Masshippie wrote:
Looks like there is a firmware update posted for the Nikon version of the lens. Anyone brave enough to go first and report back?
Chris
It was easy to do and works fine. I wasn't having significant enough issues with my Z lens to notice what it improved.
chiron wrote:
I just received my copy of the 40/2.0. I own and love the Sigma 45/2.8, so I plan to do some comparison shots. I will get to them by the weekend and post some samples here.
A German reviewer has just done a head-to-head comparison of the TTArtisan and Sigma:
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The Sigma still has superior background bokeh even against the TTArtisan wide open at F/2, but the TTArtisan comes darn close. Surprisingly, the TTArtisan has smoother foreground bokeh - the Sigma is distinctly more nervous, more halo-y. Contrast definitely favours the TTArtisan. I'm very very impressed considering the Sigma is 3x the price and it makes the choice between the two lenses much harder for me...
ryanli wrote:
Surprisingly, the TTArtisan has smoother foreground bokeh - the Sigma is distinctly more nervous, more halo-y.
Generally, that's how over/under correction of spherical aberrations works. If you smoothen out the background, then the foreground will be more "bubbly" .
I think the biggest issue with the Sigma is still its AF, but reading this thread it seems that TTArtisan is not that different in that regard ... Well, also 45/2.8 doesn't give you that much blur to work with (unless you're shooting up close)...
Given that we've established the TTA is roughly 38mm, there is a not-insignificant FOV difference with the Sigma that should likely be your primary consideration.
j4nu wrote:
I think the biggest issue with the Sigma is still its AF, but reading this thread it seems that TTArtisan is not that different in that regard ... Well, also 45/2.8 doesn't give you that much blur to work with (unless you're shooting up close)...
Fair observation re. AF performance
I'd offer that the Sigma delivers more and better "blur" (quantity and quality) than many other lenses I've used at 45mm F/2.8, that's what so attractive about it.
RoamingScott wrote:
Given that we've established the TTA is roughly 38mm, there is a not-insignificant FOV difference with the Sigma that should likely be your primary consideration.
Indeed. That plus the TTA's 1-stop advantage does make it somewhat better suited for indoor snapshots.
Yogifi wrote:
I replace all the rear caps with a common one so it's one less thing to worry about.
I use the Sony rear caps... it still wiggles on this lens annoyingly. Even more so than the official TTA one. Very loose.
There's two versions of the Sony cap, newer one seems better on Sony/Tamron/Sigma lenses but worse on some other third party stuff, it's way more elaborate inside... I made the mistake of buying a bunch before realizing this.
For anyone looking for the slimmest (albeit priciest) cap possible: Kaiser 47mm push on caps.
Anything new with better firmware for the 40mm f2.0?
It appears to me that the AF-C, which is what I need to use, is hit or miss. Even when it hits, the lens at f2.0 is not that sharp, but it is acceptable. However, it seems to me that it also sometimes misses when it is showing a green eye-box and it should be able to get a clear focus on an eye.
I am up in the air trying to decide if I want to keep the lens, and my return window is closing in the next several days. I do like the rendering. It is relatively low contrast and low microcontrast in a way that is especially noticeable in indoor lighting. But the overall effect can be pleasing, with a slightly de-saturated look that I like for some shots. On the other hand, I don't like missing focus on shots that should be in good focus.
I am not one who has had problems with the focus of the Sigma 45/2.8. And I am using both lenses on the latest iteration of Sony's cameras, with well-developed AF systems.
If the AF were going to get resolved in the near future by a firmware fix, I would keep the lens. But I may decide to send it back and re-buy if better firmware does become available.
I'm now using the same FW most others are (shared here), but FWIW I also had trouble getting my lens recognized on a MS Surface and I don't think it was cause of bad cables per se... I tried two different USB-C to C cables that I know are good and reliable, full featured high speed 5A e-marked cables that should be capable of handling anything, and neither one worked.
