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After a bit more research I'm stuck for choice for a lens for my Sony A230. It's a crop sensor, and I've only got money for one lens that's going to be my main walk-around and shoot, the more versatile the better. I'm currently stuck between: Minolta 24mm f/2.8 Minolta 28mm f/2.8 Minolta 50mm f/1.7 From my understanding, the 28 or 24 on the crop sensor will give me something that's closer to the 50mm I'd be aiming for on a full sensor. Is there any other lens that I should consider in that price range?
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Dec 30, 2017 01:35
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Megabound posted:After a bit more research I'm stuck for choice for a lens for my Sony A230. It's a crop sensor, and I've only got money for one lens that's going to be my main walk-around and shoot, the more versatile the better. I'm currently stuck between: Def go for the 24mm or 28mm. I like the 35mm equivalent FOV as a walk around, I think it does the best job of being wide enough for scenic stuff but not too bad in close for environmental portraits. The minolta 24mm is considerably sharper than the 28mm both wide open and stopped down to f/5.6 so thats another point in it's favor.
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Dec 30, 2017 01:59
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Megabound posted:After a bit more research I'm stuck for choice for a lens for my Sony A230. It's a crop sensor, and I've only got money for one lens that's going to be my main walk-around and shoot, the more versatile the better. I'm currently stuck between: Check out the new Tamron primes. Cheap and good.
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Dec 30, 2017 06:14
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Anyone know where I can find info on all the different versions of the Olmpus mju II 35 mm 2.8 camera? I've been looking online and I see a lot of different versions of the mju II such as variation in features such as quartz date, panorama setting etc.
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Dec 30, 2017 07:55
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kefkafloyd posted:Check out the new Tamron primes. Cheap and good. But not old Minolta AF glass cheap. I love those Tamron lenses and if I owned a DSLR I'd be rocking their 35/85 combo for sure. They are nearly as good as Sigma ART lenses except half the price and with IS.
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Dec 30, 2017 08:21
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8th-snype posted:But not old Minolta AF glass cheap. I love those Tamron lenses and if I owned a DSLR I'd be rocking their 35/85 combo for sure. They are nearly as good as Sigma ART lenses except half the price and with IS. You won’t find anything else Minolta AF cheap, but the Tamrons have ultrasonic motors and this is worth the premium for a modern, silent focus experience. The 24 and 28 are adequate but nothing special. The MinO and RS 35s are overpriced on the used market relative to their supply and the Tamron 35 finally put them down to more reasonable levels.
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Dec 30, 2017 11:01
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ijyt posted:Any recommendations for direct-plug battery charger brands? I hate travelling with a spaghetti bowl of charger cables so something that I can swap the plug on and just slap on to the wall would be great. Canon LP-E6 batteries if that helps. The Canon LC-E6 plugs straight into the wall. You can also just get an adapter for your current charger - I'm guessing that like the other Canon chargers I had that used cables, it uses a C7/C8 connector. https://www.amazon.com/SF-Cable-Adapter-60320-C7-receptacle/dp/B004OGXY72/
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Dec 30, 2017 19:01
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kefkafloyd posted:You won’t find anything else Minolta AF cheap, but the Tamrons have ultrasonic motors and this is worth the premium for a modern, silent focus experience. The 24 and 28 are adequate but nothing special. The MinO and RS 35s are overpriced on the used market relative to their supply and the Tamron 35 finally put them down to more reasonable levels. I meant mostly because the OP said they only had the money for one lens and listed 3 that go for $75-150. They could try and find a used Sigma 30mm f/1.4 in A mount but those seem to go for nearly Tamron money anyway.
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Dec 30, 2017 20:40
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MrBlandAverage posted:The Canon LC-E6 plugs straight into the wall. You can also just get an adapter for your current charger - I'm guessing that like the other Canon chargers I had that used cables, it uses a C7/C8 connector. https://www.amazon.com/SF-Cable-Adapter-60320-C7-receptacle/dp/B004OGXY72/ Oh huh didn’t realise they made a specific one for the US/Asia market and Europe, that little L adapter looks super useful, thanks.
