[tsammyc]

A few more with the Contax G90 & A7r

[tsammyc]

What the Contax G90 looks like on the A7r with the Deo tech Autofocus adapter. Balance is excellent with grip or without.

[Christine Tham]

What the Contax G90 looks like on the A7r with the Deo tech Autofocus adapter. Balance is excellent with grip or without.

Thanks for all the lovely pictures - makes me want to revisit Malaysia!

And looks like you got the grip - congratulations. I hope you are finding it as useful as me. I don't use it all the time, but it does improve vertical (portrait view) shooting, especially with a heavy lens.

Here's some closeups I took with the Summicron 50 at Cockatoo Island, I just love the texture and the colour of the controls of the machine:

[Michelek]

tsammyc - looking at your pictures I regret selling my Contax G lenses...

Christine - these excellent close-ups make a desired addition to your Cockatoo Island story!

[Christine Tham]

Summilux 50

[hinman]

@Christine, your pictures have vivid imagery. I especially like the machine color and I see vividly the 3D image perspective with all the nuts and bolts in color.

@tsammyc, your contax 90mm push me to do the unthinkable, my credit card debt is the highest every month after the damn A7 purchase -- but hopefully little or even no regret. I need your inputs. Seriously, I have bought the 45mm f/2.0 and 90mm f/2.8 with a Contax G1 body today. I don't yet have any Contax G to NEX adapter. I saw some posting on the Techart DEO contax G to NEX mark II adapters, do you recommend those over the plain MF adapter. The AF one from Techart cost 10 times as much but I wonder if they are worth the investment. And if you, Michele or others with Contax G can recommend a plain Contax G to NEX adapters, I can surely use some help. Much thanks for the inspiration. Your portraits with the 90 are wonderful.


just bought this set

@Michele, I saw your blog entries trying out Eye AF. I am impressed with the feature but I do sometime don't get the smaller green box in EyeAF activation. I customize my AF/MF toggle default key for EyeAF.

@All, I got the LA-EA1 and it is a total let down as three of my minolta lenses don't even AF at all in indoor. I don't know if my copy of LA-EA1 is defective. MF and aperture change, exif seems to work without issues. But I can't get to the slow AF everybody talks about for LA-EA1.

Cheers,
Hin

[NickLarsson]

Interesting thread, thanks for sharing your tests.

Does anyone have an opinion about the A7 vs a NEX + speed booster for old glass (mainly M42) ?

---

Last edited by NickLarsson; 01-05-2014 at 01:18 PM.

[Michelek]

@Michele, I saw your blog entries trying out Eye AF. I am impressed with the feature but I do sometime don't get the smaller green box in EyeAF activation. I customize my AF/MF toggle default key for EyeAF.

@All, I got the LA-EA1 and it is a total let down as three of my minolta lenses don't even AF at all in indoor. I don't know if my copy of LA-EA1 is defective. MF and aperture change, exif seems to work without issues. But I can't get to the slow AF everybody talks about for LA-EA1.

Cheers,
Hin

Hin, the eye detection is a CDAF based feature, so it may sometimes fail. But I find it Woking well most of the time.

The LA-EA1 adapter autofocuses (poorly) only with SAM/SSM lenses, so no wonder your Minolta lenses had problems

Interesting thread, thanks for sharing your tests.

Does anyone have an opinion about the A7 vs a NEX + speed booster for old glass (mainly M42) ?

Please look here: http://per-analogia.blogspot.com/2013/12/a7-i-obiektywyadaptery-nie-kryjace-ff.html?m=1

[Christine Tham]

Thanks hinman!

In terms of NEX+Lens Turbo, I have used it a few times, and it's quite a nice adapter and creates interesting pictures. But it's not quite the same as FF - at least not to me.

It creates a kind of swirly bokeh - here is an example with the A50+Lens Turbo+NEX-F3:


Some resolution is lost, but the resultant picture is still quite sharp:

[pinholecam]

Interesting thread, thanks for sharing your tests.

Does anyone have an opinion about the A7 vs a NEX + speed booster for old glass (mainly M42) ?

For M42, you can also consider a Canon 5D of 5DII.
The 5D is selling for very little nowadays.
I sold mine for $550 with EF50/1.8, lots of adapters, spare batt and EC-S precision focusing screen.
Its surprisingly good IQ and nicer skin tones than A7 (imo).
Even its max ISO is usable.
As I think back, this is really the camera that first crossed the hurdle of IQ+high ISO to be good enough in all needs (and perhaps why Canon worked its way to the top )

The A7 does a bit better with the ability to do magnification for very precise focus. (IF the subject does not move much)
Its also smaller and as close to a digital OM, ME or LX as it it right now.
You get to use any lens over using a Canon of course.
Poorly thought out flow of features and buttons though (IMO); but liveable

I have seen many Lens Turbo samples, and they do affect OOF rendering in some cases. (as described by Christine)
Often its the look of OOF highlights or swirly bokeh .

