Shoot with identical settings (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focus point, lighting, etc) and in raw mode. Do not do ANY post processing on either file or do exactly the same post-processing.
Any time you shoot jpg the camera is going to make some decisions based on what image hits the sensor, and they won’t necessarily be identical for both lenses.
As to the automatic lens corrections, that is actually a more complex question than it might first appear. Obviously, if you want to see the lens’s native performance you would turn them off. But this also depends on what post-processing software you use. I am not familiar with all of the options here, but some automatically apply “lens optimization” settings, including Adobe products.
Beyond that, imagine this scenario. Let’s say that you think Lens A performs better than Lens B without optimization. But let’s say that after optimization is applied they look identical… and in both cases, better than the un-optimized files. Wouldn’t you want to just use the optimized files?
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Back to add one more thing.
My answer above assumes that you are looking to do a careful comparison of the LENS performance itself, and that you are of a technical mind.
However…
If you just want to know which you prefer on your camera antlers approach is reasonable, too. Just shoot both lenses exaclty as you usually do — in other words, in the way you are most likely to use them — and compared that result.
I would say that this approach is less technically definitive (by far) but that it could be right for YOU depending on… stuff.
Shoot with identical settings (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focus point, lighting, etc) and in raw mode. Do not do ANY post processing on either file or do exactly the same post-processing.
Any time you shoot jpg the camera is going to make some decisions based on what image hits the sensor, and they won’t necessarily be identical for both lenses.
As to the automatic lens corrections, that is actually a more complex question than it might first appear. Obviously, if you want to see the lens’s native performance you would turn them off. But this also depends on what post-processing software you use. I am not familiar with all of the options here, but some automatically apply “lens optimization” settings, including Adobe products.
Beyond that, imagine this scenario. Let’s say that you think Lens A performs better than Lens B without optimization. But let’s say that after optimization is applied they look identical… and in both cases, better than the un-optimized files. Wouldn’t you want to just use the optimized files?
Jul 23, 2025 at 03:10 PM
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