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

f/2.8 said:
You seem to be talking about a.f speed though for me that no where near as important as a.f accuracy, something the Samyang 24mm really struggles with. I haven't used any of the other Samyang lenses are they all as bad as the 24mm in terms of a.f accuracy? The Samyang 24mm also hunts far more than any other Sony lens I have tried especially in backlit situations, do they all do that?
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I had about 5 copies of the 35 1.4 and it was an absolute turd man
 
gad-westy said:
That would presumably always be a risk every time the shutter is fired regardless of rest state. So I guess it just isn’t an issue generally.
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The risk of getting dust directly on the sensor vs it building up on the shutter each time you expose it out doors - but we don't really know which way is best as they are the first to do it, for ML bodies at least
 
nandbytes said:
24mm is by far the best one of the lot. It's almost completely silent and keeps up with cameras focusing system. Though I haven't tried the 35mm F1.4 with latest fw v3.
The 35mm f2.8 was closely behind and does make some noise.

They have clearly improved up on their autofocus tech with each new lens. 50mm F1.4 wasn't so good and the latest 24mm f2.8 is nearly getting there. They may just nail it with the 85mm. I hope so anyway.
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You have to listen pretty closely to hear the 35mm make noise. But there are copy variations.

I did a side by side test with the Sony 35mm 2.8 and colours were very different but if anything the Samyang was sharper.

It’s cracking value.

Oh and never hunted for focus. Only lens that I have tried that does that is the 50 1.8.
 
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Habit from DSLR, but I do turn mine off for lens changes and it’s had two basic cleans in 5 months of having it. Mine doesn’t seem bad at all, just a couple of specs each time that needed the arctic butterfly.
 
Well the 50 1.4 Sammy has arrived. Quick play with a completely un-setup camera and there's a fair bit of hunting. No idea yet on image quality, but will have a look later.

The sony menus are curious - when I tried the A7 in LCE Leamington it dodn't seem too bad, but the A7III that's supposed to be better really needs me to RTFM. Also curious is that subjectively shutter speeds seem lower than I'd have with the same lens & film speed on the D610. Overall at this stage I'd say the A7 original handled better, being less dense for a small body, while the A7III feels much more likely to slip out of my fingers especially with a heavyish lens on the front. I might pop an L plate on because, even though it's MORE weight & bulk, it also extends the grip downward for the little finger to wrap around too.

I now completely understand while some who've switched from Canikon DSLR system to this have had distinct qualms. Also I've been so used to being completely in charge than it feels slightly uncomfortable to work with an unfamiliar system and to throw oneself on the mercy of the AF, even though that's the very reason I've bought it. I have much learning ahead (not that learning ever a bad thing. :) ).
 
I must be careful not to allow buyers remorse. :p

So the Sammy 50 f1.4 was waiting for me when I got to work today, but I had no time for a lunchtime test and only managed a couple of pics this evening in the garden while it was raining. Finally downloaded images: LR 5.7 won't play as expected, but PhotoRaw 2019 is happy.

Initial conclusions:

AF hunts like a b*st*rd and 'auto' is absolutely the wrong mode for this lens - DO NOT let the camera choose what to use for general purposes.
The lens is as sharp at f1.6 as a Nikon 50 1.8 AF-D is at f2.
Smoothest bokeh I've ever seen anywhere.
CA is no worse than the Sony 50 f1.4 I also own and quite similar to the Sammy 85 f1.4 manual lens.
Once I can persuade myself to sit down with the manual for a couple of hours I'll go through the menu & set up user patches. Current plan is to have U1 with spot AF, spot metering, single shot, EFCS, aperture priority. U2 manual focus with peaking and the rest as above. General user mode to be eye-AF and possibly auto ISO too.

Other thoughts - ISO 12800 is pretty close to 6400 on the D610, IBIS works down to 1/5 sec but not 1/2 sec with a 28mm lens and seems OK at 1/30 with a 50mm lens.
Can't comment on colours etc because I'm having to re-learn processing in a new package at the same time as the camera. I understand why some don't like the shutter button - all squishy and imprecise.

I have a Fotodiox Nikon F to FE adapter that I need to return because the click-stop for setting aperture on G lenses doesn't work, and I want to be able to use my Sigma 12-24 with this body.
 
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ancient_mariner said:
I must be careful not to allow buyers remorse. :p

So the Sammy 50 f1.4 was waiting for me when I got to work today, but I had no time for a lunchtime test and only managed a couple of pics this evening in the garden while it was raining. Finally downloaded images: LR 5.7 won't play as expected, but PhotoRaw 2019 is happy.

