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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-03-2024, 03:20 PM
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This was the last sigma x-500mm before abandoning pentax. These pics with OS on, camera VR off.
Versatility is the USP of this superzoom.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
11-28-2023, 03:08 PM
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Couple of pics of snowdon with the sigma 18-125mm from January last year: summit at 125mm, the whole horseshoe at 21mm.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
11-01-2023, 11:23 AM
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I tried a cheap 77mm screw on hood first, that was a waste of money, the poor machining meant it wouldn't screw on. So I acquired the clone ET-86 hood (for canon 70-200mm, nominally also 77mm filter but the hood is bayonet) these are very cheap. When it arrived I found that it was actually larger than the end diameter of the sigma lens. So I had to get a piece of 1.5mm ABS sheet and shape a new end piece as per the pic. The end of the hood was sanded flat and the new piece positioned with three M1.8 screws (these self tap into a 1.5mm hole in plastic) and then fixed with "plastic weld" solvent adhesive. Bingo.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
09-03-2023, 02:56 PM
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Just acquired a good example of this lens for a very advantageous price. Pics look good!
Boats on the Menai Straits. Snowdon (or I should say: yr Eryri) from Plas Newydd on Anglesey.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
02-19-2023, 10:07 AM
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I picked up the fast sigma zoommaster 35-70mm f2.8-4, due to good reviews here and to compare with the vivitar 35-70mm f2.8-3.5.
But it has disappointed. As you can see the results at 35mm are particularly poor (better centre image, those crops upper left), 70mm was better albeit those crops were centre image.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-31-2021, 03:43 AM
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tbh I wasn't too surprised that the 17-70mm showed a bit soft at f2.8, 17mm in the corners. IIRC the previous one I had was similar. Improves quickly stopping down.
Rendering on digital is a more iffy observation imo, dependent a lot on what the internal processing of the camera does. I found the rendering to be very similar.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-19-2021, 11:36 AM
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I have had the 18-125mm for several years now. I have compared it to two examples of the 17-70mm one of which I still have, (up for sale if interested...), really for most pics there was no real difference in iq, specifically resolution. Rendering etc were vey similar, not too much surprise there the lenses are very similar in construction.
These test pics are complementary to the ones in my review of the 18-125mm. Top 2 are wide open at ~28mm. Click to pull up full sized.
And these sample crops of the castle wide open at widest focal length.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-19-2021, 09:45 AM
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A perfect day to enjoy the particular quality of the light at this time of year.
Pentax KS2 + sigma 18-125mm - my general purpose lens, doesn't yield anything to the pentax 18-135mm or the faster sigma 17-70mm imo.
The old bridge over the Conwy R. in Llanrwst dates from 1636.
The Waterloo Bridge in Betws y Coed
Ty Hyll - The Ugly House - was not at all, with frost on the roof and the sun filtering through the trees.
The classic view of the Snowdon massif from Capel Curig
And this is the classic shot by Llynnau Mymbyr. Not quite millpond for the reflection.
The 1953 Everesters are now all passed on but their pics still grace the salon in Snowdonia's classic mountain hotel where they trained.
Every tourists mistake, no thats not Snowdon you can see from the top of the pass but Crib Coch. Snowdon is behind.
For a century and more, mining and quarrying was the mainspring of the regions economy. Quarry owners like the Pennant family epitomised the nature of 19th C capitalism, acquiring riches enough to splurge the equivalent of c. £50 million on faux-gothic Penrhyn Castle*. Meanwhile whole mountainsides are left like this. Mind you its not all bad news, the rock faces now sport some of N Wales most distinctive climbs, and the longest zip wire in the UK wizzes from the top.
Dolbadarn Castle - the welsh princes riposte to the castle building mania of Edward 1st, commanding the entrance to the pass.
*Relatives who visited in October and took the tour round this National Trust property were unimpressed with the lack of guide materials - too sensitive in these culture war times (or something)! I can refer interested readers to these The Times podcasts on penrhyn Castle and its history and current political contentiousness. |
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Forum: Lens Clubs
08-14-2021, 10:19 AM
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This is my go to lens for general AF photography. Family get together - visit to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct World Heritage Site. KS2.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
04-21-2021, 02:21 PM
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X-post, 28mm lens club.
I pointed my tamron 500mm at some flowers, because the light was pretty ideal, hazy sunlight, but thought don't waste your time, you've got a miniwide in the bag.
