GM vs DN | Sony 50mm F1.4 GM or Sigma 50mm F1.2 DN for under $1400?
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- čas přidán 14. 06. 2024
- Sigma has priced their new 50mm F1.2 DN very similar in price to the Sony 50mm F1.4, but which lens is better bang for your buck? | This video is sponsored by Fantom Duffel. Visit store.fantomwallet.com and use code DUSTIN20 to get 20% off
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Table of Contents:
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0:00 - Intro and Concept
1:10 - Fantom Duffel
2:00 - Similarities
3:50 - Sony Strengths
7:21 - Sigma Strengths
9:21 - Conclusion and Pricing
10:50 - Optical Deep Dive
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Keywords: Sigma 50mm F1.2, Sigma 50mm DN, 50mm, F1.2, f/1.2, F1.4, Sony, GM, VS, Versus #SIGMA, #SIGMA50mmF12Art, #SIGMAArt, #SIGMADGDN, Full Frame, Review, G Master, GM, Sony Alpha 1, Sony a7RV, Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Bokeh, Flare Resistance, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, let the light in, weathersealing, #letthelightin, DA - Věda a technologie
Both are amazing, but I have noticed Sigma lenses are always a little more yellow and red, and Sony GM lenses tend to be a little more green and white-neutral than Sigma. I could argue a case for either being better depending on your goals and camera body. One thing is clear though, nobody makes glass as good as Sigma at their price points. Sony is probably the best (in my testing) of the high-end brands.
For me personally the sony is a clear winner... Less than half a stop of light (It would be interesting to see actual T stop) and a bit better in the extreme corners is not worth the tradeoffs of loosing size, weight, focus breathing compensation, fps limit and build. And yes, build, especially for those who already have other g masters like a 35 - 24, which makes the whole kit super consistent and familiar. Bokeh is not different, no one would ever see the difference in a blind test.
There's a visible difference in the bokeh produced by the two in this video, even when not zoomed in. The Sigma at f/1,2 is noticably smoother, viewed at 100% or fit to screen at a large 4k display the difference would be larger. The Sigma is slightly cheaper in my market and good bokeh in a fast 50mm lens is the whole point to me so if I were okay with its size and weight I'd choose it in a heartbeat. Also better warranty.
Doing bokeh comparisons is very, very tough unless the difference is obvious. Sometimes doing those type of tests actually contradicts what I think about real world results, where I distinctly prefer the "look" of one lens over another...but can't really find a way to demonstrate why!
@@VantrakterYes of cause a f1.2 is slightly smoother than a f1.4 fully open but it’s not a free lunch and in many cases you won’t be shooting at f/1.2 or even f/1.4 because half of the subjects (face) would be blurred out, it is mainly useful when the eyes are on the same plane or for more full body portrait, the moment you step the Sigma down you loose 99% of its advantage and the Sony would simply be the better pick because it’s a native lens.
You really need to shoot lot of 1.2 or else it’s the wrong investment.
This is exactly my issue with 1.2 that you don’t really use it all that often. It’s something you do in the beginning but over time the novelty wears off.
Also many f1.2 don’t translate to better T stop than f1.4
One advantage of the Sigma might be flare resistance. I know the Sony 50 1.4 is quite bad in terms of flaring. But I haven't seen a direct flare comparison of the two.
@@landyiscandy Sigma is rarely great at flare, truth be told few lenses across manufacturers are, mostly those that has been using Zeiss coatings, although Nikon has great coatings it’s generally too expensive to be used in photo/hybrid lenses, so many of theirs are so and so as well. Cosina however do generally well
Thank you! I'm going for GM 50mm 1.4. For me as a filmmaker the focus breathing compensation is crucial.
That's fair. I've loved the lens.
Awesome, was waiting for this comparison from you 🙌
Hope it was worth the wait!
@@DustinAbbottTWI Absolutely! Always great!
You have the best technical reviews. I love your content. Thanks a lot, man.
I appreciate that!
