Lenses for Sony

[BananaRepublic]

As there is not much talk about Sony (except fanboi bashing), I thought I would write up something on my lenses.

I started out with Sony to continue to use Maxxum glass that BlackSheep started (I was a Canon FD guy so I sold off everything).
I realized that working with APS-C digital is not the same as my experience with old full frame Canon film lenses. I only had fixed focal length lenses with with Canon as zoom lenses sucked or were way out of my budget.

The Sony digital experience:
I started with kit lenses ... then realized that they suck, so I grabbed some old Maxxum fixed focal length lenses (even though the used prices are over-inflated). Then went to some midrange third party zoomlenses as I did not want to spend my life savings.
After much selling and buying I eventually realized that better IQ does come with a price ... and makes a difference what you spend. Zoom lens quality has come a long way for a lot lower in price.

Sony DT 18-70mm -> DT 18-55mm -> DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6
Sigma 50mm macro -> Tokina 100mm macro (old version) -> Sigma 150mm macro APO OS HSM f/2.8
Sigma 70-300mm -> Sony 70-300mm -> Maxxum 100-300mm APO -> Sigma 100-300mm APO f/4
These three are going to be my staples.
The 16-105mm and 150mm are new to me, but the IQ seems to be very good (to great) in my test shots.

I am dropping my Maxxum 28-135mm (awesome IQ) as I have a Maxxum 24mm and 50mm.

The Maxxum 24-85mm and 100-300mm APO are shared lenses since they are full frame, and handy on our Maxxum film bodies.
BlackSheep has the Sigma 50mm macro, Tamron 10-24mm, Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8, and a Tamron 200-500mm.

All the lenses that I have were purchased used ... except for the two 18-xxmm kit lenses ... so that reduced the pricing a lot.
I would love some Sony G or CZ lenses but I have not won the lottery yet ... I think I will be satisfied with the lenses I have now for the 2013 season.

Do you need a SCART lead for each lens then, could I play Grand Theft Auto on it.

 

[dxqcanada]

I am not aware of compatibility for PS games ... I don't think they have released a firmware update for that ... yet.

 

[dxqcanada]

If anyone wants to know ... the Sony SAL55300 is actually a pretty good lens in terms of IQ for a cheap price, though SAM is not really fast.

 

[dxqcanada]

The Tamron 10-24mm was chucked ... replaced with a Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8.
Limitation that it is specifically a UWA zoom, but it is wayyyyy sharper (I did make a mention of this somewhere on the forum) than the Tamron.

Our current lens round-up (again):

Minolta 24mm f/2.8
Minolta 50mm f/1.7
Minolta 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5
Minolta 80-200mm f/2.8 APO (black)
Sigma 50mm /f2.8 EX macro
Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM macro
Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 II APO EX DC HSM
Tamron 200-500mm SP Di LD
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 IF DX II
Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6
Sony DT 16-50mm f/2.8
Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 SSM G
Sony 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DT SAM

 

[dxqcanada]

So, to keep this stale thread going ... and to show that A-mount is still alive ...

Minolta 200mm f/2.8 APO (I posted about this lens earlier) ... is definitely one A-mount you really want.
I picked up a Minolta 50mm f/2.8 macro ver. I ... it is tiny (hmm, like a 50mm) lens, and very sharp. I think I might get rid of the Sigma 150mm. It is an awesome lens, but I have not used it enough.
I am going to try out a Minolta 2x APO with the 200mm ... will be posting about after I get it.

 

[VidThreeNorth]

I still have a couple of Canon lenses. One is an old 50mm F1.4 FD lens which I kept for portrait work on my Sony a6400. But oddly, I never really got around to using it on the a6400. I have almost always had better portrait setups. I decided to put it on the a6400 and at least knock out a few. It turns out that this was a good choice because I found that my manual focusing "skills" had grown sloppy. My first group of pictures were all out of focus, and worth deleting. I am generally not foolish enough to make a mistake like that "when it counts", but it was a shock to me that I had done that badly, even for casual, unimportant stuff. Ok, back out and with a more serious mindset, I took a few more with "depth of field" in mind.

This time I did a quick set of F1.4, 4.0 and 8.0. Things went better. The subject matter was grey tree branches, made even more grey from my camera settings (HLG3 w/BT.2020, detail neutral). Sharpness was as expected. The F1.4s of that era were mainly good for the extra light. They were not generally sharper than the cheaper, more common F1.8s, and I remember this copy being an average (pretty good but not wonderful) performer. I am happy that I still have it, and will probably use it more, but if you find one on the used market, I would not suggest you put a "priority" on grabbing it.

NOTE: The difference in contrast in these pictures were due to the changes in cloud cover, not the lens, nor the camera settings

V3N01122.JPG (F1.4?)
- Canon 50mm F1.4 lens (@1.4?)
- Detail Crop from 4800,2000
- both lateral and longitudinal chromatic abberation

V3N01123.JPG
- Canon 50mm F1.4 lens (@4.0?)
- Detail Crop from 2700,1180
- less lateral and longitudinal chromatic abberation, but still there

V3N01126.JPG
- Canon 50mm F1.4 lens (@8.0?)
- Detail Crop from 2700,1180 (not really same crop as '123 above)
- lateral and longitudinal chromatic abberation gone

2023-07-16
Test Picture V3N01228-C83t.JPG
It occurred to me that I could make a "linearity" test picture. I "sighted" the bricks before the test and the wall looks acceptable (not a surprise). I did not do the measurements and calculations, but it looks better than 1% deviation, which is my minimum standard. There is slight barrel distortion.

 

[dxqcanada]

Hmm, I noticed a big difference in IQ when I switched from the f/1.8 to the f1/4 on my Canon New F-1 back in the 80's ... I don't have any of my FD lenses so can't try it on my NEX-6.

 

[dxqcanada]

I picked up a really cheap Minolta Maxxum 50mm f/2.8 macro 1st gen ... it is really sharp, and a lot quieter than the Sigma on my list.

 

[petrochemist]

Yea, all our lenses and bodies are pre-Maxxum. The camera I took my 75-300 (105-400) from is a Minolta Maxxum 5. No issues at all on either the A100 or A77 and neither are full-frame.

So they are SR mount, (aka MD) easy to adapt but need you to focus manually.
The problem comes with post Maxxum minolta lenses - the Vectis range (for APSC film) are all electronic focus by wire lenses, which are the devil to adapt.

 

[VidThreeNorth]

Oddly, I tested my Canon lens "randomly" with no particular reason. But now, in the last couple of months there have been a bunch of 50mm F1.4 lens tests and comparisons. Here is a link to a comparison video on YouTube by Dustin Abbott a couple of days ago. It is a typical review.

"Sony vs Sigma | Battle of the Premium 50mm F1.4 Titans",
posted Mar 31, 2023 by "Dustin Abbott", [length 10:53]
""

 

[VidThreeNorth]

I ran across this on YouTube. It goes beyond my experience, so I do not know how much of it is right or wrong, but it seems worth looking at:

"Why Rehouse Companies are Doing it WRONG",
posted Nov 1, 2022 by "Justin Phillip" [length: 32:05]
""