this lens is insane, plus the focus button. sometimes I wonder that Sony has made a mistake on putting the focus button. a big consideration not to choose GM 1.4 since the focus button is present and bokeh is not that too far on GM. good review bro.
Thank you, I think unless you are a dedicated portrait shooter that loves the slight dif between 1.4-1.8, this lens is better option any day of the week
I own both the Sony 85/1.8 and the Sigma/1.4. It is definitely heavier but I got used to it quickly. The autofocus on the Sony is faster and more accurate than the Sigma. In terms of sharpness, the Sigma blows away the Sony. I have the Sony only for the light weight to be used depending on situation.
I've used this lens as well as the 85 1.4 GM, both extensively. I truly like this lens better. The Bokeh is certainly better on the 1.4 but the sharpness of this lens blows the 1.4 out of the water.
Great review, Shane! I just purchased this lens as well as the 55 1.8 (which I also saw your video on!) and I absolutely love both!! Keep the great videos coming! :)
Thank you! I really am trying to up my video quality and I love hearing feedback. Have fun with those lenses, those two with the 35 1.4 are my bread and butter these days!
Shane Bethlehem Nice! I’ve been wanting to check out that 35! I’d love to see a review! I’ve also been checking out tons of stuff on the new 24 gmaster... not sure I’ll be able to hold myself back when it finally comes in stock haha! :)
@@LeviKellerMusic yea I love the 35, its def a tough call between the 24 or 35, really depends on what you like to shoot, the 35 is a lil more flattering if you have a single human subject, but the 24 is also such a great size. I don't think I'll be getting it for a long while, but i said that about my last few lens
If you want extra weather sealing I recomend a 55mm silicone "O" ring , fit the ri g on the narrow part of the lense (It's aprox 55mm on all Sony E mount) With the lense mounted on the camera just role the "O" ring over where the lense meats the camera body! Hay presto extra wather sealing . I now have "O" rings on all my lenses. Obtainable from Amz and there also in orange , cool huh. P S this 85mm is fernominal for the price. Another tip is to set the focus hold button to toggle aps-c mode for that extra reach.
A weird use case for me: this lens is incredible for zoo and aquarium trips. I don't really do portraits, but for situations where you're a medium distance away from an animal or a fish it's actually been a fantastic pickup. I'll keep the 85mm f1.8 on my A7RIV and the 70-350 on my A6600, and it's an easy to carry around combo that just works well for animal shots. And especially for $500, and it's nice for those moments where a friend hits you up and insist you do a photo shoot. If you don't find yourself *needing* an 85mm, the combination of low price, great image quality, and compact size makes it a compelling lens to buy just to have it. Honestly Sony's F1.8 line is pretty great all around. The 20mm f1.8 might be my favorite lens I own (my 16-35 f2.8 might be "better" for 90% of my use case, but the 20mm is more "fun" and infinitely more portable), and the 35mm f1.8 is perfectly functional. Got both together at the same time and I've been happy.
same, I was skeptical but its looking actually like a very impressive lens, Dustin Abbott has been reviewing it and it looks like the image quality is superb: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JSckh7_2Mzs.html
The photo with the gray haired gentlemen sold me and I purchased the lens, great review and I echo a previous comment regarding your pace and clarity...well done.
Absolutely the best Review on this lens. You have sold me Shane. While this may not be a run and gun styled lens, I think this will be great for street photography in NYC. Cheers!
I just found your channel Shane and I subscribed! Thanks for the excellent review. I do, however, like the Zeiss Batis 85mm 1.8 better. Although the Sony lens is pretty great, I've found the color and contrast from the Batis to be unbeatable and I like it even better then the G-Master. It is just my opinion, of course, but I love the right out of camera images I get from the Zeiss glass.
Thanks John! I've been looking at the Zeiss 85 more lately and completely agree, I'm hoping to find one used in my area I can buy and try out, but they just are too rare it seems.
That zoom at 4'10" really got me saying "HOLY SH*T!". I just bought this lens and also the sony zeiss 35mm 2.8, so know I am even more eager to start shooting with the 85 !!