The close up detail areas, the last one with the wooden bucket; It looks like they don't have same exact focal spot, and the Sony got a better example area in focus, the Sigma looked FP looked just behind that, as was sharp. I was noticing the Sony focused slightly forward the photographer vs the Sigma on some other close up of detail, but the wooden bucket shot is a good place to look for it.
I did look through that image very carefully before sharing it, but I couldn't see a different focus point, so I do think my result is accurate.
@@DustinAbbottTWI If you look where the edge of bucket touches the handle resting on it, that's the focal point of the Sigma, that black edge and wood grain is in focus. A. Consequently, it's blurry in that spot on the Sony, so the focus spots are different. The Sigma has a shallower focal area too, because it's 1.2 vs 1.4. That might be the difference. It's possible the Sigma needs a slightly closer focal point so the front of the focal planes line up.
Love your reviews. This one is no exception. Interesting watch. I purchased the Sony 50mm f1.4GM and at the time was back and forth on it or the GM f1.2. I did see a difference in creaminess of bokeh. But the weight difference was noticeable and as someone else mentioned in the comments, if you shooting more than one person in the frame, you (I) usually have to stop down. So I felt the Sony GM was the better choice for me. I've been super pleased with it. I'm sure I would have loved the f1.2GM as well. But I'm really loving how Sony has lightened soo many of their lenses. It really makes a difference in me wanting to carry and use the lenses.
I too love the smaller/lighter trend.
Can always count on Dustin's reviews to be absolutely top notch! Thank you!
Glad you like them!
Thank you for the video!
You're welcome.
Thanks for doing this comparison. I'm looking at the reviews of the Sigma 35 mm f 1.4 and the Sigma 50mm f 1.2 for the L Mount cameras. You have received both of these 😊
Actually I don't have a L Mount camera, so I've never tested any of the Sigma in L-mount.
Great video!!!
I have a question?im looking for a telephoto lens , If you had to choose between the Sony 18-105 and the Sony 70-350 , which would you say is better? Thank you for your help 🙏
Unquestionably the 70-350
Great work, as always, Dustin! Just wondering: would you say there is some "de-centering" for the Sony 50mm f/1.4? The right corners seem never to sharpen up as much as it should, if I look closely at your IQ comparisons. Could this be a "sample variation"/"quality control" issue with the Sony?
I haven't noticed that in real world use at all. Remember that I'm doing a 200% examination on a 61MP body. I've not seen QC issues with modern Sony lenses in any meaningful way at all.
Yepp, so was my impression. The Sony corners differ extremely. It's a review with a broken lens 😂 (and still better than the Sigma!)
Well it's also possible that he's not shooting the target perfectly 100% straight. It's hard to line up targets exactly straight on a perfect planar, so I think that is a possibility to consider as well.
@@JoshChristiane I use a laser to help to align the test target. I definitely work at getting it as accurate as possible.
Thank you for this amazing comparison! I wouldn't have guessed that I would choose the Sony lens, but I would. Smaller, a little cheaper, sharper, and a tiny bit nice bokeh for my eye. I guess I might have to actually get a native lens. Lol.. One question, what screen capture software do you use?
That's the choice that I made, too. I use a program called Bandicam for screen capture because it will do 4K capture.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Thank you sir, that is very helpful!
But why are some corners so mushy? Is it because the glass is bad, is the glass tilted somehow, is the Field of Focus curved or is the camera mount a little tilted... If you focused on the corner, does it sharpen up? Sony's sharpness looks impressive. F1.2 vs f1.4 really is almost impossible to spot. (Is it just me or does the Sony lose a little more contrast when backlit?)
probably lens tilted (frequently misunderstood as decentering)
Remember that I'm doing a 200% examination on a 61MP body. Even the slightest tilt of the lens can cause a bit of that unevenness, and I haven't noticed any real world decentering from either lens.
