Personal computing discussed
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TheEmrys wrote:Cool deal. If you can swing it, I would highly recommend you pick up either of the prime lenses. And if you have any questions about Minolta lenses, please feel free to ask or pm. I would also recommend you check out Dyxum. com. They have a thread going about a7 issues they would like fixed. If you find something in there that is a deal-breaker, better to find out now than later.
lonleyppl wrote:It arrived! Slightly unhappy with Adorama, about shipping (ordered Saturday @2PM EST w/ second day air, arrived Wednesday...), and it's currently charging, but I'm glad to take hold of it.
lonleyppl wrote:Posted a few more from the a7 on Flickr today. I downloaded the Sony RAW editor yesterday, but haven't done much more than white balance corrections. Yesterday and today were with the Pentax 55mm f/1.8.
The OVF is absolutely amazing for manual focus and I'm never going back! I've noticed that with my glasses, some light does get in, so the OVF feels a bit dim, but as long as I remember that what I see there isn't exactly what will be recorded and trust the exposure meter it's not bad at all.
MF lenses are a dream to use with the OVF though, which is really really nice. I like my antique lenses.
lonleyppl wrote:Continuing impressions:
Battery life is less than stellar. I'm glad I purchased extra batteries, as at the end of shooting for about an hour, my half charged battery had completely died on me. I think it was only good for about 300 shots (shooting RAW + JPEG). Focus peaking continues to be really nice, but I need to use it with magnification, not by itself. It helps to get close quickly, but isn't enough on its own. You can see this in some (most) of the pictures using the Vivitar. They're was also a bit of vignetting & color shift using the Vivitar's macro mode and focusing on distant objects which I'll have to be aware of.
The kit lens - It's not actually all that sharp. Most of the landscape shots were taken at f/8 and used AF, but there are quite a few that I wasn't happy with how they turned out, as they were rather muddled at 100%. On the other hand, the colors are quite good, AF is fast and usually right and it handles well. EDIT: I forget to mention, there was some vignetting at 28mm, but I'm not sure if that was from the lens hood, or just the lens' tendencies. More to come on that...
General annoyances - I think there was some dust on my sensor as there's a smudge in almost every picture. Rather annoying that I didn't catch it at the time. Once I got home I used my rocket blower and that seems to have solved the problem. Also, I lost the eye cup. They seem to have a tendency to pop off, and I'm not a big fan.
Mostly, I would be concerned about battery life. While you can probably get 300 shots from one charge, spares are definitely something you should have around.
I'm still really impressed with the dynamic range and overall IQ whenever I use it. I'm really enjoying going out and shooting with it.
TheEmrys wrote:Airplane mode didn't help for you? I have read it has had great results for many (~500 shots).
Darkmage wrote:I'm certainly not in this group's league, but I'd thought I would leave this here.
Aphasia wrote:Correct! I took this from the tourist trap at the top of the mountain, but I don't get much of a chance to get off the beaten path these days. If any of you are ever thinking about visiting New Zealand - do it! The entire country is one majestic view after another.Hey, I recognize that view.... Queenstown, right ?
Was there a couple of years ago...
Airmantharp wrote:Which is pretty much why I said "I'm not in your league." I'm just not that good of a photographer. I look at the stuff in this thread and there's skill there that I can't replicate, even if I had the tools.Any photographer worth his salt would tell you that it's not the tool, it's the user .
Darkmage wrote:Which is pretty much why I said "I'm not in your league." I'm just not that good of a photographer. I look at the stuff in this thread and there's skill there that I can't replicate, even if I had the tools.
Yeats wrote:Most photography is about as technical as calculating your change when you pay for a Big Mac with a 20.
liquidsquid wrote:If I weren't so invested into micro 4/3 I would certainly switch back to a Sony. Loved the colors of my old DSC-R1. That camera just has something magical about it... even though it was slow. The kit lens output bokeh looks a bit busy to me though, but not horrible.
PenGun wrote:This part of the problem. The cameras do all the work now and people blame the camera for their mistakes and mediocre results. They never learn the basics even, just buy another piece of equipment if it's not working out.
I just go where it's really wonderful and take pictures of it. A huge amount of what I do is getting there and really is at least half the fun. I don't carry my camera anywhere except out into the wilderness, no snap shots, no family, well hardly ever, just pictures of the bush.
I know what I am doing. I know what I want and I know how to go about getting it. This started nearly 40 years ago for me, so maybe that's why.
TheEmrys wrote:Went up to Rocky Mountain National Park. Had a great time in the cold, wind, and snow. Oh yeah, and altitude. I had only brought my 35-105mm (from 1985), as I thought it would be clear skies and some nice landscapes. But, I ran into some elk instead. Now, please remember, these are all at 105mm, with most of them being 1:1 crops. However, that being said, I am very pleased with the sharpness and color of this lens.
Started out with some truly brutal wind and snow.