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Dilemma in choosing which Format to buy Sigma 60mm F2.8

Started Feb 9, 2016 | Discussions thread
Astrotripper Veteran Member • Posts: 8,676
Looks simple to me...

EVAGORAS wrote:

Hi,

I have a Panasonic GF3 and a Sony a3000, I own the Panasonic 14mm F2.5, Panasonic 25mm F1.7, Olympus 45mm F1.8 and the Panasonic 14-45mm Lens.

With the Sony a3000 I only have the kit lens.

I want to buy a Sigma 60mm F2.8 but I have not decided with format is should buy?

The m43 format gives me a 120mm reach where as the Sony e mount gives a 90mm reach.

On DXO the Sony E mount is rated higher on the e mount than on the M43 cameras.

Which is what you should be expecting, considering that it's the same lens, but on sensors with different resolution. Obviously, the same lens on 24mp sensor should get better scores than on 16mp sensor (12mp in your case). That is, if the lens is good. And this Sigma is simply an excellent lens (in both mounts).

If you look at DxO, that little Sigma is the single best lens for Sony E mount. It even scores higher than much more expensive FE lenses. It's that good.

I have not found a site that compares this lens in different formats, so I am not sure which one to buy.

Why does it matter? It's the same lens, it will perform roughly the same. On MFT, you will have no vignetting compared to Sony E version and there might be slight difference in chromatic aberration, but it will be minimal on both cameras either way.

Look at it this way. Sigma 60/2.8 on your a3000 will be almost equivalent to Olympus 45/1.8 on your GF3 (within 2/3 of a stop). The only difference is that you'll have a bit more DoF control on Panasonic, but IQ will be noticeably superior on a3000 (that lens can fully take advantage of that 24mp sensor, not to mention it's very sharp right off the bat).

So if you want the same as GF3+45/1.8 but with better IQ, go for the E mount version.

Buy the MFT version if you want to add something new to your arsenal. But to be honest, it doesn't make any sense to me. It's a bit too close to 45mm and a bit too slow to offer something truly new. And if you crop the image from a3000, you will be able to get the same result as with GF3 with the same lens. So there's zero reason to go for MFT version. Unless you simply dislike to use your a3000 and much prefer your Panasonic. but since you still have both, I assume this is not the case.

So in short, I would get a Sony E version. This would finally let you use that a3000 to it's fullest (at least in terms of image quality). I would also probably sold the 45/1.8 if I were you. Why keep the gear that does the exact same thing?

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