Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2014/02/19
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Yes, the 75 Summarit does very well. Get the Novoflex adapter. The others don't cut it. One other irritating issue with the a7r -- I think the 35 mm FE focus-shifts. That may be one reason why they use focusing at the stopped down aperture. The 35 has no physical infinity stop (probably due to this), and that is a bit of a pain. Manual focusing with magnification works best stopped down, but the FE at 2.8 does an amazing job of AF. It even seems to balance the field curvature into the point it selects; I can't touch it with manual focusing. However you can't then stop down and expect a sharp image. Very interesting. The camera software and hardware, as design elements in an overall computer balancing of performance may be really starting to show what it can do. On the plus side, the Sony has focus distance read-outs in the finder. So, I can do multi-zone focusing without removing my eye. The resulting focus stacks are much better aligned, with the help also of grid lines and the level. I know where the infinity focus is. For this, the system that automatically goes to a magnified view should be turned off, which is where I leave that setting. Magnification as a 2-button (Why not one Sony?) manual process works best for the way I shoot. I can simply remember the focus points and watch the scale to get my focus stack. Paul www.PaulRoark.com On Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 9:31 AM, Sonny Carter <sonc.hegr at gmail.com> wrote: > Paul, do you mean the 75 2.5 Summarit? Because I just started playing with > mine on the A7r, and have been floored by the performance. So much more > than I was able to get out of it with the M8 or M9. > > > On Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 10:30 AM, Paul Roark <roark.paul at gmail.com> > wrote: > > > The Sony a7r is not a perfect camera by any means, but it's good enough > > that it will be what I take to Italy in a month, leaving the M9 home (or > > it'll be a backup camera). > > > > The Zeiss 35mm ZE optic for the Sony can easily out-shoot the M9 with the > > Zeiss 2.8 Biogon, which was my main lens. The Biogon at it's best on the > > Sony is a hair sharper in the center than the FE, but the FE at 2.8 at > the > > edge is essentially equal to the Biogon on the M9 at f8. This is quite > an > > achievement. It may signal that design of wide angle optics for the > > specific characteristics of the sensor's micro-lenses is needed. We'll > see > > of Zeiss can pull off the same magic when it releases the wider optics. > > > > ALL M optics I've tested below 50mm do not work well on the Sony. The > > edges smear. This is the major disappointment with the camera. The 75mm > > Leica 2.8 is amazing on the Sony. So, my 2-lens outfit is the 35mm FE > and > > the Leica 75. > > > > The Sony auto-iso is not as adjustable as I'd like, but I leave the > camera > > on Manual with auto ISO. There the only issue is that the ISO does not > > show until I tap the shutter button. But, for control we need to see all > > three exposure variables -- f-stop, shutter speed, and iso -- in the > > viewfinder on a continuous basis. > > > > Vibration has been a big issue for some, but for hand holding, it does > not > > appear to be very significant. Hands absorb the vibration very well. > > > > The Sony is no Leica in terms of smoothness or speed of focusing. Sony > has > > also clearly not matched the M9 in the micro-lens edge performance for RF > > optics. Also, the higher the MP count is, the worse the problems of ray > > angle appear to be. It may be the end of relatively symmetrical RF wide > > angles. Too bad. On the other hand the optics Zeiss has made so far for > > the Sony are amazing. They appear to have found a price/quality point > for > > aspherics that allows them to make appropriately priced lenses that can > > handle high MP sensors. > > > > I actual shooting, what I notice the most between the Sony and M9 are the > > electronic level in the viewfinder and the superior quality of the Sony > > metering. The Leica's focusing speed and accuracy are missed, however. > > > > The Sony leveling is allowing superior pan stitching of hand held shots. > > > > The Sony meter is sampling 1200 zones. It's essentially automated spot > > metering -- no need for checking the shot and it's histogram after the > > fact. You can have a live histogram in the viewfinder, but even where it > > seemed to be leaving too much room to the right, it turned out there were > > bright spots that would have "burned out" if the shot were given more > > exposure. The Sony leaves some tiny spectral highlights that are > "burned" > > (as appropriate), but even there one can almost always recover some > detail. > > At that point you run into the issue that the Sony is compressing the > very > > top highlights. Just below total burn-out the CMOS highlights (as with > my > > Canons) do not seem to be as good as the M9's CCD near-spectral > highlights. > > > > It's not the ultimate camera, but the Sony a7r is another clear step > > forward for landscaper work I do. It's a keeper, but I expect in 3 years > > it'll be obsolete. There is still a lot of room for improvement, and > it's > > no street/people shooter. > > > > Paul > > www.PaulRoark.com > > > > > > On Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 5:43 AM, Sonny Carter <sonc.hegr at gmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > The A7r is not earth-shattering. It does a nice job shooting my > Leica M > > > lenses, Leica R lenses, Nikon F lenses, and of course the native 35 > Zeiss > > > makes real purty pitchurs. > > > > > > The camera is sturdy, fairly easy to handle even with my big paws. I > > like > > > the folding screen and live view. It comes to hand real nice. I've > been > > > shooting it since the new year, and almost everything you've seen > posted > > is > > > from that camera. > > > > > > I read Sean's stuff, back when he was a regular guy, not an expert you > > had > > > to pay to read, and sometimes I agreed with him and sometimes not. In > > the > > > case of corner sharpness, as it applies to my work, well, it rarely > does. > > > Almost everything I do is cropped in some fashion, and even if it > isn't, > > > I'm not wanting you searching out the corners to see how sharp they > are. > > > > > > At any rate I was pretty happy with shots from my Summilux and the 35 > > > T*. I even put my Leica 21 that Mark hates on it and played with it. > > It > > > was OK. > > > > > > In the foregoing graph, I said I was pretty happy with the Zeiss T*. > > > Actually, I think this camera and this lens were born for each other. > > > > > > When I get the swing of them, I think it will feel like I felt with my > M7 > > > and 35mm Summicron. That, my pals, was awesome. > > > > > > > > > Regards, > > > > > > Sonny > > > http://sonc.com/look/ > > > Natchitoches, Louisiana > > > 1714 > > > Oldest Permanent Settlement in the Louisiana Purchase > > > > > > USA > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 5:47 AM, Gerry Walden <gwpics at icloud.com> > wrote: > > > > > > > I agree with Nathan that it doesn't look that earth-shattering. > Having > > > > read their not-so-favorable conclusions, I was then a little > surprised > > to > > > > read how positive they were in the 'Final Word' section. > > > > > > > > Gerry > > > > > > > > Gerry Walden > > > > +44 (0)23 8046 3076 or > > > > +44 (0)797 287 7932 > > > > www.gwpics.com > > > > > > > > On 19 Feb 2014, at 07:33, Jayanand Govindaraj <jayanand at gmail.com> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a7r/18 > > > > > > > > > > Cheers > > > > > Jayanand > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > Leica Users Group. > > > > > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more > information > > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > Leica Users Group. > > > > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ? > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Leica Users Group. > > > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Leica Users Group. > > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > > > > -- > Regards, > > Sonny > http://sonc.com/look/ > Natchitoches, Louisiana > 1714 > Oldest Permanent Settlement in the Louisiana Purchase > > USA > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information >