Thanks goldfries for putting the price list, I used to worry that I wouldn't catch the first page LOL. Anyway this post is here too in case of anything that I could say "refer to Page 1!"

shootkk: You should be able to pull off ISO400, with ambient light factored in. 1/20s, F5.6 ISO400 should be brighter and less noisy. That said I'm fine with the A100 at ISO400.

This post has been edited by albnok: Dec 9 2008, 05:29 PM

signither: Love #2, great bokeh behind the spiderwebs!

Most importantly, I like the WB in all the shots. The green is really green!

kysham: Interesting low-contrast black-and-white.

ericchan: Errr... get out of your house and find more interesting pictures to take. Look at what cjlai is doing on page #6!

achew: Amazing colors as usual.. though technically in #2 it's a bit oversharp for a film shot. Film doesn't get that crispy.

Nice light paintings!

ryzan76: The Tamron 17-50mm F2.8 on an APS-C camera will have about the same range as the Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 on a full-frame camera. I don't think 24-70mm on APS-C is appropriate as it's not wide enough to shoot events and big group photos. Plus the 24-70mm is huge...

ReaperOfSoul: There are FOUR polycarbonate screen protectors for Sony Alphas:

PCK-LH1AM - for A700
PCK-LH2AM - for A200
PCK-LH3AM - for A300 and A350
PCK-LH4AM - for A900

They cannot be mounted on a camera which it is not designed for. All of them go for RM50.

The GGS one can be gotten for RM40 in Tarita Low Yat with free installation. That one is a very solid glass.

dark lenanza: I've been for every Rock The World except the first one. Sure must go wan! Even though the bands are about the same, I know I'll bump into all my friends there.

hanafinoor: Definitely the F42 because you can control power by ratio if you pair it with the on-board F58, using the A700. Regardless, wireless TTL is a very, very useful feature!

Oh and you can use your F58 on body, F42 off-camera, and the SB-600 with a PC Sync adapter (connect this to the PC Sync port of the A700). Alternatively, the PC Sync adapter can link to the radio trigger, if it has a PC Sync port as well.

ryzan76: I'd suggest the Tamron 17-50mm F2.8. The Sigmas may have a gear-stripping issue (if other things strip when you use the lens, then not so bad lah...)

achew: I read from the last post I've read, then Alt-Tab into Notepad and type my replies there.

No, I'm saying your sharpening was overdone - film shots wouldn't be that sharp. Just 2-3 times less USM applied I guess... 90% 0.3 radius is fine.

Love the spiderweb shot! Though, you can try a few shots at different apertures to see different looks. I also love how you understand the concept of bokeh as art. Others just simply shoot shoot only without using the bokeh as 'texture'.

hazril: PP = Post-Process
PS = PhotoShop

Grammatically, PP is correct.

ahtsong: Dangit now I'm hungry!

SpOOkY: I'm using a Minolta 24-105mm F3.5-4.5 (D) which is similiar to the Sony 24-105mm F3.5-4.5 for my A900. Very compact, shorter than the kit lens, but the range is optimized for a full-frame camera as 24mm is not very wide on APS-C.

The CZ 16-80mm F3.5=4.5 DT will give you the same range on APS-C as a 24-120mm F3.5-4.5 lens will give on full-frame. Of course, there is NO 24-120mm F3.5-4.5 lens - only the Nikkor 24-120mm F3.5-5.6 VR (meh) and the Tamron/Sigma 24-135mm F3.5-5.6 (again, neither of them are F4.5 at the tele end.)

ryzan76: Glad you could use the 2x TC! Memang ngam for this kind of application.

achew: It sounds like Singapore has the SAL70300G for cheaper.

auhckw: The A200 has a bigger viewfinder. Its LCD screen does not jut out like A300 and A350. The texture of the handgrip is different, smoother on the A200, and there is a nub between the forefinger and third finger on the A200 grip which is missing from the A300/A350. Other than that there are no differences.

dingenius3: Unfortunately, the Pentax KM is a K-mount camera, and so is the SMC Pentax-M 50mm F1.7 in the picture. There are no K-mount to A-mount adapters as far as I know - if there was one, it would have glass inside to retain infinity focus, but it will lose light and increase the focal length.

More details here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentax_K1000

You should send it for cleaning and shoot film for fun anyway.

Eiraku: Great trio, have a safe trip! You'll regret not bringing a wide, foo!

