New Sony lenses

Discussion of lenses, brand or independent, uses and merits
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Dusty
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by Dusty »

Clapping? I'm giving a standing ovation!

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An a700, an a550 and couple of a580s, plus even more lenses (Zeiss included!).
PhotoTraveler
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by PhotoTraveler »

Don, Barry,

Can you both drop it an move on. For once I think on the lens aspects Don has merit in his post, and Barry is off track on not getting it. But can we leave it at that and not have this thread get high jacked by endless back and forth. The rest of us don't want to see this. We want a thread to read. Not watch 2 people shout at each other with threads post that get longer and longer.

You both need to learn how to just drop it and walk away. General basics of Forum conversation, go back and forth once or twice, but if you are completely disagreeing, just walk away, there is nothing left to be said that will get anyone anyplace.

Don't go destroying threads because of such things.
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KevinBarrett
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by KevinBarrett »

Sonolta wrote:I am NEVER concerned with you Barry
See any inconsistency with the rest of the post here?

Anyway, APS-C users buy primes because they want to use the same tools the pros use. Pros are NOT going to use primes marketed to amateurs.
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bfitzgerald
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by bfitzgerald »

I rest my case ;-)

This is my fav quote:

"The Sony A700 has shown me too many watercolor paintings at higher ISOs. If I want watercolor paintings I will buy a Fuji F30 and put it in my pocket"

Brand bashing??
Last edited by bfitzgerald on Tue Mar 03, 2009 11:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
PhotoTraveler
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by PhotoTraveler »

Well, I pulled out my KM 28-75 for further study.

First, it doesn't have a window on it, so if that is a window, that's a big change. I'm thinking it's just markings and it's shinny there.

The part line on that lens looks about the same spot as the KM but they have shown the grip rubber near the end of the lens, not next to the part line like the KM.

On the KM, the front element/filter sticks past the side of the lens, it's the biggest part of the lens, pretty noticeable. That lens it's very noticably smaller than the barrel of the lens. So something has changed. Either they made the whole thing fatter, or the front is different. The lens shown does not have the inside ring on the front glass with the lens info. hat ring is 5mm wide if they took the lens from 67mm threads down to 62mm to standardize it, that's right where you would see it. As clearly KM wasn't worried about it before. This would also make the front stick inside the barrel OD a bit more as shown.

The KM version also has no switch. Something is down there. There is a visible change in shape.

I don't doubt it would be related, but I think it might be a heavy cosmetic job. Look at the sony 55-200 ("old one"), they changed the filter threads on that from the tamron to make it 55mm to be standardized. I think they did the same here.

I wouldn't put it past being a major revision of the tamron, maybe they got the optics, and gave it SSM (makes it fatter), and change the front ring size a bit.

They can do that and not hurt the ZA. The ZA has better range, probably better build, the Zeiss name. A lens like this just reduces demands for the ZA prices to come down, lets Sony let them remain high since with cheaper models around, no one can say there isn't options.

Sony needs a decent kit lens for A700, A900 this would do it. They may also be finding they just can't crank out ZA lens in large volumes, so they need to sell less of them. Look how long it's taking some of these to come to market. They very well are trying to shift demand while they get capacity up.
David Kilpatrick wrote:
PhotoTraveler wrote: I'm not so sure the 28-75 is the same lens. It's shaped different, looks slimmer, or it's longer (pick one). David is right the front glass looks similar, but everything else doesn't. It almost looks like the distance window is at the front of the lens. And it looks to have a switch on it down lower. Sony may have done some serious re-work, maybe SSM, maybe they changed the front filter ring to a common size.
It looks like the same 67mm to me, right down to the bayonet. Also, the front focus window is exactly where it should be if the Tamron/KM design is changed - same position of focus ring. And the focus lock is just the same addition compared to KM, the Tamron has it - different position, maybe. Overall it looks too much the Tamron not to be a revision of the lens (zoom barrel and focus placing, overall size, lock) - but that does not mean it is identical.

However, knowing Sony, I'll bet this proves to be a straight cosmetic/minor tweak variant of the Tamron selling for around £450 (where the CZ 24-70 is £1100+) to allow future Alpha 900 or 900v2, 900cheapie kits.

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KevinBarrett
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by KevinBarrett »

bfitzgerald wrote:I rest my case ;-)

This is my fav quote:

"The Sony A700 has shown me too many watercolor paintings at higher ISOs. If I want watercolor paintings I will buy a Fuji F30 and put it in my pocket"

Brand bashing??
I find this most amusing because Don so often manipulates his pictures to look like paintings anyway! Perhaps he favors oils?
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KevinBarrett
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by KevinBarrett »

My mistake...we see them so often on here.

