Allan Bell Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 Carried out a test with the 24-70 f4 Zeiss lens on my a6000 body. The edge sharpness fall off is so bad even at f8 that it was showing in images on the crop sensor. So that lens has to go. It looks like I may still be looking at getting the Sony 24-105 f4 after all. Come on Alamy sell a few more of my images at a good price I need a new lens. Allan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 14, 2020 Author Share Posted September 14, 2020 Test the weight and bulk before you buy, Allan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 1 hour ago, Ed Rooney said: Test the weight and bulk before you buy, Allan. Thanks Edo. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 4 hours ago, Allan Bell said: Carried out a test with the 24-70 f4 Zeiss lens on my a6000 body. The edge sharpness fall off is so bad even at f8 that it was showing in images on the crop sensor. So that lens has to go. It looks like I may still be looking at getting the Sony 24-105 f4 after all. Come on Alamy sell a few more of my images at a good price I need a new lens. Allan Hmmm... selling a few more images might not cover it these days. Have you tried playing around with positioning the main focus point? I find that even with the humble 16-55 kit lens on the a6000, I can consistently get sharp edges -- even at 16mm -- if I move the main focus point away from the central region of the frame in order to compensate for field curvature, which can be excessive with wide zooms. Using DMF to tweak the AF can really help combat sharpness fall-off as well (IME anyway). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marianne Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 (edited) Had hoped to have been using one in Europe this past spring and summer, but with no travels I never bought it and can't justify it either though I'd love it. It's $1198 here in NY and used seem to be going for between $950-1050 ... I can't see earning that back either. That 18-105 sounds like a good compromise when it's safe to travel again. And until then I need to baby my old back and neck. @Ed Rooney It's incredible how once you switch to mirrorless all those old Nikon muscles seem to atrophy! Have fun and maybe check out a strap like the BlackRapid - it will let you attach a cross shoulder strap via the tripod screw and still keep your wrist strap on the camera so you can switch between the two and balance the strain on your neck and back. Between arthritis and wrecked vertebrae I do that with all but my lightest lenses and it helps me keep going without having to quit due to pain or regret the next day. BlackRapid straps can be pricey but I think there are similar straps available for less. BlackRapid has a slightly less expensive lightweight series that might work with your kit but in any event if you haven't seen them before it will help explain what I'm talking about. Edited September 14, 2020 by Marianne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 15, 2020 Author Share Posted September 15, 2020 (edited) If the specs work for any of you, consider the lighter, less expensive Sony 28-70 f3.5-5.6 FE zoom. I still own one. It is surprisingly sharp and will travel a lot better than the longer 1.5 pound 24-105 f4 FE. Let me say here that all my lenses are sharp; I have never had an image fail Alamy QC because of a lack of sharpness. This was taken with my 28-70. Edited September 15, 2020 by Ed Rooney 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 It's time to admit that I've made an expensive mistake in buying this Sony 24-105 f4 zoom. The lens is terrific. I recommend it to all Sony full-frame camera owners as a great street zoom. It is the sharpest zoom I've ever owned. Maybe not the very sharpest lens, but unquestionably the sharpest zoom. It's just not a direction I should have gone in. Like all of us, I have been feeling the many pressures during this pressured time. I'm frustrated with so many things now—climate change, politics, the stock business, subjects I can capture, where to live, ageing, and the virus. Instead of moving back towards using my a6000 as my go-to camera, I should have bought a new RX100/6 or VII. These pocket Sonys have served me well. And my a6000? It gets used and remains important. The Sony 10-18 ultra-wide and the Sony budget 28-70 fit nicely into my small bag and do a great job on the Alamy editorial stock I produce. I have 5 stars with QC . . . so I have no real quality problems. I made a mistake. Edo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYCat Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 I think these times can make us prone to that sort of error. Mine involves shoes. I'm having trouble with tendonitis on the top of my right foot and it does help to have a shoe that is soft and doesn't press on top but I have just bought some Orthofeet shoes online that don't do the trick and now I have to send them back. Of course, the usual FedEx places are not open at their usual hours and I ended up carrying them around all morning as I did my cat-sitting. But I don't have the virus!! Need to keep thinking of things to be grateful for these days. Paulette Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 