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The Sony A7 thread [Merged]

dmclalla

By dmclalla
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IkarusJohn

IkarusJohn

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For the sake of comparison, I put the AF-S Nikkor 80-400mm zoom on (not something Id want to carry round much) and took this at 80mm, wide open (f/4).

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Ozkar

Ozkar

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Okay, got it.

 

I have uploaded 10 ARW files to Drop Box - you can download them here, as a single compressed archive file.

 

The images were taken with the Sony A7R, with a Novoflex Leica M-Nex adapter (with the exception of the Nikkor shot, which was taken using a Nikon F mount to Nex adapter).

 

I'm sorry the images are a little boring - I don't have a brick wall, nor a basket of vegetables. In each case, all in camera adjustments were turned off (I think), ISO was set to 160, white balance was set to daylight, and the lens focused wide, then stopped down to f/4 (generally the sweet spot for Leica glass, according to Erwin Puts, anyway).

 

The ARW files were converted to 16 bit TIFFs using Image Capture (217 MB each :eek:), then imported into LightRoom. I actually didn't do anything to the files, except export them as Jpegs for posting here. (The compressed Archive file in DropBox is the 10 ARW files).

 

Here is the image taken with my M9, with the same settings, on my Summilux 50 ASPH.

 

I'll be interested in your judgments - without pixel peeping, it's not as bad as some might say.

 

Cheers

John

 

Good stuff. Thanks. It would be great if you could double check the link to your ARW files. Dropbox reports an error.

 

Also, I can't agree with Erwin Putts regarding f4 being optimal. Some lenses, like the 28/2 ASPH, need to be stopped down to at least f5.6 on my M9 for sharpness across the frame.

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deliciouspizza

deliciouspizza

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Got my A7R in today. Sadly, been too busy to actually use it much. Just snapped a few shots around the house. IQ wise I already prefer the A7R to the M240. There's just more detail. It's silly to look at these small Jpegs on here. When I zoom into 100% on my big monitor it's pretty impressive though. I prefer the color reproduction of the A7R too, seems more neutral and accurate. Not sure which camera has the higher DR, I think the M240 might be a slight favorite. Same with High ISO performance, but not by much.

 

The build quality is good, feels solid in your hands. I'm less enthusiastic about all the bloatware and stupid features. Maybe I've just been using Leica for so long I forgot about all the techno doodads they slap onto DSLRs. It's not too difficult to navigate past all that stuff though and it has ISO and shutter speed mechanical wheels BUT you have to look through the viewfinder or screen to verify your selection. Why not just laser etch the numbers onto the wheels Sony? GAH! In general, mechanically the A7R can't compete with the M240. The shutter release and selection wheel, while reliable and easy to use, feel plastic and "mass produced" in comparison to the M240. The shutter is ridiculously loud.

 

The EVF is a revelation though. My focus accuracy was greatly improved (off axis focus is now possible hooray!). The focus magnifier is a game changer for me. The size is perfect. I was delighted to find three customizable buttons on the body. Unfortunately, I couldn't actually do anything I wanted to do with them.

 

One of my biggest gripes is the lack of a button to turn the monitor on and off. Seems pretty obvious, right? It wouldn't be a big deal but the battery life is fairly short. To it's credit, it does have a nifty auto detect so when you put the viewfinder to your eye it automatically turns on the viewfinder and turns off the monitor. But, if you're walking around for a long time and don't need the monitor the only way to prevent the monitor from staying on and draining your battery is by turning off your camera (it has about a 4-5 second boot time). Sure, you can turn off the monitor but if you decide you want to use it in the spur of the moment you have to navigate a clunky camera menu. Worse still, one of the customizable button options is "deactivate monitor" but when you press it the monitor actually stays on and just displays a black image. Stuff like this just makes my head hurt...

 

Last gripe is the auto review. It displays the auto review IN the viewfinder. What kind of photographer wants such a thing? That means if you want auto review, every time you take a picture you can't just go on and take another one you have to wait at least 2 seconds for the auto review to expire. Insanity! At least have an option so you can have auto-review on the monitor only.

 

I still prefer the size, EVF and IQ of the A7R and will learn to live with it's idiosyncrasies which are ultimately minor and hopefully (fingers crossed) will be addressed in firmware updates. Dealing with it makes me appreciate the Leica more though. So simple! I attached a pic though you can't really see the quality in a tiny Jpeg. This is with the 50 APO Summicron, a great match for this camera.

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IkarusJohn

IkarusJohn

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All loaded now - sorry about the size. If anyone wants individual files, send me a private message.

 

Looking at the images in LightRoom, the Summillux 75 really stands out. Also, there is some smearing with the Summicron 28 ASPH, but nowhere near as bad as some reports would suggest.

 

But, damn, that 75 is good!

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k-hawinkler

k-hawinkler

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All loaded now - sorry about the size. If anyone wants individual files, send me a private message.

