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

I took my 55mm f1.8 out yesterday and when I looked at the pictures I remembered what an excellent lens it is... but I still wished I'd taken the 35mm f2.8 :D



100% crop from one...





The future Mrs woof woof...





 
twist said:
Tbh youre going to struggle... 28 f2 is probs your only option

The sigma is not e or fe mount. Youd need an adapter add cost, veeeerrrryyyy sllllloooowwww af or mf and its more than 300. The other sigmas 19 and 30 are apsc you need to be able to distinguish the difference before throwing your cash away.
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The adapter adds a cost, I agree
But about the AF you are wrong. I am using Sigma 35mm F/1.4 ART with Sigma MC-11 on A7R II - The AF is as fast as the native lens (I am using Sony FE 55mm as well).
(I can not say how it will behave on A7)
At the moment in the classifieds section for 390.
The only negative side I would say is that with adapter and this lens is not light.
The images are very very sharp.
 
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photosample said:
The adapter adds a cost, I agree
But about the AF you are wrong. I am using Sigma 35mm F/1.4 ART with Sigma MC-11 on A7R II - The AF is as fast as the native lens (I am using Sony FE 55mm as well).
(I can not say how it will behave on A7)
At the moment in the classifieds section for 390.
The only negative side I would say is that with adapter and this lens is not light.
The images are very very sharp.
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The difference is the camera. The sigma adapted works excellently on the A7rii and well on the a7ii. The a7 won't be the anywhere near the same level though.
 
photosample said:
The adapter adds a cost, I agree
But about the AF you are wrong. I am using Sigma 35mm F/1.4 ART with Sigma MC-11 on A7R II - The AF is as fast as the native lens (I am using Sony FE 55mm as well).
(I can not say how it will behave on A7)
At the moment in the classifieds section for 390.
The only negative side I would say is that with adapter and this lens is not light.
The images are very very sharp.
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No youre wrong. Very wrong.
 
twist said:
No youre wrong. Very wrong.
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I understand.
Well, everyone has their opinion, so I will not argue.

I am based in Leytonstone at the moment and I am inviting anyone that wants to try to combo (A7R II + Sigma MC-11 + Sigma 35mm)
 
photosample said:
I understand.
Well, everyone has their opinion, so I will not argue.

I am based in Leytonstone at the moment and I am inviting anyone that wants to try to combo (A7R II + Sigma MC-11 + Sigma 35mm)
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Not opinion mate or wanting to be argumentative, my comment was based on fact (which Jon also pointed out), I know the A7rii and MC11 is decent, but he has the A7 and I know the A7 sucks with af adapted... and thats what my comment was based upon.
 
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woof woof said:
I took my 55mm f1.8 out yesterday and when I looked at the pictures I remembered what an excellent lens it is... but I still wished I'd taken the 35mm f2.8 :D



100% crop from one...





The future Mrs woof woof...





Click to expand...

Nice Alan, when you folks tying the knot?
 
July 8th.

I'd have gone for a Thai wedding too but GF hates all kinds of fuss and we wouldn't be getting married if a Thai wedding was a necessity so it'll be a very quiet wedding here with only close family.

More from yesterday, striking a pose and bluebells.







When I first got the 55mm f1.8 I tested it against my manual focus legacy 50mm's and what impressed me was that although just about any decent 50mm can be sharp in the centre the 55mm is sharp across the frame and at wide apertures too. The only AF 50's I've had are the original Sigma f1.4 and the Canon f2.5 macro and the Sony beats them too. It really is an outstanding lens.

PS.
We sat in that wood waiting for the sun to come out and waiting really made the difference.
 
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Guys question about HDR.

I have 2 settings on the camera on 1 i have HDR and on 2 i have Bracketing, as you all know Bracketing or probably best for you as the user to manually merge them later, However this weekend i decided to shoot Jpeg for a bit as i honestly couldn't be bothered with the 100s of raws for what the subject was, and i used the settings 1 and HDR mode, the camera took what sounded like 3 but is probably 2 shots and then goes into Processing and then shows be a lovely file, but when i copied the raw folder to my disk i just saw 2 of everything and on checking them it looks like 1 file is over exposed by a 1/3.

