Bokeh!

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Playing around with the 7Artisans 35mm f/1.2 II (the "II" is important - this is a whole new formula).

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I initially got the impression that it never got that sharp wide open, but I was mistaken; it's just not all that easy to keep the razor thin plane of focus steady ...

M.
Thanks for posting. Iā€™ve always struggled to justify owning a lens faster than f1.4 in real world use (well of course Iā€™ve never owned onešŸ˜‚). But seriously, Iā€™ve never seen anyone demonstrate a real world difference, and Iā€™ve asked on various forums. So Iā€™d be very interested in any more samples you have Matt. Where the lens is that fast, I would tend to try and achieve front and back bokeh. As always, these things are subjective, no rules etc.
 
Thanks for posting. Iā€™ve always struggled to justify owning a lens faster than f1.4 in real world use (well of course Iā€™ve never owned onešŸ˜‚). But seriously, Iā€™ve never seen anyone demonstrate a real world difference, and Iā€™ve asked on various forums. So Iā€™d be very interested in any more samples you have Matt. Where the lens is that fast, I would tend to try and achieve front and back bokeh. As always, these things are subjective, no rules etc.
Ray, I'll do quite a lot of shooting with the lens over the next couple of weeks - if you see shots from the Z 50 without any lens information, that's the one.

The f/1.2 aperture on APS-C isn't that spectacular *in principle* - it's the DoF equivalent of a f/1.8 lens on FF. However, in this case, there's a rather strong glow on the slightest misfocus wide open, so nailing focus becomes more difficult. At normal viewing sizes, this is not that much of a problem in the resulting images, plus it basically vanishes at f/2, but it is somewhat irritating when focusing using magnification through the EVF, and focus peaking isn't that useful, either, because it's fooled by the sudden loss of contrast - so it's hard to know if you're even close to the correct focal distance. I use only magnification, but interestingly - and somewhat irritatingly - I also find my hold on the Z 50 a bit shakier than on the Sony A6000 (could also be the higher refresh rate of the EVF, though - it obviously responds to the jitter, whereas the A6000's unit might just be too sluggish). Focusing is pretty smooth, but the aperture ring is huge and wobbly; clicks are not that confident, but still loud.

Usage gripes aside, the results from the lens look really promising. This *is* a completely different beast from the first version, with much smoother bokeh, and still very nice transitions with (so far) considerably less visible colour fringing; there's also hardly any distortion, which is a pleasant surprise, and the lens focuses down to 28cm. Considering the price, I'm quite impressed, and the optical properties should allow for interesting images. The first version delivers on that count as well - but it never sharpens up across the field, and longitudinal and lateral chromatic aberrations abound; in a way, that's part of its charm, but it's just not a universally useful lens. I'm somewhat optimistic that the second version is more useful in that respect.

As for f/1.2 lenses in general, I also own the VoigtlƤnder Nokton 50mm f/1.2, and that lens is a very interesting example of what f/1.2 can provide.The plane of focus becomes extremely narrow, and though wide-open sharpness isn't that great in absolute terms (though much, much better than either 7Artisans f/1.2 lens I own) it retains a high level of contrast, so the images still look quite punchy. It's certainly a really useful low-light shooter, and the overall optical qualities are pretty amazing; though it's big for a rangefinder lens, it's actually pretty compact (think Nikon 50mm f/1.4G). All that said, I do prefer its little older brother, the Nokton f/1.5 (I); it delivers a smoother image overall - and, to my eye, a more pleasing bokeh. Had I acquired the f/1.5 lens before the f/1.2, I doubt I'd ever reached for more light gathering capabilities ...

It's not all in the maximum aperture - the mix has to be right. We'll see if it is with the 7Artisans 35mm f/1.2 II.

M.
 
Ray, I'll do quite a lot of shooting with the lens over the next couple of weeks - if you see shots from the Z 50 without any lens information, that's the one.

The f/1.2 aperture on APS-C isn't that spectacular *in principle* - it's the DoF equivalent of a f/1.8 lens on FF. However, in this case, there's a rather strong glow on the slightest misfocus wide open, so nailing focus becomes more difficult. At normal viewing sizes, this is not that much of a problem in the resulting images, plus it basically vanishes at f/2, but it is somewhat irritating when focusing using magnification through the EVF, and focus peaking isn't that useful, either, because it's fooled by the sudden loss of contrast - so it's hard to know if you're even close to the correct focal distance. I use only magnification, but interestingly - and somewhat irritatingly - I also find my hold on the Z 50 a bit shakier than on the Sony A6000 (could also be the higher refresh rate of the EVF, though - it obviously responds to the jitter, whereas the A6000's unit might just be too sluggish). Focusing is pretty smooth, but the aperture ring is huge and wobbly; clicks are not that confident, but still loud.

Usage gripes aside, the results from the lens look really promising. This *is* a completely different beast from the first version, with much smoother bokeh, and still very nice transitions with (so far) considerably less visible colour fringing; there's also hardly any distortion, which is a pleasant surprise, and the lens focuses down to 28cm. Considering the price, I'm quite impressed, and the optical properties should allow for interesting images. The first version delivers on that count as well - but it never sharpens up across the field, and longitudinal and lateral chromatic aberrations abound; in a way, that's part of its charm, but it's just not a universally useful lens. I'm somewhat optimistic that the second version is more useful in that respect.

As for f/1.2 lenses in general, I also own the VoigtlƤnder Nokton 50mm f/1.2, and that lens is a very interesting example of what f/1.2 can provide.The plane of focus becomes extremely narrow, and though wide-open sharpness isn't that great in absolute terms (though much, much better than either 7Artisans f/1.2 lens I own) it retains a high level of contrast, so the images still look quite punchy. It's certainly a really useful low-light shooter, and the overall optical qualities are pretty amazing; though it's big for a rangefinder lens, it's actually pretty compact (think Nikon 50mm f/1.4G). All that said, I do prefer its little older brother, the Nokton f/1.5 (I); it delivers a smoother image overall - and, to my eye, a more pleasing bokeh. Had I acquired the f/1.5 lens before the f/1.2, I doubt I'd ever reached for more light gathering capabilities ...

It's not all in the maximum aperture - the mix has to be right. We'll see if it is with the 7Artisans 35mm f/1.2 II.

M.
Many thanks Matt. Didnā€™t know it was an apsc lens but I note your comments on the Voigt. Not a subject for this particular thread, but I do wonder what the point is of anything faster than F1.4 in real world use. Not that Iā€™d necessarily turn down a faster lens of course.
 
Many thanks Matt. Didnā€™t know it was an apsc lens but I note your comments on the Voigt. Not a subject for this particular thread, but I do wonder what the point is of anything faster than F1.4 in real world use. Not that Iā€™d necessarily turn down a faster lens of course.
Half a stop is half a stop - 50% more light hitting the sensor can be decisive. But anyway, here's what the lens can do.

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I really had a blast - this optic punches way above its very modest price point. It's certainly not perfect, but a huge step forward from its charming, but flawed predecessor.

M.
 
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