The Amazing Sony A1/A7/A9/APS-C & Anything else welcome Mega Thread!

Crossroads said:
However, unlike a DSLR the A7 has contrast-based AF to work with still, which will work at any f stop as long as it has sufficient light. In fact A7r users do this all the time, since they have no PDAF anyway.

Actually, I'll take that one step further and point out that if you have live view effect on in the settings, you will AF at whatever the aperture is set at in-camera anyway - the lens doesn't open up to AF. So, the camera is already fully capable of auto-focussing at f8 and beyond. I can't tell if it's using the PDAF sensors when doing so or not, but the camera can clearly manage it however it does so.

TL;DR - 1.4x and 2x teleconverters are entirely practical from an autofocus point of view.
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Nice, thanks for the post.
 
In that case I do think Sony could get away with a 2.0x TC. The FE 70-200mm f4 is very sharp out of the box. :)
 
OK I can't decide....

35mm f/2.8 FE or Samyang 35mm f1.4

AF vs narrow DOF

PLEASE HELP!! :confused:
 
If the Samyang was smaller I would buy it in a heartbeat. Size would be a concern but not a deal breaker. Price is very good compared to a new Sony/Zeis 35mm but I have been offered a Sony/Zeiss for £400 UKP and it has only been used once. Chap won it but does not like it that much. He prefers zooms.
 
Both superb (I have both), the Samyang is faster at f1.4 (mine is a Nikon version with adapter) but it is a big lens.

I prefer the Sony, being a smaller lens and also having autofocus, my Samyang will probably come for sale shortly.
 
I think I'm gonna go for the Sony. Weight is also a factor so the Sony would be nice, shame it's not f1.4 but f2.8 on full frame ain't bad. :D
 
if you want shall dof then there is the samyang 85mm 1.4, and there where a couple of m42 85mm 1.8's on ebay, and theres a old russian 85 1.5 too
 
pingu666 said:
if you want shall dof then there is the samyang 85mm 1.4, and there where a couple of m42 85mm 1.8's on ebay, and theres a old russian 85 1.5 too
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Very true!

I have decided to go for the Sony FE lens. I'll get a Bokeh Monster at some point in the near future.

Thanks guy's
 
The FE35mm is worth it for the size alone, the fact you get a compact system with all the features. I love mine for when i just want to take the camera and no bags and extras fits in my coat pocket.
 
robj20 said:
The FE35mm is worth it for the size alone, the fact you get a compact system with all the features. I love mine for when i just want to take the camera and no bags and extras fits in my coat pocket.
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That's exactly what I want it for. Sounds like I made the right choice! (y)
 
Ok, so who has got the 24-70 f4 zeiss? Thoughts, opinions please...

Also, do samyang do a 7 or 8mm fish eye in the a7 mount?

Thinking FE35, FE55, FE24-70 and a samyang fisheye would be a nice set of lenses to have.
 
I have one, its on my camera 90% of the time. I find it gives me some fantastic pictures plenty sharp enough, the OSS is great as well i can use it at slower shutter speeds than the 35mm. Its the perfect walk about lens.

Samyangs widest FF offering at the minute is the 14mm, but they have just announced the 12mm fish eye for FF e-mount.
 
Silly question perhaps...

Nex/a6000 lenses are e mount
A7/r lenses are FE e mount?

Can you use the full range of e mount lenses in the a7 and still have full aperture/AF controls?

Do traditional nex e mount lenses give heavy vignette on ff a7 like a dx lens on an fx nikon does ?
 
There is no FE mount just E-Mount, but some lenses are full frame and some are cropped.

Like how canon have EF and EF-S, except for Sony they are identical and allow you to use either.

You can use any E-Mount lens but some will be a cropped image, so your better with the A7R for that as you retain a higher number of pixels. You can choose to have the camera crop for you or have the full image with extreme vignetting. Hope that makes sense.
 
bl0at3r said:
Thinking FE35, FE55, FE24-70 and a samyang fisheye would be a nice set of lenses to have.
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Since you don't seem shy on spending on pricey lenses and prefer the wide end of things, it might be worth waiting a few days for the 16-35mm Sony Zeiss lens.
 
I really hope the 16-35 is a stunning lens, if its not im getting the 14mm Samyang.
 
Quick question: If i use Sony A7/A7R most of the time but it is not the only body as i shoot with many Canon bodies too, is it better to buy a lens that can be used on both manufacturer or better i buy lenses for Sony only? for example, 16-35, 35, 24-70,...etc.

I use Sony A7R for landscapes, architectures and portraits and some others except sports and wildlife or journalists or some actions, so how can i buy lenses if i use dual manufacturer?
 
You can't mount Sony lenses to the Canon body due the sensor depth on the Canon so your only option for dual use (with AF lenses) will be to use an EOS>E Mount adaptor either with AF control built in (Metabones) or any one of the generic 'dumb' adaptors on Ebay but with those you will be shooting at wide open aperture only with the Canon lens as they are electronically controlled.

Cheers
Steve
 
robj20 said:
There is no FE mount just E-Mount, but some lenses are full frame and some are cropped.

Like how canon have EF and EF-S, except for Sony they are identical and allow you to use either.

You can use any E-Mount lens but some will be a cropped image, so your better with the A7R for that as you retain a higher number of pixels. You can choose to have the camera crop for you or have the full image with extreme vignetting. Hope that makes sense.
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I think there's a database of how much coverage you get with the crop lenses, the sigma 50 or 60mm with rear baffle removed only just less than full frame :-o
 
I normally only clone out the odd bottle top, bird or bug so this is a big success for me :D





The next step is to clone out the M&S bag and her phone and then I may try to stand her up.
:D
 
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I have now received the Sony 35mm f2.8 Fe lens and it is superb!! It's great wide open and I can't see any difference at f2.8 to any other aperture so I'm a very happy chappy!

