Michael Clark said:
Flat field lenses do not make the best portraits, but they do get the best scores at DxO.
Completely agree.
But not everyone is buying a fast 50 for portraiture.
Some folks just want a do-everything workhorse tool that doesn't give you fits with AF performance.
Besides a generally sharper lens that
doesn't prioritize out of focus transitions over sharpness, I would like a 50 with fire-and-forget AF confidence like the recent 85 f/1.4L IS. I've rented the 50L twice and wanted to smash it with a hammer at times. I'm tired of stopping down and overshooting/chimping to get an in-focus result with a professional instrument that costs north of $1k.
My 85 f/1.4L IS rental was the exact opposite experience -- the AF nailed it every time and I could enjoy capturing images without the fear of missing the moment, having to reshoot, etc. I want that in a 50, and in all candor, that's not an extravagant technical ask in 2018.
Respect your position, of course, but my needs are not your needs -- and I'm pretty dug in on what I want.
- A