Initial conclusions:

AF hunts like a b*st*rd and 'auto' is absolutely the wrong mode for this lens - DO NOT let the camera choose what to use for general purposes.
The lens is as sharp at f1.6 as a Nikon 50 1.8 AF-D is at f2.
Smoothest bokeh I've ever seen anywhere.
CA is no worse than the Sony 50 f1.4 I also own and quite similar to the Sammy 85 f1.4 manual lens.
Once I can persuade myself to sit down with the manual for a couple of hours I'll go through the menu & set up user patches. Current plan is to have U1 with spot AF, spot metering, single shot, EFCS, aperture priority. U2 manual focus with peaking and the rest as above. General user mode to be eye-AF and possibly auto ISO too.

Other thoughts - ISO 12800 is pretty close to 6400 on the D610, IBIS works down to 1/5 sec but not 1/2 sec with a 28mm lens and seems OK at 1/30 with a 50mm lens.
Can't comment on colours etc because I'm having to re-learn processing in a new package at the same time as the camera. I understand why some don't like the shutter button - all squishy and imprecise.

I have a Fotodiox Nikon F to FE adapter that I need to return because the click-stop for setting aperture on G lenses doesn't work, and I want to be able to use my Sigma 12-24 with this body.
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The samyang 50 1.4 is known to be relaxed, noisy and not so much accurate. Don’t judge the a7iii by that lens.
 
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twist said:
The samyang 50 1.4 is known to be relaxed, noisy and not so much accurate. Don’t judge the a7iii by that lens.
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I'm not, but I've not seen anyone talk about that lens from personal experience in the several hundred pages of this thread that I've read. :)

I'm wondering if a software update would make a difference, or whether this is 'just how it is'? The buyers remorse comment is from the handling and menus - I'd read reviews that said the A7III was the best in those areas of the series, but I'm finding the reverse *so far*.
 
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footman said:
That's interesting, I'm almost certain I don't. Does that make it more likely to get dirty? Is the sensor electrostatically charged when turned on?
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footman said:
to answer my own question I've just seen this:

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4241613
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When I first considered getting a DSLR many years ago, dust was a concern, according to experiences at the time. The consensus was that the sensor was charged, and could possibly attract dust from the atmosphere, and so turn the camera off and change in a low dust atmosphere (if possible) and change as quickly as possible. Over the last nearly 15 years of using DSLR's I have almost always turned the camera off apart from one or two moments when I was in stressful hurried moments, and I have not had a lot of trouble with dust. :) The Air Blower has worked a lot of the time, and wet cleans maybe 8-10 times.

Now it could be said that every time the shutter opens, and if the sensor is charged, it should be attracting dust, and obviously that must be the case, but hopefully you would have changed the lens quickly in a low dust area. And then the camera is attracting dust from a very small volume of air, plus whatever air that is pulled into the lens by focusing and zooming. Having the camera on has the opportunity to attract dust from a larger volume of air. The sensor cleaning function does an amazing job most of the time, but I would rather not give it a big job to do when I don't have to. ;) If some don't think it makes a difference, then follow your own path. :) My experience has told me to turn the sensor off though. :D

I thought it was a very good move by Canon to implement covering the sensor when turning the camera off and taking the lens off in the EOS R, and can't believe that others had not done it before. And then felt a bit disappointed to see they had not also done it in the EOS RP. :rolleyes: Is it a feature that works and is useful, or just an added feature they could take away to differentiate the models! :thinking:

Always make me wince when I see cameras in the windows of some of these 'cash converter' type places with the body cap off and the sensor opened up. :eek: :oops: :$ I don't know if they include a sensor clean when you buy. :LOL:
 
ancient_mariner said:
I'm not, but I've not seen anyone talk about that lens from personal experience in the several hundred pages of this thread that I've read. :)

I'm wondering if a software update would make a difference, or whether this is 'just how it is'? The buyers remorse comment is from the handling and menus - I'd read reviews that said the A7III was the best in those areas of the series, but I'm finding the reverse *so far*.
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I’m pretty sure @addicknchips has posted some pretty amazing pics with the lens and discussed it. It’s afaik one of samyangs earliest af lenses, they were learning and using slower af components so I wouldn’t expect to much if I were you, the 35 was pretty decent ime, optically across the frame better than the Zeiss, I tested them extensively.