I'll post some pix when I have a few worthy of showing.

I have also bought a Nikon fit Tamron 17-35mm f2.8-4 ( I have an adapter) from these very forums which looks like it will be a great Landscape lens.
 
Interested to see how you get on with the 35. Although I have the Sigma 35 1.4 ART I would love a small native FE lens so I can have a compact set-up occasionally.
 
Here's a review of the new BIG FAT Zeiss 85mm manual focus thingy on an A7s...

http://jorgetorralba.com/2014/09/11/zeiss-otus-85mm-f1-4-hands-on/

Fighting talk...

"Amazing lens and camera! By the time Nikon or Canon start using mirror less technology like Sony or Fuji, they will have been left in the shadows. One cannot deny that the future is in this technology and EVF’s. Sony is on a steam roller."
 
I really wish I had the justification (and money!) to buy those Otus lenses. Crazy sharp at f1.4 and the most wonderful bokeh.
 
Crossroads said:
I really wish I had the justification (and money!) to buy those Otus lenses. Crazy sharp at f1.4 and the most wonderful bokeh.
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I've got the 55 Otus on a D800, really is almost perfect. The A7R looks a great match for manual lenses with the EVF.
 
god knows why sony doesnt throw money at zeiss to make them in a mount/e mount
ibis and evf, one of the best platforms for manual lens
 
Crossroads said:
I really wish I had the justification (and money!) to buy those Otus lenses. Crazy sharp at f1.4 and the most wonderful bokeh.
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I used to look at sharpness and I used to aim to have quite nice lenses but within reason and I like to read about these new lenses but I don't think that I personally could ever be persuaded to spend that amount of money on them. I could be tempted to buy some new compact and light and reasonably priced manual lenses à la Rokkor/Zuiko but no one is going to make them.
 
ukaskew said:
Interested to see how you get on with the 35. Although I have the Sigma 35 1.4 ART I would love a small native FE lens so I can have a compact set-up occasionally.
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i would look for a minolta 35/2. Tiny little lens, superb image quality and you already have the adaptor.
 
A couple of quick questions about Minolta AF lenses... I assume you have to use them on an A7 via and adapter? There seem to be two adapters - LA-EA3 and 4.

Will both work?
What's the difference?
 
the 2 and 4 have screw drive, think they need the slt screen for the pdaf sensor, which the 1 and 4 don't have?

most minolta stuff is screw drive, you can check on dyxum drive type
 
The '3' will af on a lens that has a built in motor but it's like wading through treacle.

It does offer the following benefits over a dumb adaptor.

Tight design and very secure, allows exif info and electronic aperture control.

The '4' uses an SLT mirror design and allows screw drive af and makes your a7 into a fast focusing dslt.
woof woof said:
A couple of quick questions about Minolta AF lenses... I assume you have to use them on an A7 via and adapter? There seem to be two adapters - LA-EA3 and 4.

Will both work?
What's the difference?
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I had my first go at cleaning the sensor on my A7R today and it got quite interesting.

First, 55mm FE lens on, took a shot of a white wall at f/20 and low ISO, with flash. Imported that as a reference image into Lightroom and increased the contrast and clarity to show the dust spots (lots thereof).

Then, I used an Arctic Butterfly static brush, and repeated the white wall image, and sync'd the settings with the reference image then compared them using the side by side view. A fair few of the spots were gone but there were still quite a few.

Then onto wet cleaning. Using a Visible Dust sensor swab and Vdust Plus fluid, I swabbed the sensor. Note that after wetting the swab with a drop of fluid I then dab it on a clean lens cloth to take excess fluid off the swab - too much fluid is a bit of a nightmare and the swab only needs to be just slightly damp. Same process to take a white wall image. More of the spots were gone, but two large ones in one corner remained.

I repeated the wet swab another 2 times, but could not get rid of the two big spots. I couldn't see anything on the sensor. Odd.

I figured it could be dust on the rear lens element, so swapped lenses and had a perfectly clean image!

Seeing as I had the swabs out, I used one on the rear lens element of the 55mm lens, and everything was beautifully clean once again.

So, for those who are struggling to get rid of stubborn dust spots, ensure you check the rear lens element before getting too frustrated! I think the short flange distance makes rear lens element dust spots look like sensor dust, though they are larger and more fuzzy on test images.
 
New Sony lens road map thingy...

http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/sony-announcement-few-hours-to-go/#disqus_thread

I can see a 28-135mm f4 being popular but personally I'll be more interested in the macro and the "large aperture prime." I suppose that the odds are on it being an 85mm and I suppose we can argue about the aperture later :D I'll be a bit surprised if it isn't an 85mm.

I'd have liked to see 28, 50 and 85mm f1.8's but I suppose making do with a 35mm f2.8 in the line up rather than a 28mm is a burden that could be lived with :D and I was sort of hoping for a 150mm macro but much though I loved my Sigma 150mm f2.8 it was much too bulky and heavy and maybe a 90mm will provide 99% of the fun and ability with much less bulk and weight.

I haven't decided to buy into the AF lenses just yet. I do dislike FBW lenses but AF is convenient sometimes and I may be tempted to a set of three wide aperture primes + macro at some point.

Anyone tempted by anything on the roadmap?
 
The 16-35 im tempted by but it will have to be spot on for me to get it otherwise its the samyang, not like you need AF in an UWA.
 
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