To be honest, in the sharpness, I would have thought some field curvature from the sigma lens, there is some inconsistency on the sharpness that should have not appeared. But since it's you doing the review, Dustin, I would say you would point it out. Loved the review. I think the Sony lens, with these prices, is the technically pick-up. I do prefer the render of the sigma (not necessarily the color), but they are very close, the closer the lens gets to the subject, the more 3d effect I feel with the sigma, and to some, those faster shutters speeds might make small difference. The contrast on the Sony however, is brutal. Like you say, so many options, and these are some excellent excellent examples of them. Great great comparison. Such good work you do❤
Yepp, same. The Sony lights up the depths with flare a bit. Not so nice. The one point where it seems weaker.
Another outstanding review, of an important issue for me at the end of a runway, with varied lighting, sharpness and top to bottom framing being part of the task. There is no movement in the photograpers pit, so if you choose an 85mm over a 50mm your photos can be too close/ tight with no crop available. If you choose a 50mm it may be too wide, but at least you can crop? Has anyone any other experience?
If you are working in that situation, have you considered the Tamron 35-150mm? I find it the most useful event lens I've ever used.
@@DustinAbbottTWI That is a well rated lense I know, but going wide to 35mm is rare for me on a runway. I find I am at least 70mm and will easily shift up to 200mm. But In doings so there is a 135mm sweet spot for taking photos.
The most interesting comparison for me. The Sigma is actually 200€ cheaper over here, but that doesn't make the decision any easier. I think I'll wait what the new Viltrox lenses will have to offer.
same here, viltrox is the brand to watch out for right now.
That is an intriguing thought, for sure. I too am very interested to see just how good these new Viltrox primes are.
Waiting viltrox lab series for fullframe
Do you take the chart pictures with electronic or mechanical shutter? I noticed some cameras show a small amount of shutter shock in vertical direction.
EFC - ie, mechanical.
@@DustinAbbottTWI EFCS eliminates the shutter shock but introduces another problem, uneven exposure. I've seen measurements showing upto a stop difference between different parts of the image due to EFCS depending on the lens design. That much should be visible on vignetting tests. Sony might be trying to compensate it in firmware, but the third party lenses are out of luck. Electronic shutter would eliminate this problem as well as the shutter effect on bokeh.
Sigma actually specifically requests reviewers to NOT use electronic shutter to avoid the clipping on bokeh.
@@DustinAbbottTWI I don't understand that. EFCS at high shutter speeds does effect bokeh, not the full mechanical or electronic shutter.
Are you going to do a a9iii review? I would really like your insights. Yours is one of the few I trust.
I've been a waiting list for a while. I'm not sure what has happened there.
Having 2 f1.2 lenses and doing eventwork i can tell you that the capability to gather more light is really great... untill you have more then one person in frame. Thats why i stopped pursuing faster lenses. It gets you far but if you cross the line you are going to shoot junk again thats why i would lean towards the 50 1.4GM this and of course the 20/30 or even 120fps its capable of😅
Depth of field is a two edged sword, for sure.
@@DustinAbbottTWI funny thing is that some people who are used to smartphones only might see it as a fault anyways. So i dont know... Guess i stick to my Voigländer 1.2 Nokton Aspherical that gives me tons of light and less brutal background seperation.
What the world needs is a comparison video between the Sigma 50mm f1.4 DG DN Art and this Sigma 50mm f1.2 DG DN Art.
There's probably one out there, but I don't have both lenses to compare. I was able to do this one because I own the GM lens.
One way to compare oof structure is to have an oof circular highlight and compare the size. Theory tells us that the oof highlight ball diameter in proportional in size to magnification (m) times the aperture diameter (d) actually (m+1)*d. Assuming the magnification of these lenses are the same then Sigma oof highlight should be roughly 1.4/1.2 = 1.17 times larger (17%). You can clearly see the Sigma has larger oof highlights, but this ratio is not large so it's not dramatic.
Hopefully Dustin you can get to review the upcoming Viltrox 50 f/1.2 LAB which should be a fair bit cheaper and Viltrox are making some real quality optics and I have high hopes for their new premium line-up. Keep up the great work.
