Reddit reviews Sony - E 50mm F1.8 OSS Portrait Lens (SEL50F18/B), Black

Sony A6000. Out performs everything in its price range. Hands down a great buy. I would also recommend the 50 1.8 a phenomenal lens for the money. http://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/dp/B00EPWC30O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1419806517&sr=8-1&keywords=sony+50+1.8

Don't just write Sony off, they are the king of mirrorless. I have been super impressed with my A6000. It does things no other camera can do for the price. Steller value.

Unless you have a full frame to mount it to as well I'd just go with the Sony SEL50F18 for the a6500. It's still an excellent lens for less than half the price.

I'm getting this lens! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EPWC30O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Sony 50mm F1.8 is supposed to be bokeh heaven and is $300.

If you want a wider focal length, you can get the Sigma 30mm for $289.

> but I can't buy a cheap f1.8 lens for example, slap it on, and go shooting without having to drop half a paycheck/rent on a Sony equivalent.

What's "cheap" to you? Sony makes a 50mm f1.8 OSS for $300, even less if you snag a used one.

Hey thanks I really appreciate this help.

I have 3 lenses (1, 2, 3), the first two are 49mm thread size and the third is 46mm as you said - So I should get a 49mm then get a 46-49mm step-up adapter?

So like this filter and this adapter?

1. Not necessarily. A 50 mm f/1.8 and a little cropping would be fine, at least to start for a moderate price
   
   
2. You have a good eye and a solid style, and that's the hard part. A wide aperture to blur the fore/background naturally would help with that 50/1.8 lens. Look into making a DIY lightbox to get some softer, more controlled light with softer shadows and fewer harsh reflections
   
   
3. Lighting is definitely hard, but technically it should be a little easier at the scale of board games. The geometry works out such that cheaper and smaller softboxes, umbrellas, reflectors, and other equipment will be easier to buy and easier to control than much larger gear for larger subjects. A small umbrella over a tiny board game piece is effectively enormous (good). Look into a full video course on studio lighting, and flash photography over on Lynda or Skillshare - it'll be like an hour or two long in total. If you go to college, they may hook you up with free Lynda account like FSU does for students and alumni. Your local library may also give you access.
   
   
4. I'm most comfortable with Canon because I have one, and there seems to be a wider selection of lenses, but I think you're fine here. That's a great camera and Sonys are known to work really well indoors in low light. Definitely not a misstep, but there's a lot more to photography than just buying a nice camera. Check out YouTube for LOTS of tutorials on post processing.
   
   P.S. Lightroom/Photoshop are the industry leaders in post processing, but I am cheap and I like RawTherapee/Gimp which are the free, open source alternatives. Editing is just as important. Take the skills you learned on your iPhone editing software and continue doing the same kinds of things on desktop (or mobile) but with a bit more control. Good luck.

And as a further fyi, according to camelcamelcamel, $248 is the lowest it has ever been on Amazon (and Amazon is pretty good about price matching whenever someone has an item on sale)

http://camelcamelcamel.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/product/B00EPWC30O?context=browse

And I typically match the color of the camera, but, that's just aesthetics at that point :)

SECTION | CONTENT
:--|:--
Title | G85 vs A6500 - Best option for film making? Max Talks EP#4
Description | Which camera is the right fit for you? Filmmaking, Vlogging, and Videography G85 Amazon➡ http://geni.us/jEyA76A A6500 Amazon➡ http://geni.us/bffB4nA If you enjoy our content please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $2 a month helps us make more and better content for you! https://www.patreon.com/MaxYuryev -------------------------------------------------------------------- This Review was Shot using: Camera on Amazon➡ http://geni.us/bffB4nA Lens on Amazon➡ http://geni.us/dmcMpa Mic on...
Length | 0:10:14


