Sony FE 50 mm f/1.8 review - Vignetting

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Sony FE 50 mm f/1.8

24 November 2017

Arkadiusz Olech

8. Vignetting

First let’s check the vignetting performance on the smaller APS-C sensor – appropriate thumbnails you can find below.

A7R II, APS-C, f/1.8	A7R II, APS-C, f/2.0

The light fall-off seems to be noticeable only near the maximum relative aperture where, by f/1.8 and f/2.0, it is, respectively, 28% (-0.96 EV) and 21% (-0.68 EV). By f/2.8 it decreases to a negligible level of 7% (-0.20 EV).

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When progressing to full frame there are much more problems as you can notice while glancing at photos, shown below.

A7R II, FF, f/1.8	A7R II, FF, f/2.0

A7R II, FF, f/2.8	A7R II, FF, f/4.0

We got as much as 62% (-2.79 EV) of light fall-off at the maximum relative aperture and, with such a result, the tested lens lags behind all the group. It is a bit more than the result of the Sonnar 1.8/55 (59%) and the Canon 1.8/55 STM (61%). Both Nikkors 1.8/50 outclassed all the rest, with results within the 41-44% range.

If you stop down the aperture to f/2.0 the vignetting decreases to a still high level of 56% (-2.38 EV). That aberration remains visible by f/2.8 where we got 30% (-1.03 EV). By f/4.0 and f/5.6 we got, respectively, the following results: 16% (-0.52 EV) and 15% (-0.48 EV). Further stopping down didn’t have any measurable influence over the aberration, described there.

Below we present averaged out values of brightness loss shown in concentric circles as you move further away from the frame centre. The numerical value for every image, expressed in percents, shows the area limited from the top and right by 100% and from the bottom by the presented curve. The area indicates how much light overall is lost due to the vignetting effect. Please don’t mix these percentages with the values given at the beginning of the chapter because they aren’t directly connected.

Sony FE 50 mm f/1.8 - Vignetting