Sony DT 50mm f/1.8 SAM Lens

Sony DT 50mm f/1.8 SAM Lens

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B&H Photo Video (202)
90%
137 Reviews

My Potrait Lens

May 17, 2011

This was my first lens purchase, and there are no issues with the lens itself, the quality is great, and it does the job it's meant to do. My problem with the lens is simply that it doesn't do that much better of a job over the stock lens that comes with the sony Alpha cameras for my uses. I guess I was hoping that having the F 1.8 aperture would make a huge difference in low light conditions, but I'm finding that it's not. I'm still shooting wit... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Plastic, Cheap. Never again.

Jul 21, 2012

First off, I was very excited when I purchased this lens. My photography instructor advised me against buying this, but I did not listen. I did get some really cool shots with it. However, the auto focus was really horrible. It could never seem to lock in and focus on anything, and when it did it was very finicky (sp) and took forever to find a focus. After having it for only a couple of months, I noted that it was completely dusty inside, and no... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Great lens for the price point

Dec 12, 2009

I wanted, originally, a more expensive lens that had better test results, but I just couldn't wait to experience the limited depth of field that this lens (and others)had to offer. My primary use for this lens is indoor candid/organic photography. On my first test shoot, I was immediately impressed with the DoF and overall image quality (with good sharpness). In the f/1.8 range, I was able to use lower ISO to avoid sensor noise or higher shutter ... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

sony 50mm prim lense from a pro

Mar 22, 2011

I'm a pro photographer, shoot bands and outdoor events pretty well every weekend all year round. I picked up a Sony A 33 this season and thought I would give it a try. After a few thousand images I find that this lense is very good for the price. Lightweight and short, you really notice the extra clarity, faster focusing and better definition compared to the kit 18-50 and the Sony 18-250 lenses that I purchased along with my new A 33 camera. Dept... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

I like this one!

May 11, 2011

I use it with my A330. Thought about buying it used for around $110, but I decided I wanted something that had never been used; that's guaranteed and returnable, and from a reliable source .... It shoots well in low light, which is my main reason for purchase, and being a more simple design than a zoom lens it produces much more crisp photos than my kit lenses. Depth of field at 1.8 really does blur the background nicely. Can get super fast shutt... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

perfection for chick shots

May 4, 2011

This lens is better than the 18-55mm standard lens. I have used this lens in a pidgeon coupe and a small pen for baby chicks. Image quality is perfect and set on f/1.8 I was able to use a shutter speed of 1/30 to get some amazing pictures. Due to the small space the auto focus for video was ineffective, but using manual focus I was able to capture a minute worth of video of these energetic baby chicks as they searched for seeds. I almost lost my ... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Compact and bright

Nov 18, 2014

I use it on my SLT-A65. It is quite compact and very fast to focus as well. Although I have zooms that work in the same range they are not f1.8 and they are not light or bright as this one. This lens has very few shortcomings that does affect it's functionality. They include, (1) it is plastic light, (2) The focusing ring is not well demarcated, and (3) Canon and Nikon make similar 50mm (eg: Nikon 50/1.8D - $ on BH) that is a bit heavier but work... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Must have for beginners

Jan 27, 2012

I have been shooting with lens on my A55 for about 4 moths and must say that was very impressed with the quality considering the price I paid! This lens produces very sharp images, (at least with the A55) and performs very well in low light conditions. I love the bokeh it produces. It is not my everyday lens because it is not zoom, but that is not why I got it. The f/1.8 is a must have for portrait photography. It is not a quite lens, but that do... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

inexpensive artistic pictures

Jul 18, 2010

The 50mm F1.8 is a nice tool; using it at F1.8 in darkness or in poor light inside, one can make the job because there is a lot amount of light getting inside the camera through this lens. In the open using f/1.8-f/3.5 one can make artistic pictures easy with this inexpensive lens. Above F2.0 is recommended for sharp clear pictures. At this low F you must be very careful on what you focus (focusing on the nose will let the eyes in some blur and t... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Great bang for the buck

May 11, 2010

Bought this lens to try and get a little more use out of my old Sony A200, which has since been replaced by a Nikon D5000, and it's done just that. With just the kit lenses for the Sony, this inexpensive lens bests them both in overall quality. I use this lens on the Sony as backup for theatrical photography, and it does well in low light, even if there is occasional difficulty focusing in some situations. And the focus itself is rather loud and ... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Great Lens

Jan 23, 2012

I just got this lens a couple of weeks ago and I love it! It's a great sharp, portrait lens. I'm using in on a sony a230. I also have the sony 70-300 and the 18-55 and while both of those have their place the 50 1.8 is much nicer for portrait work and it's also great for getting shots indoors or with less light since it can get to 1.8 aperture. Many people have said that it's too fragile and cheaply built, but I don't see any problem with it as l... Show More

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So far so good

Jan 14, 2012

This is my first prime lens. I purchased this because I need a little something more for flower/outdoor/macro nature shots. I've had it about a week and so far it's not disappointing at all. Winter really isn't the season for nature macros but it handles snow and the plethora of light nature has to offer during the day. My low-light evening shots were great too. I was blown away by the focus and the contrast this lens provides. I'm very happy wit... Show More

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

good for the price

Aug 17, 2012

i bought this lens for sony NEX7, and attached it with the LA-EA2 adapter. so it works as if it was on an SLT camera. the lens is small and light and feels very plasticy. even the bionet is made of plastic. the AF speed is good, but on certain cases it misses, even in good light. i own a Nikon AF-D 50mm 1.8 which is cheap too, and NEVER had this problem. optically the Sony is quite good - nice sharpness, contrast, bokeh and colors, quite close to the Nikon. for me the DT is OK, but lacks some character and accuracy. for its price it gives good performance, but as i wrote, i had better lenses.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Works good

