Oh my! Instantly my favorite lens for the A7R (and I suspect it will be for my A7MkII as well). In my 45 years of photography I have literally shot 100's of manual and auto focus primes (Leica, Zeiss, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Minolta, etc.), and IMHO the Loxia 50 is as good overall as any of them and much better than most. I have the Sony/Zeiss 55mm f/1.8 "baby Otus" and love it as well (largely for its wide aperture sharpness), but it makes more clinical images compared to the classic rendering of the Loxia.

 

The Loxia balances perfectly on the A7R. The lens is mechanical perfection. Focus is easier and faster than any other MF lens I've ever used, especially with the A7R auto zoom in feature when you turn the focus ring. Colors are amazing. A tad soft in the extreme corners when I shot a brick wall wide open as you would suspect, but otherwise very sharp and contrasty. Very, very usable in real life straight from f/2. Wow--can't wait for the Loxia 85mm and 25mm !!!

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Philber Enthusiast

Philber

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I concur 100%. The Loxia 50 is a delightful lens. It does not emphasize detail or sharpness the way a FE 55 f:1.8 does, but presents the image in a holistic way, and one can't fail to enjoy the lovely colours (much better in this respect than the FE IMHO). One area where Jimmy and I differ is that the Loxia has weaker contrast than most Zeiss lenses I have used, again IMHO. Certainly much weaker than, for example, Contax G 45 f:2.0. This is not a weakness, merely a design choice. As pics were requested, one of Notre-Dame, in Paris.

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JimmyD Collaborator

JimmyD

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Been asked to post some pics.  Here are a couple quick JPGs, both at ISO and with minimal PP.  The statue was at f/2; the Port of Tacoma was at f/5.6.  Not great shots as I was just trying to do a quick test, but shows some of the capabilities of the lens.

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JimmyD Collaborator

JimmyD

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Turtle, I couldn't agree more. My dream kit is a Loxia 85 1.8 and 25 2 to go along with the 50 2. Right now for my light kit I am using a Zeiss ZM 85 4 and an Oly 24 2.8, both with Novoflex adapters. All very light with great IQ, it's just that the auto zoom feature when you turn the focus ring on the Loxia makes focusing a dream.

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Just got mine  :D   looks great. This is really how a modern manual focus lens should be implemented. I think Leica gets some problems from this series ... especially if Sony/Zeiss can put out a Rangefinderish camera (A9 perhaps).

 

 

 

At f2.0 which I know because its written in the Metadata!

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I'm really enjoying this lens. Just noticed the Bokeh is showing the aperture blade patten quite strongly, I think close focus is a factor. Just shoot wide open I guess, which is in the third shot - I've never seen anything like this before, quite an effect.

 

Focal distance around 50cm, f2 (except for the one at f2.8).

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