TSR PhotoSoc (and post your gear thread)

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Particularly like the first one - well done!

I went out to the Highlands again on Sunday and snapped a couple of pictures in Glencoe. The second one is a great example of how to screw up an otherwise really nice image - it's a panorama of two images shot handheld (I don't carry my big tripod into the mountains, and others would be annoyed waiting for me anyway). The right half was shot at 1/25th sec., the left one at 1/15th sec. Left one clearly shows very low contrast and sharpness, probably due to motion blur. I really liked that picture for its lighting and dramatic clouds, but I ruined it with a rookie mistake :banghead:

Thanks!

Just gives you a good excuse to go back and shoot the scene again :wink:

Not sure I would have picked up on that as being the reason for the difference in the image to be honest.

Reply 401

username612415

Urgh, it's been over ten months since I last bought anything photography related, but G.A.S is finally rearing its ugly head again, and I never thought I'd say it but I'm genuinely tempted to move over to mirrorless with the Sony A7. We've got one on display at the store I work at and I tried it on a whim, and really enjoyed it. With the 35mm 2.8 it's comically small in comparison to my 70D/18-35mm combo (it's literally about one third of the weight) but it feels great to use, and having taken a few shots on an SD card I love the image quality. And unlike the majority of mirrorless cameras I don't hate the EVF.

On the one hand I'm planning to apply for a job that would let me do a lot of travelling if I was lucky enough to get it but would require travelling light, and my 18-35mm was used for about 95% of my photography over the last year and I'd quite like to challenge myself to streamlining even further to just a single body and a prime, with the flexibility to add other lenses at a later date. On the other hand, I can't help but worry that I'll miss having a small handful of lenses ready to use at any given time, and a full frame tele is not exactly a cheap prospect.

Decisions decisions :holmes:

Reply 402

dhr90

Would you rather we told you to get it or that what you have is more than good enough? I quite like the idea of a lightweight travel set up myself!

My G.A.S still consists of a 5Dmk3, 40mm pancake, 100-400 mk2 (really not happy with the quality of my 70-200 and 2x teleconverter) and a new tripod/monopod.

Won't be shooting anything for a while now as I put my back out watching and shooting some racing at the weekend :frown:

Reply 403

username612415

Original post by dhr90

I'm not sure :ahee:

It would be a replacement for my current system, I couldn't justify (or, more importantly, afford) having both and the cost of my current gear would cover the costs of the A7 kit and 35mm nicely. This isn't really something I'm trying to "logic" myself into buying, I love my 70D and I don't find myself desiring anything else from it, I just tried the A7 and really really liked it. I think it's just a case of deciding whether I want the flexibility of the multiple lenses I have now, or the simplicity of a single lens setup coupled with a much smaller size and the benefits of full frame. I'm not going to jump on it immediately either way since I'm in no rush this side of Christmas and need to have a proper think about it, but I'm definitely giving it some thought. I think I'll probably sell my ultra-wide by the end of the year either way, I've probably only taken a handful of shots with it all year.

Ouch, hope you recover quickly!

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 404

dhr90

Wait for an xmas sale then. Checked grey market?

I haven't used my ultra wide angle for about a year I think, plans for it though for bonfire night!

Thanks. It is making it very difficult to work too. Just hope my photos are worth the pain :tongue:

Reply 405

username612415

Original post by dhr90

From what I can tell the savings of buying from a reliable grey importer don't beat out the savings I'd get buying from John Lewis with my staff discount right now. Black Friday could be when I make the jump if I've settled on buying it by this time next month, depending on how significant the savings are.

Yeah I'll definitely be keeping it around until bonfire night too! I'm hoping for better weather this year though, last year was awful :P

Reply 406

dhr90

Ah fair enough. What is the staff discount amount? Good point about Black Friday, I may hold off buying anything until then now!

I opted not to go out for them last year due to the weather, but the ones I intended on going to had perfect weather annoyingly. Planning a weekend away for them this year with a detour to photograph my niece as well :smile:

Reply 407

Sir Fox

The A7 IS temptingly affordable by now. The question is whether you can live with questionable ergonomics, worse battery life and not so great AF. Just think about the beautiful lenses and other gear you could buy instead - jumping systems usually results in a loss of image quality first, unless you buy used.

Meanwhile, I'm seeking to replace one of my lenses. I wouldn't exactly call it 'GAS', because what I'd like to replace is the 18-55 Pentax kit lens that I've used for the past five years and firmly believe I have outgrown. Looking for something versatile I can carry up Munros and use for landscapes, general outdoor exploits and climbing.

