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Fall leaves from a recent trip to the Finger Lakes NY area. Sony NEX-5N/Tamron 35mm F/2.8 Di III OSD M1:2 Thanks Vaughan

We call this one "cachilo canela" (Donacospiza albifrons) around here. When the day was ending, and the light was dim, we found these two small and beautiful birds and we share a few moments together on last weekend. Pictures taken with a7RIII and 200-600.

Here are some photos I took with my A7R5 a couple of weeks ago in the Adelaide Botanical Gardens while experimenting with a 720nm Infra Red Filter.

It seems entirely reasonable that they disable a video mode that requires a bit rate faster than any standard SD card can manage to an SD card (SD cards can be rated V30, V60, or V90) - if you try to record a video mode that would require something faster like a "V200" card then they don't let you. OK, you have some non-standard hack that pretends to be an SD card, but records faster - seems perfectly sensible that they don't support it considering they look at the card to know how fast a rate the card can handle. Pretty sure that Sony is protecting users who try to use a slow SD card to record a video mode that requires more speed than the card supports, and Sony has the camera say "you can't do that" rather than fail dismally to try to record it - can you imagine the complaints if the user got a recording that stuttered and captured a few frames then a gap then a few more frames? Feel free to complain, but don't expect sympathy. You tried something that isn't supported, and it didn't work. As far as I know, Sony cameras are the only ones that support two different formats of cards, AND let you have two matching cards of either format. Every other camera that supports two formats has one of each. There are quite a few cameras that support two matching slots, but they only support one format of card (eg: the Z9 support two CFexpressB cards), so you don't have the option of a second format. I like the flexibility - I don't have have enough CFeA cards to cover everything - I can use CFeA for some and SD for others. Yes, CFexpressA cards were fairly expensive in the beginning (back 4 years ago in the A1), and I paid a fair bit for a Sony 180GB CFeA card. But a few years later I spent the same amount for a Lexus CFeA 320GB card, and just recently I spent almost exactly the same amount for a Prograde 480FB CFeA V4 card (which is over twice as fast to load into the computer). The price falls as there is more competition. Interestingly, measurements have shown that cameras like the Z9 cannot write at full speed to their CFeB cards (presumably because they get really hot - they write only as fast as CFeA speeds 🙂

@kresch - The intervalometer is still good for night shots, just not really dark skies as needed for the milky way. But as I mentioned earlier, there are workarounds which I've been using successfully, for example in the timelapse I took below. Still haven't heard whether it's been fixed on newer models such as A7IV or A7RV.

Start with glass. Get a fast prime or two.

I think this is just a matter of progressive insight. Likely Sony found that the sensors attract slightly more dust when powered on, and perhaps found a very minor risk of damage due to shorting the contacts or power surge, and decided to add it to the manuals of later models just to be sure.

Hey guys I would like to share some of my latest shots. Equipment used: A7II, FE55/1.8, FE90/2.8M, FE35/2.8 Divided by Mathias, auf Flickr Into the Mist by Mathias, auf Flickr Pencil by Mathias, auf Flickr Ablaze by Mathias, auf Flickr Withered by Mathias, auf Flickr Swiss Mountain Panorama by Mathias, auf Flickr Dark Side by Mathias, auf Flickr

Not in my experience. A single spot makes it easier to start with a specific part of my subject without the camera trying to guess which spot I want. I shoot high speed motorsports from very close, as I am a track photographer. My A7 IV is actually more tenacious than my A1 when it comes to staying on target. I have found single spot tracking will stick and stay better than any of the other options, at least for me. Medium seems to work best for my setup.

I finally found it in the online manual. 😂

I beg to disagree: people moving towards the camera is somewhat of a problem for the 'slow' AF system of the A7i: it tends to backfocus a lot as the subject will have moved toward the camera between focus acquisition and shutter release. The hitrate with my old A6000 was pretty mediocre in this regard as well and it had a better AF system than the A7i. I do agree that the A7iii is really the camera that put these 'issues' to rest and showed people that mirrorless systems could outperform the dedicated AF module found in DSLRs.

We call this bird "Mosqueta estriada" (Myiophobus fasciatus) here in Argentina. I've got a new Sony 200-600 to replace the Sigma sport I was using with adapters on a a7RIII. And we went out to test it.

