The Amazing Sony A1/A7/A9/APS-C & Anything else welcome Mega Thread!

I get what you're saying, but I don't want the hassle of carrying the heavy (reatively speaking) gear around to spoil the enjoyment of the weekend. I don't think I'll see any difference in IQ between the 70-200mm f2.8 and Tamron 70-300mm though for the panning shots as I mentioned above. The shots with primes I'll likely see more of a difference, but it's not as though they're going to be award winning shots anyway ;)
It's a tricky balance especially since for me it's not just carrying the weight but also how long I'll be carrying it for, some fairly lightweight setups can get surprisingly uncomfortable after carrying them all day. I bought another 150-600mm lens last year primarily for motorsport thinking I wouldn't need to carry it for long periods of time although didn't get a chance to use it, I suspect it will end up much the same as the previous one and only occasionally used since it's too bulky for me.
 
Yep had one ,looks like Flickr/ smug mug are on the case
 
@snerkler - in all honesty, if it was me and I was going with my wife, I'd just take the A1 and GM35mm and enjoy the day
She's used to, and expecting me to take photos ;) I do get a good balance to be fair but the 35mm wouldn't be suitable for the hill climb and rally stage (y)
It's a tricky balance especially since for me it's not just carrying the weight but also how long I'll be carrying it for, some fairly lightweight setups can get surprisingly uncomfortable after carrying them all day. I bought another 150-600mm lens last year primarily for motorsport thinking I wouldn't need to carry it for long periods of time although didn't get a chance to use it, I suspect it will end up much the same as the previous one and only occasionally used since it's too bulky for me.
This is very true. Once upon a time it was no issue, I just carried whatever gear I needed but since having fibro it's getting more and more of an issue. I used to carry the D850, 50mm f1.8, nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR II and Tamron 150-600mm around which was a total weight of 4682g and think nothing of it.

I've got plenty of time to consider it, but looking at the price of the Tamron it could be worth a punt. A1 + 35mm GM + Tamron weighing in at 1806g does sound appealing.
 
Be interested to hear how you (and others) have the custom buttons setup.

The two on top near the shutter, I have 1 set for magnify for manual focus.
2 set for that bright ?? something - I can't remember what it's called now - boosts the brightness for composing in the dark.
3 is for human/animal eye AF.
4 I can't remember either.... :ROFLMAO:
 
Toby. Lab coat evidence in abundance.
I took these a while back when updating the A1 firmware as one of them deleted all of your settings and there's no way I'd remember them all ;)
 
I took these a while back when updating the A1 firmware as one of them deleted all of your settings and there's no way I'd remember them all ;)
Good idea - I'll have to do the same, some interesting differences and especially like how you have your function menu setup
 
I took these a while back when updating the A1 firmware as one of them deleted all of your settings and there's no way I'd remember them all ;)
Can you not save those settings to a SD card?
I have saved settings to an old SD card and assume those settings are saved so not bothered recording them elsewhere
 
Last part of my 300GM puzzle completed - peak design lens kit to carry and change the TCs easily.

Works mostly well, judt two irritants:
1. Connection isn't dampened in any way - they Rattle slightly when attached
2. Bizarrely, the bayonet doesn't hold the TC caps securely - they just keep rotating in the lens kit rather than locking in any way (presume connected to point 1). This is annoying because it'll mean the caps need to be carried seperately, and likely to fill with pocket dirt/lint - as will the empty slot in the PD kit

Aside from above points which I'm sure I'll cope with, it's a great solution.


IMG_9997.jpeg
 
An "urban" tractor and trailer.

The old A65 and its even older 75~300mm (silver) zoom are still a viable combination, so far as I'm concerned. A grab shot taken from the front seat of a bus on Exeter's suburban Wonford Hill...