Hi Shane. Thanks for the review. I love that lens very much as well! One question not related to the lens, what was the setting you used to shoot that lily with a green box on it (5:19) ? It looked like the object track function on A9 but I didn't found it on my A7R3.
Thanks! You are correct, it's the adjustable object tracking mode, it's like the bottom or second from the bottom AF mode, unfortunately I don't have my camera in front of me at the moment to see it. I've been trying to use it lately instead of centre point AF as my secondary AF mode. I've used a tracking point and hold it down if I want to focus and recompose. (I used to shoot on the canon 6D and that's kinda still an instinctive way for me to shoot)
@@ShaneBethlehem Thank you so much for answering that. I am really hoping you to make a review about that telephoto lens you have. Is it a 70-200 f2.8 GM?
@@SoftKitty0930 no problem at all, yup it's the GM 70-200. I'm working on a review for it right now, I just wanted to do another wedding with it for some more examples to include in the video, the issue is I've been using my primes every time I do one lately 😅
Great review. My Sony kit is (now thanks to this review): Sony 20mm 1.8, Sony/Zeiss 55mm 1.8, Sony 85mm 1.8. I can't think of a reason to use any other lens at this point! Do you use the 20mm 1.8 at all?
Hi Shane - I am fairly new to photography and watching videos like yours that are extremely helpful. A have a Sony a6400 APSC and I'm becoming a "wannabe" Portrait shooter as Covid becomes under more control. I have in my lens bag a Sony 50mm 1.8 and a Sigma 30mm 1.4 - I was very tempted with the Sigma 56mm 1.4 watching reviews about its sharpness. However, I am also watching many portrait lens reviews suggesting the Sony 85mm, especially for headshots and the creamy Bokeh. So, As I have the Sony 50mm would you suggest my next purchase be the Sony 85mm? I have subscribed to you today. Peter.
Hi Peter I'm sorry for such a slow response, the fall has been a bit of a busy season unfortunately for myself. I do find when I'm using my APS-C camera I have a tendency to gravitate towards 50mm lenses for portraits, however that's just my personal preference, and often at weddings when I have a second photographer with me I will give them an 85mm so that they can get portraits. I think the natural progression for the lenses that you have is to flesh out your wide end or your long end, though perhaps a zoom lens might be practical options to consider if you want a more versatile setup. For getting that super shallow depth of field a prime lens is going to be always better, but once you start stepping past 85mm the Bokeh you get from a 1.8 vs a 2.8 is going to be less noticeable while the added versatility of going from 70-180 may be more valuable in certain settings. At the end of the day I think it comes down to what you want to use your camera for more, if portraits are your dedicated plan then I think looking at an 85mm lens is an excellent choice and if you are looking at a full frame camera down the road, this lens is one that obviously works quite well for both sensor sizes.
Hey man! I was blowing away. I just bought a Sony s7RII body, and seeing your video, I decade NOT to go for the Carl Zeiss 85 mm 1.8. But I see a carl zeiss for €625,- on the market place.
Hi Pascal, I wish it was easy to explain in a comment 😅 it's in the 8th page of the second menu tab, under the 'custom key' sub-menu, on the third page, and it's the 'focus hold button'. I'm making a whole video on how I program my camera too where I'll explain it better 👍
Great review. Well delivered, knowledgeable, experienced and likable ! you have a new subscriber from London UK. I bought this lens about an hour before watching this review. Looking forward to it's arrival. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful! I think you'll love this lens! it's still part of my kit and even though it hasn't seen as much use in the last year it's such a reliable lens that is a dream to use
I think I made a very long comment about this earlier, but in general, I prefer the 85 1.8 personally because I never find myself being in too low light situations on our wedding day where the f 1.8 aperture isn't bright enough, and I never need more subject isolation then what f 1.8 provides and more often than not I end up stopping down because most wedding days you have two subjects in your photos and I want both of them in focus. However for portrait work if you're going for the maximum shallow depth of field I think the samyang is going to have the edge, but it's also obscenely heavy compared to the Sony, so it's quite impractical to carry around all day for a wedding. In terms of sharpness I think there's nothing really to compare because they're both very sharp lens in your splitting hairs to decide which one is sharper. So basically I'm saying I'm biased and like the lens I own 😅
I like the Samyang 85/1.4 better. (better bokeh, less vignette, almost no chromatic aberrations, f1.4 for Samyang vs better AF, a little bit sharper, lighter, smaller for the Sony)
I've heard a lot of great things about the lens! It came out after I made this video as well as the new Sigma designed for Sony E Mount now which make this lens a little bit more difficult to recommend because of its compact size.
