Rainy Day and a Thought on the Sony A7

After some of the coldest days I have experienced in Toronto, with a -40c on Tuesday with wind chill, and today, we have got rain. Yup, around 7c above zero. In fact, today feels more like a spring day than a winter day. However abnormal, I welcome the warmth. However, I do worry that if the snow is not melted completely in the next couple days, we will have icy roads again when the water freezes up.

A side from the weather, the Sony A7 has been on my mind. No, I DO NOT NEED IT! But, I can't help it, regardless of how much I tried to talk some senses into myself. I think I will get one eventually, probably in the spring. Winter has never been very productive for me photographically. I think this Taylor-Hobson 75mm f2 would be very nice on the A7. It would cover the full frame sensor, though the edges aren't that great. But then again, I do not need sharp edges with a 75mm lens. Very few situations would necessitate sharp edges from portrait lenses with my shooting style.

Can't wait.

Park Bench - Sony NEX-6 & Taylor-Hobson Ortal 75mm f2 TV Lens. Click for larger.

Infrared Photography with Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8

So far, most of my infrared photography was done with the Pentax-M 20mm f4 lens, and mostly at infinity. The reason is because with infrared photography, what you see focused in the viewfinder is not what is actually focused in the image, because the viewfinder is calibrated for visible light and focus point for infrared is not the same as visible light . This combo works perfectly when I set it to infinity focus.

But, it's time to try other lenses and different kinds of pictures. I picked the Flektogon 35mm f2.8, for no particular reason. Only because it was already there with the adapter on. I tried some pictures with close focus. Close focus is always a hit and miss with infrared, especially with large aperture settings. I use focus bracketing to at least get one or two pictures in focus; take a series of pictures with slightly different focus points. The results turned out quite satisfactory.

Kaiser's Crown - Canon 20D IR & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8 @ f2.8. Click for larger.

Leslie Groove Park - Canon 20D IR & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Kaiser's Crown - Canon 20D IR & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8.

Reading in the park - Canon 20D IR & Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.8