The third-party lens manufacturer iRix has released a pair of E-Mount-compatible lenses this week: the 150mm f/2.8 Macro Dragonfly and 15mm f/2.4 Dragonfly. The two lenses join a collection of other E-mount lenses, the result of a strategic move made by Sony more than a decade ago.
In 2011, Sony decided to share specs freely for its E-mount lenses with third-party manufacturers, causing a meteoric rise of third-party E-mount lenses. In fact, if you refer B&H’s ecommerce website, there are hundreds of lenses available today.
The new iRix lenses are both manual focus, full frame, and weather sealed, making them well suited for working in adverse weather conditions. They also both come with de-clickable aperture rings, meaning you can choose how the aperture rings rotate, whether it’s smoothly or with detents.
The 150mm f/2.8 Macro Dragonfly is slightly unusual for a macro lens. It’s longer than your average macro lens, meaning you don’t have to be right on top of your subjects to achieve the 1:1 magnification ratio. This focal length is better for shooting living subjects, such as insects or other small creatures, who may be easily scared away if you get too close.
The iRix 150mm f/2.8 Macro Dragonfly for Sony E-mount joins its predecessors, which were released for Nikon F, Canon EF, and Pentax K mounts. They all share the same solid magnesium-aluminum alloy construction, sharp optics, and fast f/2.8 aperture.
While the 150mm is concerned with life’s minutiae, iRix’s 15mm f/2.4 Dragonfly is interested in the bigger picture.
This wide-angle lens is great for architecture, real-estate interiors, and capturing sweeping vistas. The combination of a wide-angle, manual-focus lens with focus lock also makes it incredibly suited for astrophotography. It has 15 elements arranged in 11 groups with two aspherical elements and low-dispersion glass, allowing edge-to-edge image sharpness.
Like the 150mm, versions of the 15mm f/2.4 have already been released for Nikon F, Canon EF, and Pentax K mounts. These ultra-wide-angle lenses offer a 110-degree field of view, making it easy to capture bustling and complicated scenes.
The 150mm f/2.8 Macro Dragonfly helps fill a hole in Sony’s E-mount lens lineup, while the 15mm f/2.4 Dragonfly offers an inexpensive version of an existing lens. While some might balk at buying a lens that can only focus manually, others could embrace the opportunity to slow down and (at least in the case of the 150mm) stop to photograph the flowers.
The lenses will be sold exclusively at B&H for 30 days, so get them while you can.
What are your thoughts regarding iRix’s newest lenses? Will you be adding one or both to your kit? Let us know in the Comments section, below. For more information on the lenses, check out the detailed product pages for the 150mm f/2.8 Macro Dragonfly and 15mm f/2.4 Dragonfly.
0 Comments