I definitely look forward to reviewing Viltrox's LAB series. They are usually very proactive in getting me testers, so I feel pretty confident that I'll get a chance to cover the lens.
Thanks, My initial thought of getting the GM seems to be correct, the advantage of the GM simply means more to be than the advantages of a 1.2. Optically both look very similar and when you don’t have them side by side and pixel peeping it’s quite irrelevant of differences
Fair enough. I try to just present that data without telling people what to think. I like to let people draw their own conclusions.
Sigma may be better for video on fx3/a7s3/zv-e1 for those who loves focus pool shots: focus breathing compensation reduces resolution on those cameras, and sigma has much less focus breathing, so you don’t need compensation for most cases.
That's fair.
I'm one of those few people who occasionally shoots sports with primes so I wish there were a bit more testing of that sort of thing; the one thing I know is that my Sony F1.8 Gs aren't nimble enough a lot of the time, that I'd rather get 3 shots a second that are all in focus than 30 a second where one is in focus, and that I probably can't afford the F1.2 GM. Doh.
Then buy the 50mm F1.4 GM. It's the best focusing lens here...particularly for sports.
These medium length Sony fit lenses have been so good for so long, it’s starting to come down to weight as the deciding factor for me now.
That's very true.
as far as IQ is concerned, would you choose the Sigma 50mm f1.4 over the Sony 50mm f1.4? Thanks!
sigma 1.4 has almost the same image quality but is twice as cheap, if you are concerned only with image quality, there zero reason to go for the sony.
@@kaimelis The Sigma 50 1,4 has pretty strong CA. It is also noticably larger and heavier than the Sony 50/1.4 GM
I personally did choose the Sony over the Sigma (I reviewed them about a month apart). I liked the packaging (size, weight, etc...) of the Sony better, it had better/faster AF, and I preferred the image quality. To me it was worth the extra money, but your mileage may vary.
First of all - sigma makes great lenses. Their art line gets more interesting with each new lens. Sigma has its image character, the 85/1.4 is particularly great. Nevertheless I bought the GM range with christmas discount and cashback. I don't want to have different lenses because everyone has a different color rendering and when you take hundreds to thousands of photos at a wedding, you wil recognize it and it will take time to edit on the pc. Sony I have 50/1.4 because the difference in size and weight is huge. You'll know it on your wedding day :) Sony 50/1.4 is amazing, trust me. But respect to the sigma 50/1.2, it's great piece.
I've enjoyed the Sony 50mm F1.4 GM a lot as well.
The only very reason to get the sigma 1.2 over sony gm 1.4/1.2 is you really want the f1.2 and cant afford the gm 1.2..
that's it.
Fair enough.
Under the scope I like Sigma a little better but I dought I will be able to see the difference in real life scenarios.
That's a pretty fair assessment.
Thanks @dustin
You're welcome.
Spent an age deciding between the Sony 1.4 and 1.2, the form factor did it for me, and I have been very happy with the 1.4, the sigma is an amazing lens but the weight and size of the Sony 1.4 still outweighs the Sony for me,
But let’s be realistic, both these lenses are fantastic
That's a great take on it all.
quite heavy differences from one edge to the other edge of the frame for both of them :-(
Remember that I'm doing a 200% examination on a 61MP body. I've not noticed that in real world images.
Why not compare with the sony f1.2?
I think I said why in the intro, but two reasons: 1) I didn't have the F1.2 available and 2) the F1.4 GM is actually the one that matches in price.
I have a hard time justifying modern 50mm f1.4 / 1.2 lenses at a price of over $1,000. Why? Because I have dozens of amazin manual focus 50mm f1.4 / f1.2 lenses. When I want AF, I just use a Fotodiox / Techart MF to AF adapter. Yes, these modern lenses are better optically. But can you tell the difference on social media? I don't think so.
It's true that at social media sharing levels of resolution many of these subtleties are much harder to see.
I’m thinking the Sigma 50 1.4 might be the best price/performance winner
Perhaps, though I reviewed it a month before the GM and still chose to spend the extra money for the GM. It's smaller, sharper, faster focusing, and has nicer rendering.
