MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens. increase.
Navigation
- In short
- History
- Main Specifications
- Assembly
- Focusing
- Firmware Upgrade
- Image quality
- Sample Photos
- Price
- My experience
- Video review
- Results
- User Comments
- Add your review or question on the lens
In this review I will refer to the MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens as 'Meike AF 50/1.8'.
It's important: This review shows the Meike AF 50/1.8 version for Sony mirrorless cameras with bayonet mount Sony E / FE and with firmware version v.13. At the same time, there are modifications of this lens for mirrorless cameras of the systems Nikon Z и Leica l. An announcement of a version under is also expected Canon r.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
In short
Meike AF 50/1.8 is a modern autofocus lens for full-frame mirrorless cameras. In terms of its parameters, the Meike AF 50/1.8 is a very attractive and balanced solution. Automatic focusing is carried out using a stepper motor. Aperture of nine blades. The image quality is at a high level. There are features of compatibility with old cameras. In general, the Meike AF 50/1.8 is a very worthy solution, especially against the background of the original Sony FE 1.8 / 50, built on a very old optical design from solutions for SLR cameras.
I worked with the lens for about three weeks and shot about five thousand frames in completely different shooting conditions and used it for different types of photography. The lens coped with all tasks exceptionally well. In terms of its capabilities, the Meike AF 50/1.8 is a very attractive solution.
Such lenses are most often called 'fifty dollars' because of the focal length of 50 mm.
- for the system Sony FE The Meike AF 50/1.8 lens is an alternative to the original autofocus similar lens Sony FE 1.8 / 50 (SEL50F18F).
- for the system Nikon Z Meike AF 50/1.8 lens is an alternative to the original autofocus professional lens Nikon Nikkor Z 50mm 1: 1.8 S.
- for the system Leica l Meike AF 50/1.8 lens is an alternative to the original autofocus lens LEICA Summicron-SL 1:2/50 ASPH и LEICA APO-SUMMICRON-SL 1:2/50 ASPH.
- for the system Canon RF (if announced) the Meike AF 50/1.8 lens will be an alternative to the original autofocus lens CANON LENS RF 50mm F1.8 STM.
The price of the brand new Meike AF 50/1.8 is very low, it is about $ 150.
It's important: when searching and choosing autofocus optics for Sony E / FE Use these very useful links:
- All autofocus lenses for Sony E / Sony FE / Sony NEX (original and from third-party manufacturers)
- All MEIKE lenses
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Main technical characteristics of MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
| Review Instance Name | On the lens barrel: MEIKE 50/1.8
Near the front lens: MEIKE AUTO FOCUS LENS 50mm 1: 1.8 2.06ft / 0.63m Ø58mm On the box: MEIKE 50mm F/1.8 AUTO FOCUS FULL-FRAME Multi Coated Prime Lens On the bayonet side, engraving: E-mount + serial number |
| Basic properties |
|
| Front Filter Diameter | 58 mm, plastic thread for filters |
| Focal length | 50 mm, EGF for cameras Sony E APS-C is 75 mm |
| Zoom ratio | 1 X (this is a fixed lens, it does not have a zoom) |
| Designed by | for full frame mirrorless digital cameras. Theoretically, the lens is suitable for all digital mirrorless cameras with interchangeable lenses and mount SONY E.
There are also versions for mounts: |
| Number of aperture blades | 9 rounded petals |
| Tags |
|
| Diaphragm | from F/1.8 to F/16 without aperture control ring |
| MDF | 0.63 meters |
| The weight |
|
| Optical design | 11 elements in 8 groups
|
| Lens hood | Bayonet-type lens hood, included in delivery, Meike LH58-P84 marker |
| Manufacturer country | MADE IN CHINA (Made in China) |
| Period | Since 24 January 2024 |
| Instructions | not included in the package |
| Price |
|
The actual aperture values (T-stop) are quite large, and are at the T / 2.0 level.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Assembly
The lens came to the review new in an original box. The cardboard of the box is made with embossed “snakeskin” type and feels very pleasant in the hands.
The package does not include a USB cable for updating the firmware.
Meike AF 50/1.8 has metal mount. The focusing ring is plastic, with veins, not rubberized. The weight of the Meike AF 50/1.8 is about 400 grams. The lens body is made of plastic. The part of the body that is closer to the bayonet is dark gray and has a matte, slightly rough surface. The front part (where the petals of the hood are located) is glossy.
The assembly is high-quality. The lens feels good in the hands.
On the bayonet side there is a red rubber seal.