Hi Shane! have the following items: Sony 6300+Sigma 16mm+Sigma 30mm. I want to upgrade my gear, but I am not sure what should I buy. The sony 85mm 1.8 or the 18-105mm G? I am looking for a lens that is suitable for concert & event photography etc... What do you think?
Hi! That's a very good question, it depends kind of on the venue you are in, if it's big, the 85. On my a73 & a7r3 I use my 70-200 and 85mm and I prefer using the 85mm, and most of the time I was use it in the cropped mode if I'm shooting video. The big issue is though that I have stabilized cameras with the 85, so I really don't worry about the micro jitter of my overly caffeinated hands for video. So if you're doing photos, the 85 is the way to go I think without a doubt. I think the 18-105 you'd be a little bit disappointed with because of the f4 and you have two stellar fast prime lenses already covering that range, but it is a stabilized lens so it probably would be your best bet for video. I would maybe even consider the sigma 56mm to complete your prime trio, it's a very similar size to the lenses you already have and are familiar with and it will give you just that extra reach you may be looking for at an event, I'm biased though there cause those APS-C Sigma lenses are my fave lenses for APS-C
@@ShaneBethlehem Hi Shane! Thank you so much! But now I have another question if you don't mind. Do you think that the 56mm could be enough for concerts? I would like to take photos from 20-30m at tops.
Hmmm like you won't be getting the tight tight shots with it, but if you need those ones hopefully you can sneak along the side of the venue or on a balcony if you have one. If you have a local camera shop I'd recommend trying the 85 1.8 on your cam, most best buys even have them these days, and just get a lil feel for it on your cam to see if that's what your aiming for or if the sigma is tight enough
Hi, very nice presented vlog! What's your take on 90mm 2.8 macro Vs 85mm 1.8? I was thinking that both are incredibly sharp and 90mm will provide additional macro capability, too. Thanks!
Thanks! I think they are a little tricky to compare. What they have in common is that they are similar focal lengths and insanely sharp. The 90mm is a lil slow in focusing and heavier, but has terrific macro ability where as the 85 is smaller, faster focusing but has absolutely no real macro functionality. I have been looking into getting the 90mm as a macro or the 100mm GM, but have been fretting over the choice. I think what it comes down to is what you want to do, more portraits and things where a light lens is practical, then the 85 is good, if you want to shoot allot of dedicated macro shots, the 90mm is the best macro lens you can ask for. I hope that helps a lil, it's a tough choice
Thanks for the video. I am but It an 85 1.8 I Have a question for you. Which Sony lenses you consider must Have and in what order. Thanks very much ! I use to carry in my Sony A7iii the 24-105 F4 and I am very happy with it, sharp and versatile.
@@ShaneBethlehem I have recently purchased the Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 zoom lens for APSC cameras. This small lightweight lens makes an ideal companion to the Sony 85mm f/1.8.
I believe the FE 85 1.8 has a better DXOMARK score than the Sigma (optically), so not only is the Sigma heavier and weirdly shaped, but it doesn't beat the FE 85 1.8 when it comes to clarity and optics.
Thank you for the review, super detailed. Do you have any advice for me as a beginner, my goal is to be the best portrait photographer in the world, next week I will be able to afford the 85mm 1.8, it will be my second lens outside of my kit lens which is the 18-135 3.5-5.6, any advice helps.
If you plan on staying on the 6400 for a while the sigma is a great choice however if you hope to move to full frame down the read the 85 will remain a little more practical, both are great lenses at the end of the day
Thanks! I think so, my best friend shoots all his work basically on am a7iii with the Tamron 28-75mm and the Sony 85mm, you can do portraits with the 85 and everything else with the zoom
@@ShaneBethlehem Great! I am also looking at the exact same combination and was wondering if it would be a good idea. Thank you! Oh and awesome review, love your videos! :)
so the focusing i guess can be an issue but lets go back to the beginning of time when it was all manual and you couldnt go into your camera and delete your film and keep shooting haha .