Unfortunately, the firmware is region and model specific. If you try to force a foreign firmware to the camera somehow you might loose functionality and warranty.

Taken with A7R II and a Sony FE 200-600mm with 1.4X teleconverter.

I also currently have the Tenba however I am finding it to small for travel with all of the extras I have now collected especially since I upgraded to the new camera and lens.

I tend to shoot more middle of the range unless light is an issue, then I adjust accordingly. I'm not a bokeh person and don't care much, I'd rather have the depth of f/4-8 or so. Given that, I can't really see dust unless go looking for it, so I check mine midway through the season with white paper or blue sky and stopped down.

Keep us posted on your findings! If the dust situation changes for the better, there's still the risk left of damaging the shutter mechanism... I guess the Nikon Z9 shows us the future in this regard: it doesn't have a mechanical shutter but it does feature a dedicated and designed for purpose sensor shield mechanism.

Quick answer... it depends. Almost all of my pictures are landscapes and a significant part of them are taken with A mode at /f 11 or higher to maximise depth of field with wide angle lenses. Except when in low light or when I want to isolate a subject, I rarely shoot below /f 8. At narrow apertures, sensor dust becomes more evident, especially when spots fall into areas such as the sky. By contrast, last February I was speaking about dust with an event shooter, using Nikon mirrorless cameras and he said the opposite, but almost all of his pictures are taken with professional /f 2.8 lenses shoot wide open. Plus, the busy background helps masking. When I asked him to take a picture of a white wall at /f 22, all the spots came out. I also take care when switching lenses, camera always pointed down and switched off (the latter should be the norm, but when in a hurry because the subject is disappearing, it could happen to forget to switch it off) The advantage of mirrorless is that they can be easily cleaned, the sensor is more accessible than in a DSLR. The worst thing that happened to me was a Canon G1X Mark I. It was a high end point and shoot camera with a relatively large sensor and a fixed mounted lens. It was a perfect business travel camera, until dust found its way on the sensor, most likely by sucking during on-off switching and zoom operation. To clean the sensor, the whole affair had to be dismantled, the cleaning bill was largely exceeding the value of the camera, so I had to trash it (sold for parts).

LOL. I have made the exact same argument before, to the extent that you could've copied and pasted my text, including every aspect from the fragility to the dust coming off the blades. But, I'm near the end of the season with only another month to go, so I'll continue in the interest of science. I am interested to see if the dust situation changes for the worse.

Nicely done!

Maybe it's been mentioned, but going with an e-mount Sony would allow all of your Nikon lenses to be used -- with an adapter, of course, and with some loss of features too.

The 50s are a bit long on a compact sensor; but not long enough for the framing of a good 105 or 135 on a FF sensor. Or maybe I'm just spoiled by the 105 F/2.5. If I were going to leap into picking lenses for her (aside from the kit lenses) I'd probably look at something in the 28 through 35mm equivalent FOV (18 to 25mm lenses). I was mostly looking at Sony lenses, now we'll have time to read some reviews instead of trying to rush a purchase.

Yea that's pretty misleading. Have a look here: https://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/sony-a7s/sony-a7sDAT.HTM But to be honest I don't really understand why you care so much about maximum ISO. Are you actually planning to shoot at ISO 102400 or even 409600, be it native or expanded? Because it will look dreadful anyhow and it really doesn't say anything about sensor sensitivity. If the A7S had native ISO 409600, it wouldn't look any better than a shot taken at 102400 boosted 2 by stops in post. Like @Cameratose said: Contrary to popular belief, it does not make the sensor more sensitive to light, nor more able to absorb light.

First off, uncompressed 14 bit data is not stored packed together - each 14 bit sample is stored in 2 bytes (16 bits). Also, bear in mind that a RAW data file has more samples than there are pixels in the finished image - you need samples beyond the edges to be able to interpolate full colour information for the pixels on the edges. And yes, it's 14 bit data for the full 3:2 image. The ARW file holds more than the RAW data, too - it holds metadata about the image, and it holds a JPEG that can be used to show a thumbnail.