SECTION | CONTENT
:--|:--
Title | Panasonic G85 OWNS the Sony a6500 in almost every way...except one
Description | This is just a quick update after shooting my first ever video on the Sony a6500 since deciding to try and switch to it from my Panasonic G85/G7/GH4. I'll just keep walking you guys through what I'm learning as it happens if that's cool with you! New Sony camera & lens: http://amzn.to/2owhmEU Must-have other lens for new camera: http://amzn.to/2pJlBiv Mic I use on my vlogging rig: http://amzn.to/2oQcvBU My bendy-tripod: http://amzn.to/2pkAJ8R Old main Panasonic camera: http://amzn.to/2pJl5AU F...
Length | 0:07:41






****

^(I am a bot, this is an auto-generated reply | )^Info ^| ^Feedback ^| ^(Reply STOP to opt out permanently)

So I bought the Sony a6000 body only and went and bought a SEL50F18/B 50mm f/1.8 Lens off Amazon, as I saw that was the recommended first lens to buy. I like the lens, but everything seems zoomed in, and I just want a regular lens as if I were looking through my eyes. I tried playing in the settings and the lens comes built in with magnification(I guess???) Here are two images I took to show how zoomed in the lens is. I'm such a fucking noob and just want to get the stock lens that comes with the camera :-) thx for any help! and my hand was pretty far from the camera and it just looks so zoomed in??

To complement DatAperture's answer the other option in the mirrorless market is Sony. The tradeoff is probably a bit better quality (the same sensors as in APS-C DSLRs) versus larger size and less lens selection.

For your budget you could get a very nice body:

• A6000 648$ (24MP, latest model, supposedly very fast next-generation autofocus)
  
  Or a cheaper kit:
  
  
• NEX 3 with 16-50 lens $398 (16MP older model)
  
  and then complement it with some lenses:
  
  
• 16/2.8 $248
  
• 20/2.8 $348
  
• 35/1.8 $448
  
• 50/1.8 $298
  
  The Sigma ones are also available in Nex mount:
  
  
• 19/2.8 $199
  
• 30/2.8 $199
  
• 60/2.8 $239
  
  For my kind of shooting, on a backpacking trip of Europe I'd go for A6000+19/2.8+50/1.8. Fits in your budget. Is light and small. Gets you a wide angle for scenery and a 50 for everything else, including low light. If you prefer zooms you can get the A6000 with the 16-50 kit lens plus a 55-210.
  
  

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SELP18105G-PZ-18-105mm-OSS/dp/B00ENZRQH8

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL35F18-35mm-Prime-Fixed/dp/B0096W1P5W/ref=pd_sim_421_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B0096W1P5W&pd_rd_r=M6Y227QVTB5Q0BMV9FGS&pd_rd_w=ogf56&pd_rd_wg=Qx7dq&psc=1&refRID=M6Y227QVTB5Q0BMV9FGS

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/dp/B00EPWC30O/ref=pd_sim_421_10?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00EPWC30O&pd_rd_r=M6Y227QVTB5Q0BMV9FGS&pd_rd_w=ogf56&pd_rd_wg=Qx7dq&psc=1&refRID=M6Y227QVTB5Q0BMV9FGS

APS-C. This one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EPWC30O

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EPWC30O/?coliid=I1NFGSSUEW2ZVZ&colid=ANS7IUZOHVOC&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Not sure about a macro lens but this lens gives a super cool cinematic look and its commonly used for b roll type stuff!

Is this the recommended 50mm for a beginner with an alfa 6000? Can someone please recommend a good prime 50mm for the a6000? I purchased an alfa 6000 with the 16-50mm lens kit and I was reading it is good to practice shooting with the same lens all the time to get used to use the lens as an extended eye. Total beginner here!

It all depends on how close you can get to the action. There aren't many great telephoto lens for the E-Mount system so you'll have to look at third party lenses. Since the a6000 is APS-C, you can take good photos with this 50mm f/1.8 if they're close enough but you definitely won't be able to get tight shots unless they're literally right in front of you. You could definitely use this 15-105 f/4 if the field is lit well, but you'd have to bump your ISO up a bit. But sports at f/4 with a APS-C sensor is definitely pushing it.

