In a recent thread started by dgaies, there was a point risen that 31ltd might as well be the 50/1.2 of digital era, considering it's IQ, and subject separation and OOF rendering. Since shots in previous thread were all shot wide open, some members wanted to see shots stopped down. So I decided that I will take my lenses and start comparing them against each other, and of course first two to shoot it out would be the "silver queen" SMC P-FA 1:1.8 31mm Limited and the "old laughing lady" SMC P 1:1.2/50.
The test was simple, I put on table just about anything I found in a living room, set up a tripod, put my K10D on it. Set manual WB using impartial FA43. Then run shots with 31ltd. First up @1.8 in Av fiddling with EV until I wasn't happy with histogram. Then to M mode and selecting shutter speeds to keep the histogram where I wanted it. All with 2sec timer and remote cord.
Then I slapped K50 on, and took shots at f 2.8 and f2 with the same shutter speeds as for 31ltd, and set new speeds for other two shots. Firs series was done from the same spot to keep the perspective the same, and for the second series I moved the tripod to keep the target magnification the same (as much as possible).
All shots were then imported to LR3 and converted on my basic settings, no adjustments at all. Opened in CS3 and resized and cropped for display purposes.
I will not pass my judgment and let you draw your own conclusions. Thanks for reading and viewing. And tips and comments for future shootouts welcome...
Regards
P
EXIF:
K10D GP fv1.3
Manual balance (LR: temp: 9100, ting +109)
ISO100
Shutter speeds for 31ltd
1.8 = 1/13
2 = 1/13
2.8 = 1/10
Shutter speeds for K50
1.2 = 1/25
1.4 = 1/20
2 = 1/13
2.8 = 1/10
note: K50 doesn't support Av in other than wide open and f stops are selectable via aperture ring only! The f stops on the ring are as follow: 1.2 (marked) 1.4 (first mid click) 2(marked) 2.4 (second mid click) 2.8 (marked) and so on... that's why I couldn't and didn't do comparison on f1.8 and f2 is the first f stop these two lenses have in common.
now to the pictures:
IMGP5954 IMGP5957 IMGP5959 IMGP5963 IMGP5962 IMGP5961 IMGP5960 IMGP5969 IMGP5970 IMGP5971 IMGP5972
100% crops of focus target when keeping it the same mginfication:
IMGP5954c IMGP5957c IMGP5959c IMGP5969c IMGP5970c IMGP5971c IMGP5972c
and 3 composites to compare the sharpness:
Untitled-1 Untitled-2 Untitled-3