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

f/2.8 said:
Hi Borat

Is niceeee
Click to expand...

When I was made aware of Borat I couldn't believe it was supposed to be Kazakhstan. I did howl with laughter at it :D

If you ever get the chance I'd say go. When I went I had to fiddle a visa via a company in Belgium but these days you can just go. It's a fantastic country with so much to see and the women are... interesting :D I'd go again in a heartbeat. My Kazakh then GF (I met her in Darlington) lives in Ireland now,
 
woof woof said:
When I was made aware of Borat I couldn't believe it was supposed to be Kazakhstan. I did howl with laughter at it :D

If you ever get the chance I'd say go. When I went I had to fiddle a visa via a company in Belgium but these days you can just go. It's a fantastic country with so much to see and the women are... interesting :D I'd go again in a heartbeat. My Kazakh then GF (I met her in Darlington) lives in Ireland now,
Click to expand...
I can’t believe they got away with the second Borat film in this day and age, but I’m glad they did as it made me cry with laughter.
 
Last edited:
woof woof said:
When I was made aware of Borat I couldn't believe it was supposed to be Kazakhstan. I did howl with laughter at it :D

If you ever get the chance I'd say go. When I went I had to fiddle a visa via a company in Belgium but these days you can just go. It's a fantastic country with so much to see and the women are... interesting :D I'd go again in a heartbeat. My Kazakh then GF (I met her in Darlington) lives in Ireland now,
Click to expand...

Definitely looks like an interesting place
 
f/2.8 said:
Definitely looks like an interesting place
Click to expand...

It's amazing, the mix of old and new and Soviet too plus when the Russians pulled out apparently lots of them just got up and put their coats on and went and there are lots of abandoned and decaying Russian installations. It'd make a great photographic holiday especially for single guys as men are in high demand. My then GF told me a story about a business meeting she had with two men, a woman came up to them and demanded a man as two was too many for my GF :D I was approached. We got out of GF's car at a ski resort and I shut the door and turned around to find a woman two inches from my nose, She tried to get me to go off with her and she tried again the next day. On another occasion we went to a concert and at the interval I was surrounded :D
 
woof woof said:
It's amazing, the mix of old and new and Soviet too plus when the Russians pulled out apparently lots of them just got up and put their coats on and went and there are lots of abandoned and decaying Russian installations. It'd make a great photographic holiday especially for single guys as men are in high demand. My then GF told me a story about a business meeting she had with two men, a woman came up to them and demanded a man as two was too many for my GF :D I was approached. We got out of GF's car at a ski resort and I shut the door and turned around to find a woman two inches from my nose, She tried to get me to go off with her and she tried again the next day. On another occasion we went to a concert and at the interval I was surrounded :D
Click to expand...
I bet you were like a dog with two wotsits :ROFLMAO:
 
Mr Perceptive said:
At the moment, a Q variant is the only (digital) camera on my radar, but I've not found enough down the back of the sofa yet. I've got quite small hands, so the ergonomics are fine for me.
Click to expand...
Hahahaha i've been waiting for this, been tempted to goad you into coming to the dark side but I tend to keep my hand out of other people's purses.....unlike you, look what you've done to Mr Bray :ROFLMAO:
 
Mr Perceptive said:
One of my friends has just chopped his GFX in for a Q2M - not sure thats a good move, time will tell
Click to expand...
Probably not a great move apart from saving some bulk, the files won't be any better in any way and the GFX probably has superior DR.
 
Mr Perceptive said:
At the moment, a Q variant is the only (digital) camera on my radar, but I've not found enough down the back of the sofa yet. I've got quite small hands, so the ergonomics are fine for me.
Click to expand...

If you want one I say keep saving the pennies until you can get one. Think of all the old sayings, You're a long time dead. You can't take it with you. etc :D
 
imattersuk said:
Probably not a great move apart from saving some bulk, the files won't be any better in any way and the GFX probably has superior DR.
Click to expand...

These are my thoughts! That said he sent over a Q2M raw last night and it was above my expectation, there was definitely more latitude in shadows than the Q2 colour that I'd previously roadtested. And the tonality was lovely. I still think that the GFX files are more flexible though.

imattersuk said:
Hahahaha i've been waiting for this, been tempted to goad you into coming to the dark side but I tend to keep my hand out of other people's purses.....unlike you, look what you've done to Mr Bray :ROFLMAO:
Click to expand...

Pete, given (spare) funds I'd have one, I think a GFX and a Q series camera would be be ideal combination, but I do love my X100/X100F and I'm not ready to part with those yet. the GFX is going nowhere!

woof woof said:
If you want one I say keep saving the pennies until you can get one. Think of all the old sayings, You're a long time dead. You can't take it with you. etc :D
Click to expand...

Alan, historically me and saving have been mutually exclusive :ROFLMAO: But I'm on the case now!
 
