[Kunzite]

On metalic surfaces and water?

[beholder3]

Here is what a Sigma Art 85mm F1.4 does: https://media.the-digital-picture.com/Images/Other/Sigma-85mm-f-1.4-DG-HSM-Art-Lens/SA/f14.jpg

How is that compared?

Edit:
And here is the green fringing on the 50 Art: https://www.flickr.com/groups/2471391@N20/discuss/72157644876947718/

Purple Nose: https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/56224898?image=0

[UncleVanya]

Reading this review was an eye opener:
Nikon 50mm f/1.4G Review - Photography Life

The Nikon 1.4 isn't that sharp but is sharper than the Sigma (EX not ART). It is also not weather sealed. It is also pretty cheap compared to the Sigma and Zeiss and similar lenses.

Here's more context with the Art lens (much much better than the older EX version):
Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Art Sharpness and Bokeh Comparison - Photography Life

---------- Post added 05-16-18 at 02:24 PM ----------

To put this in context the review of the FA 50 1.4 doesn't seem so bad now that I see how poorly the Nikon 50mm 1.4G does.

Perhaps just as interesting the Nikon 58mm 1.4G isn't all that either - however the bokeh is nice enough. But that is a lot of $ to pay for a lens that performs that way.

[Mistral75]

There is some lateral ca in out of focus contrasty areas:

That's longitudinal chromatic aberration: magenta in front of the focal plane and green behind it.

All fast lenses but truly apochromatic ones suffer from longitudinal chromatic aberration.

The only apochromatic 50ish lens I know of is the Zeiss Otus Apo-Distagon T* 55mm f/1.4.

---

Last edited by Mistral75; 05-16-2018 at 02:25 PM.

[MMVIII]

That's longitudinal chromatic aberration: magenta in front of the focal plane and green behind it.

All fast lenses but truly apochromatic ones suffer from longitudinal chromatic aberration.

The only apochromatic 50ish lens I know of is the Zeiss Otus Apo-Distagon T* 50mm f/1.4.

It is great, but for 3500€ with manual focus.

[Pål Jensen]

Isnt it a preproduction sample?

[Mistral75]

It is great, but for 3500€ with manual focus.

That's my point: do not expect a €/$1,500 50mm f/1.4 to be apochromatic. The Zeiss Milvus isn't.

[MJKoski]

Wide open shooting is a gimmick. Sure, there will be the typical advertisement photos with some chick posing against a tree at sunset etc. But, Any Contax 50mm C/Y Leitaxed will do better than this new lens stopped to real shooting apertures. That is, to produce a pleasing image AND at a bargain price. I expect this lens to be overcorrected dull prime which does not give any motivation to go shoot with it.

[ogl]

Not quite sure who you mean by "the people" There is a subset of Pentax owners who aren't satisfied with the older offerings such as the FA50/1.4, and understandably so... It's a great little lens, but it's showing its age. For me, that's not a problem, but I completely understand why K-1 owners in particular want an up-to-date, high-end 50mm f/1.4 lens with outstanding image quality that makes the most of the K-1's sensor. So, yes - I guess those people will be very happy

Don't be so serious My post means that I remember the film time and there were the pile of 50 mm lenses...Especially, M42.

But it's a bit funny to see DFA*50/1.4's craze now like it would be any miracle

I understand that higher resolution sensor will get higher resolution lens, but old film times were simple.

[BigMackCam]

Don't be so serious

It was easy to read your one line post as mocking, but that lies with me - not you - so, my apologies

My post means that I remember the film time and there were the pile of 50 mm lenses...Especially, M42.

But it's a bit funny to see DFA*50/1.4's craze now like it would be any miracle

It's the level of technical achievement in the lens design that's potentially something to get excited about.

I have more 50mm lenses than I can count in my head, in M39RF (LTM), M39, M42 and K-mount (actually, a few in Nikon F-mount too), from the 1950s to present day. Most of them are fun to shoot with and - for my requirements - produce very nice images (some nicer than others, admittedly). But they vary greatly in resolution and rendering, and it's easy to expose flaws in all of them - especially in relation to digital photography.

