Best inexpensive option for landscape lens

[gillman99]

I'm looking for something that's inexpensive to fit on my a7rii camera in the 20 - 25mm range for landscape and street photography.  Was looking at the Sony 28mm f2.8, but wanted to see if there were better or cheaper options.  I do not have much experience with manual focusing, but as long as the lens + adapter supports focus peaking and magnification of the 7rii then I should be fine.

 

Can someone recommend good options?  Please include which adapter if you have experience in that area.  I'm ok buying new or used.

[addicted2light]

First the adapter: I've been pretty happy with these Chinese adapters (around 10€). In the post I mention minor troubles with light leaks, but since then I've ordered other 4 of them and the quality apparently has improved, now I cannot detect light leaks anymore not even in extreme conditions.

 

http://www.sonyalphaforum.com/topic/384-a-good-brand-of-cheap-chinese-adapters/

 

For the lenses there are quite a few choices, I will discuss though only the ones I use / I've used personally on the A7r mk I.

 

24/2.8 Olympus OM Zuiko

Quite sharp across the frame, not just for a legacy lens (slightly less sharp than the Minolta, though it costs less); nice colors; really small (but the Olympus > Sony adapter is thicker, so you loose a bit of the size advantage). Around 70€

 

24/2.8 Minolta MC or MD (52mm filter version, NOT the 49mm filter version)

Sharp across the frame; quite sensible to shutter shock on the A7r (I've seen this happen only with two of my lenses, and the other one is a 300mm...) (btw: not a problem for you given the A7r mk II has EFC); really nice Minolta colors. Around 100/150€

 

And now a lens I used to shoot with when I had the Canon 5D mk II (just 21Mp), so I don't know how it will perform on the A7r mk II (but you could search on forums, etc.):

20/3.5 Nikon Nikkor UD

Quite sharp across the frame; handles flare well, especially for a legacy lens; it looks big from the pictures, but in reality is quite compact; colors a bit on the cold side lime many Ai and pre-Ai Nikon glass (nice, though). Around 100€

 

One last thing: peaking is ok for street, but for landscapes use focus magnification. I can detect significant differences in sharpness even using a 15mm, so with the new high megapixels sensors it is untrue that with wide angle lenses you can get away just relying on the depth of field.

[srj1209]

I am using a Canon FD 20mm f2.8 lens with a Fotodiox FD-NEX adapter on a Sony A7MK2.

 

This works for me and the Fotodiox website also says that it will work (https://www.fotodioxpro.com/fotodiox-canon-fd-new-fd-fl-lens-to-sony-alpha-nex-e-mount-camera-lens-mount-adapter.html) for FD, new-FD and FL lenses. Of these, the FD lenses are relatively newer. The Fotodiox site prices it at $50 currently but this available on Amazon for $29.

 

I have seen others review this (Amazon?) adapter and indicate that this does not work for full frame. This works for me....

[glitterball]

Are you looking for a 28mm or wider?

 

I have tried a few of the cheaper legacy 28mm lenses: Canon FD 28mm f2.8, Sigma Mini Wide II 28mm f2.8, Pentax-M 28mm f3.5, Pentax K 28mm f3.5 and Carl Zeiss Distagon 28mm f2.8.

Of those, I'd recommend the following 3:

Pentax M 28mm f3.5: Sharp across the frame when stepped down, practically no CA, but there is some distortion

Pentax K 28mm f3.5: Sharp across the frame when stepped down, a little CA, very little distortion, some field curvature

Carl Zeiss Distagon 28mm f2.8 AE: Soft in the extreme corners even when stepped down, great contrast, some CA (more than the pentax K), nice colours. The MM version of this lens is supposed to be much better than the AE version.

 

I have done some comparisons on my website:

http://www.ashleywootton.com/28mm-landscape-lens-comparison-test/

 

As for adapters:

The pentax K 28mm f3.5 works well with the Fotga PK-NEX adapter

The Pentax-m 28mm f3.5 did not work with the Fotga Adapter (it wouldn't fit), though it did work perfectly with a generic, no-brand adapter.

The Carl Zeiss distagon works well with the Fotga CY-NEX adapter.

 

Another lens worth looking at is the Canon FD 24mm f2.8. I found that a cheapo no-brand adapter worked best with this lens - it didn't focus to infinity with several other adapters.

I have been through loads of FD to E-Mount adapters and there is so much variation, even between different copies of the same adapter, that you may have to try a few different ones.

[Changman201]

How wide can you typically go before you get barrel distortion?

[addicted2light]

How wide can you typically go before you get barrel distortion?

 

Barrel or pincushion distortions are a function of the optical scheme of a lens, so you could have barrel distortion even on a 300mm. What you're referring to I guess is instead the "stretching" of the image at the sides given by the compression of a vast angle of view into the frame. 

 

It's a matter of taste, of course, but I find that I start to notice that if I use a lens under 24mm. With some subject (typical: natural landscapes) you can get away even with 20mm, with others (typically: humans on the sides of the frame) the distortion at 28mm will be already noticeable. That said, if you don't have a background with geometrical structures that give the distortion away (so better an empty wall, the sky etc. than a wall with a geometric wallpaper, a scaffolding etc.) and you keep your subject in the smack center of the frame you can sometimes get away even using a 15mm or a 16mm fisheye.

[0phil]

I use a 20mm Nikkor and like it a lot.

[pfogle]

The only native lens I got was the 28mm f2 Sony, and I'm very happy with it for landscapes. I use legacy glass for everything else.