Surely i should see either 3 files 2 that are merged and 1 HDR copy or just 1 HDR file, how are you lot seeing this process... What am i doing wrong ?

thanks

By the way the Sony and 24-70 GM did amazingly well this weekend it was up against the D500 and Fuji X100F and SOC Sonys seemed lovely the Nikon tended to produce nicer says and not look hazy, the Fuji holds its own and as always produces amazing Black and Whites...
 
littleted said:
Guys question about HDR.

I have 2 settings on the camera on 1 i have HDR and on 2 i have Bracketing, as you all know Bracketing or probably best for you as the user to manually merge them later, However this weekend i decided to shoot Jpeg for a bit as i honestly couldn't be bothered with the 100s of raws for what the subject was, and i used the settings 1 and HDR mode, the camera took what sounded like 3 but is probably 2 shots and then goes into Processing and then shows be a lovely file, but when i copied the raw folder to my disk i just saw 2 of everything and on checking them it looks like 1 file is over exposed by a 1/3.

Surely i should see either 3 files 2 that are merged and 1 HDR copy or just 1 HDR file, how are you lot seeing this process... What am i doing wrong ?

thanks

By the way the Sony and 24-70 GM did amazingly well this weekend it was up against the D500 and Fuji X100F and SOC Sonys seemed lovely the Nikon tended to produce nicer says and not look hazy, the Fuji holds its own and as always produces amazing Black and Whites...
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If you're exporting the RAW files then yes, you would normally have 3 version of the same shot, one underexposed by however many stops you choose, one with an average exposure and one overexposed by the same amount of stops. If you're shooting HDR in-camera, it will merge the 3 RAW files to create one final JPG.
 
stevelmx5 said:
If you're exporting the RAW files then yes, you would normally have 3 version of the same shot, one underexposed by however many stops you choose, one with an average exposure and one overexposed by the same amount of stops. If you're shooting HDR in-camera, it will merge the 3 RAW files to create one final JPG.
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Steve thats what id expect bit it isn't :/

im gonna flatten the card this morning and have a play.
 
littleted said:
Steve thats what id expect bit it isn't :/

im gonna flatten the card this morning and have a play.
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But if you're copying off the raw files, you will just get multiple versions of the same image at different exposures (2/3/5 etc depending on the settings used in camera for the 'HDR' function). There should also be a jpg version of the same image which is the final merged version of those same raw files.
 
Steve can you do me a test when you get a chance, I've flattened the card........ I've just used Aperture mode and selected HDR 2.0 stops and pressed the trigger, i still get 2 files per shot...

So in essence i choose A mode pressed FN and then manually selected DRO and highlighted HDR then went from HDR auto to HDR 2.0 and fired, i took 2 pictures, and now have 4 files on the card :(
 
littleted said:
Steve can you do me a test when you get a chance, I've flattened the card........ I've just used Aperture mode and selected HDR 2.0 stops and pressed the trigger, i still get 2 files per shot...

So in essence i choose A mode pressed FN and then manually selected DRO and highlighted HDR then went from HDR auto to HDR 2.0 and fired, i took 2 pictures, and now have 4 files on the card :(
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I've never used an auto-HDR mode but what are the 4 files you have on the card?
 
i took 2 shots in HDR one of the door and 1 of the TV, i have 2 shots of the TV on the card and 2 shots of the door :(
Ive just reinitialised the Camera and pressed FN, manually picked HDR again and its the same, 2 shots of each picture.

The logic in me is with you i should see 1 HDR picture thats it... Im shooting Extra Fine Jpeg just so RAW isn't part of this... Going to try raw on its own now...

Cant use HDR in RAW mode ..........
 
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Steve looks like its a Feature :(

1. The camera stores 2 images. The first is a properly exposed single shot, while the second is the result of the Auto HDR process.



2. You can customize the settings for Auto HDR by choosing from +/- 1.0 EV to +/- 6.0 EV between individual exposures. If the scene doesn't have much variation in brightness, +/- 1.0 EV, or even AUTO won't be much different from a single properly exposed shot. HDR, and with it, Auto HDR, is only useful when a scene has a significant dynamic range from its darkest to its brightest portions. Whatever the exposure range you select, whether it be for Auto HDR or for Exposure Bracketing for you to do the HDR yourself, the results won't be much different unless you've got something special in mind.

So 2 shots for every HDR
 
Sounds about right then :0). As you say, you can't shoot an auto-HDR in raw because an HDR is an edited merged shot of multiple single images so cannot be a RAW file.

