Originally posted by RGlasel While I definitely appreciate all the work you put into this post (I also greatly admire the photos you post here), I would suggest the difference between reviewers/testers is much greater than the difference between actual copies of a lens. The closer one examines all the variables, the stronger the impression that everything is subjective because there is no "true" standard to measure the quality of an image or the tools used to generate that image.
Some things like bokeh and rendering are rather subjective, but I think vignetting is one of those characteristics of a lens that is measurable. I grant you that there does not seem to be a standard to measure vignetting, but the process is pretty obvious: measure EV falloff from the brightest part of an image to the darkest, using a subject with an even level of exposure like a white card. Even comparing the images shown in the PF review with my own, there is a difference of degree. If lenses vary from one copy to another in terms of their resolution or centering, I don't see why the fall-off could not also vary.
Whether this matters is another question. It might not matter much to you or me, but it matters to Paul.
Last edited by Des; 12-19-2020 at 04:13 AM.