Aug 9, 2009

Use on a350. Portrait and general use. Sharp images, even on the edges. Front glass is recessed, which sort of gives a hood. But, filters screw-on past the recess on the very front, and therefore need a to get an accessory hood for the filter, which is not offered (get a rubber hood that will grip the outer diameter of the filter). Lens barrel spins at the front (past chrome ring) when using autofocus. Autofocus difficult in low light - must go to manual focus. Very good low light images. Would think most people would use this lens to take indoor pictures of family, without needing a flash.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Light, sharp, bright & very inexpensive

Jul 23, 2014

I bought this lens for my Sony a65 so that I could take candid closeup shots of the actors at the local renaissance fair. On the a65 it makes for a powerful but compact 24 megapixel that will work well photographing people in motion in the shady light that covers much of the fair. Size-wise it fits very nicely on the smaller body of the a65, though I'll no doubt use it on my a77 as well eventually. Combining all this with the in-camera stabilization of the Sony cameras provides a level of image quality that is unrivaled by the other camera companies, in my opinion.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

One of my favorite lenses

Sep 19, 2009

Use for low light shots indoors. Also use for people pictures. After getting used to the lens, I can blur the background out by setting to f/1.8. Tried using outdoors, but lens is not ideal for scenery: too narrow field of view. Also when outdoors and using a circular polarizer, the sun easily catches the filter and may ruin the shot. Needs a lens hood of some kind, one that will cover the filter. Another annoyance is that you must set the circular polarizer after focusing, since that part of the lens rotates when focusing. Pictures are sharp and clear.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Excellent IQ, great price

Jan 11, 2010

This lens is certainly worth the money! Image quality is superb, save for some vignetting at 1.8. It is loud when focusing however, and it isn't very smooth either as the SAM label suggests. In fact, the SAM motor is probably a hindering factor to the quality of this lens. I own a Minolta 50 1.7 with a screw drive for focusing and it is much faster and quieter on my A230 than this lens. But if you're willing to put up with these things, you'll get excellent photos with great clarity and sharpness. The build is all plastic, but it's not terrible.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Just what I wanted.

Feb 24, 2010

So far this lens is just what I was looking for. It is great for photographing my kids indoors because with the large aperture I can get a good picture without having to use my flash. Plus, I can also use it in more creative/artistic ways to blur the background which is what I wanted. The fixed 50mm doesn't seem to be a bad thing because it makes me move to compose my images. The only thing that I don't like is that it seems to take awhile to focus when in auto focus, which is why I gave in 4 stars. All in all a great lens at a good price.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Great Lens!

May 6, 2010

Great lens for taking portrait shots because you can easily throw the background out of focus with this fast f1.8. Images are extremely sharp, I love the colors and the bokeh. I would rate this 5 stars, but the mostly plastic construction keeps me away from doing so. Make no mistake, this is a very well built lens, but I prefer a some more metal like my SAL 18250 lens has. It has a very fast autofocus, though not as quiet as I would like it to be. Overall, I highly recommend this lens, it is a must have for anyone with a Sony SLR camera!

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Amazing!

Dec 4, 2014

At first I was skeptical on purchasing this lens because of the mixed reviews! But needless to say I am so glad I bought this lens. It does everything I need it to do and the bokeh is great! I mainly use it to film my YouTube videos and I love how it blurs out the background of my videos! It is also great with taking pictures. It takes a little getting use to because it is a prime lens, so you cannot zoom. But you get use to it! If you're going to be purchasing your first lens besides the 18-55mm lens I would highly recommend this one!

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Good quality for this price.

May 18, 2010

I like: - Sharp - Weight - Bokeh - Color I don't like: - Chromatic aberration up to f/4 sometime, but usually it's ok for f/2.5 - SAM(AF/MF switch, noise, speed) ... maybe it would be better to use camera motor. But it's not a big problem. - Contrast before f/2.5 - Design, plastic but it's cheap... Very very good lens for this price. If you don't have it, buy it;) It's very cheap, nice portrait lens. I don't think that it's a problem that it's crop just because if you have full-frame you don't have to use something like it:)

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

Should-a bought long time ago.

Mar 2, 2010

Took it right out of the box and started snapping photos of the pine trees with fresh snow just after sunset only leaning against a wall for support. Took an excellent photo. Really enjoy the shortness of the lens. Had been using the kit 18-70 lens for indoor and cranking up the ISO to 400-800. 400 good photos but still slow. 800 not so good, lots a grain. This will increase my indoor use and photo quality immediately. Excellent in daylight too. Can drop down the ISO for longer shutter speed without too many ND filters.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

fits the Bill!

May 11, 2011

Indoor plays, gym sports such as volleyball and jumprope. I got this to complement my recent SAL35f18 and it works great. Good low light performance, can extend the shutter speed to freeze action as needed. Also good for flowers. Get good performance with fixed lens without carrying around 10lbs of gear that sticks out a foot. Highly recommend this. Very sharp image with both lenses. Good results at this price point, could have gone to f1.4 but would be 2.5X the cost. I do not need the extra aperture.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

too early to tell

Feb 11, 2013

It is too early for me to give any more than a three star as I had expected this lens to be clear close subject and blurred background. I thought it was a prime and maybe I don't understand prime but I thought it would be only 1.8 but I am getting camera info which gives larger numbers. Anyway, I will practice more and try to understand what is going on. There isn't a lot of info on the internet for this sony lens, so I am kind of in a quandry. If anyone has info, please let me know. Thanks.

Reviewed on B&H Photo Video

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Sony DT 50mm f/1.8 SAM Lens
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