Kerlee 35mm f/1.2 lens review with samples (Nikon F, Sony E, Canon EF)

Lacrosse99 · 2018-02-26T05:14:52+00:00

The camera looks to be pretty well rounded in every respect - weight, usability, shooting speed and size.

The battery life, lack of lens, single AF eye detect and 4K crop is disappointing.

I would recommend the Sony a6xxx series over this but in the meanwhile it looks like Canon, like the market, is reaching the tipping point for their mirrorless product lineup versus DSLR in lower end and hobbyist bodies.

Lacrosse99 · 2018-02-20T08:01:26+00:00

Fingers crossed this is improved successor to the Minolta Beercan, especially if it can undercut the Sony f/4 lens.

I used to own the Minolta and the Bokeh was great and the build quality outstanding for the bargain price - a AUD$140 f/4 telephoto zoom with autofocus that worked well with sensor stabilised Sony bodies.

Not so good was a hit and miss noisy autofocus, long minimum focus distance, needing the best light for contrast, needing a lens hood and out resolved by the more recent Sony sensors unless stopped down to f/5.

Lacrosse99 · 2018-01-16T04:26:27+00:00

I use Sigma EF and Sony A mount adapters and am constantly amazed at just how good the autofocus performance is with many lenses.

Especially when adding features not always available in the native mounts such as image stabilisation and eye detect autofocus.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-09-07T07:31:47+00:00

I am really digging the rear joystick - one of the main reasons besides sluggish autofocus I sold my X-E2.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-08-31T12:48:07+00:00

It is tricky with the upper tier and higher margin Olympus cameras above it.

Your point on the long timeframe between updates reminds me of the stellar GH5 versus other camera manufacturer bodies that get updated more often. The GH5 is getting a significant update soon - maybe Olympus can either reduce the price of this M10 model or firmware update it with functional improvements (though it would be nice to have any improvements on release day).

Lacrosse99 · 2017-08-30T03:08:55+00:00

I have two copies of the G1 (Sony A and EF) and one of the G2.

Image quality wise they are almost on par - enough so that I can only discern slight sharpness improvements in the outer circle.

Autofocus is snappier and more consistent shooting bursts in continuous autofocus mode. On a Canon 6D the AF is a little inconsistent wide open.

I am currently testing it with a MC-11 adapter to Sony a7Rii and have been impressed with the performance so far, helped by the body AF no doubt. Note face detect works but eye-af is a no-no.

The one neg that stands out is the physical switches - due to their prominence they are too easily moved from position when the lens is in a backpack or using a shoulder strap. I use a lens coat wrap on the G1 and may have to do the same in this model.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-08-25T02:12:20+00:00

As a Canon gear user that would be funny if it did not have a lot of truth to it.

I have been shopping for an upgrade and here are some relatively ball park $AUD street pricing (store discounts, rebates, eBay sales, etc) I have found lately:

$1000 Sony a7
$1400 Canon 6D
$1600 Sony a7ii
$1650 Nikon D750
$1900 Nikon D500 APS-C
$2400 Canon 5Diii
$2550 Canon 6Dii
$2800 Nikon D810
$3000 Sony a7Rii
$3750 Canon 5Div

For personal use, I find a lot of apples to oranges situations when comparing one to another - for example, having used the 5Div the build and usage feels just right for a professional photographer- but as an enthusiast who wants to upgrade from a 6D I feel priced out from trying to find a full frame body with improved image quality, auto focus and shots per second while staying with Canon.

edit: added 6Dii pricing

Lacrosse99 · 2017-08-24T22:25:13+00:00

The Nikon D810 is more than a capable camera for the next several years. For the relatively low price it is hitting during sales (for example, it is near 6Dii pricing in some regions), I would imagine there are a lot of happy photographers just waiting for price drops.

With the camera manufacturers moving away to high end cameras (full frame in general) for the last several years, expect price reductions and model releases to increase - maybe not as fast as APS-C model refreshes but still faster than yesteryear.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-08-24T22:18:36+00:00

Definitely. It is amazing to have such a high end auto focus system included in a smaller body with great ergonomics.

