Zv said:
And from this it becomes immediately apparent why bright glass gets really big when the focal lengths get longer
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Recommend websites for lens reviews
- Thread starter xvnm
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And from this it becomes immediately apparent why bright glass gets really big when the focal lengths get longer
neuroanatomist said:
Why not?
As long as definition of sweeleblats is stated, there is a set methodology for determining sweezleblats, and the same methodology used to evaluate the different lenses, it should serve well in comparing lenses.
Because, I believe that is what we are looking for. Not an absolute figure, but one that can be used for comparison. Our lens purchasing decisions are often a matter of comparison. I want a lens that is "better" than some other lens. Better being up to the consumer. When reading lens review sites, I am more concerned with repeatability and consistancy in their evaluations. Sweezleblats will work out great as long as I am comparing sweezleblats to sweeleblats.
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+2 on these sites, particularly LensTip because they torture test the optics so well.AlanF said:
All three sites are limited in real-world applications, however, and just because a lens isn't the sharpest or vignettes too much, etc. doesn't mean it's a crap lens. The 50 f/1.2, for instance, does lousy on the "test bench" but can take some amazing photos because it has great contrast, color, flare resistance, and amazing bokeh.
Also, ultrawides and macros don't seem to perform too well with these flat wall chart tests, but do extremely well in real-world shooting.
Lastly, avoid Ken Rockwell for serious advice, though some of his stuff is (unintentionally) hilarious.
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P.S. or intentionally (?) hilarious: http://www.kenrockwell.com/ri/WhereDoBabiesComeFrom.htmmackguyver said:
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I like photozone.de, and the digital picture.
xvnm said:Hi,
I'm looking for a good lens review website.
One site that I really like is DPReview (http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews?sort=brand), in particular their sharpness charts (example: http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/canon_100_2p8_is_usm_c16/4). However, they have a very limited database, only 11 Canon lenses as of now.
I also like The Digital Picture (http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-Lens-Reviews.aspx) and Ken Rockwell (http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/lenses/), but they tend to be more on the subjective side of reviews: not a lot of numbers and charts to compare across. Nothing wrong with that, but not exactly what I'm looking for.
DxOMark (http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Lenses/Camera-Lens-Ratings) has a pretty extensive database, and although some of their reviews can be very controversial here, I have no reason to believe they are not doing a proper job. However, I find most of their charts using colors instead of lines and numbers difficult to compare objectively. Also, sometimes I don't understand their testing criteria.
For instance, the 85/1.8 vs. the 100/2 on the 5DIII: http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Lenses/Compare-Camera-Lenses/Compare-lenses/%28lens1%29/241/%28brand%29/Canon/%28camera1%29/0/%28lens2%29/798/%28brand2%29/Canon/%28camera2%29/0
The 85 is sharper (15 vs 14), has better transmission (2 vs 2.2) and less aberration (3 vs 5). The 100 has slightly less distortion (0.3% vs 0.4%) and vignetting (1.4 vs 1.6). Pretty similar numbers, I'd say. Yet, the 100 has a score of 30 while the 85 gets only 26. And I don't understand why they always seem to say that all lenses are best wide open ("Best at f=100mm & f/2", "Best at f=85mm & f/1.8")
Another example, Sigma 18-35/1.8 vs. Sigma 35/1.4 on the 7D: http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Lenses/Compare-Camera-Lenses/Compare-lenses/%28lens1%29/1141/%28lens2%29/1056/%28brand1%29/Sigma/%28camera1%29/0/%28brand2%29/Sigma/%28camera2%29/619
The 35 has better transmission (1.6 vs 1.8 ), distortion (0.2% vs 0.3%), vignetting (0.8 vs 1.1), and aberration (5 vs 7). The 18-35 is only slightly sharper (13 vs 12), yet the 18-35 has a score of 24 and the 35 only 22. I don't understand their numbers.
Also, highly regarded lenses, like the EF-S 10-22 or the 16-35/2.8L, have some relatively poor numbers on DxOMark.
My ideal site would be like DPReview with a database the size of DxOMark
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My faves are already all listed here, but here goes:
Slrgear.com for the cool 3D graphs by focal length and aperture. Technical nirvana, but usually short and impassionate.
The Digital Picture is good if you don't need measured results. Very verbose with a lot of good opinion, from a guy who knows how to use the gear.
DPReview isn't my choice because they don't review enough, often enough, and they are also owned by a major retailer of lenses, which detracts from their credence in my mind.
Ken Rockwell is good for entertainment purposes and alternate views... and surprisingly, he has the best tech details of any reviews consistently... what type of autofocus, how many blades in the aperture, is it par focal, does it breathe, etc.
Lastly, I find good merit in Amazon's customer reviews... the default sorting is by voting, IE, the first review listed is deemed the most helpful.
Slrgear.com for the cool 3D graphs by focal length and aperture. Technical nirvana, but usually short and impassionate.
The Digital Picture is good if you don't need measured results. Very verbose with a lot of good opinion, from a guy who knows how to use the gear.
DPReview isn't my choice because they don't review enough, often enough, and they are also owned by a major retailer of lenses, which detracts from their credence in my mind.
Ken Rockwell is good for entertainment purposes and alternate views... and surprisingly, he has the best tech details of any reviews consistently... what type of autofocus, how many blades in the aperture, is it par focal, does it breathe, etc.
Lastly, I find good merit in Amazon's customer reviews... the default sorting is by voting, IE, the first review listed is deemed the most helpful.
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Actually, I like Ken Rockwell, photozone.de, the-digital-picture.com but also find the comments on CR very use. The best however, is to try out the gear out for your self in the circumstances that your are going to use the gear in. Best of luck finding what you need.
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Well that cleared things up for me. I'll run it by my sweetie and see how she feels about some of it, but I'm thinking no.
mrsfotografie said:mackguyver said:
Thanks, that's his best review yet, and exactly at the right level. :
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there is a good German site http://www.traumflieger.de/objektivberater/index_canon.php
with resolution charts / graphs. All lenses tested on 5D Mark II.
with resolution charts / graphs. All lenses tested on 5D Mark II.
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http://diglloyd.com Is one of the best lens tester's on the web,it's a paywall site but the way the lenses are tested and compared is very good.. he deals with every aspect of the lens,focus shift and flare,field curvature etc..recommended
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- Photozone.de for all-round reviews
- The-digital-picture for contrast/sharpness in testshots. Especially contrast is easy to review there.
- DxO for t-values, to know what lenses to use as the light goes away.
- Ken rockwell for entertainment. If you spend time there you find out that he writes for average joe. If you are an average joe, listening to Ken will serve you well.
After the reviews, it´s time to hit the forums to find out the non-technical details. Photo.net is great and most serious.
- The-digital-picture for contrast/sharpness in testshots. Especially contrast is easy to review there.
- DxO for t-values, to know what lenses to use as the light goes away.
- Ken rockwell for entertainment. If you spend time there you find out that he writes for average joe. If you are an average joe, listening to Ken will serve you well.
After the reviews, it´s time to hit the forums to find out the non-technical details. Photo.net is great and most serious.
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Thanks for this one - I had never seen it. Now I just need to remember my German - I grew up there, but haven't spoken German in over 30 yearsyablonsky said:
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