A durable plastic lens hood is included in the package. Bayonet type lens hood, snap-on tight and uncomfortable, with an unpleasant clickThe hood can be installed in the opposite direction (in transport mode), but in this case, access to the focusing ring is almost completely lost.
The front and rear protective covers are plastic, massive, and easy to use.
The aperture consists of 9 blades. At values of F/1.8-F/4 the aperture takes a fairly round shape. At values of F/8-F/16 the aperture takes the shape of an irregular nonagon. The aperture works quickly, does not stick, but creates excessive noise from frequent opening/closing.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Focusing
Very important: Meike AF 50/1.8 will work correctly only with modern cameras with Sony E bayonet mount. Certain difficulties may arise with older models. For example, on the Sony NEX-F3 camera, using Meike AF 50/1.8 is only possible in manual focusing mode. Also, for example, the camera Sony a3500 simply does not turn on with this lens. Most likely, for the correct operation of the Meike AF 50/1.8, a camera with phase focusing sensors is needed.
The lens has a built-in focusing stepper motor STM. There is a slight noise/hum from its operation.
Auto focus speed average, closer to high. The focusing speed is sufficient for comfortable work in most photo tasks.
The focus ring is plastic, with veins. Electronic focusing ring, rotates easily, has no extreme positions. During manual focusing you can hear 'plastic rubbing against plastic or metal'. Due to the fact that the lens is very plump, focusing manually is sufficient conveniently. The electronic focusing ring lag is practically absent.
There is a 'AF-MF' (auto focus / manual focus) mode switch on the lens body.
During auto focus focus ring remains stationary.
Lens has internal focus, the front and rear lenses remain stationary during focusing. It is possible to use various filters without any problems.
The minimum focusing distance is 63 cm, which is very long for a lens with a focal length of 50 mm.
Focus Features:
- Important: The focusing performance of the Meike AF 50/1.8 depends heavily on the camera used.
- Meike AF 50/1.8 has a strong 'Focus Breathing' effect (changes in the angle of view during focusing). When focusing towards the middle focus area, the angle of view decreases.
- Focus Shift (focus shift, changing focus distance due to iris)
- Meike AF 50/1.8 does not have a hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop) that allows you to accurately and quickly focus the lens to infinity under any external temperature conditions. For precise focusing to infinity, you cannot simply bring the focusing ring to the extreme position. This is a common problem with lenses with an electronic focusing ring.
- Unknown compatibility with teleconverters.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Firmware Upgrade
The lens is equipped with a port USB TYPE C (a common port used by many smartphones and other devices). When connected to a computer, the lens is recognized as a '5018E' drive with a capacity of 1.96 MB. The drive contains two files:
- UserProfile.dat – firmware file
- the text file “DeviceInformation”, which contains data about the current firmware
I do not updated the firmware this lens, as I did not find any updates on the official website. The update process should be similar to the one used for the lens. MEIKE 85mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens FF STM.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Image quality
Overall, the image quality of the Meike AF 50/1.8 is high, but there are still a few minor flaws.
Resolution
- in the center of the frame at F/1.8 the lens has good resolution
- there is a slight drop in sharpness to the edges of the frame at f / 1.8
- at the edges of the frame, sharpness becomes acceptable after f / 4
- there is a small coma
Distortion
- small pincushion distortion
- the overall level of distortion is at a level typical for such lenses
- the nature of distortion is unified, easily corrected in the editor
Vignetting
- the overall level of vignetting is at a level typical for such lenses
- noticeable vignetting is observed only at F / 1.8-F / 2.5
- vignetting almost disappears at F / 2.8-F / 4
- vignetting is easily fixable in the editor
Aberration
- open apertures have small amount chromatic aberration
- the strongest chromatic aberration visible at the edges and corners of the image
- Yes strong milling (HA in the blur zone)
- aperture down to f / 4 significantly reduces the amount of HA
Rest
- the aperture opening at F / 1.8-F / 4 is quite round and even, at F / 8-F / 22 it is poorly rounded and is an incorrect nine-headed
- in difficult conditions you can get glare and flare (Example 1, Example 2), while the lens creates an image with high contrast
- in many scenes, the lens can create a pleasant / neutral bokeh
There is no lens profile for the lens in popular RAW converters, but most likely the profile will appear shortly or you can create it yourself.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Sample Photos
Camera used Sony a7 (24 MP Full Frame Exmor HD CMOS sensor). Many thanks to the model and fire dancer for help with sample photos Anna Anuttara (subscribe to her Instagram, Facebook).
- Original photos in RAW format (Sony '.ARW' 12-bit compressed) can be download / watch this link (Google Drive, 130+ photos).
