FA*85/1.4 vs FA77/1.8 (photos)

[MidwestMax]

Originally Posted by Photomaximum

Good test.

I would give the nod to the 85...

I agree. The shots from the 85 look sharper but still maintain a sort of cinematic feel.

[8540tomg]

Both are excellent lenses. On a purely subjective level I prefer the 85mm.

Tom G

[lbam]

It fairly obvious the 85mm is going to have more developed bokeh due to it's larger aperture and longer focal length.
The above taken into consideration I think it's hard to be completely critical.
I would say the 77mm seems to be allowing more light to pass through at matching apertures though.

I'd like the 85mm for it's max aperture, but am more than happy with the 77mm

Thanks for the work Frank!

[frank]

Originally Posted by roentarre

Congrads on the lens, frank.

I can see sublte difference in background bokeh, 85/1.4 has less harsh edges but still has double lines along edges in the background. Spetacular highlights are more round than 77 bokeh.

I am a little amazed that this subject in your testing images has the same expression in every single shot. That is hard to do!

Thanks James. Your eyes are definitely better trained than mine And my dad is always very patient

[frank]

Originally Posted by creampuff

Bro, your dad is very fit! Just like you.

I'd call this a tie between the two lenses.
Obviously the 85mm will have more of the background thrown OOF but it is really splitting hairs with the 77mm here.
BTW the colour rendition from FA lenses are just hard to beat.
Thanks for the nice test.

Thanks Denis My dad does more exercises (walking and jogging) than I do everyday. He's 68 now, but he can still follow me several rounds when we jog together on the track

As to the two lenses, I think both are good enough to me ...

[frank]

Originally Posted by suro

I like FA 85* much more Frank, if you will sell this lens - let me know

I'll let you know if I'm sellling

[frank]

Originally Posted by OrenMc

I noticed the same thing

Thanks for the testing Frank. Although I will probably never have a chance to own the *85 I am looking to get the FA 77

Actually both are all excellent lenses. I'm sure you'd love the FA77

[frank]

Originally Posted by k100d

the bokeh on the FA 85 def looks better to me, less hard edges
thanks frank, your dad seems to be a very willing subject

Thanks. My dad is the best model I've ever shot at, very patient and never complains

[frank]

Originally Posted by legacyb4

Very nice subjective comparison with controlled conditions. It's easy to pick out areas from each picture of what I like from each lens.

While you expect it at F1.4, I was surprised at the subtle differences in bokeh at comparable aperture from 1.8 and above. It's almost as if someone took a water brush in Photoshop and did a quick pass at smudging any of the higher contract edges in the background just in case they stood out too much.

Now if I could only do something about the *size* of the 85mm with its hood...

Actually FA*85 isn't a big lens especially w/o the hood on. But compare to FA77, the size/weight difference is pretty huge.

[Marc Langille]

Originally Posted by frank

Thanks. My dad is the best model I've ever shot at, very patient and never complains

Hi Frank! I suspect that's because you slip him a little $$...

I hope you are well good sir.

Cheers,
Marc

[frank]

Originally Posted by kenyee

I think the extra bokeh is from the longer focal length of the 85.
The 85 also looks warmer, but the 77 looks sharper to me until f/4 when they're about the same...

Thanks for taking the time to do this, Frank :-)

I used auto focusing for the test, and never really checked if there is any BF or FF problem w/ these lenses on my K20D. So we can't say which one is definitely sharper than the other

But I did take 3 shots for each setting, only posted the sharpest one for the comparison. I found that auto focusing w/ FA*85 was not as consistent as w/ FA77. For FA77, most time all three or at least 2 shots are spot on. While w/ FA*85, it's quite easy to pick the sharpest one out of the three ...

[frank]

Originally Posted by Miserere

Buy your dad a beer, Frank! I know had I asked my dad to do the same thing he would have obliged but would have sported a nastier facial expression

It's great to see a test like this, even if the lighting isn't as controlled as we might have liked. After scrolling up and down I would say the differences are minimal, and are not differences in quality, but in taste or preference. Reading the comments it's clear that some people lean towards one while others prefer the other.

Personally, I prefer the rendition of the 77 Ltd, as well as its bokeh. This is probably a good thing seeing as I just bought one

I haven't bothered looking at the larger sizes cos I doubt either of them is not sharp enough, so no reason to worry about that.

Bottom line that I get from all this: If money is not an issue and you don't need the extra 2/3 stop of the 85* for low-light shooting, then buy the one whose rendition matches your tastes better. Either one is a winner.

Again, thanks Frank!

Haha, my dad never drinks beer. But we do have some alcohol together once in a while.

And I totally agree w/ you: either one is a winner

[frank]

Originally Posted by thePiRaTE!!

77ltd seems like a very good lens, I've seen a lot of pics from it and never seen anything that showed otherwise. 77 is probably a sweeter spot for portraiture on APS-C than 85 as well.

85 seems like a great lens, don't get to see as much of it, but this test gives a good feel.

Bokeh is softer and more plentiful on 85. Both lenses appear sharp, though the 85 appears so right from 1.4, thats the selling point on the 85s for me. While lots of lenses these days are sharp, being sharp with great bokeh too elevates things and 1.4 certainly helps out the bokeh, among other things.

One can get most of the way to a goal with a fraction of the cost. To go all the way, costs a lot more - the choice is there.

For portraits alone, I like both. But I do feel FA77 is a more versatile one. Plus its compactness, it's a better option for most users

[frank]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Very interesting, the extra FL of the 85 is showing in the cleaner OOF areas, especially wide opoen where the extra half stop is showing.

The 77 displays a glow/shine faster than 2.8 that always turns me off, you need to tweak the mid levels wider than 2.8 I find.

Now at f/2.8 the tables turn IMHO. The 77 is showing much more "life" in the subjects face.

Nice finding. But the light condition did change abit during the test (moving clouds ...)

[frank]

Originally Posted by Photomaximum

Good test.

I would give the nod to the 85...

As w/ most of others