Sigma miniwide II, pentax K3-ii.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
04-14-2021, 11:55 AM
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I've got another 100-300mm f4. I sold the previous one, specifically it was a let down at 300mm f4.
A nice day to scurry around enthusiastically with a new acquisition. The sun was at a good angle to try to get some 3D pop on the castle. kS2, jpg.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
04-08-2021, 03:32 PM
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A rag and meths is what you need.
I have also had some success using painters fixative (a sort of spray lacquer/varnish basically) on patches with numbers/f-stops etc.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-15-2021, 01:41 PM
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I have been thinking about those castle test pics and I took the sigma H.L. 28m back there today. This time I used the focus point shift feature in live view (KS2, my K3-ii does this too) to fine tune the focus on alternately, image centre, image right, image left. All f2.8.
What this highlights, I believe, is field curvature.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-09-2021, 03:01 PM
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X-post - 28mm lens club.
When I acquired this I thought I had just acquired a PKA mount 28mm miniwide II under a different nameplate. However this interesting page explains the special nature of this lens:
Episode 3 ? SIGMA?s 28mm Prime- Part 1: the Manual Focus Era | Ohsone?s Anecdotes | SEIN | SIGMA
So I have acquired a bit of a plum. Unfortunately, not using fullframe cameras, I am not going to really realise this lens' USP. And I have to say, my test pics of the castle were merely typical for a sigma 28mm - sharp from the off in the image centre but the towers at the the image edges distinctly soft, progressively sharpening up as the lens is stopped down. Actually I am coming to regard the castle as a difficult test subject - this sort of result seems to be pretty typical for most 28mm's I try. Perhaps it's the K3-ii to some extent (and I am thnking of Dan Eurritt's testing of numerous wide angle lenses on sony full frame )?
Click on the image to see the 6028px full sized.
I took these shots on a walk up to Aber falls.
As and when I will do a bokeh comparison.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
02-23-2021, 11:41 AM
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I went over to the castle after shopping to take some pics with a vivitar 250mm and then wished for a wide angle when I realised the rainbows were framing the castle. So I scurried home to get one, then ran around Benarth Hill in the mud and rain... worth it.
Sigma Miniwide II, f8. Just a quick jpg out of faststone.
Update I like this one a little better.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
02-12-2021, 03:53 PM
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Candles and flowers on Conwy Quay mark local feeling for the loss of 3 local fishermen whose boat went missing 2 weeks ago.
Sigma miniwide II.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
09-10-2020, 01:41 PM
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Angel Bay, with sigma 18-125mm (not pentax F 28-80mm) at 18mm. See my seal pup pics in the tamron adaptall and 300mm lens club threads (taken from the same spot the people are standing in the pic).
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Forum: Lens Clubs
05-26-2020, 02:48 PM
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The sweep of Llandudno north shore, Great Orme, Anglesey in the background. from the top of the Little orme, sigma 18-125m @ 30mm f4.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-06-2020, 04:08 PM
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Forum: Lens Clubs
02-10-2020, 04:44 PM
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See here for more on this lens. KS2. #2 is with DA 1.4x tc.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-19-2019, 04:12 PM
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Sigma 100-300mm f4.5-6.7 DL. A tidy lightweight consumer zoom. I will be commenting more on this lens in the 300mm+ lens club. #2 is big crop.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-01-2019, 10:23 AM
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Taking advantage of the current delightful sunny interlude in the autumnal monsoon I headed up to Aber Falls looking for fieldfares. No luck, my 150-500mm was unused.
The N facing falls don't get the sun at this time of year. A goodly amount of water coming down thanks to the monsoon...
Lacking an ND filter 1/6th at f22 was the best I could do.
Being such a popular spot, it's a pedestrian superhighway.
No doubt the superwide II is one of the best legacy 24's.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
08-20-2019, 03:27 PM
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Colwyn bay cricket club in Rhos-on-sea, Glamorgan playing Lancashire, sigma DG 10-20mm f4.5-5.6.. See the action pics in the DFA150-450mm thread.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-03-2019, 05:52 AM
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Sigma superwide II 24mm. An anemone that blossomed during the mid-winter summer interlude just ended. K3-ii, F4. You can see the same pic + 1:1 pixel peep crop with an adaptall 01B 24mm for comparison here (nothing in it in terms of resolution, rendering, bokeh with this is a bit smoother.).
If you have focus issues with this lens see my diy fix focus article here.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
11-19-2018, 08:22 AM
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x-post with mirror club. Samsung NX20.
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