Well, I’ve pulled the trigger. This is the first Sony camera that I have personally owned, although I’ve tested others, and shot with cameras that also use a Sony sensor, so it is a bit of a thing for me. In the coming weeks I’ll be posting on my thoughts, findings, results and comparisons with this new intriguing mirrorless full frame camera. For now, come on in to see the unboxing and read a few of my initial thoughts on the camera…
Would it sound ironic if I were to mention the speed, and slowed hinderance of manual focus as the two best qualities that this lens can provide a photographer? Let’s be honest, there are not many lenses in existence that offer this large a maximum aperture for any system, anywhere. Certainly not very many that come in at under a thousand bucks, but this is the case for the micro 4/3 mount, Voigtländer Nokton series. Yes, this 42.5mm (85mm equivalent field of view) lens is joined by a soon to be 10.5mm f/0.95 (21mm e-fov), a killer 17.5mm f/0.95 (35mm e-fov) and a 25mm f/0.95 (50mm e-fov) to create a set of super fast, Nokton wonder lenses.
I have been using the also stellar Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens of late, and before I took off on a recent trip, knowing I’d be doing a vast majority of my shooting in the darker hours, I felt the one thing I was really lacking, was a really fast lens. A remarkably solid and well built hunk of metal and glass, this 85mm equivalent lens has been calling me ever since it was announced. Well, I decided that I’d benefit more fully from a really fast portrait focal length over the long run, and would gain a good amount of latitude while handholding it combined with the IBIS in the GX7, so I bit.
C’mon in to see a few shots, and read my thoughts on this optical marvel.
Nope, not a typo. I have, in my possession a Canon 55mm f/1.2 lens with an EF mount. How? Well, many of you may know of Ed Mica, an engineer with a passion for photographic lenses, and lens mounts more specifically. He has worked to provide many mount conversion kits for older FD lenses, converting them to a more modern EF mount and while Ed has had a conversion mount for the FL 55mm f/1.2, I’d been waiting for an FD 55mm f/1.2 SSC conversion since I’d first heard about Ed’s products a couple years back. Now, he has a conversion mount for many different FD, FL and FDn lenses including my lovely 55mm. Not only do I now have an ultra fast semi-standard lens for my full frame Canon cameras, I also need to keep one less micro 4/3 adapter around which turns this lens into a 110mm equivalent lens capable of absorbing light in the near darkness for both formats… Examples and test shots on the other side…
As requested from the camera body shopping guide post (thanks Tim and Chris), here are my opinions on the best lenses for the various mirrorless systems. Keep in mind that I have not shot extensively with all of these lenses, or at least, many of the lenses for systems that aren’t the micro 4/3 system aside from the tire kicking in stores or when getting the chance to shoot friend’s gear, so my opinion is based on minimal use combined with personal intrigue and web based research. Because I don’t own an X series or Alpha E (NEX, etc) camera body, I have not been able to access many of the lenses on offer for any period of time, but there are a few I have, as well as those that I would certainly look long and hard at if I was invested in these systems. As for the micro 4/3 lenses, I have those down pretty well. C’mon in and I’ll lay out my faves…
The season for the commercialization of spirituality (or, SFTCOS) is upon us and following suit, we have been absolutely bombarded with new offerings in the digital photography department. Taking the holidays out of it, and looking at it purely from a gear point of view, it is truly an exciting time to be shopping around for the best bang for your (or a loved one’s) buck.
Over the last 4 years that I’ve written this blog, I’ve been asked quite a few questions about which cameras, lenses, systems, et al, are the best. While I’ve chosen the gear I’ve chosen for my own personal reasons, there are so many others out there that offer their own set of pros and cons, and to put it plainly, there is no universal truth, nor answer to that question.
Come on in and I’ll give my take on which of the newly announced cameras over the last year or so are the most intriguing, interesting, best value or just plain confusing…
Okay, much like the “effective focal length” discussions, there seem to be many “effective aperture” discussions going around as many of these mirrorless interchangeable lens compact system cameras begin to really round out their lens offerings. Well, I guess the micro 4/3 system has while the Samsung NX is getting there and Sony NEX system users still have a small handful of options, but not really here nor there. The fact that so many lenses can be adapted across various formats can complicate the discussion. Along with those who shoot with APS-C DSLR cameras, all references for focal length and depth of field seem to fall back to a full frame/35mm sized sensor as the benchmark. There are some misconceptions as to how the aperture, or focal length affects the exposure or depth of field in these varying formats.
C’mon in, we’ll straighten this all out.
I know that on paper this is a crazy comparison. It’s also not fair in that we have two very different sensors, one, a 21 mega pixel full frame at the end of it’s 3+ year life cycle and the other about a quarter of the size and which is not even 10 months into its own. Well, these are the two cameras that I have and use on a regular basis. As I’m contemplating leaving one home for an upcoming trip, I wanted to see just what I was going to be getting. This is purely a fun/bored post, but one that I thought might be at least somewhat interesting to a few of us out there. How does the new 16mp G3/GX1 sensor stack up?
I had a read through mirrorless rumors today as I do most everyday and saw that there was an article posted regarding Canon’s recent ideas on a mirrorless system. Having been a fan and user of the micro 4/3 system as my mirrorless system to date, it had me questioning what I’d like to see in a Canon system. My thoughts may be off base, but c’mon in if you’re interested…
How does sensor size actually affect focal length?
Focal length? Effective focal length? Actual focal length? Crop factor? Do you get more reach with a crop sensor? Is it equal to a longer focal length? There are some misconceptions surrounding what happens when a lens is used on cameras with different sensor sizes. Let’s have a look at the differences between a full frame, APS-C and micro 4/3 sensor.
Tyson Robichaud Photo-blography 