Sharpness test
It can't match the best lenses in the
group, but sharpness is respectable and quite consistent through the aperture
range between f/2.8 and f/16.
Sigma
50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro - Sharpness test
Fringing test
Performance is excellent in terms of colour
fringing, the Sigma only being narrowly beaten into second place in the group
by the Nikon 60mm.
Sigma
50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro - Fringing test
Distortion test
There's a little barrel distortion to be
seen in images from the Sigma, and it's slightly more pronounced than with the
Olympus and Sony lenses.
Sigma
50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro - Distortion test
Imagetest verdict
With strong all-round performance, the
Sigma's image quality is impressive considering the fairly low-budget price of
the lens.
Ratings: 4/5
- Sony 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Sharpness test
Sharpness is good and consistent, both
throughout the aperture range and across the whole frame. It's the lens's
strongest attribute.
Sony
50mm f/2.8 Macro - Sharpness test
Fringing test
Not too bad, but the Sony earns the worst
score for colour fringing at its largest aperture off/2.8, which occurs across
most of the frame.
Sony
50mm f/2.8 Macro - Fringing test
Distortion test
Barrel distortion is a little noticeable.
To compare, it's about midway between that of the Olympus and Sigma lenses in
the group.
Sony
50mm f/2.8 Macro - Distortion test
Imagetest verdict
Image quality is very good, as you'd expect
from a lens at this price. The only flaw is that colour fringing is quite
pronounced, especially at f/2.8.
Ratings: 4/5
- Tamron SP AF 60mm f/2 Di II Macro
Sharpness test
Sharpness is very poor at f/2 and still
disappointing at f/2.8. Between f/5.6 and f/16 it's not too bad, but still
worse than other lenses in the group.
Tamron
SP AF 60mm f/2 Di II Macro
- Sharpness test
Fringing test
Colour fringing isn't a problem and is
consistent throughout the aperture range. It's most noticeable towards the
extreme corners of the frame.
Tamron
SP AF 60mm f/2 Di II Macro
- Fringing test
Distortion test
By far the worst in the group here, the
Tamron has clearly noticeable barrel distortion - disappointing for a macro
prime lens.
Tamron
SP AF 60mm f/2 Di II Macro
- Distortion test
Imagetest verdict
With its lack of sharpness at large
aperture settings and noticeable distortion, the Tamron just manages a
three-star rating for image quality.
Ratings: 3/5
Lens benchmarks
See how each lens performed in our
lab tests
Given the dual role of these lenses for
close-ups as well as for fast standard or telephoto use, sharpness is Important
at both ends of the aperture range. The Olympus 60 mm is a clear winner for
outstanding sharpness at its largest available aperture of f/2.8, and it still
has plenty of resolving power at f/16, ideal for macro shooting. At the other
end of the scale, the Canon 50mm and Tamron 60mm have a disappointing lack of
sharpness at f/2.8 and they're even worse at their maximum available apertures
of f/2.5 and f/2 respectively.
Most lenses give very little distortion,
either barrel or pincushion, and it's only the Tamron 60mm's barrel distortion
that is sometimes noticeable in shots. The next worst offenders are the Canon
50mm and Nikon 40mm, which demonstrate slight pincushion, whereas the Nikon
60mm lens has practically no distortion at all. For colour fringing, the Sony
50mm has the worst score of all when used at its f/2.8 aperture.
Sharpness – High scores are better
The Olympus lens shows its class here, with
sharpness values that far outshine the results from the other lenses
|
|
f/2.8
|
f/8
|
f/16
|
|
Canon EF 50mm
|
466
|
2077
|
1550
|
|
Canon EF-S 60mm
|
2177
|
2235
|
1616
|
|
Nikon 40mm DX
|
2581
|
2644
|
2156
|
|
Nikon 60mm
|
1850
|
2597
|
2228
|
|
Olympus 60mm
|
3367
|
1953
|
2099
|
|
Sigma 50mm
|
2122
|
2289
|
1829
|
|
Sony 50mm
|
2682
|
2850
|
2523
|
|
Tamron 60mm
|
916
|
1834
|
1676
|
Distortion - Closer to 0 is better
This demonstrates how badly the Tamron's
lens distortion is compared with the results from the other lenses.
·
Canon EF 50mm: 0.19
·
Canon EF-S 60mm: 0.06
·
Nikon 40mm DX: 0.14
·
Nikon 60mm: 0.02
·
Olympus 60mm: -0.05
·
Sigma 50mm: -0.14
·
Sony 50mm: -0.09
·
Tamron 60mm: -0.55
Fringing – Low scores are better
Canon's 50mm lens is particularly
disappointing here, but the Olympus 60mm is also poor at f/16.
