Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM vs. Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA

Pick the 50mm f/1.2 if you want about 17% more background blur, pick the 50mm f/1.4 if you want less background blur. Compare both side by side.

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Portrait At-a-Glance Comparison (Upper Body Framing)

Optical & Portrait Metric Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA What It Means in Practice
Upper-Body Working Distance 2.01 m 2.01 m Identical working distance—both frame an upper-body portrait from the exact same spot.
Background Field of View (Compression) 39° 39° Identical 39° horizontal background view behind the subject.
Entrance Pupil Diameter 41.7 mm (f/1.2) 35.7 mm (f/1.4) Distant background blur discs are 17% larger on the Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM.
Corner Bokeh Roundness (90% Field) 43% (-1.3 EV) 56% (-1.2 EV) Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA keeps significantly rounder bokeh balls into the corners wide open (56% vs. 43% roundness).
Effective Focal Length (Breathing) 50.7 mm (+1.5%) 50.2 mm (+0.5%) At 2.0 m, Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM frames like a 50.7 mm lens while Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA frames like a 50.2 mm lens.
Depth of Field (Sharp Zone) 17 cm (1.93 m – 2.10 m) 20 cm (1.92 m – 2.12 m) The Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM has a 14% thinner focus zone (17 cm vs. 20 cm)—requiring more precise eye focus.
Minimum Focus Distance 0.4 m 0.45 m Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM focuses 5 cm closer (0.4 m vs. 0.45 m) for tighter close-ups.

Questions

Which blurs the background more, Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM or Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA?

At the same subject framing, distant background blur scales with the entrance pupil diameter (focal length ÷ f-number). Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM at f/1.2 has a 41.7 mm entrance pupil, while Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA at f/1.4 has a 35.7 mm entrance pupil.

How does working distance differ between Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM and Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA?

For an upper-body portrait, Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM stands 2.01 m from the subject (sharp zone 17 cm, from 1.93 m to 2.10 m), whereas Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA stands 2.01 m away (sharp zone 20 cm, from 1.92 m to 2.12 m).

How do the optical designs of Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM and Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA compare?

Sony FE 50mm F1.2 GM uses 12 elements in 9 groups (WO2017138250A1, effective focal length 50.7 mm at portrait distance). Sony Planar FE 50mm F1.4 ZA uses 8 elements in 5 groups (US20140071331A1, effective focal length 50.2 mm).

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Also see: depth of field, bokeh, crop factor, lens compression.