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Jonas A-R ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 29 December 2007 Country: Denmark Location: Denmark Status: Offline Posts: 1645 |
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I too replaced a geared head with a ball head a year ago (maybe longer, I can’t really remember when).
What I love about emount is it’s versatility. I can take my 21/2.8, 35/2.8, 55/1,8 lenses for a really compact system which covers a lot of ground for what I’m doing. Or I can go big so to speak for extra speed or reach. That combined with unreal AF performance is enough that I have not missed an SLR system much at all. The only thing I struggle with is AF in flash photography where the lens stops down during focus acquisition in conditions where the light does not allow a functional AF system. |
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a9 a6300
21/2.8 Loxia 35/1.4Z 50/1.4Z 85/1.4GM 90/2.8G Laowa 100mm F2.8 Ultra Macro 100/2.8GM 135/1.8GM 12-24/4G 24-105/4G 100-400/4-5.6GM 2x TC |
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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Yes, the cost is a big hurdle. This isn't like making the break with film with the a900. All my lenses and flashes carried over then. Even with the LA-EAx adapters, the A-mount lenses don't really carry over to the E-mount. I have (had) quite a nice collection of A-mount lenses, with a good range of classics and G's. It's just I also make (some) money from photography and that was another push to the E-mount. Especially as Sony has pulled the A-mount out of the NZ market. I can't get any upgrades and future repairs are to my mind, less certain. Edited by wetapunga - 21 August 2020 at 23:26 |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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Yup, I agree. The Minolta 100mm f2.8 macro is excellent optically and for reliability. Plus gives you the nice 'Minolta' colours. Good copies can be found at bargain prices often. |
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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I can certainly say that there have been times when I've been traversing a rockface over a torrent of rushing water, deep in NZ forest, that I've regretted the weight and size of my A-mount setup ![]() Obviously you don't have to downsize. A Sigma 20mm, 35mm, 50mm and 85mm ART lens-set is going to weigh a lot more and take up more space than more 4 Loxias. But having the option to take a lighter camera, a lighter tripod, and a set of lighter lenses in a smaller bag, is a good option to have. That's the direction I'm going. Another thing that helps with the downsizing are the zooms. In the good old days, when AF were being developed and introduced to the market, many weren't so good. Their compromises and early design flaws meant that primes were for the most part, better. There were some really poor Minolta zooms in silver barrels...Now, a decent E-mount zoom means for a lot of purposes, you won't need more primes or other zooms to offset their flaws. They're just good over the whole focal range. |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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Interesting, yes, the E-mount seems to open up that option to downsize other parts of the kit. By my maths, my tripod was 2.3kg and my geared head 1.22. So about a third of the total weight was at one end. The ballhead is a more balanced 700g. That's half a kg I've stripped from what I carry. Completely agree on your point on the versatility of the E-mount system. My camera bags aren't swelling and bulging with lenses and other kit! I'm somewhat pleased Zeiss did releases their Loxia range. They're compact size and despite their all glass and metal construction, still supply a significant weight saving without compromising handling and image quality. Have you found other ways to downsize with the E-Mount? Edited by wetapunga - 22 August 2020 at 01:37 |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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lonewolf ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 21 July 2014 Country: Australia Location: Perth Status: Offline Posts: 1003 |
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any actual need for 100mm?