I have narrowed the selection down to the Pentax HD 16-85 f/3.5-5.6 DC WR and the Sigma 17-50 f/2.8 HSM. Both have very high image quality and quick and silent AF, but while the Sigma is f/2.8, the Pentax trumps it with a more versatile range and weather resistance (biiig deal when you're out in the Highlands). I prefer the Pentax, but the Sigma is almost half the price ...

Reply 408

username612415

Original post by dhr90

12% off electronics, so pretty nice. I'm hoping there will be some decent displays close to me that I can go to, otherwise I live near a pretty large hill (it sounds really unimpressive when described like that :ahee:

) with great views of the next town, so I may just go and sit up and try and get some landscapes with everyone's fireworks going off in the distance.

Reply 409

username612415

Original post by Sir Fox

The ergonomics are fine for me and I don't often go through as many shots in one day as the A7 batteries tend to get (although buying a spare will definitely be the first thing I do), but AF performance is definitely my biggest reservation right now. There's nothing really on the Canon side of things that I've found myself wanting over the last year, it's just a case of deciding which system I think I'll be happier with and, if I manage to get this job, which setup will be more suitable. Ironically I want to stop being so conscious of my gear by stripping down to a more simple kit and trying to make the most of it over several months, which is why the A7/35mm combo is so appealing right now. It's small enough that I can take it everywhere without being too much of a step back from what I'm used to with the 70D control-wise to get frustrating.

Meanwhile, I'm seeking to replace one of my lenses. I wouldn't exactly call it 'GAS', because what I'd like to replace is the 18-55 Pentax kit lens that I've used for the past five years and firmly believe I have outgrown. Looking for something versatile I can carry up Munros and use for landscapes, general outdoor exploits and climbing.

I have narrowed the selection down to the Pentax HD 16-85 f/3.5-5.6 DC WR and the Sigma 17-50 f/2.8 HSM. Both have very high image quality and quick and silent AF, but while the Sigma is f/2.8, the Pentax trumps it with a more versatile range and weather resistance (biiig deal when you're out in the Highlands). I prefer the Pentax, but the Sigma is almost half the price ...

Yeah I wouldn't really consider it GAS either if you've got to a point where you've outgrown your current gear, and your shots are amazing so it would definitely be justified :yep:

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 410

username612415

So after a couple of weeks of playing with the A7 (and getting spurred on by being given a interview for the job working on cruises), I decided to jump in at the deep end and throw everything I had on eBay for a short auction. Everything has now hit their minimums, and if things go well I could be in a position where I can afford an A7 II body rather than the original A7 as I had previously planned, as well as the 35mm. Now to decide if I'd rather have in body image stabilisation and the improved autofocus and tracking, or stick with the A7 and get enough extra cash to afford a nice camera bag and put the rest in the bank :holmes:

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 411

dhr90

That was quicker than I thought :tongue:

I would go for the A7 II every single time, it gets a lot of people raving about it on the canonrumours forums, and the A7 was pretty damn good to start with!

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Reply 412

username612415

Original post by dhr90

That was quicker than I thought :tongue:

I would go for the A7 II every single time, it gets a lot of people raving about it on the canonrumours forums, and the A7 was pretty damn good to start with!

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Haha I had been thinking about it for a couple of weeks before posting about it, and after getting the interview I just thought I'd go for it :ahee:

Everything sold well and once I get the stuff posted I'll have no issues affording the A7 II and prime, so that's probably what I'm going to jump in on :yep:

Reply 413

dhr90

Will be interesting to see how you get on with it! Besides, who needs money in the bank when you have in body IS anyway :biggrin:

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Reply 414

username612415

Original post by dhr90

Will be interesting to see how you get on with it! Besides, who needs money in the bank when you have in body IS anyway :biggrin:

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Well I always told myself I would only spend whatever my current gear would sell for, it just happened to sell for more than I was expecting :ahee:

I'm not in a bad position money-wise so I don't need the extra cash (I had plans to move out but if I'm going to be living on boats for 10+ months of the year I think I'll delay that for a bit!), so it doesn't bother me spending the extra for the II as long as it doesn't touch my original bank balance :h:

Not to watch PayPal intently until they release the funds :teeth:

Reply 415

dhr90

What is the job you're going for?

You could have kept some of the Canon lenses if you got the adapter to fit the Sony system. Can't recall its name now...

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Reply 416

username612415

Original post by dhr90

What is the job you're going for?

You could have kept some of the Canon lenses if you got the adapter to fit the Sony system. Can't recall its name now...

Posted from TSR Mobile

It's a company that handle sales and retail staff for a lot of major cruise lines in Europe.

Adapted lenses is definitely something I'll take advantage of in the future, but for now I'm still intent on trying to spend a whole year with just a prime!