XKAES, I definitely do appreciate the question. I had suggested an RX100-series camera for her as a starting point. Her brand interest is a loyalty based on non-camera products. I'm not going to knock that; I've got a number of my own brand-biases of my own. Nikon is out for her because it's not Sony (though, to be fair, it's also because my representation of the Nikon brand is filled with antiquities and ponderously heavy dSLRs). If I already had mirrorless gear from Fuji or Nikon, the argument might be different. In the end, she wants a system, so she can use it and share use of it with her kids (who are big enough to handle a camera with care, but small enough to be burdened by the bulk of a full dSLR -- for now I've gotten them a pair of waterproof Kodak point and shoots). I should point out that she is also fairly small; even a small dSLR is probably more than she would want to carry regularly. Since I have nothing to fit her interest, we're going to build a system. Left to my own devices, I'd be looking at several brands; but Sony is her desire and I've no reason to steer differently. It's ostensibly for her, but if we're building a system (and I'm learning it to help her learn it) then I have every expectation I'll be using it regularly as well. It wouldn't make any sense to, say, go on vacation and she's carrying Sony, I'm carrying Nikon, and the eldest daughter is carrying something else entirely...

Good to know it's 14-bit. The page I found only shows 14-bit for the 16:9 ratio and not 3:2 which was the only reason it was a question. https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/e-mount-body-ilce-7-series/ilce-7m3/specifications As for the other stuff, the reason I ask is because I'd like a decent understanding of what I'm working with. I know it doesn't matter to most people but I have a personal curiosity about it. I am trying to understand more about what a RAW file actually is, how it got there (because of the amount of pixels on the sensor and each pixel's bit depth) and then from that RAW file, understanding that a piece of software would have to triple this size when it interpolates the RAW bytes. I've been reading all week and I think I have my answer but just wanted it clarified here.

The A7 III needs the LA-EA4 for autofocus and tracking. Usable features depend on the lens. You may be disappointed with response. I've used the LA-EA4 on an A7R III and the LA-EA5 on an A7 IV and A1. In all cases, there is a split-second delay before the lens responds when focusing. You have to learn to anticipate, which can be very difficult and frustrating for action photography. Even though there will be more cost, I recommend you look at E mount only for action. You can at least subtract the $200 or so for the adapter. You should be able to use anything from 400-600mm for soccer, and there are lots of choices available to you.

You'll need an adapter to put the A mount version on the camera. There are several A mount adapters from Sony, and it can be a bit tricky choosing the right one. I'm not an expert - you'll need to do some research. Which adapter is best depends on the camera, and on the lens (although I though the Sigma 150-600 is not a screw drive lens, which eliminates one part of the equation). You should also pay attention to the limitations you get - some adapters don't support all the functionality of the lens. After I had a bit of a look at it all, I chose to go for native E mount lenses. I didn't want the hassle 😞

Have you tried changing your white balance?

No: the distance between the rear lens element and the photosensitive plane (sensor/film) is exactly the same on the Sony A7Riii as it is on your old Pentax camera. The adaptor is designed to exactly fill the difference between the flange-focal distance of Sony E-mount (18mm) vs Pentax K-mount (45.46mm). So the adapter is 27.46mm thick. Could it be that your camera automatically switches to APS-C mode as it detects the vignette? Check the size of the images you get out of this lens and whether you have auto crop mode enabled.

Thanks for the comment, the family is Caviidae, and of course the order is Rodentia. They are really small, and you could find them in several places in Argentina, where I live.

A familiy of southern mountain cavy (micro cuis), in Mendoza province, Argentina. Taken with a Sony a7RIII, MC11 adapter and a Sigma 150-600 Sport for Canon, from the ground.

Capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) and his best friend The cattle tyrant (Machetornis rixosa), spending the afternoon in the grass, in front of all the visitants to the National Park "el palmar", in Argentina. Taken with a Sony a7RIII, MC11 adapter and a Sigma 150-600 Sport for Canon, from the ground.

Solved !! 👍👍mapping is the answer by moving date.

