Sony Diaries #1052: "I recommend Sony..."

Yesterday, I received this in my Inbox.

I'm reaching out in the hope that you could give me a few suggestions in regards to buying a camera. Ages ago, I knew how to develop films, (dark room, chemicals and the whole shebang) but that is the extent of my photography knowledge, meaning I know pretty much nothing about digital cameras. 

I would be using this camera mainly to take pictures of costume/clothes related things for work, so mostly indoor, up close/focus on details, emphasis on colour accuracy (is that a thing?) and the "subjects" would pretty much always be perfectly still! If it films, awesome, but it's not the priority for me, and pictures would probably only be seen on screens, not printed. (Michael said he would build me a whole website/costume portfolio!!) 

I'd be most happy with something around 500$, but if it truly makes a difference in quality/long lasting-ness, I could go up to 1000$. And I don't know if I'm really up for the hassle of buying secondhand, but I'm not against the idea. 

So if you have any advice or suggestions, it would be most welcomed! 

Here is my response:

First of all, I would go mirrorless. I switched to mirrorless years ago and I have never regretted it. At work, we have older DSLRs and I am always reminded of the advantages of mirrorless systems. Even in high speed sports where the DSLR was king, pros are switching to mirrorless.
Here is a good summation of the pros and cons of mirrorless. Mind you, this video is about higher-end mirrorless but the content also applies to the lower-end (budget-conscious) buyer.
https://youtu.be/p5PvHlk3yig
For your purpose of taking product shots where colour is critical, mirrorless has the WYSIWYG concept (What You See Is What You Get). As long as the White Balance is set correctly, you should be getting the colours precisely.
I am partial to the Sony system, and I am most familiar with Sony. All your photo needs will be met by either the Sony 5100 :
https://gosselinphoto.ca/en/sony-a5100-black-with-e-pz-16-50mm-oss-lens-ilce5100l-b
or the Sony 6000:
https://gosselinphoto.ca/en/sony-a6000-black-with-e-pz-16-50mm-oss-lens-ilce6000l-b
Both have the tilt-screen, best for us short people wanting to shoot above people's heads, or to shoot low without having to lie down on the floor.
One fact to remember is that next to the person behind the camera, the lens is the most important gear you will have. The photographer is only as good as the lens. The kit lens that comes with these cameras are not fancy lenses, not the best for low-light. The cheapest low-light lenses start at $1000CDN. Still, taking low-light pictures with kit lenses (lenses that come with the camera) is of course possible with the right technique.
http://www.shuttersinthenight.com/2016/09/07/6-tips-using-kit-lens-night-photography/https://www.adorama.com/alc/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-kit-lensSomething you can plan for in the future is to get a prime lens, such as either a 16mm or 30mm F1.4 lens. From my experience, it is possible that you'll end up getting the vast majority of your photos with just 1 lens.
Here are two lenses that I would plan for if I were in your shoes:
https://gosselinphoto.ca/en/sigma-30mm-f-1-4-dc-dn-contemporary-for-sony-e-c30dcdnsehttps://gosselinphoto.ca/en/sigma-16mm-f-1-4-dc-dn-contemporary-for-sony-e-c16dcdnse
The interesting thing about excellent lenses is that not only will you be very happy with the images, you can sell these lenses after a few years of use for a price close to or over what you paid for them (depending on the yen exchange rate). Good lenses hold their value.
One of the reasons I got into Sony from the beginning is that I could use Minolta lenses. A bit of history here. When Sony, a huge video-centric company, wanted to get into the Stills business, they needed a platform to start with. They bought Minolta, one of the premier Japanese camera makers with a reputation for really, really good lenses.Here are my posts from 2012 and 2018.
http://elementalview.blogspot.com/2012/02/minolta-lenses.htmlhttp://elementalview.blogspot.com/2018/04/sony-diaries-1003-best-kept-secret-in.htmlhttp://elementalview.blogspot.com/2015/06/minolta-still-amazing-after-all-these.htmlhttp://elementalview.blogspot.com/2017/04/sony-diaries-997-micro-adjusting.htmlSo when you are ready, you can go into the used market and shop around for a Minolta lens. You'll need an adaptor but this adaptor will be your gateway to the Minolta world. For example, here are ads I found this morning on kijiji in the Montreal area.
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-appareil-photo-camera/ville-de-montreal/sony-e-adapter-:-konica-ar-m42-screw-minolta-md-neuf/1510553536https://www.kijiji.ca/v-appareil-photo-camera/ville-de-montreal/minolta-md-prime-lens/1511410766https://www.kijiji.ca/v-appareil-photo-camera/longueuil-rive-sud/lentille-vivitar-28mm-grand-angle-1:-2-5/1432529812
Other manufacturers of mirrorless systems with low-cost offerings are Fuji, Olympus, and Panasonic. Canon is a little late into the market but I hear their EOS M Series is good. I'm sure any camera/lens combo will work for you. After all, it's still the brain behind the camera that matters. Personally,  if I had to do it all over again, I'd still go with Sony.

