Sony! Please! Just give me an F2 lens

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

Abaregi · Aug 25, 2013

Does it have to be SONY branded?

I have bought a lot of lenses you wrote about on Ebay that are of excellent quality far exceeding the kit.

Cheap too since they are old people think they are no good, though the ones i have are of superior quality. Smooth focus rings, metal all around, a real aperture ring. All the stuff that the companies have lost the talent to do today.

Only minus is that if you have a hard time manually focusing or just think it's plain boring (but why like photography then) then you should stay away.

There are loads of information about "legacy lenses" on the forum try a search if you are interested, you just need a 10$ adapter and they are good to go.

spacemn · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

Ehhhh, what's wrong with the SEL24/f1.8?

This is truly a dream lens IMO, 1.4 would've made it too heavy and with the A3000 IBIS it will become an even greater favorite of mine.

Tim Zhou · Aug 25, 2013

I am not sure if you checked closely. Sony SEL 24mm 1.8 should meet your requirements.

TiagoReil · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

well, you have the 24mm f1.8 zeiss, but that is not cheap.

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

No, it doesn't have to be Sony branded ... but it does have to have autofocus and work with PDAF.

I'd be happy to work with a manual focus 'legacy' lens for other purposes (e.g. a 70mm) but this wide prime will be my main lens for kids, parties etc.

Thanks

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

It costs £800+.

You can get the NEX6 with 16-50mm Zoom & 55-210mm for £770.

Which is to say it's too expensive!

Also, it is rather large, the 2 examples I gave above are both pancake lenses.

pkc55 · Aug 25, 2013

spacemn said:
spacemn wrote:

spacemn said:

Felix11 wrote:

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

Click to expand...

Ehhhh, what's wrong with the SEL24/f1.8?

This is truly a dream lens IMO, 1.4 would've made it too heavy and with the A3000 IBIS it will become an even greater favorite of mine.

A SEL24/f1.8 would buy 3 or more NX 20mm F2 what the OP has mentioned. Most of us cannot afford it (not even a used one on eBay). Regular people like myself are looking for native Lens from $150-400 and thats why the Cannon 50mm F1.8 is so popular for Cannon DSLR.

spacemn · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

It costs £800+.

You can get the NEX6 with 16-50mm Zoom & 55-210mm for £770.

Which is to say it's to0 expensive!

Also, it is rather large, the 2 examples I gave above are both pancake lenses.

...and you're expecting your Fuji dream-lens-to-be, the 23mm 1.4, to be a pancake?? It's going to be one heavy piece of glass...

Suit yourself, yes if you are seeking a PANCAKE F2 lens in that range then the NEX is not for you for now...sorry

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

No, I am not expecting the Fujinon 23mm F1.4 to be a pancake.

In fact, I think it is going to be slightly larger than the 35mm F1.4.

Just looking now at the specs for the Sony Zeiss, if as stated it is only 66mm (which is the same size as the Fuji 35mm) then it's not a big as I thought and I'd be happy to use a similar sized lens which cost half the price!

ghengii · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

It costs £800+.

You can get the NEX6 with 16-50mm Zoom & 55-210mm for £770.

Also, it is rather large, the 2 examples I gave above are both pancake lenses.

the 55-210 is not very pancakey and compared to the 16mm neither is the 16-50

RGBaker · Aug 25, 2013

pkc55 said:
pkc55 wrote:

pkc55 said:

spacemn wrote:

pkc55 said:

Felix11 wrote:

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

Click to expand...

Ehhhh, what's wrong with the SEL24/f1.8?

This is truly a dream lens IMO, 1.4 would've made it too heavy and with the A3000 IBIS it will become an even greater favorite of mine.

Click to expand...

A SEL24/f1.8 would buy 3 or more NX 20mm F2 what the OP has mentioned. Most of us cannot afford it (not even a used one on eBay). Regular people like myself are looking for native Lens from $150-400 and thats why the Cannon 50mm F1.8 is so popular for Cannon DSLR.

The Sony 50 1.8 includes OSS and is priced under $300, the Canon 50 1.8 is cheaper at under $200 but gives up OSS and is not, in my opinion, either as sharp or as nice handling a lens. The 35 1.8 is just a few dollars over your $400 ceiling, includes OSS and is also a nice handling and sharp lens.

The OP could open up their range from 30 to 35 and be happy, bite the bullet and buy the 24 -- or move to another brand, I guess.

Cheers,
GB

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

I meant the Samsung 30mm F2 and the Fuji 30mm F2.

V1V1D · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

No, it doesn't have to be Sony branded ... but it does have to have autofocus and work with PDAF.