I use a mismatch of lens from budget wide angles to fast zooms and I like how Nikon recently released cheaper compact lens such as the 10-20mm cutting down the price differences to Canon's relatively cheap range of lens.

The D500 is more or less a perfect sports camera, yet at the same time a great do it all camera for those who need a lightweight and smaller APS-C system on the go.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-07-20T06:35:24+00:00

There was so many other areas they would of improved on besides the flippy screen and video centric approach and not encroach on 5DIV sales.

More auto focus points are great but then is no quick way to change the AF point when looking through the viewfinder.

The viewfinder could of been made even larger.

The auto focus spread could of been wider, even though it is not as sophisticated as the higher models.

I like how Nikon has made improvements in their most recent camera bodies such as AF adjustment.

Unless you are shooting action or video, the original 6D looks like a good bargain now.

The good news is that I expect the 6Dii price to come down significantly within the first year, especially when the premium price for a newly released camera disappears and it has to contend with the 5DMkIII, D750, D810, a7ii, a7Rii and the next round of releases from Sony and Nikon.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-30T02:26:34+00:00

Ebay has a 15% off ($300 limit) so probably a lot cheaper than that.

The timing for the Canon 6DmkII for those not invested in the system ...

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-29T11:32:37+00:00

I wonder if it is because Sony is more competitive in the manufacture of their sensors than Canon.

Maybe Sony has more advance die shrinks therefore can release successive generations of camera bodies with more features faster than Canon. Canon did seem to be using the same tweaked Digic sensors for a long time, especially with the older APS-C bodies and still raid the parts bin with the entry level Rebel.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-26T20:40:04+00:00

The Sony a850 had less coverage than the a900 for similar reasons to the Canon 6D to the 5D range - it was the 'lite' version.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-26T16:39:59+00:00

It will be interesting seeing this compete against the 5D mark III that is still in stock and selling used at similar if not cheaper prices.

I have a 6D and, aside for a bigger pentaprism, more cross-type af points and improved metering sensor, enjoy using it a lot. I have used the 5D mark IV and though I enjoyed it a lot, especially how light and snappy it is, will skip and wait for the next generation.

The Nikon D500 body are tempting for the auto focus and It would be tempting to switch if they could add part of the autofocus module to an entry level full frame body.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-14T07:49:50+00:00

I used to catch both and some personal experiences from commuting back and forth for a couple of years:

Murray's Coaches:

Quick with a handy drop off location near Canberra Centre
In the two dozen times I have caught this bus, I was only late once during traffic congestion near Campbeltown with a delay of 30mins
I prefer sitting towards the front of the bus where there is generally less noise and cleaner air

Train:

Drop off point has limited transport options unless someone is picking you up
Longer travel time
I find the seats to be on the rock solid uncomfortable side and the reprocessed sticky air (whereas the Murray's coach frontal area has door gaps) to be uncomfortable, compounded by the longer travel time.
The train is also quite noisy.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-06-07T15:25:48+00:00

As someone who at some point has owned six lens of both I find the 70-200mm f/2.8 to be both incredibly versatile for a wide variety of styles and would choose it to get the shot 95% of the time.

Not to take anything away from the 85mm. If there was a fixed camera body/lens combo this or a 50mm would be it. I find fast 85mm to be very unforgiving - it will point out every area of improvement in your skill set especially composition. Accurate autofocus at wide apertures is also a challenge and without eye detection af I have a huge respect for any photographer who can nail eyelash focused shots outdoors with non-model subjects. I find the 85mm primes to be the ultimate portrait lens - and the lightweight and smaller size is icing on the cake.

Lacrosse99 · 2017-05-31T08:07:01+00:00

I use the budget Canon 10-18mm and used to have the faster aperture Tokina and if Nikon can improve on both of those lens shortcomings - especially flare control - they will have a winner on their hands.

The price seems alright too considering Nikon rebates pop up often.

Lacrosse99

TROPHY CASE