Sony Diaries #1003: The best-kept secret in the Full Frame world

Ever since I switched to Sony (from Canon), I have enjoyed (and employed) the many excellent features of Sony's unique SLT technology. Seldom mentioned is the fact that Sony has kept the Minolta mount, now known as the Sony Alpha mount. This means that one can use Minolta lenses, world-renowned for their superior image and build quality. Minolta lenses possess excellent optics in almost-all metal barrels. There is also the mystical "Minolta Colors", that I can definitely discern.

One of the best-kept secrets in the world of Full-Frame cameras is the cultish status of the legendary Minolta 70-210F4 Beercan. Still available on eBay and occasionally on Kijiji and Craigslist, it can be had for as low as $100CDN. 

I was fortunate to obtain my second copy off of Kijiji just yesterday, for $130CDN, boxed, and what looks like in never-used condition. This copy is incredibly sharp, Minolta colours. Being a screw drive lens, I expected  the focus ito be relatively sluggish (and hunts a bit) on my a99. But on the a7III, focus is snappy almost as if it was a native lens!!

I feel like I just won a small lottery!

Sony Diaries #994: (The magic of) Micro Adjust

There's nothing more frustrating than a heretofore sharp lens that's not quite all there on a different body. It's also frustrating that a lens that should be sharp is unsharp to varying degrees on different bodies. Since the bulk of my lenses are legacy lenses (Minolta AF) that are 20-30 years old, I started to doubt my skills as an informed buyer on Kijiji and Craigslist. At one point, I just thought my eyes were starting to deceive me.

On my first wedding of the season, the shots on my Tamron 28-75F2.8 were not as sharp on my second a99 body as it was on my first a99 body. Was it time to junk this lens? 

A few weeks ago, I was so lucky to find a Minolta 50F1.4 AF on Kijiji. A cursory check on my a99 showed a sharp lens at f2.8, some CA, and  generally low contrast. CA and contrast can be remedied in post (or even in-camera) but sharpness can't be (clarity sliders and unsharp masks are akin to putting on cologne without taking a shower first).

The price was irresistible ($100 versus $550 for a Sony 50F1.4, $1150 for a Sigma 50F1.4ART). Plus it's rare for a Minolta 50F1.4 to come on the local market. At the very least, the F1.4 means faster focusing in low light, even if the taking aperture would be at 2.8.

I come home and the lens turns out to be even more unsharp on my a77II than it is on the a99.  I love shooting wide-open for shallow depth-of-field but shallow DOF will reveal focusing errors. A lens may focus precisely but not necessarily accurately. A lens may focus a mm or more forward, or backward. A shallow DOF will reveal this right away. I want precision and accuracy. Even on a cheap lens. Then I remembered the idea of micro adjusting lenses. 

Micro adjustment allows us to make a correction for every lens when paired with any camera body so that a compensation is automatically applied; compensation will vary depending on the camera body used.