Sounds like you thought this through and are willing to carry the extra bulk. All I did was try to manage expectations and save you from disappointment. If you really need a longer focal length to achieve your goals, clear image zoom is a feature that might help you to determine just how long the focal length should be. Framing at 350mm and 1.6x clear image zoom resembles a 560mm focal length lens. If this is still not enough, buying the 100-400 with 1.4× extender (max focal length = 560mm) just won't cut it. Then you need the 200-600 with 1.4× or 2× extender. So again my advise would be: try it a bit and see at what clear image zoom ratio you like the framing (not the image quality!) with your 70-350 to determine what focal length you need.

The aperture ring on the lens needs to be set to A(utomatic), otherwise the Aperture dial on the camera won't work.

Here was a recent one from my basement...so far, I love the colors and vibe of it. But knowing what codec to use in Final Cut...Proxy files...ehhhh lol https://youtu.be/30oKFbzRdhQ?si=vvaeBrXuCrCfRK_w

Great response with numerous suggestions. Not seen with other lenses but I’ll follow recommendations and revert. Dust would be improbable given its internal focussing.

I ended up purchasing an A99II, along with a Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens (yes, I checked with Tamron and it is a full frame lens). The images that I have been getting the last two times at the warehouse are significantly better. I am waiting on one part for the tripod I just bought, so that I can try it out (it is a Vanguard Abeo Pro 283CGH carbon fiber tripod, with the old version of the GH-300T pistol grip head on it, but he forgot to send the camera plate). I really like how this head works.

Am new here , Thanks for having me here .

Hi. Being there, done that. Here is the link to the discussion. My experience with the 18-105 f/4 has been awful. Now I am perfectly happy wiht the 18-135 (one lens travel kit, does a little bit of everything) and with the 10-18 + 16-70 Zeiss + 55-210 when I want to travel with all the options. I do mostly landscapes. Sometimes I travel also with the 16-70 only, especially in urban area, where spaces are narrow and 16 mm can make the difference over 18 mm.

Welcome to the forum. I'm not personally familiar with the 35, but it seems to be a decent choice. Don't forget that camera can use E-Mount full frame lenses as well. Viltrox has just introduced a pair of lightweight lenses that are inexpensive. The great thing about Sony E mount is what seems to be a never-ending selection of lenses, priced from entry level to OUCH! Here's one TT Artisan 35 review, plenty more out there. A Review of the Impressively Affordable TTArtisan AF 35mm f/1.8 | Fstoppers

Being using DxO for a very long time. Simply the best NR :)

Not a video guy, but I'll be happy to take a look at your work!

Somehow the recording format was switched from what you normally use. Look for the AVCHD file in the PRIVATE folder. It's actually a folder and am dead certain you'll find the videos there. This happens to me on occasion, too. Only reason I can show where the files are is because this was the case 2 weeks ago. I NEVER shoot HVCHD but did that day somehow.

Thanx! I have chosen the exposure values in such a way that the histogram is already slightly detached from the left edge and the background noise of the sky (hopefully) dominates the other noises. I shoot in RAW anyway and the images have to be heavily post-processed, so the ISO value probably doesn't matter much. Even more so with an ISO-invariant sensor. It is only important that the exposure is not too low, so that there is enough image information, and also not too high, not that bright stars already burn out. The exposure settings I chose work well for me! As a tracker I use the equatorial mount CEM25P from iOptron. And for exposure times of 4min you necessarily need a guide scope at 600mm focal length, indeed. In a seperate post I described my set-up and recording process in detail: Here is a recent picture of the Iris Nebula in the constellation Kepheus (NGC7023 Sony A7Ra 79x240s ISO-800 F6.3 600mm 8xDarks 15xFlats 15xBias):

#sonyalphagallery

In the meantime, I bought a Sony A7R camera used on E-Bay and then had it astromodified (IR blocking filter removed and replaced with clear glass). With it, I was able to shoot some reflection nebulae with my Sony SEL200600G zoom lens. The orion and running-man nebula (Composit 10x10s and 30x180s ISO-800 F6.3 @600mm 7xDarks 15xFlats 15xBias Optolong L-Pro Filter):

My first deep sky image taken with the Alpha 6000 and the SEL200600G on an Ioptron CEM25P mount. The globular cluster Messier 13 in the constellation Hercules. Certainly not comparable to high resolution images from the Hubble telescope, but I like it. 40 images at 15s each (1800mm 35mm equivalent focal length, F13, ISO 1600), calibrated with darks and bias.