SpOOkY: Yes, 24mm on ANY lens will be the same on the A200.

Likewise 24mm on ANY lens will be the same on the A900. If it is an APS-C lens though it may have dark corners.

24mm on APS-C or 36mm on FF is okay but when you want to take social events with people and crowds, it will not be wide enough.

Oh, and you should not recompose:
http://www.mhohner.de/recompose.php

If possible, use Local AF mode. Also, after AF lock, it does not lock exposure. You will need to press the AEL button for this.

You will want to press the AEL button on a face to get a spot meter reading off it, then set your focus point on the face, and shoot.

Sony, like Minolta, lock AF and AE separately. I see great flexibility in this compared to other systems which lock both AE and AF. But if you have an A100/A700/A900, pressing the DOF Preview button ALSO locks AE/AF.

To focus on objects OUTSIDE of the area, pick the closest AF point instead of using the center AF point and recomposing - the misfocus will be greater than if you used an outer AF point.

Also, to focus on groups, I usually focus on the person CLOSEST to me. It ends up looking a lot more pleasant than focusing on the rear row. Try both. To be safe, you can focus on the second row from front (mmm mmm), 1/3rds into the crowd.

This can be used for long tables also. But I really always try to shoot them at an angle which is easier to get them all in focus.

Finally, when passing it to friends, Wide AF is the way to go. Too often, I get backfocused pictures because my friends shoot an even number of friends, so the center AF point is on the background!

cjlai: I prefer the reverse front ring method - you can zoom the lens that is on the camera, and have full autoexposure, AF and aperture control. The reversed lens is just functioning as a magnifier, an expensive version of the Raynox!

achew: I love the bag floating shot! It almost looks like the balls are bokeh but they're not LOL.

calvin_gsc: Ah yes, you're right. Well I guess if you're in a rush and your eye is already at the viewfinder and you can't switch, then you know which point to choose in Local Area AF. It's not quite as easy to switch between Local Area AF and Wide Area AF (especially when looking through the viewfinder) unless you have a dedicated knob/button to it.

vamsufer: That blue outline is called chromatic aberration - if you use a darker aperture (nearer to F11) it should disappear. Higher end lenses have much less CA also (I suspect you're using the Sony 75-300mm F4.5-5.6 kit tele lens?)

SpOOkY: I get that feeling about the Sony 18-70mm F3.5-5.6 DT kit lens also sometimes... like it's still not that great at F11, depending on the light. If you have to, go to F16!

vamsufer: No, filters cannot remove chromatic aberration. You will need to use a darker exposure and maybe a higher ISO if the shutter speed gets too slow.

raist86: I'd pick the 17-50mm because 17mm is a lot more useful to me than 70mm.

seram: I would use a bright telephoto lens e.g.:

Minolta/Sony 50mm F1.4
Minolta/Carl Zeiss 85mm F1.4
Carl Zeiss 135mm F1.8 (my favorite)

Of course, if you're on a budget and you want a bright telephoto, there is:

Jupiter-9 85mm F2.0 M42 mount
Tamron 90mm F2.8 Macro
Vivitar 135mm F2.8 M42 mount

Unfortunately, even with all that you will have to increase ISO to at least ISO800 for sports. M42 manual focus lenses will be a b**** to focus with action (but how did people shoot sports before AF was invented?) So I'd go for the Tamron 90mm F2.8 Macro.

This post has been edited by albnok: Dec 15 2008, 05:45 PM

craziqbal: I don't know about the 90mm F2.8 non-DI.

SpOOkY: It should say DT, DC or Di-II in the full name of the lens to mean that it's APS-C only.

vcvx: Sigma DG means it is coated for digital but is full-frame. DC means APS-C.

I have a T-mount to M42 adapter, and an M42 to A-mount adapter, but both are being used on my Peleng 8mm F3.5 fisheye (which is technically, natively a T-mount lens.)

Ksano: The rear element of the baby beercan may not be big enough and cause a lot of vignetting even at the 210mm end of the beercan, so it's better to reverse a 50mm in front.

soulfly: SWEEEEEEEEEET!

SpOOkY: That's not 'ring bokeh' - ring or brightline bokeh is usually a bad thing.

The bokeh is circular in the middle and is cats-eye shaped on the outside. This is a common characteristic for bright lenses on full-frame cameras, due to the vignetting. This is supposedly caused by the lens not having a big enough front diameter. Or was it the hood?