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Dec 31, 2017 20:52
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8th-snype posted:Canon 10-18mm efs, it's sharp, it has IS, and is less than $300. Downsides include a plastic lens mount and a very slow max aperture. My most used focal lengths for landscapes and editorial stuff is 14-18mm so imo an ultra wide zoom is very good buy. Second this rec, maybe throw in the Tokina 11-16 2.8 if a fixed aperture is needed but hell that seems pretty niche to like, astrophotography I'd think. But for architecture/cityscapes you're not gonna find anything more versatile than the 10-18. The IS has saved my rear end before in indoor locations with low light where you're not allowed to bring a tripod. hope and vaseline fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Jan 1, 2018 |
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Jan 1, 2018 15:17
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Picked up the 1.4x teleconverter for m4/3 and oh god the 300mm can see forever now
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Jan 2, 2018 22:21
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It's been a long rear end time since I've been around Dorkroom. I overcame some life issues, moved to a place that wasn't the literal anus of the US, and got a real job. Anyway. What I'm trying to say is over the holidays I finally had some money, so I bought a thing and I thought I would do a quick review and comparison. Manfrotto Befree Advanced Did you know this was a thing? My wife wanted a tripod so we can go do star trails and stuff, and I had just about pulled the trigger on the original Befree when I chanced upon some marketing videos for the Befree Advanced. This is my first tripod I've owned personally, and so far I like it. Here's some stats for you I copy pasted off of B&H. Original BeFree Capacity 8.8 lbs (4kg) Max Height 56.7" (144cm) Folded Length 15.75" (40 cm) Weight 3lb (1.4kg) BeFree Advanced Capacity 17.6 lbs (8kg) Max Height 59.1" (150cm) Folded Length 15.7" (40 cm) Weight 3.6 lb (1.6 kg) So there you go. Double the capacity, a few inches more height, and the tradeoff for that is slightly over half a pound. In terms of actual features that the Advanced has over the original, the mechanisms that decide how wide the legs splay out have been reworked to some really nice sliding buttons. It also has a new Manfrotto EasyLink port so you can show people how much money you love to give Manfrotto and connect an extra arm to it or something. The advanced also lets you choose between lever locks, and twist locks. The ballhead is actually pretty nice for what it is, although the friction adjustment dial feels too loose, though that may just be the one I got. Anyway, let's talk about the quick release clamp. I'm really disappointed here. I was expecting to be able to do a single-handed drop in and it would be secure. This is not the case. You need to open the safety lever and spin the release lever, insert the plate, then you can let go of both levers. I'm looking at possibly finding a nice Arca Swiss clamp and just retrofitting it to the ballhead. Finally, lets talk $$$. The original clocked in at $150. These just came out and are sitting at about $190. I like the tripod, don't get me wrong, but I feel like Manfrotto are being greedy assholes here releasing it as a secondary option instead of just upgrading the original Befree line. I can't imagine anything on here cost them that much more to manufacture.
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Jan 13, 2018 01:45
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I just bought a Mefoto and it works well enough.
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Jan 13, 2018 04:07
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Thanks to everyone who gave me lens advice, my Minolta 24mm came in and I'm in love with it.
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Jan 15, 2018 05:53
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Anyone have any suggestions for places in Boston to pick up a (or some, if the price is right) used lens? Looking for a 50mm Nikon lens
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Jan 17, 2018 01:39
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cheap? eh, depends. reliable? sure- I've always had luck with Hunt's, I usually have better luck at the big store in Melrose rather than the one in Harvard sq. One of my favorite 50 is the ancient nikkor f/2, you can get them for a song. These days I use the Tamron 45mm though, the IS goes a long way. Currently $200 off list most places, fyi. If you're just looking for the AF-D or something I'm sure they've got a bucket of em.
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Jan 17, 2018 01:44
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5 RING SHRIMP posted:Anyone have any suggestions for places in Boston to pick up a (or some, if the price is right) used lens? Looking for a 50mm Nikon lens Check out used inventory at Newtonville Camera or Hunt's in Melrose.
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Jan 17, 2018 05:50
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I need a cell-phone mount that has a long, posable arm (not absurd long, maybe 1–2 feet). The goal is being able to skype piano lessons from our home and being able to move quickly between camera on face and camera on keyboard. I genuinely have no idea what I should be looking for, and initial googling isn't giving me back anything useful.
