Calling all Sony Alpha users! (Part 5)

the poor quality seemed to be early models, this ones a 2011 sony shop purchase that i would be able to have a fiddle with before handing over money.

i guess if i miss out on this i may hang on for the new sony 16-50 2.8 ssm lens due out later this year :)
 
They've also had fungus issues with it as well, shame this lens has had so many problems as it's no slouch in the quality it produces
 
Pity they're a bit hit and miss. Been day dreaming about CZ glass and that one is about the cheapest you can get. Ideal length too as the 18-55 standard zoom feels a bit short so a 16-80 would be quite good.
 
never heard of the fungus issues, i thought you had to have a damp lens for that to happen.
 
uhoh, interesting reading there, i have mailed the seller for the 1st 3 digits of the serial number and should i win it within my price range i will have a very good look before handing over any cash.

*edit, well above the danger range :)
 
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mine has one of the serial numbers that could be affected, will have to have a look when I get home :(

It's a really nice lens for a crop sensor camera, I used it as my main walkabout with the A700.
 
i know it costs a lot but i have the 70-300g ssm and the silent super fast focus speed is great :)

as you say, its a lot of money, out of my reach tbh, maybe in a year or so i will sell whatever i have to get one.
 
Morning, I am after a good lens for portraits and shooting indoors low light weddings etc.

I was looking at the Sony 85mm F1.4 ZA Planar T* Lens but it is very pricey so want to get this right. Also looked at the sigma 85mm alot cheaper but will i always say i should have gone for the ZA.


Is there any others to throw into the mix. It will be put onto my a900.

Many Thanks
 
I'd check out dyxum for image samples and see whether there is enough difference to warrant the difference in price tags.

Sony themselves are also offering cheap plastic bodied primes that are supposed to be quite good. Only f2.8 I think though for the 85mm. They won't be CZ or Sigma standard but they're under £200.
 
Been looking for a minolta 100-400 for ages but they're a) hen's teeth and b) chuffing expensive so after wandering around on cash converters like I do now and then I've bought a cosina 100-400 for just under £70 inc postage! If I stick it on the A350 with the 2x digital zoom that is equivalent to 1200mm in 35mm terms and a normal 600mm equivalent!

It is a bit slow at f4.5 to f6.7 but it is the same as the minolta anyway. And it is white barrel with red writing so people might think I have a canon L lens :naughty:
 
crap i missed the auction by seconds for the 16-80
 
snapsnap said:
Morning, I am after a good lens for portraits and shooting indoors low light weddings etc.

I was looking at the Sony 85mm F1.4 ZA Planar T* Lens but it is very pricey so want to get this right. Also looked at the sigma 85mm alot cheaper but will i always say i should have gone for the ZA.


Is there any others to throw into the mix. It will be put onto my a900.

Many Thanks
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The sigma 85mm is a really great lens.I love it on my A700 and love the shots that I get with it.Not sure how it is on a ff camera but performs brilliant on my cropped one.

Here is a thread on another forum with plenty of pics just for it.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=886651&highlight=sigma
 
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Has anyone tried the SONY SAL-85F28? I just spotted Argos selling it for £129.

I was thinking about a 85-100mm prime/macro as ive been doing more weddings lately and seen this, granted its not a macro but for that price its tempting. Or i was thinking about saving up for a 70-200 f2.8 macro which i think i'll get more use out of.

Any thoughts?
 
PDub said:
Has anyone tried the SONY SAL-85F28? I just spotted Argos selling it for £129.

I was thinking about a 85-100mm prime/macro as ive been doing more weddings lately and seen this, granted its not a macro but for that price its tempting. Or i was thinking about saving up for a 70-200 f2.8 macro which i think i'll get more use out of.

Any thoughts?
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I picked one up when Jessops had them for £99 a while ago. It's my favorite of the "easy choice" cheapo lenses. Lovely smooth bokeh.

My Tamron 90 is sharper, but I just prefer the look of the Sony 85.
 
well..after an accident with my A700 and sigma 18-50 on tuesday,it looks like i'm gonna have to replace it[camera]as it's pretty much dead.luckily,i'm insured,so will need to sort out what i'm going to get to replace it,as there no longer is an A700 since it being discontinued,and soon to be replaced by the A77..trouble is..not sure i like the EVF on the new breed of SLT cameras.also don't like thge thought of waiting until it does get to the shops...although they say mid october,could actually be later than that...mmmmmm....
 
