[Luny Tune]

I guess, you're still in the "what is the best lens for my camera?" state?

No, I'm in the "I'm not gonna lug the Sigma 50 Art around at family parties or just around the kids, so I just want a decent nifty fifty, and I hate the existing one, and I can't believe that my only other options are to adapt a Canon 50/1.8 or /1.4 which have their own considerable problems, and I'm not gonna get the 55/1.8, partly because it's overpriced, and partly because I actually would prefer something a slightly shorter than fifty, but the Tamron 45/1.8 is just as big as the Sigma 50 Art, so I really hope this Samyang will fit the bill, and resolve better further out towards the edges than the crappy Sony FE 50."-state.

And the MTF charts I linked to reflect e-x-a-c-t-l-y what I've experienced with these lenses. And they also reflect the exact behaviour in Christopher Frost's reviews, in that the drop off from barely leaving the center of the frame towards the edges with the Sony 50 is not a smooth gradual drop off, but it picks up again just before the very edge. The review of the Samyang shows better resolution much further out and then with a quick drop off at the very edge, where the Sony in comparison weirdly appears to be sharper somewhere at a point. That's perfectly reflected in the charts. The charts also reflects the smoother bokeh.

I do get that these charts are not telling the whole story, but on the other hand, they are close enough to quite precisely show what I'm experiencing. Like they reflect my experience with the Canon 50/1.8 being more even in it's performance. It may not be as sharp in the middle, but the results are more predictable and even, and thus easier to work with. Alas, that's not quite enough for me either. I want a better option, and I'm hoping the Samyang 45/1.8 is it.

I'm just an impatient 12 year old kid in a 53 year old guy's body, so I'm analyzing on every little bit of info I'm finding. Hoping that the search is over, because if not, I could have spent the time searching for something else.

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I'll be happy to demonstrate the quite visible drop off in quality even just slightly away from the center wide open, if anyone is interested.(?) I got suspicious during a small improvised shoot with my sister in law last summer, and I can post the 100% crop examples.