The Sigma 50mm F1.4 has an oversized front element with a 77mm filter thread - that supposedly reduces the cats-eye bokeh effect. My Minolta 50mm F1.4 has a 49mm filter thread while the Sony 50mm F1.4 has a 55mm filter thread.

Boon3: Actually, you're only 1/3rds of a stop away with your Minolta 85mm F1.4G... If I stopped down to F2.0 it would match the 85mm F1.4 on APS-C. Of course I'd prefer the Minolta's bokeh...

kysham: Indeed!

tanjq87: Crop the center of that image, 533x356 pixels, and that's what the A300 will see.

Try sending your N2 to the service center. They will quote you a price but that price may be lowered.

jonwrg: Yes, the shutter unit will be replaced free under warranty, if you can wear it out. I shot quite a lot and yet I didn't wear out my A100 or my A700.

signither: EXACTLY!

Shutter count is for kiasu people.

My friend was talking non-stop about the Canon 24mm F1.4L (he was a former Nikon fella, now no camera.) So last month, I went to Canon Midvalley, then Canon Pavilion, no stock. Canon KLCC got.

Me: Can I try it on the Canon 5D MkII?
She: It's not arrived yet, maybe next month.
Me: Okay, can I try it on the Canon 5D?
She: Sorry sir, it has been discontinued.
Me: Okay, can I try it on the Canon 1D MkIII or the 1Ds MkIII?
She: Sorry sir, we only have it in the box, we cannot open if not it will move the shutter count, then cannot sell.

I will take her word for it as I wasn't dressed in shorts and that same lady let me try the Canon MPE-65 before.

Do you check your shutter count when you buy a brand new camera? If you found that the shutter count was 26 frames already, would you not buy it?

More importantly, this is a Canon 1D/1Ds MkIII we're talking about! It's meant to shoot thousands and thousands of frames! If you're not doing that with a 1D/1Ds, shame on you.

I can imagine some collectors inviting friends over to their house.

"Eh come come see my dry box. Haaa open it. See the 1Ds MkIII inside? Eh go check the shutter count."
"FWAAAHHH!!! 00000000!!!"

SpOOkY: I guess some people don't like the cats-eye effect.

Don't know what the shutter dead syndrome is like. But our shutters are generally rated for at least 100,000 shots.

Boon3: I'm sure given the same location and lighting conditions it would give a similiar result. Well without the A900's ISO1600 lah.

kev da man: There are some Japanese who do that, with Leicas (which can sum up to the same price including lenses.)

hargreaves4: It's a bit on the warm side with a bit too much magenta (I'm guessing you used a custom or Kelvin WB.) I'd set the WB so that the colors on the shirt look right.

kev da man: Well I hope they use them Leicas before film goes extinct...

This post has been edited by albnok: Dec 18 2008, 12:39 AM

kysham: I would have 'tested' its 10 FPS ability before the owner even told me.

ryzan76: Magazines with the word "Digital" in it have so far been full of technical inaccuracies, glaring omissions and ignorant writers.

I opened one such magazine from Australia, they did a comparison between the Canon 40D and the Olympus E-520... on Live View! And nowhere in the entire article did they mention the Sony A300/A350. It's like the editor just asked a writer to make up some crap to fill up 6 pages.

I spent an hour looking through all the magazines in a newsstand in Pavilion - those without Digital in them are a lot better researched.

On the other hand, they give the A900 a pretty high rating, since I would only give the DCM magazine a 55% rating...

Internationally:

http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/t...vs-nikon-v.html

And which camera and lens is on the cover of Luminuous Landscape?

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/

Michael Reichmann has had two A900 bodies since 7 December 2007 (refer to the What's New page.)

Ohai!


Sony Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* 135mm F1.8 ZA on the Sony Alpha 900.


Maximum magnification = 1:4x, with an amazing minimum focusing distance of 72cm. This is shorter than most tele zooms I know of (minus the superzooms that start wide.)


With a 2x and 1.5x teleconverter, it becomes a 405mm F5.0 with a maximum magnification of 1:1.33x.

Aiyoh, the stickers are there because I wanted to be cool like ianho's stealth A200.

And there is no pop-up flash on the A900 (which I've noticed for all 100% viewfinder digital SLRs - the only one that breaks this norm is the Minolta Dynax/Maxxum 9... which is what the A900 is based on.)