- Photos in JPEG '.JPG' format can be download / watch this link (Google Drive, 110+ photos).
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
Prices
Prices for Meike AF 50/1.8 on Aliexpress from the official Meike seller can be found look at this link.
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens
My experience
The price/quality ratio of the Meike AF 50/1.8 lens is very high. Personally, I didn't like the large MDF in the lens. You can safely buy and use it.
Now it has become even easier to pass off photos from an inexpensive lens as photos from LEICA APO-SUMMICRON-SL 1:2/50 ASPH..
MEIKE 50mm 1:1.8 Auto Focus Lens and Canon Zoom Lens FD 70-210mm 1:4
Video review
Results
Meike AF 50/1.8 – simple and clear classic “fifty”, has a very attractive price. The image quality is at a high level. It’s a pity that there are compatibility issues with some old Sony cameras with bayonet mount E/FE. Definitely, the Meike AF 50/1.8 is a very attractive solution, especially against the background of the original Sony FE 1.8 / 50.
main advantages
- low cost, only about $ 160
- internal focusing, stepping focus motor, AF/MF focus mode switch (e.g. Sony FE 1.8 / 50 it's not there)
- tenacious and fast autofocus (on latest camera models)
- good build quality: metal bayonet, reliable and convenient covers, bayonet-type hood
- There is a USB port for firmware upgrade, easy firmware upgrade method
- nine-petal diaphragm, smooth aperture in the range of F / 1.8-F / 4.0
- rubber seal on the bayonet side
- special optical elements in an optical design, complex modern optical design
- nice / neutral drawing, which can be used as a good artistic technique during portraiture
- high resolution already at F/1.8 is sufficient for many areas of portrait photography
main disadvantages
- limited range of cameras with full compatibility. Also, with some older models of cameras it becomes completely impossible to take photos and/or videos
- no new firmware (maybe you need to wait)
- large MDF, as much as 63 centimeters (for example, Sony FE 1.8 / 50 MDF only 45 centimeters)
- there are no indicators, like a focusing distance scale
- inconvenient installation of the hood
- large sizes (for example, similar CANON LENS RF 50mm F1.8 STM has significantly smaller dimensions)
- quite a large weight (for example, Sony FE 1.8 / 50 weighs half as much)
- strong 'Focus Breathing' (important for video shooting)
- deterioration of resolution at the edges and corners of the image at open apertures at close focusing distances
- possible strong glare in backlight and side light
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Material prepared Arkady Shapoval.
The Chinese are now churning out lenses based on Soviet patterns and no one will give them a hard time for it... And they also end up looking like crap...
As I understand it, your comment has nothing to do with this lens?
Not less than the Soviets, not less. Well, like the gypsies, it seems that stinks can steal everywhere. True, intellectual power, other people's talents, commercial expressions, etc.
Having allowed the setting light, it devours the fruits. But this is good, it welcomes competition and encourages technological progress. Although, my thought is that everything Chinese is less than comfortable, shirvzhitok, is richly divided according to the principle of scraping, or even earning pennies. But the Chinese themselves love everything that Zahid vibrate. Marvel at the kind of cameras stinking around Europe))
Arkady, a lot of time for looking and a great number of taking pictures. Their lens looks completely dark. And the price is reasonable.
Trying to fit reality into one's own beliefs
This Chinese lens is superior to any Soviet product. It is difficult to admit that the Russian Federation has not been able to come even close to the current Chinese lenses in modern optics. Even Western companies do not realize what a monster has grown up next to them. But the market puts everything in its place, sales of Laoshi and Viltrox are growing relentlessly, which cannot be said about the products of a modern conventional KMZ
“Modern KMZ” – who is that anyway? Let’s be honest: all photographic equipment since 2012 that bears the KMZ label is the fruit of the labor of specific people, enthusiasts (of course, I primarily mean V. Bogdankov), and not KMZ as a large enterprise and industrial institute. And now, one can say, that KMZ – the manufacturer of photo optics – simply does not exist. And in the future (if it has one), the plant will not be able to endlessly parasitize on old developments – many of them are no longer needed at the time of release.
The same applies to LZOS, which cannot, either competently or illiterately (like in the USSR), produce even a hundredth of what was produced there in the 1970s and 1980s.
