p.24 #2 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
I like the lens and am pretty sure I'm going to keep it because there is something about shooting with it that is enjoyable as a walk around lens. AF is great, its lightweight, and the detail and pop is nice for documentary stuff.
That said, when you frame loose or just have busy details that are close-by, the bokeh is not the greatest. Framing tightly or keeping background elements far away and the compression of the FOV makes this a non-issue, but can't always control for that when it matters. I know we keep harping on this point but its something the lens keeps proving.
So I'll probably keep the MKI as a portrait lens and MKII for everything else.
p.24 #6 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
Question on new 85mm 1.4 GM ll. Received mine today and so far really liking it. Do have a question though. Ordered mine new at Best Buy and when unboxing I noticed the pouch was not in a plastic bag. The lens cap wasn’t wrapped in plastic either and the lens had some kind of white bag kind of like what Tamron uses. Just the first Sony GM lens I have bought that did not have the typical plastic wraps and bubble wraps. Just curious if others received theirs with the same packing?
p.24 #7 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
I want to know how balanced this lens is. I love the Sigma 85mm DG DN for everything except the slight color cast and would prefer to pair my other GMs with the 85mm GM II. The fact that the Sony is slightly larger and heavier gives me pause but really it's all about balance. Is it a front heavy lens?
p.24 #8 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
Sony have been moving away from plastic packaging over the last few years. They've been using those white bags on lots of products and most items have no plastic or bubble wrap in them now.
Canon however have moved from their boxes with cardboard dividers in, to using multiple plastic moulded trays for their cameras. I assume these are recyclable as well, but where I am in the UK I'm not allowed to put many items that could be recycled into my recycle bin.
p.24 #9 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
Alex W wrote:
Question on new 85mm 1.4 GM ll. Received mine today and so far really liking it. Do have a question though. Ordered mine new at Best Buy and when unboxing I noticed the pouch was not in a plastic bag. The lens cap wasn’t wrapped in plastic either and the lens had some kind of white bag kind of like what Tamron uses. Just the first Sony GM lens I have bought that did not have the typical plastic wraps and bubble wraps. Just curious if others received theirs with the same packing?
p.24 #10 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
Alex W wrote:
Question on new 85mm 1.4 GM ll. Received mine today and so far really liking it. Do have a question though. Ordered mine new at Best Buy and when unboxing I noticed the pouch was not in a plastic bag. The lens cap wasn’t wrapped in plastic either and the lens had some kind of white bag kind of like what Tamron uses. Just the first Sony GM lens I have bought that did not have the typical plastic wraps and bubble wraps. Just curious if others received theirs with the same packing?
You mean yours didn't come in the tweed hard case with velvet interior?
p.24 #17 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
Mystik wrote:
GMI vs GMII Golden Hour Shoot-out.
...
Thanks for posting these. To me it's a no-brainer. In this direct comparison (which is always hard to do, so kudos) the GMII shows the same qualities that I've never liked about it in various examples I've seen from it, specifically that the bokeh is quite distracting, it draws attention to itself. That's exactly what I DON'T want in such a lens, I want the subject to be isolated from the background which is rendered as smoothly as possible. That's a quality I like about the 50/1.2GM.
The original 85GM lens has its own issues, its not perfect, but in terms of rendering alone I'd take the GM over the GMII any day of the week, and as they say, twice on Sundays.
p.24 #18 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
I’m really curious to see how the focus transitions look in real-world portraits. The faster XD linear motors should help with moving subjects, but I wonder if the extra edge-to-edge sharpness might make skin textures a little too clinical. Also, those cat’s eye bokeh highlights in the corners could be interesting to see in actual shots. I’m planning to rent one first before I jump on a pre-order.
p.24 #19 · Sony 85mm f/1.4 GM II Announced—Pre-Orders Now Open!
JohnJ wrote:
Thanks for posting these. To me it's a no-brainer. In this direct comparison (which is always hard to do, so kudos) the GMII shows the same qualities that I've never liked about it in various examples I've seen from it, specifically that the bokeh is quite distracting, it draws attention to itself. That's exactly what I DON'T want in such a lens, I want the subject to be isolated from the background which is rendered as smoothly as possible. That's a quality I like about the 50/1.2GM.
The original 85GM lens has its own issues, its not perfect, but in terms of rendering alone I'd take the GM over the GMII any day of the week, and as they say, twice on Sundays....Show more →
For me, it's a no-brainer in the opposite direction. The GMII bokeh looks perfectly good and not at all distracting. The subject is plenty isolated, and the focus is always on the subject. If someone is distracted by the bokeh, well, I don't see why.
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