Picking the sharpest 35mm lens for a full frame camera is harder than it sounds, especially now that the market has more serious contenders than ever. Frost has tested over 50 of them across the past four years, and the field has changed enough that his original rankings no longer tell the whole story.
Coming to you from Christopher Frost, this methodical video ranks seven of the sharpest autofocus full frame 35mm lenses available today, with image quality scores out of 10 for both center and corner performance at each lens's maximum aperture. Frost gives extra weight to lenses with brighter maximum apertures, since a well-corrected f/1.2 lens is genuinely harder to design than an f/1.8, even if both end up equally sharp when stopped down. The list includes some expected names and at least one that will catch you off guard: a budget lens lands at number seven and outperforms some well-known options, including the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2. That alone tells you something about where optical engineering is heading.
The Nikon Z 35mm f/1.2 S comes in sixth, delivering beautiful images but falling short of what its price tag implies in the corners. Canon's RF 35mm f/1.4 L VCM hits fifth, built as a hybrid stills and video lens with outstanding center sharpness, but its corners disappoint at that price point. A DSLR-era Tamron 35mm f/1.4 makes a surprise appearance and earns its place by doing something unusual: it's actually slightly sharper in the corners than in the center, which is rare at this focal length and aperture. The catch is that it's a DSLR lens, so mirrorless users will need an adapter, and it's on the heavier side.
The top three slots belong to the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN Art Mark II, the Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 GM, and the newly released Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG DN Art Mark II. The Sony beats the Sigma f/1.2 by just one tenth of a point on corner performance and contrast, which tells you how tight the margins are at this level. The Sigma f/1.4 Mark II, released just a month before this video, lands at number one. Frost tested it on a 61-megapixel camera and describes the corner sharpness as something he has simply never seen on a wide angle lens before. At around $1,000, it undercuts several of the lenses it beats. Check out the video above for the full breakdown and scores from Frost.
1 Comment
Sharpness is but one measure of a lens desirability and while relevant it is not the sole determinant. Rendering in terms of color, micro contrast, and importantly dimensionality are critical elements to be considered as is resistance to flare, CA, internal reflections, size, weight, durability, control layout, etc.