Just got my Voigtlander 35mm f2.5 color skopar back from being serviced and it seems perfect now. Even with an adapter this tiny screw mount lens is still tiny and the only real drawback is its rather long MFD which seems to be heading towards 3ft which I suppose isn't surprising for a RF lens.

This is the last thing I wanted and all my gas is now gone :D I wont want anything else unless something I have goes faulty :D

PS.
With a No.4 close up filter the MFD comes down to something like 8" at closest distance to about 1ft max distance.
 
Last edited:
Color skopar test pictures :D

With No.4 close up filter.

DSC02893.jpg

100% from that.

DSC02893-c.jpg

Again with the close up filter.

DSC02899.jpg

DSC02899-c.jpg

I couldn't really ask for any more sharpness. The bokeh seems to be quite smooth too for such an old lens.

When I get anything new it's an excuse to take a picture of my mam :D "I'm eating a sweet" she said.

At f2.5.

DSC02908.jpg

The only negatives seem to be the long CFD and quite heavy vignetting but the latter is not as heavy as with some lenses I have.
 
Last edited:
I’ve started to take some photos using the Sony 50mm f1.2GM and the Leica 50mm f0.95 Noctilux to see which lens gives the most pleasing photos. I’ll publish the photos this weekend but the summary is that the Sony lens is clinically sharp with a nice smooth bokeh wide open whilst the Noctilux is a very sharp lens if the focus is nailed on it and the bokeh is absolutely wild. Has a very classic rendition that’s really pronounced and the subject 3D pop is awesome.
 
James J said:
I’ve started to take some photos using the Sony 50mm f1.2GM and the Leica 50mm f0.95 Noctilux to see which lens gives the most pleasing photos. I’ll publish the photos this weekend but the summary is that the Sony lens is clinically sharp with a nice smooth bokeh wide open whilst the Noctilux is a very sharp lens if the focus is nailed on it and the bokeh is absolutely wild. Has a very classic rendition that’s really pronounced and the subject 3D pop is awesome.
Click to expand...
Leica have always had great 3D pop, especially their older lenses as I don't see it so much on the likes of the SL ones. It's the look I like, but I can't afford Leica plus their bodies don't offer the performance I want.
 
snerkler said:
Leica have always had great 3D pop, especially their older lenses as I don't see it so much on the likes of the SL ones. It's the look I like, but I can't afford Leica plus their bodies don't offer the performance I want.
Click to expand...
Yeah it depends what types of photography you’re into. My A1 is my wildlife camera as I own the 600 f4 GM to go with it and the performance there is nothing short of spectacular. The mrs is showing an interest in photography so we’ve been out a few nights this week just for a walk around our local area (live near the sea and nature reserves) and it’s good having the same focal length as it’s easier to teach her the ropes.

The ISO performance on the M11 is very similar to the A1 for most workflows with ISO 12500 being completely usable in a colour photo vs the 12800 on the A1.
 
I've been looking at a lens. A week or so ago they knocked a few £ off and I looked yesterday and they've knocked some more off and it's now £90 cheaper than they had it up for at full price and it's over £100 cheaper than some other sellers have it for. I'm seriously tempted but what's putting me off is the size as it's bigger than any lens I've had in my mirrorless days except the Panasonic 100-400mm for MFT. If it was smaller I'd have bought one months ago. On the other hand it's only a bit bigger than the Sony 85mm f1.8 and 28-70mm kit zoom.

I'll have to have a think.
 
woof woof said:
I've been looking at a lens. A week or so ago they knocked a few £ off and I looked yesterday and they've knocked some more off and it's now £90 cheaper than they had it up for at full price and it's over £100 cheaper than some other sellers have it for. I'm seriously tempted but what's putting me off is the size as it's bigger than any lens I've had in my mirrorless days except the Panasonic 100-400mm for MFT. If it was smaller I'd have bought one months ago. On the other hand it's only a bit bigger than the Sony 85mm f1.8 and 28-70mm kit zoom.

I'll have to have a think.
Click to expand...
woof woof said:
This is the last thing I wanted and all my gas is now gone :D I wont want anything else unless something I have goes faulty :D
Click to expand...
2 days is a long time it seems
 
woof woof said:
I've been looking at a lens. A week or so ago they knocked a few £ off and I looked yesterday and they've knocked some more off and it's now £90 cheaper than they had it up for at full price and it's over £100 cheaper than some other sellers have it for. I'm seriously tempted but what's putting me off is the size as it's bigger than any lens I've had in my mirrorless days except the Panasonic 100-400mm for MFT. If it was smaller I'd have bought one months ago. On the other hand it's only a bit bigger than the Sony 85mm f1.8 and 28-70mm kit zoom.

I'll have to have a think.
Click to expand...

Buy it :)
 
f/2.8 said:
2 days is a long time it seems
Click to expand...

I thought you might have spotted that I had my tongue in my cheek but you didn't. Despite the smilies. I'll make it more obvious next time :D

I have no gas for cameras but there's always another lens I fancy :D actually two.
 