I was scrambling to get the lens updated for a trip after having run some tests with MF to ensure I'd be keeping it... On a whim I hooked up a USB-C hub and then to that I hooked up a cheap A to C cable I got for free (which I keep in my bag mostly for connecting up to rental cars that don't have wireless Android Auto), and voila, that did the trick.
It's possible the USB-C port on the lens is misbehaving when presented with a full featured full speed cable, or with the higher current (3A) sometimes associated with C to C, who knows... As a side note, I quite like the MF behavior and haptics on the 40/2, much nicer than my Samyang 45/1.8 but I even prefer it to my 35GM.
I don't use MF for much outside of lens tests so that isn't something that moves me, but still worth noting. The steps might be more coarse than on the GM but they're also more obvious, the SY just feels way worse to dial in between the ring looseness and whatnot. The SY looked somewhat sharper in the middle & wide open to me (comparable to the GM even), but otherwise the sharpness differences aren't anything to write home about IMO.
The SY also has a warmer color cast that's pretty obvious and would likely bother JPEG shooters. I'm probably selling it now that I have the smaller 40/2, I really appreciate the aperture wheel.
If your copy has hard vignette, you should return it. It is NOT present in all copies.
If your copy has bad pulsating AF post-FW updates, you should return it. It is NOT present in all copies.
If your copy is soft in the center wide open, you should return it. Center softness is NOT present in all copies.
As I suspected from the start, this is a 100% lottery type lens. Getting a copy that fulfills all 3 metrics might be more effort than it's worth.
I think that most of my problems with my copy are down to some unreliability in the AF-C. I am using the better firmware from the forum. I don't have any pulsing. I had been thinking that my copy, which is well-centered, was not that sharp at f2.0, but I have now gotten some pleasingly sharp eyeballs. I think the focus algorithms are just not quite there yet. It is an interesting lens in the look it provides. I hope the company supports it.
I like: The top one, it took me a few seconds to understand. In some context the last one.
Yesterday I went out for a short walk and decided to take the TTA40. I took two images only but yes, I like the TTA40 as a walk around lens. That is despite the quirks and the so-so ergonomics.
below: Shot at a distance and cropped to the left and bottom and a bit at the top. Colors are off as I changed them to my taste of today. EDIT: f/2
The beta FW linked in this thread has performed better than the 02 by the sounds of it.
Yogifi wrote:
Is the V02 on the official website the one to get, I recall hearing people prefer some beta firmware but not sure if it's now the official one...
RoamingScott wrote:
The beta FW linked in this thread has performed better than the 02 by the sounds of it.
Thank you, I did the update I dunno it was a weird process for me. It's on one of them now, it still says it's the beta though I think I used the official one. It's fine.
I remember reading someone had issues with it showing up on their pc when connected, I had to plug it in via the monitor which acted like an extender. Something electrical probably, most likely to do with the lens, rather high end new motherboard here and plugged it in directly via usb-c to usb-c. But anyway, try an extender, maybe even a usb extension cable if you're still having issues.
After transferring the file it duplicated the drive, something I've never seen before. The file also disappears when you refresh, but it's still there when you re-transfer (gives an overwrite warning)... it generates a text file that mentions the version number, mine still says the beta version there even though I transferred the official one over it a few times. Hopefully it's because they both were labelled as version 02, but who knows. I would do eject drive like I usually do and it would popup saying safe to remove, but it still shows up in the list...duplicated.
Whatever, it seems to be focussing at f8 in low light with the 5 mins I spent on it. Was getting a lot of false positives on my sony doing the testing between various firmware but that could have been user error in not knowing how the AF works when using magnifine and the spot vs moving the square around. Changing it to wide mode, focussing and then confirming with the magnify showed it working but by that point I had switched firmware like 4 times and settled with whatever it's on now.
Love that preset you made btw, RoamingScott, lovely images. I also picked up their 75mmf2 as well when they had a decent sale after seeing your shots with it while I was interested in exploring 75mm. I read the posts about needing to smack that lens if the af gets stuck. Good stuff xD.
Anyway, great shots with this lens in here folks. Thanks.
-- the beta firmware was on page 8 post #14 if anyone was planning on hunting it down, thanks Jonas.
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