 

Looking at the images in LightRoom, the Summillux 75 really stands out. Also, there is some smearing with the Summicron 28 ASPH, but nowhere near as bad as some reports would suggest.

 

But, damn, that 75 is good!

 

 

Thanks John. That's excellent, I mean the performance of the 75 Summilux.

I only have the 75 Summicron but saw some convincing images with it and the A7R elsewhere on the web.

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dwbell

dwbell

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Thanks for the effort John, much appreciated.

 

I'll be doing a sweep through apertures with the 50lux today on both near and far objects. By pm request.

 

Then I'll start into the 75 K-H.

 

Personally speaking though, I find the A7R and native Zeiss lens to be the better performer. So again, if a person chooses to stick with the Leica lenses. Then it's that decision that is the limiting factor in the process, not the camera. If you see what I mean.

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gyoung

gyoung

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Summilux 35 ASPH (FLE) - a lens I and very keen to use with this camera.

 

There's some purple fringing, and all the wides have a little colour shift, but what I'm looking for is a distracting lack of detail in the corners - I don't see it.

 

Thanks for these, and don't apologise for the test subject, prettier than a brick wall and probably more informative.

I'd love to see what the 35/2 asph Summicron will do, its my most used lens. And also the 21/2.8 asph., although I suspect that will be more of a problem

 

Gerry

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Guest

Guest

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Funny you mention that. I went out on Friday evening just with the M240 and 1.4/35 Summilux ASPH (away from all of this 'get the better image with an A7R crap) and today I've been out just with my new (40 year old) CL which just arrived yesterday and fitted it with a 1.5/50 C-Sonnar and BW400CN - what a joy :)

 

A big heartfelt THANK YOU to the posters of A7 images, with hopes of ones with a 35mm lens at infinity, maybe also at max. opening.

 

A friend with over 25 years of staunch Minolta-SonySLR-NEX experience bought yesterday his first M lens :)

He went for his regular Saturday where-is-my-A7 to his dealer and walked out with a new black 2/35A :D . Brilliant salesman: "You're lucky we stock one!" His deposit's gone, but they know by now, that he wants the new Sony. He's absolutely delighted of his new jewel's finsh and touch (a Minolta user speaking of "Haptik" is a tell-tale sign, that he's been lurking here for quite a while) and size, but he can't take any pictures yet.

As a side-note to Mark: HCB was using the CL (with his trusted chrome 2/50 collapsible) since he could get one, and he put that lens on a M3 (with a faster film) indoors or for closer portraits. The rest was footwork. I have two prints made OF him, one setting the time and the other shooting with the CL, to prove it.

 

Sorry to interrupt the thread heading for post 3k (before any will be available on the Continent).

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edwardkaraa

edwardkaraa

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Well it seems the M sales are already taking a hit from the A7/r. I have heard from several sources locally that some pre-orders are being cancelled in favor of the A7/r (well, it's november 2013, so it's not supposed to be back-ordered in the first place). If anything, the Sony will allow me to get my M faster, and perhaps at MRSP instead of the inflated rare jewel prices the dealers are asking for.

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Guest

Guest

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If the camera is selling better than they expected, Sony would be smart to get more lenses out as soon as possible in order to strike while the iron is hot.

 

Hey, what's the rush? ;)

If maybe one in 10 Sony FF mirrorless buyers between now and next summer (there will be more than 2 models by then) see good reason to have an M lens, it will not be to their disadvantage (and make Sony try harder with their new lenses).

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dwbell

dwbell

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Well it seems the M sales are already taking a hit from the A7/r. I have heard from several sources locally that some pre-orders are being cancelled in favor of the A7/r (well, it's november 2013, so it's not supposed to be back-ordered in the first place). If anything, the Sony will allow me to get my M faster, and perhaps at MRSP instead of the inflated rare jewel prices the dealers are asking for.

 

Used M9 etc prices are taking a hit too.

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jaapv

jaapv

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Which only means that some people were looking to get an M for all the wrong reasons…:rolleyes:

 

 

Well it seems the M sales are already taking a hit from the A7/r. I have heard from several sources locally that some pre-orders are being cancelled in favor of the A7/r (well, it's november 2013, so it's not supposed to be back-ordered in the first place). If anything, the Sony will allow me to get my M faster, and perhaps at MRSP instead of the inflated rare jewel prices the dealers are asking for.
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Thomas Chen

Thomas Chen

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I had wondered exactly the same thing, quite a few posts back. I will be/am using the Voigtlander adapter.

 

What kind of Voitlander adapter? a solid one, or the latest one just announce weeks ago that can be used for macro (short distance) photo taking?

 

I susgest using a solid one, that means it just be a solid ring without any moving part. As for one for Macro by move an element forwards, its inner diameter could be smaller due to the built-in helicoid.

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