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Jan 17, 2018 15:41
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That sounds like a selfie stick with a clamp or suction cup. Switching between viewpoints quickly usually requires more than one camera. Are you using two phones in this scenario?
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Jan 17, 2018 16:23
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Duct tape a cell phone holder to an architect's lamp.
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Jan 17, 2018 16:34
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It looks like the tripod thread went to archives, so I'll ask here. Anyone have experience with bento travel tripods? B&H has a deal on today. These look like the slightly sturdier (and more expensive) versions of the ones that don't have a center post. Not sure what kit I'd use it mostly with, but probably up to a 6D+400L or 70-300L, more often with 17-40 or for a phone/point and shoot for time lapses.
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Jan 22, 2018 20:23
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For people/animal photography, would CPLs be useful? One case I thought of is to eliminate reflections from glasses, but you can kind of cheat that by not photographing the glass directly (i.e. have the subject turn their head slightly)
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Jan 29, 2018 02:43
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Schneider Heim posted:For people/animal photography, would CPLs be useful? One case I thought of is to eliminate reflections from glasses, but you can kind of cheat that by not photographing the glass directly (i.e. have the subject turn their head slightly) CPLs will help to remove reflections from animals' coats/people's hair as well.
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Jan 29, 2018 03:36
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BetterLekNextTime posted:It looks like the tripod thread went to archives, so I'll ask here. Anyone have experience with bento travel tripods? B&H has a deal on today. These look like the slightly sturdier (and more expensive) versions of the ones that don't have a center post. Not sure what kit I'd use it mostly with, but probably up to a 6D+400L or 70-300L, more often with 17-40 or for a phone/point and shoot for time lapses. This looks like the baby brother to the one i have, with the exception that it has 1 more "dial" between the tripod and the ballhead. (No idea what the second one is for in the one you linked) (In fact i think the one i have is the one you get if you click the 31 lbs My tripod can easily handle a big rear end gimbal and a big white supertele without any kind of jigglyness so i am very happy with my purchase. The ballhead it comes with is great as well, you can lock off the ball but keep the pan easily, and the friction knob actually works, unlike all the manfrotto ballheads i have tried. My only 2 complaints are that the umbrakos attaching the legs to the frame needs retightening, and that the dial to loosen the center column needs a lot of turns to be able to move the center column. This sounds like a small issue but you need to have it fully extended to be able to pack the tripod (the legs flip around) and you want it fully retracted when shooting.
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Jan 29, 2018 09:06
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Schneider Heim posted:For people/animal photography, would CPLs be useful? One case I thought of is to eliminate reflections from glasses, but you can kind of cheat that by not photographing the glass directly (i.e. have the subject turn their head slightly) Polarizers are good, get one or two and play with them on your favourite subjects. They're not expensive and you'll find something unexpected and good about them sooner or later.
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Jan 29, 2018 16:03
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pseudonordic posted:CPLs will help to remove reflections from animals' coats/people's hair as well. Whenever I take a picture of my black lab I get more reflection than black coat. Sounds like a polarizer is just what I need. I'm sure this has been asked 817,000 times already, but are there any good, relatively cheap CPLs to be had out there?
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Jan 29, 2018 16:21
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Marumi is one of the best price/performance combos for CPLs.
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Jan 29, 2018 16:58
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Awesome. Thanks for the rec.
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Jan 29, 2018 17:05
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Just be aware filters are a rabbit hole. You buy a threaded one that fits your lens right now, and in a year or two when you've started collecting more or get into ND filters it turns into a giant bag of crap with all the filters you got on hand. And then you'll find yourself wondering if you should just buy one high quality filter and use step down rings. Not trying to motivate you to buy something expensive now.. just go into it knowing it will be replaced. 
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Jan 29, 2018 17:27
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xzzy posted:Just be aware filters are a rabbit hole. You buy a threaded one that fits your lens right now, and in a year or two when you've started collecting more or get into ND filters it turns into a giant bag of crap with all the filters you got on hand. lol. I appreciate the words of wisdom. I'm not surprised, really. This hobby is an absolute blast, but I do find myself constantly looking over the equipment horizon at that next step up. I'm glad my wife's around to act as a brake. 