I've always used bracketing in camera then merged the output images in Photoshop/Photomatix afterwards.
 
yeah me 2 i use Aurora HDR, but on this occasion i just wanted something simple :/
thanks
 
Sounds like it's a pretty good implementation though for a quick HDR. You've got the choice of number of stops for the variance and an output of both the merged image and a single average exposed image in case you decide that you didn't want the HDR version.
 
Well I'm finally getting to join the A7rii club! Looking forward to giving it a go ahead of being tempted hopefully by an upgrades A7r in the A9 body (Dual slots and AF Stick mainly)....

I was very very close to deciding to just splurge on the Fuji GFX50s and 32-64 but I think giving the A7rii a proper run out makes more sense for me to at least try first, getting it with the 55mm but also have adapters for my old Nikon 24mm f2.8D which was fine stopped down on a D800 so should be ok on this, and looking to try out my Pentax 31mm f1.8 Ltd as well, I've seen good results with that one.

Keeping the Pentax K1 for now as well, thinking that I may keep the A7rii for primes only and get the 24-70 for the K1 and mainly use that for more specific photography days out.
Who knows if I like it I might end up getting rid of the K1 eventually as well but value for money wise I don't think there's a better full-frame DSLR body currently.
 
I'm surprised that you'd consider a camera as expensive as the fuji, it's another world to me but maybe you wouldn't spend what I have on cars :D

I agree with the A7 for primes idea :D

There's no photography for me today... it's another dull day and no one can be bothered going out.
 
chrism_scotland said:
Well I'm finally getting to join the A7rii club! Looking forward to giving it a go ahead of being tempted hopefully by an upgrades A7r in the A9 body (Dual slots and AF Stick mainly)....

I was very very close to deciding to just splurge on the Fuji GFX50s and 32-64 but I think giving the A7rii a proper run out makes more sense for me to at least try first, getting it with the 55mm but also have adapters for my old Nikon 24mm f2.8D which was fine stopped down on a D800 so should be ok on this, and looking to try out my Pentax 31mm f1.8 Ltd as well, I've seen good results with that one.

Keeping the Pentax K1 for now as well, thinking that I may keep the A7rii for primes only and get the 24-70 for the K1 and mainly use that for more specific photography days out.
Who knows if I like it I might end up getting rid of the K1 eventually as well but value for money wise I don't think there's a better full-frame DSLR body currently.
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You will enjoy the A7RII :)
 
And lastly. This is quite a simple shot, it's maybe nothing special and there's nothing clever going on but I've decided that I like it :D

View attachment 101781
 
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Fuguru said:
Its a great combination but for £3212 excluding a SD card mmmmm questionable. :D
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An A7rII would be overkill for me, I'm happy with my 24mp A7 and at the mo I can't see myself changing. It's very compact with the 35mm f2.8 and even with my larger lenses (135mm f2.8, 85mm f2, 50mm f1.2) it's still compact.

If my A7 went bang then who knows maybe I'd go for an A7II but I would not be going back to DSLR's or dropping down to a CSC APS-C as for me the price and bulk savings just aren't there.

And a PS on the price.
I've just looked at Wex and a Canon 5DIV behemoth is £3.5k without a lens. Faced with that I'd go for the A7rII and 55mm in a heartbeat :D
 
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woof woof said:
Do you think you'll miss this combination?

What are you moving to?
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Yes I will certainly miss it. The 55 - considering its size, build quality and stunning optics, I'd rate it as the best lens for the Sony system. It would definitely be my "dessert island" lens. This and the A7rii work perfectly together. The eye af isn't matched by any other system I've used so I'll miss this when doing portraiture for sure. However, there is hope that my new system may improve this via fw update (hint hint).

At times when I'm feeling like I'm not enjoying the user exeperience of the sony camera system, the results of the images would always make me forget about the camera shortcomings.