|
|
f/2.8
|
f/8
|
f/16
|
|
Canon EF 50mm
|
1.43
|
1.15
|
1.17
|
|
Canon EF-S 60mm
|
0.48
|
0.81
|
1.18
|
|
Nikon 40mm DX
|
0.21
|
0.5
|
0.4
|
|
Nikon 60mm
|
0.09
|
0.08
|
0.07
|
|
Olympus 60mm
|
0.63
|
0.2
|
1.45
|
|
Sigma 50mm
|
0.15
|
0.26
|
0.25
|
|
Sony 50mm
|
1.78
|
0.62
|
0.48
|
|
Tamron 60mm
|
0.97
|
0.62
|
0.68
|
How the lenses compare
|
|
Canon EF 50mm f/2.5 Macro
|
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM
|
Nikon AF-S 40mm f/2.8G DX Micro
|
Nikon 60mm f/2.8d AF Micro
|
|
Contact
|
www.canon.com
|
www.canon.com
|
www.nikon.com
|
www.nikon.com
|
|
Street price
|
$345
|
$525
|
$293
|
$548
|
|
Minimum focus
|
23cm
|
20cm
|
16.3cm
|
22cm
|
|
Max magnification
|
0.5x
|
1x
|
1x
|
1x
|
|
Autofocus motor
|
Micro motor
|
Ultrasonic (ring)
|
Ultrasonic (ring)
|
None
|
|
Filter size
|
52mm
|
52mm
|
62mm
|
46mm
|
|
Included accessories
|
None
|
None
|
Hood and pouch
|
None
|
|
Dimension (DxL)
|
68x63mm
|
73x70mm
|
69x65mm
|
70x75mm
|
|
Weight
|
280g
|
335g
|
235g
|
440g
|
|
Features
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
3/5
|
3/5
|
|
Build quality
|
3/5
|
3/5
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
|
Image quality
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
|
Value
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
|
Overall
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
|
|
Olympus M.ZUIKO ED 60mm f/2.8 Macro
|
Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro
|
Sony 50mm f/2.8 Macro
|
Tamron SP AF 60mm f/2
Di II Macro
|
|
Contact
|
www.olympus.com
|
www.sigma-imaging-uk.com
|
www.sony.com
|
www.tamron.com
|
|
Street price
|
$675
|
$405
|
$690
|
$525
|
|
Minimum focus
|
19cm
|
19cm
|
20cm
|
23cm
|
|
Max magnification
|
1x
|
1x
|
1x
|
1x
|
|
Autofocus motor
|
MSC
|
Micro motor
|
None
|
Micro motor
|
|
Filter size
|
46mm
|
55mm
|
55mm
|
55mm
|
|
Included accessories
|
None
|
Hood
|
None
|
Hood
|
|
Dimension (DxL)
|
56x82mm
|
72x67mm
|
72x60mm
|
73x80mm
|
|
Weight
|
185g
|
320g
|
295g
|
400g
|
|
Features
|
4/5
|
3/5
|
3/5
|
3/5
|
|
Build quality
|
5/5
|
3/5
|
4/5
|
2/5
|
|
Image quality
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
3/5
|
|
Value
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
3/5
|
2/5
|
|
Overall
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
4/5
|
2/5
|
The Olympus is the close-up choice
The diminutive Olympus 60mm lens
takes on the big guns and shows that Micro Four Thirds really is a force to be
reckoned with.
The
Olympus is the close-up choice
The Olympus 60mm is a beautifully crafted
high-precision optics. The MSC (Movie & Still Compatible) autofocus system
works brilliantly, the focus limiter system is extremely well implemented,
manual focusing is super-smooth and there’s the reassurance of dust and
splash-proofing. Best of all though, image quality is absolutely excellent with
stunning sharpness at f/2.8. Given the effective 120mm focal length, this makes
the lens every bit as desirable as a fast telephoto lens as it is for macro
shooting. There’s a neat sliding lens hood specially made for it as well,
although sadly you will need to purchase this as an optional extra. If you
really want to push the boat out, Olympus also offers an FS-SRF11 ringflash set
at around $975.
Compared with the Olympus, Canon’s 50mm
lens is lacklustre when it comes to features and image quality, although the
Canon 60mm fares a little better. The Nikon 40mm lens has impressive sharpness,
but stretches a little too close for comfort towards whatever you’re
photographing for serious macro work. Even so, it’s remarkably good value at
the knockdown price. The comparatively antique Nikon 60mm lacks an internal
autofocus motor, but overall build and image quality are rather better.
There are a few similarities between the
Sigma and Sony 50mm lenses, despite the Sony costing nearly $300 more. The Sony
is the sharper of the two, but colour fringing is disappointing at large
apertures.
Our test results
The best macro lenses for your camera
revealed...
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM
·
Price: $525
·
What's good: Internal
focusing, fast and near-silent ring-type ultrasonic autofocus.
·
What's bad: No focus
limiter switch.
·
Our verdict: Good image
quality and some high-end features at a reasonable price.
·
Ratings: 4/5
Nikon 60mm f/2.8d AF Micro
·
Price: $548
·
What's good: Build and
good image quality.
·
What's bad: Will only
focus manually on bodies like the D3200 and D5100.
·
Our verdict: Better
image quality than the newer G-mount Nikon 60mm, and cheaper.
·
Ratings: 4/5
Olympus M.ZUIKO ED 60mm f/2.8 Macro
·
Price: $675
·
What's good: Excellent
autofocus system, extraordinarily sharp at large apertures.
·
What's bad: Expensive
and lens hood is extra.
·
Our verdict: An
outstanding lens that's very compact yet offers superb quality.
·
Ratings: 4/5
Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro
·
Price: $405
·
What's good: Image
quality and a solid build.
·
What's bad: Lacks a
built-in autofocus motor, apart from Canon and Sigma-fit editions.
·
Our verdict: A good
value buy, and it's available in several different mount options.
·
Ratings: 4/5
Sony 50mm f/2.8 Macro
·
Price: $460
·
What's good: Very good
levels of sharpness throughout the aperture range.
·
What's bad: The
feature-set is a bit lacking, especially considering the high selling price.
·
Our verdict: A good buy
for Sony SLR and SLT cameras if you don't mind the price.
·
Price: $405