With the DFA*50/1.4, Pentax owners get one of the most versatile focal lengths in a highly optimised and corrected optical design, with all-weather "star lens" construction. Whilst the focal length might be common, the lens design is anything but (which explains the development time). Early indications are that IQ is very special indeed. I'd be very unlikely to buy it for my own use, but I can absolutely see a market for a top quality fast, "normal" lens, and I can understand why some people are excited about it

[timautin]

Funny times... the people are happy with 50 mm lens.

Well I'm not seeing a lot of enthousiasm here ^^ .
I'll be happy once this lens finally gets released though, to see what's next .

[Joshua A]

Well I'm more than willing to admit that I was wrong when it came to identifying the lens, it does indeed seem to be confirmed as the DFA* 50mm f1.4, I am not redacting my opinion on the CA performance of the lens. I regularly shoot with the Sigma Art 35mm f1.4 on my K-1, and though it does show some CA, generally it isn't nearly as intense in colour or width. At the edges and corners of a fast prime I am willing to deal with some CA, as generally wide open the subject is centrally composed, but dead in the centre at portrait distances, it is disappointing that lens control CA more efficiently.

That said, this may be a pre-production sample, so it could be improved by tightening the optical tolerances before shipping, aka that the lens is optically decentered (which would fit with Ricoh Imaging press release on the delay of the lens).

Nonetheless, I am likely to pick this up on launch because I'm interested in supplementing my Sigma Art 35mm f1.4 with something weathersealed (and hopefully faster focusing), and as long as the lens isn't terrible, I'm sure it'll be in my camera bag for a long time to come.

[Rondec]

Wide open shooting is a gimmick. Sure, there will be the typical advertisement photos with some chick posing against a tree at sunset etc. But, Any Contax 50mm C/Y Leitaxed will do better than this new lens stopped to real shooting apertures. That is, to produce a pleasing image AND at a bargain price. I expect this lens to be overcorrected dull prime which does not give any motivation to go shoot with it.

And you, Sir, are a barrel of positivity! Love your cheery posts here...

A lens is a piece of glass. Some are better than others. More important to me than wide open performance are things like contrast, flare resistance, and micro contrast and my guess is that this lens will do pretty well in all those areas except maybe flare resistance. But in the end, it is more about the photographer than the glass and I imagine someone with skill would be able to make this lens shine, even if it is an overcorrected, dull prime that doesn't give motivation to shoot.

[BigMackCam]

Wide open shooting is a gimmick.

Plenty of people use wide aperture shooting and very shallow depth of field creatively. You may consider it to be a gimmick, but that doesn't make it so.

But, Any Contax 50mm C/Y Leitaxed will do better than this new lens stopped to real shooting apertures. That is, to produce a pleasing image AND at a bargain price.

That's entirely subjective, of course. Not to mention that the the Leitaxed Contax is manual focusing and most certainly not weather resistant. Apples and oranges.

I expect this lens to be overcorrected dull prime which does not give any motivation to go shoot with it.

I don't know about you, but I'm a "glass half full" kind of bloke... That said, I never set my expectations too high. I expect this lens will be considered superb by many people, whilst others - like yourself - may not like it. One thing we can be pretty sure of... Ricoh / Pentax didn't spend this long developing it without intending it to be something quite special.

Why don't we just wait and see?

[Sandy Hancock]

Wide open shooting is a gimmick.

Say what? Some of us shoot in low light. Some of us like the way lenses render wide open.

Any Contax 50mm C/Y Leitaxed will do better than this new lens stopped to real shooting apertures. That is, to produce a pleasing image AND at a bargain price. I expect this lens to be overcorrected dull prime which does not give any motivation to go shoot with it.

Please provide some evidence (rather than elitist, self-congratulating opinion) to back up this hyperbolic comment.

(edit: bugger - Mike beat me)