Imagery: Auto - Large Table of Contents

EXCERPT page containing first few paragraphs. 2024-03-28 19:01:35
UA_SEARCH_BOT_null @ 44.200.23.133

For full access, subscribe here. Or click title to login.

Sony A7R II (42 megapixels)
Sony/Zeiss FE 35mm f/1.4 Distagon

Examples: Bad Sample Lens #2, Skew/Asymmetry (A7R II)

In April 2015, an asymmetry/skew problem with the Sony 35mm f/1.4 Distagon was presented in Examples at f/1.4, Bad Sample Lens (Pescadero Creek, A7R).

In August 2015, your author obtained another brand-new Sony/Zeiss 35/1.4, this time to shoot on the new Sony A7R II. It is shocking, but the second sample shows a very similar skew/asymmetry as the first, if anything worse. As if the lens manufacturing is calibrated to produce defective lenses consistently. See the note by James K after the conclusions.

Various readers have written with the same findings: the right side is blurred where it ought to be sharp. Your author’s own findings of two brand-new bad samples and the consistency of reader reports leads to an unpleasant nagging feeling that quality control is problematic at Sony, or that the manufacturing process is consistently producing flawed lenses*. Buying the rather expensive Sony 35/1.4 is fraught with the peril of getting a lousy performer (at right side).

Article continues for subscribers...

Diglloyd Guide to Mirrorless is by yearly subscription. Subscribe now for about 25 cents a day ($90/year).
BEST DEAL: get full access to ALL 8 PUBLICATIONS for only about 75 cents a day!

Diglloyd Guide to Mirrorless offers comprehensive integrated coverage of most APS-C and full frame mirrorless cameras and lenses.

Special emphasis is placed on Sony full-frame, including Sony lenses and the high performance Zeiss Batis and Zeiss Loxia lenses plus Rokinon/Samyang and others. Fujifilm X, Olympus and Panasonic M4/3, Sigma dp Merrill and dp/sd Quattro are also covered in depth. Years in the making, it offers a wealth of material for choosing and using a mirrorless camera.

  • Make better images by learning how to get the best results right away. For example, the best way to set up your Sony camera.
  • Save money by choosing the right lens for your needs the first time, particularly with the numerous lenses available for Sony.
  • Make better images, a sort of “cheat sheet” saving yourself months or years of ad-hoc learning—best practices and how-to and processing parameters are discussed and shown.
  • Jaw-dropping image quality found nowhere else utilizing Retina-grade images up to full camera resolution, plus large crops.
  • Real world examples with insights found nowhere else. Make sharper images just by understanding lens behavior you won’t read about elsewhere.
  • Aperture series from wide open through stopped down, showing the full range of lens performance and bokeh.
  • Optical quality analysis of field curvature, focus shift, sharpness, flare, distortion, and performance in the field.

Want a preview? Click on any page below to see an excerpt as well as extensive blog coverage, for example on Sony.

f1.4 @ 1/3200 sec, ISO 100; 2015-08-15 13:19:25
Sony A7R II + Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA

[low-res image for bot]

diglloyd Inc. | FTC Disclosure | PRIVACY POLICY | Trademarks | Terms of Use
Contact | About Lloyd Chambers | Consulting | Photo Tours
RSS Feeds | X.com/diglloyd
Copyright © 2022 diglloyd Inc, all rights reserved.