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Jan 29, 2018 17:30
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I just put a Peak Design backpack up for sale in SA Mart - if anyone is looking for a seriously incredible backpack, take a look. As I explain in the post, I bought it in December and have hardly used it - and I just can't justify owning a $260 backpack I hardly use. If you have questions post in the link. https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3847846
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Jan 30, 2018 03:04
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So at my work we are looking at getting into using Digital Image Correlation to measure surface strain and displacement of coupons with a stochastic pattern on them. Our current system is a terrible out of date system that have 2 5MP cameras in a 3d setup on a rig to set distance apart angle of alignment etc. The trouble is that 5MP is bloody terrible at looking at the level of detail we want, the areas that we look at are are from 50mm x 50mm up to 300mm x 300mm seeing strain around cracks in the 5mm or less range) given that a new system from GOM would cost north of $105K USD its a tough sell atm. so the plan is to get a couple of DLSR cameras and some prime lens and have a prototype to help sell the more $$$ system I've been using a Olympus E-M52 with a M.ZUINO 60mm macro lens in just a 2d mode and the results have been perfect, but its my old mans spare camera so not a long term option so my questions are: if you had a budget of 15k USD for 2 cameras+ lens what would you go with and Are there DSLRs that can be synced together so they take photos at the exact same time.
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Jan 31, 2018 05:52
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For triggering, you could write a script using the gphoto2 utilities to trigger both cameras together. As for $15k, two Canon 5dsr + EF 100mm f/2.8l macro is usm.
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Jan 31, 2018 07:52
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Scarecow posted:
That's easy, buy 3 PocketWizard PlusX transceivers and any body that will take an miniphone remote trigger. Your best bang for your buck would probably a pair of Nikon D850s and whatever lenses suit your needs. You could do it on the cheap if you wanted get a couple of Canon Rebel or Fuji XE-2 bodies for well under a grand.
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Jan 31, 2018 07:58
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Pablo Bluth posted:For triggering, you could write a script using the gphoto2 utilities to trigger both cameras together. As for $15k, two Canon 5dsr + EF 100mm f/2.8l macro is usm. gphoto2 kind of sucks for precise shutter control, especially if you want to go fast, due to the USB camera interface. By default when firing the shutter over USB it keeps the image in buffer (doesn't write to SD) and the camera won't be able to take any new pictures until the buffer is cleared (either by transferring it over USB or fully writing it to SD). Since that whole post was greek to me I'm not sure if that's important. It's just about the only decent option for configuring exposure, but for the shutter a remote trigger is going to be way more responsive (hint: it's a fun raspberry pi project).
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Jan 31, 2018 11:49
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Two 1DXs connected by ethernet, triggered by release cables rigged to something like a raspberry pi or Arduino.
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Jan 31, 2018 12:26
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Im assuming he would want a camera without an AA filter for photographing those patterns? I have no idea how his specific ones look but googling the term displays a lot of fine grained patterns that might change if AA is applied (?) for Canon that is the 5dsr (not the 5ds, as that has an AA filter) For Nikon most of its more recent high-end lineup come without AA filters i believe, e.g. the 850.
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Jan 31, 2018 12:42
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Correct so the software we use looks at the fine dot pattern on the surface of the specimen and then compares the change in location in reference to all the other dots around it and thats how you work out the physical displacement of the specimen with DIC (heh) So AA is not something we would want as it looks at the change in the individual pixels to work out movement
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Jan 31, 2018 21:28
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I would be more concerned about bayer interpolation (and thus moire) reducing effective resolution if individual pixels matter. I'd rec buying something that you can send to a mod house to strip the sensor stack and refinish it for monochrome capture. It's not an uncommon modification, but it does add cost. Is your current system monochrome or color?
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Jan 31, 2018 22:45
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If the results from the Olympus EM-5 II have been perfect it doesn't seem like that's probably an issue, especially if it's just a proof of concept to sell the real high dollar system.
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Feb 1, 2018 00:32
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