I'd either get an a580 if you can find one or get a second hand a700...If you definitely don't like an EVF and have tried the A35 with the new style evf then the A580 is your only option from sony at the moment.

And if you have sigma lenses the SLTs will cause bother anyway as older sigmas will need modding and not all of them can be.
 
Hi Guys/galls
Im thinking of getting a sony alfa a77 to run along side my canon gear, is there an addapter that will let me fit my 500f4 onto the a77 i know it wont AF.
Thanks
Rob.
 
GyRob said:
Hi Guys/galls
Im thinking of getting a sony alfa a77 to run along side my canon gear, is there an addapter that will let me fit my 500f4 onto the a77 i know it wont AF.
Thanks
Rob.
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Ive never heard of such an adapter, but Sony will be releasing a 500/4 sometime in the near-ish future. It's been on the cards (mock-ups shown etc) for a couple of years now, so it can't be far off.
 
looking at the price Sony charge for the 300 f2.8 i think the 500f4 would be far to much to run along with my canon gear .
Rob.
 
GyRob said:
looking at the price Sony charge for the 300 f2.8 i think the 500f4 would be far to much to run along with my canon gear .
Rob.
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Is it that far out from what canon charge for their 300/2.8 ?
 
GyRob said:
Hi Guys/galls
Im thinking of getting a sony alfa a77 to run along side my canon gear, is there an addapter that will let me fit my 500f4 onto the a77 i know it wont AF.
Thanks
Rob.
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You can get adapters and the best place to find them is Ebay. Due to the registration differences between the mounts the adapters have a lens to enable focus to infinity and this degrades the image quality somewhat.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=minolta+ma+canon+adapter
 
been offered an a850 with matching grip and 18-50 lens[which i believe will not work/cause vignetting]in replacement of my a700 etc...what do you guys recon?

i don't know much about the a850,but it seems similarly spec'd to the a700 except if will only shoot at 3fps,as opposed to 5fps on the a700...gonna have to read up i suppose.

oh,and all my other lens should work ok...70-200 G SSM,50mm 1.8,sigma 105 macro...yeah?
 
stan the man said:
been offered an a850 with matching grip and 18-50 lens[which i believe will not work/cause vignetting]in replacement of my a700 etc...what do you guys recon?

i don't know much about the a850,but it seems similarly spec'd to the a700 except if will only shoot at 3fps,as opposed to 5fps on the a700...gonna have to read up i suppose.

oh,and all my other lens should work ok...70-200 G SSM,50mm 1.8,sigma 105 macro...yeah?
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The A850 will automatically switch to an APS-C crop mode (which is very similar to A700 resolution) when you put a Sony DT lens on it, though you can override this (and get vignetting).

I think the 50 f/1.8 SAM is also a DT lens, but the 70-200G and Sigma 105 macro are both full frame.

Is this an insurance offer? If so, it might be worth asking how much they want to upgrade to an A900 rather than A850 if 5FPS is important.
 
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Faldrax said:
The A850 will automatically switch to an APS-C crop mode (which is very similar to A700 resolution) when you put a Sony DT lens on it, though you can override this (and get vignetting).

I think the 50 f/1.8 SAM is also a DT lens, but the 70-200G and Sigma 105 macro are both full frame.

Is this an insurance offer? If so, it might be worth asking how much they want to upgrade to an A900 rather than A850 if 5FPS is important.
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thanks jonathan....i've asked for them to supply a 24-70 instead of the 18-50 2.8,so just got to wait until i hear back from them.3fps isn't a biggie,as continuous isn't something i use a lot anyway,but worth asking the difference in price.looks like my 50 1.8 may well be up for sale,and i'll get a full frame equivalent as and when funds allow :-)
 
well,my insurance just rang back,and they are going to supply me with the sigma 24-70 2.8 instead of the 18-50,and when i asked about the a900 instead of the a850,they said i could have that insteaed,at no extra cost...am i happy or what :D
 
I see the A77 has started shipping here, anyone got theirs yet, gonna ring up Park in a minute to see if they have stock yet or if it's only Sony Centres so far

Hooray, just got off the phone and they should have stock at the weekend :banana::banana::banana:
 
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Thanks John...hope you're feeling better now.
I had thought about the a77,but not sure if I would have liked the EVF.....but going to be more than happy with the a900 :)))
Dean...they sent a courier to collect the camera,lens and grip on monday.
 
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