Now that the A7 is out, I'd take it over NEX 5 (if price is not a factor)

[camerons]

Thanks for all the lovely pictures - makes me want to revisit Malaysia!

And looks like you got the grip - congratulations. I hope you are finding it as useful as me. I don't use it all the time, but it does improve vertical (portrait view) shooting, especially with a heavy lens.

Here's some closeups I took with the Summicron 50 at Cockatoo Island, I just love the texture and the colour of the controls of the machine:

Wow! I agree about the textures and your control of DOF is very good. Thanks for posting.



I got my Pentax adapter a couple of days ago. Haven't had much opportunity to test the FA43. Just the usual cat shots.

[NickLarsson]

Please look here: Per analogia: A7 i obiektywy/adaptery nie kryj?ce FF (II) / A7 and non-FF lenses/adapters (II)

In terms of NEX+Lens Turbo, I have used it a few times, and it's quite a nice adapter and creates interesting pictures. But it's not quite the same as FF - at least not to me.

It creates a kind of swirly bokeh - here is an example with the A50+Lens Turbo+NEX-F3:

Some resolution is lost, but the resultant picture is still quite sharp:

Very informative, thanks!

For M42, you can also consider a Canon 5D of 5DII.
The 5D is selling for very little nowadays.
I sold mine for $550 with EF50/1.8, lots of adapters, spare batt and EC-S precision focusing screen.
Its surprisingly good IQ and nicer skin tones than A7 (imo).
Even its max ISO is usable.
As I think back, this is really the camera that first crossed the hurdle of IQ+high ISO to be good enough in all needs (and perhaps why Canon worked its way to the top )

The A7 does a bit better with the ability to do magnification for very precise focus. (IF the subject does not move much)
Its also smaller and as close to a digital OM, ME or LX as it it right now.
You get to use any lens over using a Canon of course.
Poorly thought out flow of features and buttons though (IMO); but liveable

I have seen many Lens Turbo samples, and they do affect OOF rendering in some cases. (as described by Christine)
Often its the look of OOF highlights or swirly bokeh .

Now that the A7 is out, I'd take it over NEX 5 (if price is not a factor)

Yeah I had 5D a year and half ago, but I kept it only 3 months. I liked the IQ but it was too bulky and I always prefered to take my K-r when I was going out.
My K-30 is the biggest camera I'm willing to carry
So yeah I'm favoring the A7. But I'll wait for the prices to drop a little bit

[Christine Tham]

Foundation Park is often described as a "secret" park hidden away in the Rocks area of Sydney:
foundation park sydney history rocks secret

Here it is, creatively reinterpreted by the Super Wide Heliar 15mm (yes, I am falling in love with this kooky lens!)

[pinholecam]

Yeah I had 5D a year and half ago, but I kept it only 3 months. I liked the IQ but it was too bulky and I always prefered to take my K-r when I was going out.
My K-30 is the biggest camera I'm willing to carry
So yeah I'm favoring the A7. But I'll wait for the prices to drop a little bit

I see...
My 5D quickly became the weekend 'walk with the kids' camera, but I always only fitted one prime lens on at a time.
Its big, but I found it not that heavy, typical of Canon's build standard of empty feeling plastic (as opposed to a more sold feel like Pentax or even Nikon)

But yeah, imho, the A7 is the best thing now MF lenses. ( I would bea bit more caution if the user wanted native lenses)

[tsammyc]

@tsammyc, your contax 90mm push me to do the unthinkable, my credit card debt is the highest every month after the damn A7 purchase -- but hopefully little or even no regret. I need your inputs. Seriously, I have bought the 45mm f/2.0 and 90mm f/2.8 with a Contax G1 body today. I don't yet have any Contax G to NEX adapter. I saw some posting on the Techart DEO contax G to NEX mark II adapters, do you recommend those over the plain MF adapter. The AF one from Techart cost 10 times as much but I wonder if they are worth the investment. And if you, Michele or others with Contax G can recommend a plain Contax G to NEX adapters, I can surely use some help. Much thanks for the inspiration. Your portraits with the 90 are wonderful.

Dear Hin, I previously used a variety of cheap to medium priced Contax G adapters, but the focusing ring was always very stiff and difficult to focus and I never enjoyed it. You also have to hold your left hand too close to the camera body for comfort focusing. The Techart AF adapter is very good. Focusing is not quick, but also not very slow. It's faster than the LA-EA1 for example and infinitely faster for you since yours doesn't work It is quite accurate and can be programmed for back or front focus. If you are using large apertures, you still have to manual focus to get that one eyeball in focus. Manual focus is also possible with the Techart adapter through a little ring on the adapter, which is, I believe, focus by wire. When using the A7r, you just flick the ring a little bit to turn on manual focus, press the focus magnifier button twice and you can manual focus very precisely. On AF, I find it best used in spot mode. Balance with the adapter and all of the Contax lenses is good. Overall, I strongly recommend the adapter over the cheap and medium priced adapters and believe it to be worth the price. Especially since you have more than one Contax G lens. Sorry about your bank account but more money can always be earned