As I'm by no means a full time pro, I'm taking a closer look at what I'm spending on camera gear, and what I will need to keep spending to get the gear bag I'd like. By switching to Fuji I've managed to gather enough money to buy more gear as well as pay for a family holiday and have a system that can be argued as more suitable for certain types of photography. Finances and system affordability are the main reasons for the switch. However, if i didn't think the fuji system was up to it, i wouldn't have switched. i would have stayed with one body and 2 lenses.

so I'm losing:
super high resolution
ibis
zeiss optics
a stop of dof
superior eye af
3rd part hss support
:sony:

im gaining:
more gear
more affordable gear
an extra card slot
better af
better ergonomics
better workflow
lovely RAW film sims
:fuji:

i plan to review things next year. an a73 alongside an a7r2 would be lovely. we'll see ;)
 
addicknchips said:
Yes I will certainly miss it. The 55 - considering its size, build quality and stunning optics, I'd rate it as the best lens for the Sony system. It would definitely be my "dessert island" lens. This and the A7rii work perfectly together. The eye af isn't matched by any other system I've used so I'll miss this when doing portraiture for sure. However, there is hope that my new system may improve this via fw update (hint hint).

At times when I'm feeling like I'm not enjoying the user exeperience of the sony camera system, the results of the images would always make me forget about the camera shortcomings.

As I'm by no means a full time pro, I'm taking a closer look at what I'm spending on camera gear, and what I will need to keep spending to get the gear bag I'd like. By switching to Fuji I've managed to gather enough money to buy more gear as well as pay for a family holiday and have a system that can be argued as more suitable for certain types of photography. Finances and system affordability are the main reasons for the switch. However, if i didn't think the fuji system was up to it, i wouldn't have switched. i would have stayed with one body and 2 lenses.

so I'm losing:
super high resolution
ibis
zeiss optics
a stop of dof
superior eye af
3rd part hss support
:sony:

im gaining:
more gear
more affordable gear
an extra card slot
better af
better ergonomics
better workflow
lovely RAW film sims
:fuji:

i plan to review things next year. an a73 alongside an a7r2 would be lovely. we'll see ;)
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All makes sense Jonathan however you will be missed here
 
Thanks to @addicknchips move from Sony I've now got an A7rii and 55mm!!

I felt I needed to try one before making any firm decisions on my likely future kit (DSLR v Mirrorless) as on so many levels the Sony system "should" be the system for the type of shooting I like to do, especially now that the lens line-up is fairly fleshed out and there's the option of almost full-functionality on adapted Canon or Sony A Mount Glass.

I was however a little nervous as I do have memories of the original A7 being a decent performer but not great and the A7ii not being able to match the usability of the Fuji gear.

I've not been out with it yet but from a quick play in the house yesterday the A7rii feels like a different camera even to the similarly aged A7ii.

The AF seems plenty good for my use and seems to focus well in almost dark conditions and very fast v my DSLR (admittedly the Pentax K1 DSLR I'm comparing to doesn't have the best AF) it also feels snappier to use than previous bodies although it does feel slower to operate than a DSLR or the Fuji X-Pro 2 / XT2 which frankly are super quick to navigate and process things.

It like they've changed a few things v the A7ii that make the interface that little bit easier to use, I can't put my finger on it but I don't remember being able to customise the A7ii to quite the same level, perhaps a firmware upgrade or two on since I tried one of them.

Currently I've only the one native lens (the 55mm) which seems a cracker and I've always wanted to try it, I've also got a Nikon 24mm f2.8D which stopped down was always a decent wide lens on my D800 and the Pentax 31mm f1.8 Ltd which I love on the K1.

The manual focus aids seem to have improved and I've been using the "trick" of turning up the sharpness on JPEG's and looking for the shimmering in the EVF rather than peaking as this seems to be much more accurate, I've also managed to customise the MF Zoom function so I can zoom in easily to check focus, this thing is going to be great for manual glass and I may add a Loxia or two eventually (21/35).

It might be because I've been using the Pentax which has a slightly awkward method for AF point movement (no joystick like the Canon or Fuji and needs a double press to move) but it doesn't seem to be the problem with the Sony that it was before, although I will welcome any A9r or A7riii which has the A9 joystick!

Obviously time will tell how much I like this and obviously the size isn't hugely different to the K1 that I already have but the sheer availability of lenses is better, I've felt very restricted on the K1 when looking for newer glass especially wide and telephoto, the availability of native FE glass and ability to adapt relatively cheap telephoto's like the excellent Tamron 70-300 USD should make this setup perfect for what I want it to do.

Looking forward to getting out with it tonight in town and seeing what it can do!

Just need to decide what glass I want to buy, trade my Lee SW150 filters for something smaller and maybe get a new travel tripod.... Berlin in July here I come!
 
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