I could loan you my 'new' slippers, Paulette. But I'm afraid they might not pass the scrutiny of the virus cops at Customs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 (edited) 10 hours ago, Ed Rooney said: It's time to admit that I've made an expensive mistake in buying this Sony 24-105 f4 zoom. The lens is terrific. I recommend it to all Sony full-frame camera owners as a great street zoom. It is the sharpest zoom I've ever owned. Maybe not the very sharpest lens, but unquestionably the sharpest zoom. It's just not a direction I should have gone in. Like all of us, I have been feeling the many pressures during this pressured time. I'm frustrated with so many things now—climate change, politics, the stock business, subjects I can capture, where to live, ageing, and the virus. Instead of moving back towards using my a6000 as my go-to camera, I should have bought a new RX100/6 or VII. These pocket Sonys have served me well. And my a6000? It gets used and remains important. The Sony 10-18 ultra-wide and the Sony budget 28-70 fit nicely into my small bag and do a great job on the Alamy editorial stock I produce. I have 5 stars with QC . . . so I have no real quality problems. I made a mistake. Edo I prefer the euphemism "learning experiences" (although they seldom are in my case). 🙁 Can you return the expensive beauty at this point? Edited September 20, 2020 by John Mitchell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 no Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 40 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said: no That's unfortunate. Selling a nice lens like that might not be too difficult as long as you're willing to take a bit of a loss. I've always had good luck selling camera equipment on craigslist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 (edited) SH prices to buy that lens are around £900 - £1000 depending on condition. That would mean Edo would get about £600 if he resold it to a dealer or one of the dedicated SH photographic dealers. He may get a bit more from mpb as it is in new condition. (As new). but not a lot more. That reminds me I have sold equipment to mpb at times and one time they emailed me to say that one of the items i had submitted was in better condition than I had listed it at and said they were paying me more for it. At least it sort of proves that mpb are an honest reputable organisation. Allan Edited September 21, 2020 by Allan Bell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 (edited) On 15/09/2020 at 12:17, Sally R said: That's a beautiful image Edo! Better than mine, jealous jealous! Problem is by golden hour I'm usually in a bar. So it only works if the view is from the bar, and IIRC that one isn't. Fortunately this one was. Edited September 21, 2020 by spacecadet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 I was just outside a bar, Mark, with the 28-70 on a tripod. 🙂 Allan, I've bought and sold and traded with MPB, a good company. 😀 John, I was too quick in buying. I won't be so quick in selling, if I do sell. A notice in my lobby yesterday says packages can no longer be left. What next? 🤔 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 7 hours ago, Ed Rooney said: 😀 John, I was too quick in buying. I won't be so quick in selling, if I do sell. A notice in my lobby yesterday says packages can no longer be left. What next? 🤔 Sometimes easy come, but not so easy go. 🙃 I always wonder how transferable warranties are when you sell nearly new equipment. Can the buyer still take advantage of the warranty if you supply him or her with the original purchase receipt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 Sorry to hear that the new lens is not the best solution for you Edo. I moved in the opposite direction and bought an RX100 5 and I do appreciate its compactness and the quality of the images considering the size of the sensor. However the fact remains that it isn't as reliable a camera as my a6500. I've had to mess around reducing sky noise on some shots, while I've had to reject some shots - at the long end - due to unsharpness. I'm not sure if this is a characteristic of the lens, or down to my ineptitude with the auto focus. The photos are not woefully unsharp but in that grey area of could have done better and potential QC fail, and not of a quality that I'd want customers to see. It was bought as a camera to carry when not specifically out to take photos, and in that sense it works for me, but today, with sunshine predicted it will be the larger camera and bag of lenses that I will have to stagger around with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted September 22, 2020 Author Share Posted September 22, 2020 I've not had a sharpness issue with either the RX100/3 or 5 at 70mm. I do not like what I get from either 24-200 zoom on the long ends of my RX100/6 or RX10. However, I don't like the viewfinder on the 5. The 6 pops up and down with one smooth move. The only time I use the rear screen with these pocket Sonys is when at shooting food. For Street I need the visual intimacy of a viewfinder. Different strokes for different folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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