Photography News | Issue 62 | photographynews.co.uk
44
First tests
Tokina Firin 20 f/2 FE AF £799
Original image
Specs
Sony’s full-frame mirrorless cameras may be smaller and lighter than a comparable DSLR, but by the time you add on top-quality glass then that advantage largely disappears – especially if you want to use fast, high-quality lenses. Sony’s G-Master zooms are terrific quality but pricey, large and heavy. And there has not been a huge number of lightweight alternatives from independent makers, especially in the wide-angle range beloved by landscape and street shooters. The Sigma 20mm f/1.4 Art lens weighs in at 1040g, for example, thanks largely to its ultra-fast aperture. Tipping the scales at less than half of that, Tokina’s new 20mm Firin f/2 lens is much more portable yet still has a very high-quality, modern optical design necessary for such high-resolving cameras as Sony’s 42-megapixel A7R III. The lens uses the same glass as Tokina’s current 20mm f/2 manual focus lens, but the new version is autofocus using an ultrasonic motor. This makes it reasonably fast and quiet, although it didhunt a littlewhen compared to native Sony G-Master glass in low-light conditions. It’s certainly not the lens to use for tracking fast-moving action, but that’s not what a prime like this is for. In street photography, it proved quick enough for snapping into focus on people’s faces and staying locked on, even tracking subjects as they moved across the frame. Tokina claims the lens was designed with the full cooperation of Sony, which means it works flawlessly with Sony’s advanced AF features such as face detection. In very low light, it did struggle a little to lock on, despite its fast f/2 maximum aperture, which was a bit disappointing. Landscape workers will have no complaints at all about the accuracy or speed of the focus. Unfortunately, the lens doesn’t offer any focusing marks or depth-of-field scale, but does have a wide focusing ring and AF/MF switch for quick manual tweaks.
Price
£799
Format 35mm and APS-C In the box BH-623 bayonet hood, front and rear lens caps Mount Sony E Construction 13 elements in 11 groups Special lens elements Three aspherical, two super-low dispersion AF motor Ultrasonic Coatings Nano-Crystal, fluorine-coated front element Filter size 62mm Aperture range F/2-22 Diaphragm Nine blades Internal focus Yes Manual focus Yes, full-time override Minimum focus 28cm Focus limiter No Distance scale No Depth-of-field scale No Image stabilizer No Tripod collar No Lens hood BH-623 bayonet hood supplied Weather-sealed No Dimensions (dxl) 73.4x81.5mm Weight 464g Contact hahnel.ie
F/2
F/2.8
Above Fast wide-angle lenses are ideal for handheld shooting in dimly lit interiors and this Tokina performs well at wide apertures.
F/4
Where it does excel is optical quality, thanks to its use of two aspherical elements and three super- lowdispersion glass, which cuts down all types of aberration and distortion along with offering high resolving power. The colours are very natural and the images show good contrast without being too extreme. Images are sharp, with the centre area being sharpest with some
degradationof detail at the edges of the frame. But it’s the sort of softening that will only bother keen pixel-peepers. In real world use, the vast majority of photographers would be very happy. What is good is the consistency of sharpness as you change apertures. At very narrow apertures or even wide open, the details are excellent. It’s a lens you can use at any aperture without worrying too much about any image degradation, even at the edges of the frame. There is some obvious vignetting, but this can be automatically removed using the built-in lens profiles in Adobe Lightroom, for example. This is because the lens communicates with Sony cameras via the electrical contacts in the lens mount, so the files can have vignetting and any chromatic aberrations removed. Bokeh is something that’s usually associatedwith longer lenses but with the Firin offering a fast f/2 aperture, you can actually get some pleasing out-of-focus areas in the background of an image, especially if the subject is close to the lens. There are very few E-mount lenses on the market that are so wide yet can offer a distinctive look when shot wide open, thanks to the fast maximum aperture. There is some field curvature at f/2 – so the centre of the frame is sharper than the edges, which is masked as you close down the aperture for more depth-of- field. But wide open this gives the lens a unique look, not totally dissimilar to wide, fast lenses onLeica rangefinders but at a fraction of the cost. The Tokina comeswith a lens hood, and the front element is not a huge bulbous affair found on some wide glass. With effective multi-coating, this makes it good at controlling flare. Although low winter sun right into the lens did show some ghosting, it was a pleasing effect and contrast wasn’t hugely affected. The smaller front element allows a reasonably compact 62mm filter thread, so oversize filters aren’t needed. The biggest let down with the lens is that there is no weather sealing. For a lens that could become a workhorse for a landscape photographer who wants to shoot in all conditions without compromising on image quality, it’s a bit of an oversight. AD
F/5.6
F/8
F/11
F/16
F/22
Verdict
The Tokina Firin is small, has decent build quality, is not too heavy and offers not only great image quality for landscape workers but also a unique look when shot wide open that should appeal to street shooters. At £799 it’s not cheap, but you get what you pay for in terms of quality. And there just aren’t any other 20mm f/2 autofocus primes on the market to fit Sony E-mount cameras. Pros Great optical performance and bokeh, fast f/2 maximum aperture Cons No weather sealing, AF is not the fastest or quietest
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