Clinical case. According to what Soviet patterns did the Chinese produce the Viltrox 56/1.7, this Meike 50/1.8 and dozens of other lenses? Look at their optical schemes (lately they have been quite original), optical materials, the design: 9+ lenses, internal automatic focusing, glass (not individual crystals, but cheap, multi-ton glass!) with v>80 or n up to 2.0 (!). In his “Photographic Optics” in 1971, the Soviet titan D.S. Volosov only dreamed of such things, and did not even dream of something else, because it seemed unrealistic. In his other articles, he predicted, together with “the construction of communism,” also the rapid development of the chemical industry and the production of new optical materials - and it happened, only not in the USSR or the Russian Federation. I attached my favorite picture to the post, which clearly demonstrates the scale of the catastrophe for the optical industry in the Russian Federation: a comparison of the CDGM 2022 (China) and LZOS catalogs.
Panasonic has its own 50mm f1.8 on L Mount
I wonder who doesn't have their own 50/1,8? But here it is Panasonic LUMIX S 1: 8 / 50mm costs 3 times more
What I mean is that this Meike with L Mount is more of an alternative to the Panasonic 50/1.8, and not to the Leica.
then hurry up Sigma 50mm 1:2 DG DN Contemporary
Sigma is more expensive and has lower aperture. So, more likely Panasonic.
of course not, the aperture (aperture number) is just like LEICA APO-SUMMICRON-SL 1: 2/50 ASPH.
This Meike 50/1.8 sigma and Leica f2.0, what do you mean when you say they are equivalent to this MEIKE and not Panasonic 50/1.8?
I mean Sigma 50mm 1:2 DG DN Contemporary
So it is more expensive than Panasonic and has a different aperture number, what's the point?
We were generally talking about a replacement for LEICA APO-SUMMICRON-SL 1:2/50 ASPH.
Arkady, you wrote:
For the Leica L system, the Meike AF 50/1.8 lens is an alternative to the original LEICA Summicron-SL 1:2/50 ASPH and LEICA APO-SUMMICRON-SL 1:2/50 ASPH autofocus lens.
I wrote: for L Mount there is a lens closer to this Meike, namely Panasonic 50/1.8.
and I wrote that the closer one is just Sigma 50mm 1:2 DG DN Contemporary
Why
it is also part of the Alliance (like Panasonic) and has 50/2 like Leica, unlike Panasonic's 50/1,8, and is optically more complex
So we are talking about the closer to this MEIKE in the L Mount camp. And not some L mount close to the Leica 50/2.
No matter what anyone says, I can only use native optics (in my case, Nikon). And let the Chinese use all this Chinese crap... And no matter what the image is, the Chinese stole it from either one or the other...
This is a very old misconception. Who stole what? Everything has long been considered and designed by Chinese companies independently. And what about Nikon? Where is its top 105/1.4 or 85/1.2 and a bunch of other similar solutions made? That's right, in China.
Well, you think so, but I know that it is not so... All these counters with these excuses only hide everything, all lenses have long been counted and they were counted by good companies, like Carl Zeiss... The Chinese only need to make them according to the template... And all their counting programs have long been programmed according to what has already been counted... And they still can't do it properly... In general, photography with the Chinese has turned into garbage from their so-called lenses...
All patents are publicly available. I would be glad if you show the calculation of this optical scheme, but for now I see only prejudices and misconceptions. And also - why not a word about the "Chinese" Nikon?
It would be nice, by the way, to look for their patents, but they are usually registered in China and it is very difficult to look for them due to language restrictions.
>>"Counting programs have long been programmed according to what has already been counted" 😁😁😁
If you ever calculated anything yourself, you certainly wouldn't talk such nonsense. Calculation software is not a god from a machine, it won't save you if you don't know how.
The Chinese are getting better and better at counting. There are all sorts of 7artisans and others that are catching the hype on high aperture for one ruble with mediocre optical schemes in nuances and details, but even they have made colossal progress over the past few years - and they are quite capable of making optics, although not the best, but such that you would not be ashamed of it. And, by the way, their optical schemes are very often very original: in 7artisans 50/1.1 even the interpretation of Sonnar F /1.5 is unusual. Direct "borrowings" were more common with YongNuo, who often stupidly recalculated lenses from old Canon patents, but now they do not do this either. "Coincidences" also took place in 7artisans/ttArtisan, but only for simple schemes (how many different 6/4 double Gauss are there in the world? Who stole from whom?), which they implemented in other parameters, which requires brain strain in general. For example, 7artisans 35/2 LM is a development of Voigtlander Ultron 35/2.5 LM, with its pros and cons. Their scheme is fundamentally the same, but there is no reason to believe that they stupidly copied the lens: they recalculated it significantly. The Chinese school of calculation is not ideal, but it is growing and developing, because their optical industry is a well-established institutional formation of its kind, while in the Russian Federation it is a statistical outlier and the lot of a handful of people who have no influence on the general direction of development of the industry within the country, which, due to this and many other well-known factors, is shamelessly stagnating, if not degrading.