Image

DPReview has a picture of the new concept telephoto wearing it's lens hood. The orange band isn't half bad...it's surely distinctive.
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douglasf13
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by douglasf13 »

Agreed, Phototraveler. I think this might be a differently designed 28-75, with SSM, which would explain that apparent switch on the side of the lens.
Cameron
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by Cameron »

I'm glad to see Sony produce new telephoto lenses. I can't imagine it without the SSM. It looks the size of the 400 f/4.5 but would love to see it at f/4. It's not as large as the 600mm for sure.
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by alexramos7 »

That lenses, specially the DT 55-200, are very add.

If the 18-55mm has SSM and this new 55-200 too is very probably that Sony is thinking to put LV and HD video through main sensor and contrast AF on a new entry-level camera.
The 28-75mm (if SSM) would complement to the 70-300SSM for FF advance amateurs insted to 24-105mm f/4.

I hope the 55-200 has SSM and AF limiter, I bought a new (actual) Sony 55-200 for $109 in CircuitCity, but is this new 55-200 is better, I will sell my new lens... :D
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by peterottaway »

Firstly, I think it is time for some contributors to let the past with Don go - regardless of whom you wish to blame.

On to the topic about the lenses that Sony has sort of announced. I think that Sony has been too cute by half in it's announcement in that it has failed to provide sufficient practical information and just turned things into a guessing game. If they wanted to set off the the bulletin board traffic then they have a winner, but otherwise it's pure piffle.

I have no issue with Sony updating/upgrading the sort of lenses that will sell more A200/A300 type cameras

As I have decided to stay with the APS-C format and own a A700 my main complaint (apart from the fact that I would have bought a macro 55 or 60mm but not a 30mm macro) is the lack of good quality DT glass from Sony as opposed to what would be available to me if I had bought a Canon 50D or a Nikon D90.

I have had the opportunity recently to try the Tokina 11-16, 16-50 and 50-135 on a Nikon D90 and I was impressed by what I saw. Yes I really like the CZ 16-80 on my A700 and I could buy the new Sigma 10-20 just announced. But until Sony either buys in a group like this or provides their own solutions, then they will be very much just a second string player admittedly with some claims for improvement.
Cameron
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by Cameron »

Gimme an 400 or 500 and the 600mm w/SSM and an update to the A900 software for decent iso/asa noise to 1000 like the A700 and I will be very pleased with Sony. As I know it will eventually come, instant gratification is always nice!
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by PhotoTraveler »

DPR added 2 new photos of the other lenses.

All have MF/AF switches. So all are SSM (or at least in-lens motors). The question now is are they Ring motors, or did Sony go darkside and go micro motors. If they are ring SSM, that's cool. If they are micro motors in the lens, that's lame.

Also on the 28-75, it definitely looks tamron based, my question is why the focus distance ticks don't work the same as my KM. The sony claims 3 feet is longer than 1 meter. Also it implies a longer minimum focus distance, it only goes down to 1.5 feet. the KM went to 1.2 feet and 0.33m
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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by David Kilpatrick »

The Tamron and KM focus scales went in opposite directions on many lenses (the 17-35mm could not be changed), and were differently scaled. The minimum focus marking may not mean the actual min focus. This was a Tamron lens where the focus scale direction could not be changed to match Minolta's standard (infinity at the right hand end as viewed) but was stuck in Nikon-land (other direction) and KM were unable to modify the mechanism. Note the minimum focus marks on this comparison:

Image

From my use of the Tamron and KM a couple of years ago - now look at this:

Image

From dPreview PMA Sony report http://www.dpreview.com/articles/pma2009/Sony/ - note that the genuine Sony lens on the right has the focus scale in the correct direction, the rebadged Tamron (sorry, that bezel on the front is just as wide as the rim on the original!) has the old focus ring, the old scale direction, and it's just very vaguely marked with distances. It is as far as I can tell just what I said it was - the Tamron in a new skin, same mechanism, they have not even been able to conform to their focus direction. It does have an AF/MF switch, but this may because it's a pre-production model of a planned SSM version - the focus scale is probably a mockup, using a Tamron inside. It may even end up with the correct direction focus scale, either that, or they have simply fitted an AF/MF switch to the lens and it is not SSM - no reason why that can not be done.

Also, note the rim bezel on the Nikon Tamron versionm, left, with no writing - looks slimmer than the KM bezel with writing:

Image

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Re: New Sony lenses

Unread post by PhotoTraveler »

I know the ring silly ness on the old KM.

What I find amusing is the 1 meter verses 3 feet goof on the Sony
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