Stuart Richardson
Active member
I know the 45mm lens was just announced, but I am a bit underwhelmed so far. It seems rather large and slow compared to what I had hoped for. There is no MTF data yet for the 45mm, but I am wondering what is the rationale behind this lens...it is not particularly fast (I know a lot of people who were hoping for a faster reportage style lens), it is not small or light, and it is certainly not cheap (1350 dollars more than the 70mm S). From what I can surmise, it looks like the zoom would do 90% of what the 45mm will do, while also filling all the other focal lengths in its range as well.
From what I can find (DPReview seems to have the most specs), the 45mm is 1030g without a central shutter and 163mm long with the hood.
By comparison, the 30-90mm zoom is 1275g and 144mm long with the hood. The zoom is a little wider and heavier, but the 45mm is longer.
The 45mm is a tick slower than either the 35mm or 75mm around it at 2.8, while the 30-90mm is probably around f/4 at this point, so just a stop slower than the 45mm. It seems the zoom's distortion reaches neutral around 45mm as well.
Can anyone who has used the 30-90 comment on its performance at this range? It seems like it might be the better buy for me at least. I don't care about or need a central shutter, and at least at the moment, it does not really appear like the 45mm offers much over the zoom. How much better can the performance be? From what I have gathered about the zoom, it is a pretty amazing performer...
Bleh, so much for a compact, fast wide angle for the S system....I had really hoped it would at least be the same size and speed as the 70mm...
From what I can find (DPReview seems to have the most specs), the 45mm is 1030g without a central shutter and 163mm long with the hood.
By comparison, the 30-90mm zoom is 1275g and 144mm long with the hood. The zoom is a little wider and heavier, but the 45mm is longer.
The 45mm is a tick slower than either the 35mm or 75mm around it at 2.8, while the 30-90mm is probably around f/4 at this point, so just a stop slower than the 45mm. It seems the zoom's distortion reaches neutral around 45mm as well.
Can anyone who has used the 30-90 comment on its performance at this range? It seems like it might be the better buy for me at least. I don't care about or need a central shutter, and at least at the moment, it does not really appear like the 45mm offers much over the zoom. How much better can the performance be? From what I have gathered about the zoom, it is a pretty amazing performer...
Bleh, so much for a compact, fast wide angle for the S system....I had really hoped it would at least be the same size and speed as the 70mm...