Vasily, why do you use Nikon and not Zenit and Fed? You just said that you stole everything from the Soviets? It's not nice to change your tune like that.
Did you know that Nikon stole everything that was lying around in the 50s, including copying/interpreting German optics and cameras? For example, Nikkor-Q 200/4 is based on L. Bertele's calculations, as are 105/2.5, 85/1.8, 50/1.4 for rangefinders. The Japanese giants in the past are the same banana shops as the Koreans (Samyang in the 1980s) and Chinese once were.
I know all this... And what does it have to do with what I use? I didn't write anything about it, I just wrote that the Chinese stuff is crap... By the way, when our Zenit becomes state-owned and starts producing good photo equipment, that's when I'll start using it... But for now, both the current profiteering Zenit and the Chinese crap are all the same... Especially since I'm almost sure that Zenit now is: "Three guys sit in an office and draw this Zenit on a piece of paper, and then send it to the Chinese, who make it." So where is our Zenit here? It's been gone for a long time, and there is all that Chinese crap! And don't tell me about changing shoes... As for digital systems, we didn't have them, because by the time they appeared, everything was already in disrepair and ruined!
So what about Nikon, which is made in China, I can’t get an answer
>No matter what anyone says, I can only use native optics (in my case, Nikon).
The fact that Nikon has moved its production to China and Thailand should not be directly compared with what the Chinese develop and produce themselves. After all, Japanese engineers are primarily behind the development of Nikon technology.
On the other hand, the development of technology and the growth of quality in Chinese production cannot be ignored.
I agree with the previous speaker. "Nikon moved its production to China and Thailand and it is not worth directly comparing with what the Chinese develop and produce themselves." Did I answer your question...? And by the way, my D7000 and D7100 are made in Thailand. The 18-200 lens is also made in Thailand... The Sigma and Tamron 17-50 lenses are made in Japan. The 910 flash is made in Japan and only the Nikkor 35 mm 1.8 is made in China for some reason... If I had paid attention to this, I would not have bought it... But I bought it about ten years ago for 10 thousand and had no idea that such a conversation would now take place...
No, Vasily, no matter how bitter it may be, but the current Zenit is our Zenit, not a “Chinese piece of junk”. It belongs to Rostec, that is, the state – entirely and completely. If the Chinese were involved, you would rush to buy it just like your Nikon, because it would be a normal product.
This Zenit can't be ours now! We don't produce any radio components now, not even one... I have a lot of Soviet radio components in my garage, I'm a radio amateur and I still solder homemade things from Soviet components... I just have to use Chinese foil-clad fiberglass... As for the Zenit, maybe the body itself is ours and made here, but I think all the stuffing is Chinese... I wonder what they produce there? I once saw lenses with a huge price tag, but I haven't seen any cameras...
You only “think”, but I saw and know what I’m talking about)
Well, since you've seen it, tell me what microcircuits are in the Zenit and what fiberglass is the board made of? And then all the sensors, including the sensor, are they also ours? If it's a film Zenit, then besides the sensor, everything else, whose production? I mean literally, if it's our product, then everything should be made by us. From ore mining to the final product...
I looked at their website. Zenit costs 470600 rubles. Who are they selling it to? Dead end! All the buttons have inscriptions in an enemy language. The question remains open, whose matrix is it made by? Who made the rear LCD screen? The oligarchs have long since ruined all our production. There can't be anything of ours there. Because now the same profiteers are selling this Chinese knockoff with the inscription Zenit.
Make a review of this Zenit camera on this site with disassembly and all the dots over the I's will be placed themselves...
"From ore mining to the final product" - well, good luck, considering that all the REE in the world comes from China and Kazakhstan, for example. Your position is so naive and out of touch with reality that there is nothing more to add.
However, it is correct, I recently saw a mouse that was made in Russia, similar in quality to the most shitty noname from China, so according to the principle, ordering a mouse from China without a wire or label and gluing or inserting a wire on the spot clearly does not mean that it was made where it should be
And what is “correctness”, what is morality?
We are waiting for your 35/1,8 to burn out, and then 90% of the internal components of your d7000 and d7100 :)
I am waiting for the burning of the cotton underpants made by workers from a sanatorium in Xinjiang province, which our venerable radio amateur Vasily wears.
In fact, many users of cameras like the D700 are stuck in the 2010s, when Chinese manufacturers inspired only fear. 15 years have passed by, sometimes even I find it difficult to understand who does what
It's funny ...
On the second day of use I started to notice noise when autofocusing. Did you experience this?
It hasn't happened yet