Ime the a7 menus were what they were, the iii are better but much more complex as they should be, which would add confusion for some ( understandably ). once setup correctly menus mean nothing.

I disliked the a7 quite a bit in comparison to the d750, but the d750 was very good, then for me the a7iii was another step up and finally at the stage where I could say bye bye to ff DSLr with rapid af.
 
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ancient_mariner said:
I must be careful not to allow buyers remorse. :p

So the Sammy 50 f1.4 was waiting for me when I got to work today, but I had no time for a lunchtime test and only managed a couple of pics this evening in the garden while it was raining. Finally downloaded images: LR 5.7 won't play as expected, but PhotoRaw 2019 is happy.

Initial conclusions:

AF hunts like a b*st*rd and 'auto' is absolutely the wrong mode for this lens - DO NOT let the camera choose what to use for general purposes.
The lens is as sharp at f1.6 as a Nikon 50 1.8 AF-D is at f2.
Smoothest bokeh I've ever seen anywhere.
CA is no worse than the Sony 50 f1.4 I also own and quite similar to the Sammy 85 f1.4 manual lens.
Once I can persuade myself to sit down with the manual for a couple of hours I'll go through the menu & set up user patches. Current plan is to have U1 with spot AF, spot metering, single shot, EFCS, aperture priority. U2 manual focus with peaking and the rest as above. General user mode to be eye-AF and possibly auto ISO too.

Other thoughts - ISO 12800 is pretty close to 6400 on the D610, IBIS works down to 1/5 sec but not 1/2 sec with a 28mm lens and seems OK at 1/30 with a 50mm lens.
Can't comment on colours etc because I'm having to re-learn processing in a new package at the same time as the camera. I understand why some don't like the shutter button - all squishy and imprecise.

I have a Fotodiox Nikon F to FE adapter that I need to return because the click-stop for setting aperture on G lenses doesn't work, and I want to be able to use my Sigma 12-24 with this body.
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I have mixed feelings about the samyang 50mm. The af (pre firmware update at least) is the most unreliable I've used. But when it nails a shot the it does render some magical bokeh.
 
addicknchips said:
I have mixed feelings about the samyang 50mm. The af (pre firmware update at least) is the most unreliable I've used. But when it nails a shot the it does render some magical bokeh.
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The 35 1.4 was very good ime, it only really showed shortcomings for me with oncoming subjects, SZ was the best, closely followed by Siggy, BUT, optically the siggy was best overall and the cost made it a no brainier for me... I do punish lenses with AF... the 35 samyang would probably be an excellent bargain choice for most.
 
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twist said:
I’m pretty sure @addicknchips has posted some pretty amazing pics with the lens and discussed it. It’s afaik one of samyangs earliest af lenses, they were learning and using slower af components so I wouldn’t expect to much if I were you, the 35 was pretty decent ime, optically across the frame better than the Zeiss, I tested them extensively.

Ime the a7 menus were what they were, the iii are better but much more complex as they should be, which would add confusion for some ( understandably ). once setup correctly menus mean nothing.

I disliked the a7 quite a bit in comparison to the d750, but the d750 was very good, then for me the a7iii was another step up and finally at the stage where I could say bye bye to ff DSLr with rapid af.
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Yeah I think the 50mm was their first with af for Sony. Seems like with every new release they have improved it. The 35mm f1.4 was a big improvement and much quieter too.
The 50mm baffled me. Sometimes it performed and other times it would be off. Stopping it down didn't sharpen things up either. I never managed to update the firmware so that may have improved things.
 
addicknchips said:
Yeah I think the 50mm was their first with af for Sony. Seems like with every new release they have improved it. The 35mm f1.4 was a big improvement and much quieter too.
The 50mm baffled me. Sometimes it performed and other times it would be off. Stopping it down didn't sharpen things up either. I never managed to update the firmware so that may have improved things.
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Maybe it would but I doubt it would be as fast as the 50 art which is very fast... faster than the 35. Not sure why people don’t like that lens(besides the weight) it’s bloody amazing.
 
twist said:
Maybe it would but I doubt it would be as fast as the 50 art which is very fast... faster than the 35. Not sure why people don’t like that lens(besides the weight) it’s bloody amazing.
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The siggy 50 is a beast. But let's not bring that up, I've just bought the 55 zeiss!
 
addicknchips said:
The siggy 50 is a beast. But let's not bring that up, I've just bought the 55 zeiss!
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For me the 55 is meh besides size. I've had like 4 or 5 of them and I get rid pretty quickly... The size is great but it just isn't special. Seems like a good idea when I get bored.
 
twist said:
For me the 55 is meh besides size. I've had like 4 or 5 of them and I get rid pretty quickly... The size is great but it just isn't special. Seems like a good idea when I get bored.
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I know you're not a fan. I've not actually used it on one of the newer bodies yet.
 
twist said:
Maybe it would but I doubt it would be as fast as the 50 art which is very fast... faster than the 35. Not sure why people don’t like that lens(besides the weight) it’s bloody amazing.
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You think FE55 is meh but you like ART 50. Doesn't make sense.