A few assumptions need to be made to make this post not 10 pages long. I assume you have approximately $500+ dollars to get started. If you don't it'll be clear where you can cut back, but lose out on quality.


In order to do what Duncan does, you need a few items:

1. Camera: The best bang for the buck "no" budget camera right now for solo shooters who film themselves is the a5100. The a6000 is also nice but doesn't have a flip out monitor which helps when making sure you're in focus and also filming yourself, and also loses out on some other video features. This camera depletes our budget immediately but starting out strong is good. You can always save up money for more stuff later down the road. If that's too expensive you can look into a used a5100, or a Sony NEX-5N. You lose out on fast auto focus, a higher quality codec, and a flip out monitor. Could you get a DSLR? Sure. But anything that would come close to competing with the a5100 in terms of video specs would be well over $1,000.
   
   
   
2. Tripod: You don't really need a tripod. You could stack up a bunch of books and put your camera on that. Unfortunately you wouldn't have pan/tilt capabilities but it'd work. However, filming "b-roll" of your completed minis to add supplementary footage may be difficult handheld. So, if I were to buy a "no" budget tripod, it'd be this one. I personally used this. It's great for beginners, pretty rigid, but suffers when exposed to elements like water/sand. It also only has 2 axes of motion as opposed to all 3 (not the biggest deal for video, more so photography).
   
   
   
3. SD Card: Your camera probably comes with one (unless you buy used or some other deal). If you need one, seeing as how you'll be filming to a 50 mbit codec (XAVC, higher the number, better the quality of the footage), you'll need a card with at least a 50 mbit read/write rate to keep up with that codec. Here's one.
   
   
   
4. Microphone: Duncan's voice is nice and clear. The mic on your camera is absolutely terrible. You will sound like you're talking into a tin can. This isn't a problem with the camera either, it's a problem with all on-camera microphones. There's a few solutions to this. You could pick up a lavaliere system. One interesting one is the Rode Smart Lav. You plug it into your smart phone, click record on your smart phone, record on your camera, sync it with a clap, and you're off. Most cameras come with a 3.5mm jack to plug in an external microphone, but this one does not (kind of good and bad, bad for "no" budget film making). This forces us to look for an external recorder to capture our audio (in the case of the smart lav, your phone acts as the external recorder). A good external recorder and mic combo with be a Tascam DR-05 and a Rode VideoMic Go plus some accessories like a cold shoe mount + mic stand. Out of these set ups, I prefer the smart lav. When/if you look into getting a recorder/microphone solution, spending more money garnishes much better equipment to a certain degree.
   
   
   Bonus 5: Lenses. As usual, lenses that come with the camera are not the best in terms of sharpness. So I have 2 recommendations to supplement your camera. An incredibly sharp (in terms of detail) lens but it only can take advantage of Sony's slower auto focus, or a less sharp lens that can auto focus very quickly. Combining sharpness + capability to utilize Sony's new fast auto focus features costs $$$. It does exist, but I'm hesitant to link it.
   
   
   My recommendation: If you know you want to get into this, buy the a5100 and an SD card (if you need it). Play around with the camera, its settings, different set ups, etc. Once you're familiar, buy the tripod, film test tutorial of you painting something, edit it and render/publish it. Once you're certain you are enjoying the process or the outcome, buy a better mic set up, and then finally a better lens.
   /u/RamenProfitable

Thanks for the tip, do you have any lens you would recommend?
The lens included above would be good for?

And would this be a good low light lens? and is there anything cheaper ... (T_T)

The best bet would be a zoom lens and a fixed f1.8 lens for versatility?

thank you for your reply

I'm doing videos without really fast motions while the camera is on one spot all the time and the filmed person is also on one spot most of the time.

I've just seen a couple of videos which were made with the sl2/d700 and this cheap canon 1.8 lens but I'm not sure if there's a similarly cheap alternative for the A6000 that works as good as that in very low light (or maybe one which is a bit more expensive). On the german amazon canon lenses are sold way more often than sony and have better reviews. Any further suggestions?

what about this one https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/dp/B00EPWC30O/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1520713581&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=Sony+1.8+sel50

Actual 50mm, this lens.