FE 85mm 1.8 is light and sharp enough with the a7riii's 42mp that a slight crop is going to realise minimal IQ drop |
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a7iii, 200-600, 28 F2, 85 F1.8 + lots of Nikon stuff
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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@lonewolf
Yes, the goal is actually to go above 100mm. I did a review of my photo catalogue landscape photos over the last 5 years, and there's a significant (but small) percentage of shots that needed that longer focal length (100-135mm). While I could crop an 85mm shot (I've got an 85 Loxia) to get to 100mm, cropping to 135mm is really cutting into the image size, especially when I need photos that can be printed 6 feet across. A 135mm would be optimal, but most of these are large and heavy. The Batis 135mm is well north of $NZ3000 here and that's not something I can justify for say 10-15% of my landscape catalogue. Fwiw, I did end up ordering a Voigtlander 110mm APO-Lanthar macro lens. It hasn't arrived yet. But I decided that the lower prices (under $NZ2k), the macro ability and superb image quality would make up for the shorter focal length. But it does sit in the sweet spot for many landscape photos I've taken in the past. |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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Jonas A-R ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 29 December 2007 Country: Denmark Location: Denmark Status: Offline Posts: 1645 |
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I went with the f/4 zooms (12-24, 24-105, 70-200), but otherwise most of my lenses are of the big variety ![]() And I just purchased a used vertical grip. Most of the time I don’t mind a bit of heft, I just like to also have the option for a compact system. |
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a9 a6300
21/2.8 Loxia 35/1.4Z 50/1.4Z 85/1.4GM 90/2.8G Laowa 100mm F2.8 Ultra Macro 100/2.8GM 135/1.8GM 12-24/4G 24-105/4G 100-400/4-5.6GM 2x TC |
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Miranda F ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 11 January 2014 Country: United Kingdom Location: Bristol Status: Offline Posts: 4019 |
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Just fit the 85mm f1.8 and switch to crop mode. Instant 135mm, and the DOF is just the same as a 135mm f2.8. Don't tell me you really need all the pixels you lose... ![]() |
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Miranda F & Sensorex, Sony A7Rii, A58, Nex-6, Dynax 4, 5, 60, 500si/600si/700si/800si, various Sony & Minolta lenses, several Tamrons, lots of MF primes and *far* too many old film cameras ...
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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If someone wants to buy a print that’s 72” across would you rather have a starting image that is 42MP or 20MP? ![]() While I certainly don’t need 42MP for event photography, for landscapes I do begrudge every pixel I lose. Big wall prints are quite profitable. And correspondingly, the quality has to be high. |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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addy landzaat ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 22 April 2006 Country: Netherlands Location: Netherlands Status: Offline Posts: 12963 |
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![]() Did you consider the Sony FE 100mm f/2.8 STF GM OSS? Edit: never mind, missed the fact that you ordered the Voigtländer. |
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Why not follow me on Instagram? @Addy_101
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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Ah, well the a7r3 was on sale earlier this year and the a7r4 wasn’t so the cost of those extra MPs became a very expensive option. And I needed some money left over for those lenses... I did look at the 100mm F2.8 STF but it was a pretty substantial jump in price over the Voigtländer. About 60% more. And as I already had an STF lens (in the A-Mount) it didn’t add that much to my line up. Having a native E-Mount Macro lens was also a draw. The Voigtländer turned up today. It’s a bit heavier than I would have preferred, but it works well. It takes steps-down rings without vignetting so I can attach my Sony twin flash with its 55mm adapter easily. |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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Next chapter: Saying goodbye to Lee
After about a year of having the a7Riii and a nice set of Loxia lenses, I realised I had not used my Lee Filter system. In principle I could- I have smaller adapter rings- including a 52mm. But they are a bit outsized for my hiking backpack. There's not a lot of choice to downsize. I've got some nice ND filters I can screw in. But for sunrises and sunsets, having a good grad or reverse ND grad is hard to beat. So long-story short, I'm giving the Nisi m75 system (so called as the swuare filters have a width of 75mm) a go. Partly a some of the alternatives aren't stocked in NZ and partly because of a 15% off sale. Some initial comparisons are in my photo150 post here |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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Wētāpunga ![]() Senior Member ![]() Joined: 02 September 2007 Country: New Zealand Location: New Zealand Status: Online Posts: 6197 |
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As an addendum, the adapter ring is supposed to fit a 67mm thread, and you add narrower adapter to fit smaller lenses.
The main adapter won't fit all lenses with a 67mm thread. It doesn't fit either my Batis 85/1.8 or Sigma 100-400. See video clip for demonstration So you're pretty safe with lenses with filter threads less than 67mm, but you may need a UV filter or similar to extend thread out far enough for adapter |
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a7riii, a9- Voigtländer 15/4.5, 110/2.5 M; Zeiss Loxia- 21/2.8, 35/2, 50/2 & 85/2.4, Zeiss Batis- 85/1.8 & 135/2.8; Sony 24-105/4 G; Sigma 70/2.8 M; Tamron 150-500 f5-6.7; Sony SAL 135/2.8 STF
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