Tractor with Manure tanker Wonford Hill Exeter A65 Long DSC00762.JPG
 
Can you not save those settings to a SD card?
I have saved settings to an old SD card and assume those settings are saved so not bothered recording them elsewhere
You can normally but one of the updates for the A1 changed the whole menu structure and other bits and bobs meaning you couldn’t save the settings on a card and reinstall them.
 
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The lab coat's been on again, and I've been trying to work out roughly how the DOF field would compare between using my 35mm f1.4 in crop mode vs a 45mm f1.8 in FF which of course is not easy as I don't know how much the camera to subject distance would need to change to get the same framing.

However in doing this it's brought up a discrepancy in how the effective focal length and aperture affect DOF. So in theory putting the 35mm f1.4 on a crop body should effectively be the same as using a 52.5mm f2.0 lens on FF, however when you use the online calculator the DOF is larger using a crop body and 35mm f1.4 so you won't get as much 'pop'.

Does anyone know why there's a difference please? It's not going to sway my choice of lens in any way, it's just that now I've seen this I want to know why ;)
 
How far out are the numbers you're looking at? I was comparing the two at 10ft and there's a slight difference with the DoF of one at 1.3ft and the other at 1.4ft but it's pretty close, I'm assuming the one stop difference in aperture is rounded up rather than an exact number?
 
How far out are the numbers you're looking at? I was comparing the two at 10ft and there's a slight difference with the DoF of one at 1.3ft and the other at 1.4ft but it's pretty close, I'm assuming the one stop difference in aperture is rounded up rather than an exact number?
Yeah it's only a small difference in terms of the actual DOF but I wonder how much effect it has on the overall bokeh, fall off etc etc :thinking:

Screenshot 2025-02-19 at 19.20.16.jpg
 
Nicely done toby …
 
Update on my lens situation .last night I bought a Tamron 50-400 for my a6700 .it should be here tomorrow ,but will need a firmware update,…. with that and hospital appointments combined it will slow things down a tad .. I will hopefully be up and running by the weekend
 
Update on my lens situation .last night I bought a Tamron 50-400 for my a6700 .it should be here tomorrow ,but will need a firmware update,…. with that and hospital appointments combined it will slow things down a tad .. I will hopefully be up and running by the weekend
I thought you’d discounted the Tamron due to its weight? What made you reconsider?

It is a great lens, think you’ll enjoy it
 
I thought you’d discounted the Tamron due to its weight? What made you reconsider?

It is a great lens, think you’ll enjoy it
Had more time to watch reviews this week and weighed up all the options . The bit of extra reach , the close up ability and usb updating finally swayed it
 
gutted lens arrived in as new condition , but will not work in A/F
 
Won’t work autofocus? Did you try a firmware update?

At least one of my lenses needed an update for AF to work on a modern body (A7Cii, same gen as a 6700)
 
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Nope not willing to take a chance with a e.bay purchase , already sent it back anyway . Lesson learned Sony for Sony
 
Nope not willing to take a chance with a e.bay purchase , already sent it back anyway . Lesson learned Sony for Sony

It will deffo have needed a firmware update. Pretty much every third party lens will need a firmware update to function properly with any of the newer bodies from the A7CII onwards if the lens predates the body. Sony lenses will need updated to latest firmware to perform at their best with the newer bodies as well.

Probably jumped the gun a bit there.
 
may well have done but not worth the chance sorry, there is no mention in the updates re only working in MF
 
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Yeah it's only a small difference in terms of the actual DOF but I wonder how much effect it has on the overall bokeh, fall off etc etc :thinking:

View attachment 446038

Toby, this is your problem:-

1740068585364.png

That's quite a difference, one that almost certainly will introduce wrong gear selection remorse

If you were truly happy with taking just the GM35mm for static shots, you wouldn't have even started comparisons..................
 
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That’s very kind of you Andrew I will probably take you up on that , hopefully going to try a 200-600 on weds to see if I can handle it . What days are you available
How’d it go with the 200-600 Jeff ?
 
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