I'd be happy to work with a manual focus 'legacy' lens for other purposes (e.g. a 70mm) but this wide prime will be my main lens for kids, parties etc.

Thanks

Do you plan to use these 1.4-2.0 lens wide open all the time? The Sigma 19 2.8, the sel 35 1.8, the sel 20 2.8 are all good options on the cheaper end. The 24 1.8 is most likely the best option albeit an expensive one. I hardly ever use my sel 50 1.8 wide open, only in very low light.

So the excuse that there aren't any e-mount varieties, is really a poor excuse. Sure it would be nice to have a 35 1.4 or even a 24 2.0, but they would be huge on a NEX system.

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

Hi, I certainly wouldn't use the wide open all the time.

But I just love looking through my Samsung 30mm F2 and finding that the view of the room is brighter in the camera than it is to the naked eye.

I am interested why you say "they would be huge on a NEX system".

If such small lenses exist for the mirrorless APS-C Samsung NX and Fuji X range then why would Sony NEX equivalents be significantly larger?

sportyaccordy · Aug 25, 2013

Whine whine whine

"I want a wide 2.0 prime!"

"What about MF, plenty of great glass"

"No I need AF"

"What about CZ 24 1.8"

"I could change platforms for half the price! But then I couldnt complain!!!"

If its that important, change platforms. I don't think it's coming soon, and complaining won't do anything but annoy everyone.

Felix11 · Aug 25, 2013

I think that for shooting indoors (in small English houses) a 35mm is to long.

I would certainly get the 35mm or the 50mm if I bought the camera but that depends on the availability of the wide & fast lens that is lacking.

RGBaker · Aug 25, 2013

Felix11 said:
Felix11 wrote:

I think that for shooting indoors (in small English houses) a 35mm is to long.

I would certainly get the 35mm or the 50mm if I bought the camera but that depends on the availability of the wide & fast lens that is lacking.

Well a 30mm lens on APSC camera is a 46mm equiv, and a 35 is a 53mm equiv ... so it seems like small change to me, small English home or not. Move all the way to 20mm and you've got a 31 equiv and a compact lens, you're just one stop away from your dream. The viewfinder is entirely adjustable, and will look 'brighter' than real if that's the way you like it ...

Cheers,
GB

Jefenator · Aug 25, 2013

Perhaps just to show that it is possible, Canon's EOS-M system does have their 22mm that is f/2, pancake compact, nice and sharp and cheap to boot! I was so intrigued by this that I went ahead and bought it. (Kind of hard not to at $299 for the whole kit...)

Alas, it's not all gravy. IMHO the autofocus flat out sucks with Canon's 22mm. (Apparently that lens focuses especially slow, due to the nature of motor that accommodates the pancake design.) I was never very fussy about AF performance in the past, but I find the Canon kit is so frustrating to work with, I can barely tolerate it - even at that no-brainer fire sale price! (It does work well for landscapes & deeper focus stuff - not so much for taking full advantage of the wide-open performance.)

Also, the Sony/Zeiss has a certain "sparkle" in its renderings that I find to be more deeply satisfying. That's pretty subtle - hard to illustrate - but I do feel it. That, combined with the vastly superior overall handling experience (not to mention construction) makes my SEL24 more than worth hanging on to for the time being.

I paid just north of $900 for my SEL24, used. No regrets whatsoever.

silvrmn · Aug 25, 2013

TiagoReil said:
TiagoReil wrote:

TiagoReil said:

Felix11 wrote:

Every time I think how great some of the Sony bodies like (i.e Nex6 or forthcoming A3000) I run off to check the available lens range...

... and I always decide not to buy the body because there isn't a an F2.0 prime lens between 18 and 30mm.

I have a great F2 30mm for my Samsung. I can get a decent 18mm F2 (or forthcoming 23mm F1.4) for the Fuji X that I dream of.

Why doesn't such a lens exist for the e-mount?

Click to expand...

well, you have the 24mm f1.8 zeiss, but that is not cheap.

Right. It's not cheap. But it's the lens I use on my NEX-7 about 99% of the time. It is so good at so many tasks that I haven't felt the need to buy a shelf full of lenses for every possibility. As for pocket-ability - not likely. As for stealthiness - why bother? A camera, no matter its size, is just part of me at 6'2" and 275 lbs. There's no way for me to be inconspicuous. And I doubt that many can despite their best efforts. Besides, there's a very narrow line between stealthiness and pervy-ness.

If the RX-1 had been available when the NEX-7 came out I'd probably have bought it instead. But maybe not as this combination has kept me a happy, hobbyist photographer for a year and a half.

Sony! Please! Just give me an F2 lens

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