Last edited:
LeeRatters said:
Buy it :)
Click to expand...

I'm tempted and getting a new lens does prompt me to get out and take some pictures but I really don't like big heavy kit and this lens will be the biggest FF lens I have. As above, the 100-400mm will be the only thing I have which is bigger. That's what's holding me back.

Other stuff.
I had a couple of slightly OOF shots with my Pergear and I was worried I might have damaged it when I dropped the camera when my wrist strap broke so I did a centering test at f1.4 and also a brick wall test from f1.4 to f16 and it's fine so it must have been user error :D
 
woof woof said:
I'm tempted and getting a new lens does prompt me to get out and take some pictures but I really don't like big heavy kit and this lens will be the biggest FF lens I have. As above, the 100-400mm will be the only thing I have which is bigger. That's what's holding me back.

Other stuff.
I had a couple of slightly OOF shots with my Pergear and I was worried I might have damaged it when I dropped the camera when my wrist strap broke so I did a centering test at f1.4 and also a brick wall test from f1.4 to f16 and it's fine so it must have been user error :D
Click to expand...

Yes, the bigger lenses are a little bit off putting compared to what I started or with on the Sony system. But for me the performance and apertures just make it worthwhile for me.
 
LeeRatters said:
Yes, the bigger lenses are a little bit off putting compared to what I started or with on the Sony system. But for me the performance and apertures just make it worthwhile for me.
Click to expand...

I don't have any real issues with image quality. When pixel peeping some of my lenses will show issues ditto if looking at across the image sharpness and vignetting and of course small cheap lenses are never going to give smooth bokeh at their widest apertures but I'm mostly happy, other issues like coma and flare aren't really significant for me. My teeny tiny collection is now at Sony 24 and 35mm f2.8, Pergear 35mm f1.4. Voigtlander 35mm f2.5 and TTArtisan 50mm f2.

If I could find a nice tiny 28mm I'd buy it :D There's a 7Artisan f1.4 which gets good reviews and you can buy one in M mount but optimised for Sony. it's a shame they don't put a Sony mount on it, but it isn't tiny. The smallest 28mm I can do at the mo is my Olympus Zuiko f2.8 with adapter.

Pergear at f1.4.

DSC02870.jpg
 
Last edited:
woof woof said:
I don't have any real issues with image quality. When pixel peeping some of my lenses will show issues ditto if looking at across the image sharpness and vignetting and of course small cheap lenses are never going to give smooth bokeh at their widest apertures but I'm mostly happy, other issues like coma and flare aren't really significant for me. My teeny tiny collection is now at Sony 24 and 35mm f2.8, Pergear 35mm f1.4. Voigtlander 35mm f2.5 and TTArtisan 50mm f2.

If I could find a nice tiny 28mm I'd buy it :D There's a 7Artisan f1.4 which gets good reviews and you can buy one in M mount but optimised for Sony. it's a shame they don't put a Sony mount on it, but it isn't tiny. The smallest 28mm I can do at the mo is my Olympus Zuiko f2.8 with adapter.

Pergear at f1.4.

View attachment 396969
Click to expand...

I shoot 28mm on my film camera and it's not a bad focal length really imo.

Just my film lenses are all different focal lengths to my digital shooting :ROFLMAO:
 
My only 28mm is an old f3.5 Nikkor that renders really nicely, though it's a bit soft especially in the corners. I quite like the idea of the Sony f2, but it's not really a prime length I'd use much, and prefer it as a part-way point on a zoom.
 
I've used the Panasonic 14mm f2.5 on MFT a lot more than the Sony f2 but both are good enough for me. I bought both used. I would like a small MF 28mm though. The film era ones I have are good enough, they are all f2.8 but I don't do low light theses days so that's not really too much of a problem. More of a problem is that once they're on an adapter they're not small any more.

I did buy a used Sony collapsible 28-60mm but so far I've only used it once.
 
snerkler said:
Very nice. What's your secret to ordering lovely light all the time? ;)
Click to expand...

A 4:30am alarm and staying about a 10 minute drive from Bude ;) Actual sunrise was a bit of a dull flop on this day in the east. Got some nice clifftop stuff shooting west first, took these whilst walking back to the car when the sun decided to actually break through.

I'd already shot a full set of the cottage with dull lighting. Sat and poured a coffee for 10 minutes on the end of the canal and that's when the sun popped out so re-shot a handful very quickly.
 
Anybody gone A7C to A7iv? I thought I wanted a compact camera and I think I miss a big viewfinder o_O
 
nandbytes said:
Not directly from A7C to A7IV but I have owned A7C in the past and my current body is the A7IV
Click to expand...
How would you compare the both? I like the C and the size but only when I've got a small lens on, and I'm finding myself in the viewfinder more and more rather than the screen and its not the most comfortable with the C.

Plus with the rumoured new A7C models now's probably the best time for trade in price.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top