Photo Review Reviews section

Sony SAL85F14Z Planar T* 85mm F1.4 ZA Lens

9 Rating

A fast, high-performance prime lens that is ideal for portraits and candid photography.The name alone should be an assurance to knowledgeable photographers that the Sony CZ Planar T* 85mm F1.4 ZA is no ordinary lens and the ‘Planar’ tag reflects its noble ancestry. The original Planar was a six-element symmetrical lens designed by physicist, Paul Rudolph, at Carl Zeiss in 1896. It was very popular with serious photographers for its speed and pictorial qualities and offered consistent performance over a wide range of imaging ratios.

Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD Lens

8.8 Rating

A compact, lightweight all-in-one 15x zoom lens for cameras with APS-C sized sensors.Announced early in December 2010, Tamron’s 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD lens introduces a new PZD (Piezo Drive) ultrasonic motor that delivers faster and quieter autofocusing. Claimed as the world’s most compact, lightweight lens with a 15x zoom ratio it is designed for DSLR cameras with APS-C sized sensors and is initially available in Canon and Nikon mounts, with a Sony mount without VC stabilisation to follow in May.

Sony GPS-CS3KA GPS Kit

9 Rating

A compact GPS data logger for tagging image and video files with location information.Sony’s GPS-CS3KA data logger replaces the CS1 unit and is offered as an accessory for the company’s Cyber-shot cameras. However, it also works well with Alpha DSLRs and can be used with cameras from other manufacturers – as long as they record to SD, SDHC or Memory Stick Duo cards.

Sigma 30mm F1.4 EX DC HSM Lens

8.5 Rating

A very fast prime lens that covers a ‘normal’ angle of view and is designed for ‘APS-C’ format DSLR cameras.Designed exclusively for DSLR cameras with ‘APS-C’ sized image sensors, Sigma’s 30mm F1.4 EX DC HSM lens is solidly constructed and available in mounts to suit all popular brands – including Olympus and Panasonic. On the Canon EOS 40D and 400D cameras we tested it on, this lens equates to a 48mm lens on a 35mm camera – which is close to a ‘standard’ viewing angle. It cannot be used on DSLRS with ‘full frame’ sensors because it vignettes at the corners of the frame.

Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM Lens

8.8 Rating

A fast, high-performance 50mm prime lens for DSLR cameras from Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Sony.The 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM is the first large-aperture 50mm prime lens to be manufactured by Sigma and the company has gone to considerable lengths to include the latest designs and technology. Unlike the 50mm f/1.4 primes from other manufacturers, which use designs that hark back to the 1970s, this lens is bang up-to-date, with a Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) ensuring silent, high-speed AF; a non-rotating front element and a moulded aspherical optical component.

Sigma 18-250mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS HSM Lens

8.5 Rating

A compact 13.9x wide-angle zoom lens for DSLR cameras with APS-C-sized image sensors.Sigma’s new 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS HSM is designed as an all-in-one lens for digital photographers with APS-C-sized (DX) sensors who don’t want to carry more than one lens. Covering focal lengths ranging from the 35mm equivalent of 27mm to 375mm with most camera brands (28.8mm to 400mm on Canon bodies) it offers a 13.8 times zoom ratio. A built-in Hybrid Optical Stabiliser is provides for shake reduction in both shots and the viewfinder image.

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS

8.8 Rating

An affordably-priced long-zoom lens that will suit photographers who want a single ‘go-anywhere’ lens for their DSLR cameras.Sigma’s versatile 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 DC OS lens has been designed as an all-purpose lens for digital SLR cameras with ‘APS-C size’ image sensors. Offering an 11x zoom ratio and a minimum focusing distance of 45cm at all focal lengths, this lens will appeal to photographers who want a single, long-range zoom lens to fit on their camera body. A built-in Hyper-Sonic Motor (HSM) uses ultrasonic waves to drive the autofocusing controls, providing fast and quiet AF.

Sekonic Digital Master L-758DR Light Meter

Claimed as the world’s first multi-function light meter with exposure profiling and wireless triggering, the Sekonic Digital Master L-758DR has been designed for professional photographers who shoot with advanced digital cameras but can also be used by photographers who shoot film. No light meter we’ve encountered offers such a wide range of capabilities.

SanDisk Extreme IV 4GB CompactFlash Card & FireWire Reader

Fast data transfer speeds for high-volume photographers.SanDisk has just released a new Extreme IV line of memory cards, which are designed to meet the needs of professional photographers who use high-performance DSLR cameras. Claimed as the fastest storage cards available, Extreme IV cards are available in 2, 4 and 8-gigabyte (GB) capacities and deliver read and write speeds of 40 megabytes per second (MB/sec.), twice as fast as the SanDisk Extreme III cards.

PC-E Micro Nikkor 45mm f/2.8D ED Lens

8.5 Rating

A highly specialised lens that provides control over the plane of focus and is usable for shooting close-ups.Nikon’s PC-E Micro Nikkor 45mm f/2.8D ED lens is the latest in a series of perspective control (PC) lenses that have been produced by the company over many years. Offering a shift range of plus or minus 11.5mm and tilt of plus or minus 8.5 degrees, it can also be rotated through plus or minus 90-degrees in 30-degree increments. In all respects, this is a pretty wide range – but it’s only achievable on camera bodies with 36 x 24mm sensors. The lens can also be used on cameras with smaller imagers, but its adjustability will be limited.