I'm not sure if I was unclear about the autofocus performance, but is nearly perfect with this lens. The manual focus performance is a little dodgy, as it is focus by wire and not terribly responsive
If the lens and that camera have the most advanced and best focusing system in the world why even attempt manual focus and say how bad it is? If I spent all that money of the superior focus system I’m not manually focusing anyway. 😁
It is an autofocus lens and the AF is so so good, but in certain applications like video work, time lapses, and product photography, manual focus is quite important and this lens just doesn't perform as good as someone would expect from the lens considering it even has an AF/MF toggle. With that said I do the same as you keep it in AF always too and just use the adjustable AF point for when I need a fine point of focus.
Thanks Stanley! Yea that's a tough call, the Samyang is a way better option than I thought it would end up being, but if size isn't a concern I like it best
I’m looking at a lens for my Sony A7 to take pictures of my new granddaughter, she is 3 weeks old. Most photographs will be indoors with natural light through windows. I’m considering the Sony 85/1.8 or the Sony 90G/2.8 macro. I’m your opinion which would suit my needs best. Crawford Smith from Scotland
I may be late to replying here, my apologies, but I think if you are going to be shooting indoors I would recommend looking in the 35-50mm range, I find with children it can be a little easier to be closer to them for photos, particularly so with family members as they are comfortable with you
@@ShaneBethlehem thanks for getting to me Shane, I do appreciate it. However, as you say, a little late. I did go for the Sony 90/2.8 G with OSS. I am really please with it. The quality and sharpness indoors for natural window light is just what I was looking for. I use Mylio for editing and have a couple of shots I’m really pleased with already.
I’m happy to hear! I love the lens as well, it’s one I don’t think I’ll ever let go of. I hope you enjoy the moments you capture with your granddaughter!
I have this lens, and believe it or not, I use it for action shots at horse shows and dog events. I have gotten some of the most beautiful pictures with this lens. So glad I have it. Thanks so much for this review.
Hello, thank you for the top quality review, i really enjoyed it, you definitely deserve more subs :D, im planning to buy this lens for my crop body, have you tried it on crop ? I heard its quite good even on APS-C :)
Thank you! Yea I've paired it with the a6600 a bunch and it works very well, the AF speed holds up and the image quality is as good as ever. Only thing I notice is some chromatic aberration, but that's manageable
thank you :) I used the sony a7iii and the zeiss 35mm f1.4 I think, i made a video on the lens here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-6kQsgMjaXBM.html
I just order the samyang 45... lets see, I’ll put it side by side with the zeiss 55, but my idea is to do samyang 45 and fe 85. The 55 is incredible but I’m a 35 mm person, I never felt confortable on 50-55fov. 45 isnt of course 35 but is what we got so far... hoping for a sony G 35 1.8 on the smalish side. The size of this 85 for ex would be great! And both with 67 mm diameter would be just perfect to share filters.