Okay that makes sense. What is the difference between these two lenses?

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/dp/B00EPWC30O/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1498159559&sr=8-3&keywords=sony+50mm+f1.8

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-FE-50mm-F1-8-Lens/dp/B01DLMD5O6/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1498159559&sr=8-4&keywords=sony+50mm+f1.8

Is it that the more expensive one is 50mm for APCS while the other is 75mm for APCS?

Ok so my a6000 is coming next week. and it comes with the standard 16-50. I wanted a lens for street photography and maybe portrait down the line(whenever I get better).

I was wondering which lens I should go for?

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-FE-50mm-F1-8-Lens/dp/B01DLMD5O6/

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SEL50F18-Mount-Cameras-Black/dp/B00EPWC30O/

Just to clarify - "full frame" refers to the size of the sensor. It's a property of the sensor inside the camera. Your a5100 and your old Rebel both have APS-C (i.e. not full frame) sized sensors. Hopefully this will make it clearer.

Lenses can be designed for any sensor size, including APS-C and full frame. The APS-C sensor size is also known as "crop". If you use an APS-C (crop) lens on your a5100, the image will cover the sensor exactly. If you use a full frame lens, the image will be larger than the sensor, so it'll look more zoomed in than it would if you used it on a full frame camera.

"Crop" is not something to avoid; it doesn't mean you're losing part of the image or anything like that. Your camera is designed for "crop" (APS-C) lenses, and you should use those unless you have some special reason for wanting a full-frame lens which will be larger, heavier and much more expensive. FYI there is no Sony full-frame 50mm f/1.8 - do you mean the 55mm f/1.8? There is an APS-C 50mm f/1.8, however.

Landscape and portraiture are completely different with respect to lens needs. Here's some thoughts, but get ready to open your wallet.

Landscapes will be the Sigma 16mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0783J5BWP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_XKeHDbA4H058S

Portraiture would be good with with the 50mm F1. 8 OSS Sony https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EPWC30O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_6MeHDbSH3FX9K

You'll be served well with the excellent Sony 24-105 G PZ OSS if you want a single travel companion. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ENZRQH8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_bIeHDbD47B6XM

I was stuck on learning HSS. Pictures come out great and fun to do. Here's what I have.

Godox w trigger
Sony 50mm 1.8
Of course you'd shoot the flash through a diffuser.

Here is a shot from the first paid session I did after months of practicing.

HighSpeedSync
Exif:
Nex6
50mm
1.8
1/1600
HSS through umbrella

I just realized you said you just started looking into cameras.

I'll leave some reference links for the lenses for you.

This is the FE

This is the non FE

FE are for full frame cameras (a7, a7r, a7r2). They're a larger sensor size.

The a6300 is aspc or a cropped sensor so it has a smaller sensor. The non FE lens is designed for the smaller camera.

Hello everyone!
Just got the a6000 recently with some christmas money and I freaking love it already. I've been doing some research and I want to try out an upgraded lens. The kit is fine, but I'm definitely seeing the benefits of a lower aperture prime (more bokeh effect, better in low light, etc.)

I've narrowed down my search to the Sony SEL35F18, SEL50F18, and the Sigma 30mm F2.8

The SEL35F18 definitely seems best to me overall, and I'm thinking it probably makes sense to just suck it up and go straight for that. However the Sigma is also attractive because it seems like a great budget alternative. The SEL50F18 is probably last on my list because at ~$300 currently, its just not a significant enough difference in price from the 35... Any advice is appreciated!

In Germany it's 285€ https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00EPWC30O/ which is more than 300$

Edit: whoops. I meant this one https://www.amazon.de/Sony-SEL-50F18F-Vollformat-Objektiv-geeignet/dp/B01E7NGVEY/ which is still almost 300$