I do not like the 50mm focal length for full frame (ANY focal length shorter or longer !!!), but if I had to choose a 50mm Lens then it will be either the Voigtländer APO-Lanthar 50mm 2.0 (first choice) or the Sony 50mm 1.4 GM, the Sigma is too big and heavy "Bigma" lens !
Pentax just re-released vintage 50/1.4 AF lenses for their cameras. 216grams!!!! Wish more would embrace small designs and sacrifice a little on the IQ front.
@@sulev111It delivers not good optical image results, maybe like in the 1980´s ! Impressive low weight, but will it last for serious use for long time ! Pentax lags more and more behind the competition.
@@cameraprepper7938 they have DFA 50/1.4 if you want IQ, but that weighs a noct. Serious work doesn't mean necessarily that good IQ is required. And my point was simply to point out that Pentax has rereleased those classic lenses. I bet there would be a lot of interest in new f1.4~f0.95 lenses with af that use a small formula and weaker IQ.
Well, to be fair, it is hard to call the Sigma a "Bigma" when it is the lightest modern autofocusing full frame 50mm F1.2. I can understand the preference for smaller, lighter lenses, but the Voigt is a very, very different kind of lens.
@@DustinAbbottTWI Fair enough it is about the same size as the big Sony 50mm 1.2 GM. I will always prefer manual focus Lenses because I want the focus to be exact where I want it to be not where the autofocus want it to be, I have been too disappointed too many times with AF, further with the build quality of the Voigtländer Lenses you really get something for you money, that I do not feel I do with a "modern" AF Lens ! I do not thing a Voigtländer is a "very, very" different Lens, yes it is a manual focus Lens but it is a Lens and it is performing with outstanding image quality, together with the build quality, you cannot get more value for your money.
The Sigma stopped down to F1.4 should have less cats eye bokeh and vignetting than the Sony. Would have been worth a test.
Cat eye, yes, but not vignette according to my tests.
I really wish i would like the shape of sigmas bokeh balls but they always look off to me
Fair enough.
It is absurd that in 2024 with the technology that exists, many Sony lenses, and not just Sony, despite the fact that the cost of similar lenses has literally doubled in the last 15 years, you still find many examples of decentered lenses like this one by Sony. Absolutely unacceptable!
The amount of "decentering" there is minimal, and I haven't noticed anything in real world use.
The lenses may have doubled in price, but so has everything else in the world… The Sony glass, especially the GM II lenses, keep up with if not beat out the competition from other companies like Canon and Nikon.
We should be happy that Sony and the entire e-Mount platform allows great comparison videos like this to even be possible.
As a professional photographer with over 37 years of career, published in more than 30 magazines, I have never looked at my photographic equipment as if it were neither The woman of the heart nor my mother. Photographic equipment are only a work tool and professional photographers use what is best suited to their work. In my career I have tested and used countless pieces of equipment from many of the brands such as Nikon, Canon, Sony, Pentax, Hasselblad, Sinar, Mamiya etc. etc. 35mm, 6x6, 6x7, 6x9, 4×5 inches, 8 x 10 inches. I continue to use Nikon, Canon and Sony in my work. As I clearly stated in my main comment not only Sony has decentered lenses. Canon has it and even if it hasn't happened to me personally, Nikon certainly has it too. My advice, if it's worth anything, is to use what you like but never act like a fan boy or you never gonna be a real pro. If something doesn't work as it should, give it back and expect to get something at the level of the money you paid. But after all, what do I know....
It has doubled in price largely because of the inflation and that we are running low on certain resources which drives prices up. Pretty much all lenses have one corner that is slightly sharper or less sharper than the others hardly any lens ever made for photography have four equal corners
@@DustinAbbottTWIDoesn't mean much. I have just worked on a 50yr old lens which was heavily decentered. You could see focus point wander from left to right when turning the ring, standing before a wall... nevertheless hadn't noticed for a while!