oh nice! I don't know how well the samyang will compare to the zeiss, the new samyang lens have improved so vastly since the last time I used one. I actually did something silly a while back thats worked quite well for me, I don't use lens hoods typically so i have stepping rings to make all my lens with 62/77/72 take 77mm lens caps, so I have 77mm filters that are quick to switch between all my lenses on a a busy wedding day if I'm on video
Thanks, I have very limited experience with the 90mm, I've only played with it in stores. From what I know though, it's super sharp, very easy to focus (but slower than the 85) and has a great build. So you'll get a multi purpose lens in your kit cause you can use it for both macro or portraits, but at the end of the day, it's a sharp 2.8 macro 90mm vs a pretty much perfect small portrait super fast 85, so depending on what you do more either one my fit you better. The 85 was the cheaper option at the time for me so I got it, and now I personally am looking at getting the voigtlander apo lanthar 65mm as my next lens
There are even more options on the market these days, and all of them have their strengths and weaknesses. At the end of the day though this lens is still a great value and I still use it
A few people have asked me and I've answered those in these comments in more detail, but overall I haven't used it myself but I still stand by what I said in the video about the Sony GM, I don't personally need 1.4 when I'm at 85mm, so I still prefer the 85 1.8 for it's compact size, great AF and incredible sharpness. The samyang by all the review I've seen is great, but I don't think I'll be getting one myself for those reasons
I have no personal experience with the 85 from samyang but from what I've seen of it I still think the Sony is a better option and it's going to be impossible to get better image quality than what the Sony has already achieved. With that said I don't think you can go wrong with the samyang, I just don't thing the difference between 1.8-1.4 matters to much at 85mm
The sony is sharper, lighter and has faster focusing. It also has a programmable button and the lens is built in the interior out of plastc. The exterior the lens is built out of aluminum and only a bit plastic at the Front. The lens hood is basic and plastic. The Samyang is not as sharp, but is wider open and creates overall better bokeh. The autofocus doesn't directly slap on its like ,,smooth focus" if you will. Video Autofocus is bad tough... The lens is built out of aluminum while the interior is made of plastic too. The lenshood is made out of plastic but looks good. Both lenses have a metal lens mount. The samyang is waterresistant. Both lenses have an aluminum focus ring with focus by wire system. Sry for my bad english i'm from Austria
Decide which lens you need Sharp and light weight or Fast and smooth bokeh Portait_Samyang Landscape_Sony Astro_Samyang Travelling_Sony Sports_Sony Studio_both ...
Hi Juber, thanks for watching 😊 I hope to do a full video on how I set up my Sony cameras in the future, I just need to get an external recorder first 😅
really great review. I never saw a better review ( usually i have to search for many videos and review to have a clear vision about a product ) ...... all the information i need was in your video... thank you and keep up the good work.
Thanks! The lens would work well on a crop, its nice and compact still so you don't have the extra bulk you normally deal with with FF lenses, the only catch is that it going to be like a 128mm lens, so its quite the zoom and you'd end up often with just tighter portraits, its not a bad thing, but its just not as ideal for the way I shoot. Overall, i think it would be a sweet buy, the only lens I'd recommend you consider if you have not yet is the Sigma 56mm f1.4, its a smaller crop lens that is a lil' more like the 85 on full frame. Thanks again for watching the video and I hope you have a great time shooting :)
I've never used this for any action like sports or wildlife intentionally. I've used it though in more fast-paced environment and it's held up really well, but that's the best I can say sorry
honestly every lens I've reviewed on my channel has perfectly quite AF, the only lenses I know of off the top of my lens that sony makes with a loud AF is the 50mm f2.8 macro and then most lens you use with and adapter can be quite loud in my experience
@@ShaneBethlehem that would be awesome, I'm on the fence about getting it. I love the IQ and portability of my 85 1.8, but I love the compression and reach a 200 offers.
Unfortunately not because I made this review before the lens came out and haven't had a chance to use the samyang myself. I'd have a hard time imagining any lens that focuses faster than this one though, but from what I've seen the samyang will be very functional, it seems to be a great lens, but my point that I made in this video still applies, I don't really see the point of 1.4 at 85mm for most users.
@@Crysmeth_ I think that's super reasonable, I'm packing for a trip now and am debating between the 85 and my 70-200 😅 I think going to do the 85 this time just to be a lil more agile, the size is so ideal
If you are doing extreme close up portraits (head and neck) at 1.8 the details rendered are understandably not great (notable in the eyes) also CA (ceramic aberrations) are at their peak at 1.8 and even at f11 diffraction takes a hold if you're a landscaper. The separation (known as the 3D pop) from the tack sharp in to soft out of focus areas are not as good as say the GM but this is where the £500 odd price tag comes in HOWEVER if you stick to 5.6 and in particular 7.1 this thing will knock your socks off! I took this to New Zealand recently and captured a beautiful snow peaked mounting, the rendering of the fine details of snow on the A7R3 is nothing short of incredible and is on par with my 16-35 GM (respectfully at different focal lengths). I will be updating to a 85/135 GM and in the future 100mm Otus for studio work. but this is going nowhere anytime soon through nor will the wheel stray to far from the 7.1 aperture! Great review and very informative :)