To jump to my conclusion, my $100 Minolta 50F1.4 is razor-sharp at F1.4, on the spot/plane that I focus on. On the following photos, I focused on "9902". Taken with the same lens on 2 bodies, APS-C and Full Frame.

1/100@F1.4, Sony A77II.  Compensation: -20 (yikes!)

1/100@F1.4, Sony A99.  Compensation: -8 (huge difference with the A77II's -20).

My methodology, adapted from several sources available online,  will be up on a future blog post. Micro adjustment is only available on some, not all, of the newer cameras. the Sony a99 was introduced about 5 years ago. I have since micro adjusted all my lenses which has led to a major difference in sharpness. Micro adjustment is particularly important with fast lenses and macro lenses (slow lenses but typically shot wide-open and very close to the subject resulting in very shallow DOF).

Sony Diaries #777: Minolta: Still amazing after all these years!

I stumbled across this forum extolling the virtues of Minolta lenses as used on Sony mirrorless cameras.

MINOLTA MC/MD on Mirrorless

Interesting experience I had yesterday with my cheapie Minolta 50f1.7. Manufactured at least 25 years ago, this lens is a third the size and a quarter the weight of any 50f1.4 made in the last 4 years.

 

I was shooting an event after hours last night using this Minolta 50f1.7, @f2 all night. I bought this for $50 (check craigslist and they're available all the time for $60-90) and I knew it was a bit soft on the edges. No biggie for people shots. After looking at the photos after the event, I noticed that the soft spots moved all over different spots on several files and that on some images such as the one below, 

the focus point was missed, instead of the eyes, it was on the flowers. Again, no biggie and with some sharpening, mostly for the web, even I wouldn't  notice the difference.

Then I looked at the lens: all 4 screws on the lens mounting plate were loose!! 

So I tightened these (a dab of clear nail polish will seal it) and now the lens is sharp throughout, all the time. The focus is now consistently accurate.

 Check out the edge-to-edge sharpness on this lens @f2!!! $50!!!

If there is a moral to this story, it is that if reality doesn't match what you have in mind, you may have a screw(s) loose.

The Sony Diaries #2: An Introduction to the (Sony) Alpha Mount by Kelly Davis

Read the full text here

A comprehensive, "everything-you've-always-wanted-to-know-about-Sony/Minolta-but-were-afraid-to-ask", two-pager for the intelligent souls out there who will eventually realize the folly of using Canons and Nikons and will switch to Sony.

Minolta lenses!

When I switched from Canon to Minolta (see my blog entry on this), little did I know of the treasure trove of Minolta legacy lenses that remained to be discovered!

A historical perspective is in order.

Minolta was founded Japan in 1928, and along with Canon, Nikon, Konica, Olympus, Pentax, Fuji, Bronica, Yashica, and Mamiya, made Japan famous for affordable (read: non-German) cameras for both amateurs and professionals. Konica merged with Minolta in 2003, and the SLR segment of Konica-Minolta was bought by Sony in 2006.

Minolta lenses have a well-earned reputation for superior optical and construction quality and these lenses, particularly the AF lenses, are 100% compatible with the latest Sony SLT bodies. More importantly, these lenses can be had on eBay and on craigslist for a fraction of the price of comparable Canon L and Nikon Nikkors. In addition, the older Mnolta MD and MC lenses may be mounted on the current Sonys with very inexpensive adaptors.

In the last few 5 days, I have obtained 5 really good, bordering on great, Minolta lenses: a 35-105f4-4.5 and a set of 50f1.7, 50f3.5macro, 28f2.8, and 100-200f4.5 in exchange for a Canon 40D+grip (my last Canon to go). A quick test of these lenses reveal that the coatings are unblemished, the aperture blades are oil free, the zoom doesn't creep, and best of all, they are all tack-sharp!!

Special thanks to Stan Yip for taking my excellent-but-unwanted 40D in exchange for his surplus Minolta glass!