I don't like it because it's so huge. I've always liked the FE55.
 
twist said:
For me the 55 is meh besides size. I've had like 4 or 5 of them and I get rid pretty quickly... The size is great but it just isn't special. Seems like a good idea when I get bored.
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I’m pleasantly surprised with the 55. It’s hasn’t any amazing qualities but it’s pretty solid all round in a small package. That said, probably give in to gas at some point for a planar.
 
Livin The Dream said:
I’m pleasantly surprised with the 55. It’s hasn’t any amazing qualities but it’s pretty solid all round in a small package. That said, probably give in to gas at some point for a planar.
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Pretty much my thoughts too.

I bought the 55mm over the Sigma purely because I wanted a small lens for travelling. The Sigma optically is better but I wouldn't trade the 55mm for it. The Sigma for a 50mm lens is just way too big and heavy.

My missus has started using it quite a lot for work and it's prob the main reason she has at last agreed to jump ship from Nikon. The performance for the size of the lens is pretty fantastic. I considered getting the plannar when they where on offer there recently but I couldn't justify yet another 50mm lens when we are very happy with the 55mm. I actualy wouldn't give up the 55mm for the planar either.

Had another A7III arrive yesterday, we just need one more Sony body to make the switch from Nikon complete.89EA6B20-C07A-46D8-8DF7-06CE4D491FA1.jpeg
 
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f/2.8 said:
Pretty much my thoughts too.

I bought the 55mm over the Sigma purely because I wanted a small lens for travelling. The Sigma optically is better but I wouldn't trade the 55mm for it. The Sigma for a 50mm lens is just way too big and heavy.

My missus has started using it quite a lot for work and it's prob the main reason she has at last agreed to jump ship from Nikon. The performance for the size of the lens is pretty fantastic. I considered getting the plannar when they where on offer there recently but I couldn't justify yet another 50mm lens when we are very happy with the 55mm. I actualy wouldn't give up the 55mm for the planar either.

Had another A7III arrive yesterday, we just need one more Sony body to make the switch from Nikon complete.
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I don’t really use the fl that much and so I’m not certain I will swap it for the sake of it. A 135 is higher up the list and it’s perfect for travelling with where I can see some use.
 
Livin The Dream said:
Are those V or TT 350’s? How are you finding them?
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Those are the V350s. I like them, the V860IIs I had before them where just to big and cumbersome on such a small body. I only use them for the odd time I need something on camera though for off camera I use AD200's and an AD600.
 
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I have the 55mm and I can't see myself ever buying one of the much larger 50's simply because of the size differences. Not that it means too much but DXO rate the 55mm very highly...

https://www.dxomark.com/best-lenses-under-13000-dollars

"Exemplary performance..."

https://www.dxomark.com/sony-zeiss-sonnar-t-fe-55mm-f1-8-za-lens-review-exemplary-performance/

I don't really get the some of the criticisms I've seen on forums about this lens and maybe some of them (not in this thread of course) come down to brand or aperture (it isn't f1.4) snobbery. I bet the Canikon crowd would be overjoyed to have this lens. I think it's an outstanding lens.

The only criticisms I have are that it's 55 not 50 and I'm sure that makes a difference to me and also it's just so good and consistent from wide open whereas some of the film era 50's I have are really dual use lenses as they're very funky and characterful at their widest apertures and more accurate and neutral across the frame stopped down. For capturing a technically good picture from wide open though the 55mm just crushes anything in the 50mm sort of length I've ever used.
 
I have been toiling with back troubles for quite a while. I have a 24-70 2.8 GM, which is a great lens IMO, but it is big and heavy. I’m wondering if it would make sense to swap it for a Zeiss 24-70 f4, which is so much smaller and lighter. Trouble is the reviews of the Zeiss are pretty mixed- anyone here have relevant experience and able to advise?
 
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