Garbage Bins

I often wonder what would happen to our living space when we can no longer economically get rid of the increasingly large amount of garbage we produce. A city of a few million people can generate an unbelievable amount of trash. Already, in Toronto, we ran out of landfills, and we were trucking some of our trash to Michigan in the US but that had to stop few years ago, as the Americans had enough of our junk. Now, we are still looking for a site to dump the waste. It will be only a matter of time before the new site fills up, and then what? What would happen 200 years, or 500 years from now? Unless we have fusion engines that uses trash as fuel, we'd better look for a better solution.

Garbage Bins - NEX-6 & Sigma Mini-Wide 28mm f2.8 @f8, Contax Mount. Click for larger

Canon FD 20mm f2.8 - Second Outing

After more than a month of working mostly from home, I have started working in the office again. One of the advantage of working in the office is the opportunity to take pictures in my lunch hour.  The weather was relatively warm today so it was a good day to go out and do some shooting.

The 20mm lens may seem very wide but on the APS-C sensor, it's equivalent to 30mm; a mini wide angle. It's wide enough as a normal wide angle, but not so wide that's it's hard to control. The Canon 20mm f2.8 is quite a nice lens. I intended to test its edge performance today, so that I can compare it to the Sigma 19mm f2.8. At wide apertures, the Canon FD 20mm f2.8 seems a bit better at the corners. In fact, it almost as good as the center (not true outer edges of course, due to the crop sensor of the NEX-6), but the 19mm Sigma has an adge in the middle, which is very sharp at f2.8. I think the bokeh is also nicer on the Sigma at wide open. Over all, I enjoy using the Canon FD 20mm f2.8 lens. It's nicely build and focuses very smoothly, and optically very good.

Bokeh - NEX-6 & Canon FD 20mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Waiting - NEX-6 & Canon FD 20mm f2.8 @ f2.8. Click for larger.

Taxis - NEX-6 & Canon FD 20mm f2.8.

Sigma E-Mount 19mm f2.8 - Photo Set

The Sigma 19mm f2.8 is a versatile lens. With an equivalent focal length of 28.5mm on the NEX cameras, it's wide enough for most shooting situations, but not so wide that it's hard to control. I have been shooting with it in the last few days, and I quite like it. The only thing that pulls it back is its corners, when compared to the 30mm f2.8. It's not as sharp and the distortion is slightly worse. Nevertheless, this is all forgiven due tot he low price. It's a nice bargain indeed.

Yellow School Bus - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

The (seemingly) abandoned building - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

The Lock - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Old & New - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8

Italian Wedding Soup

I had a chuckle when my wife saw me converting this picture for this post, and said that the white round circles look like Italian Wedding Soup that she was selling today.  I took this picture while waiting for her to finish work. It was shot through the window. The round white circles were de-focused  rain drops on the window. I thought it looks interesting.

Apologies to Michael, for using the Sigma 30mm f2.8 for this picture :)

Italian Wedding Soup - NEX-6 & Sigma 30mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Voigtlander-Zoomar 36-82mm f2.8 - Another Sample

A little over a year ago, I bought on impulse, the Voigtlander-Zoomar 36-82mm f2.8 lens, for not a small amount of money (for me). The main reason for the purchase, of course, was because this lens was the world's first zoom lens in 35mm format and it was introduced in 1959. Being the first zoom lens, and a constant f2.8 through out the zoom range, naturally, there were many compromises in design. It's not the sharpest f2.8 zoom lens around, and the edges won't win any awards, especially on full frame, but it's such a beauty, both in design and workmanship!

Even with some limitations, the lens can still produce some nice pictures with certain subjects. Not bad for a lens that's more than 50 years old.  I intend to use it more often, now that I have made a DKL to E-Mount adatper with helicoid for close focus. I think it will make some nice close pictures.

Grand Tree - NEX-6 & Voigtlander-Zoomar 36-82mm f2.8

Sigma 28mm f2.8 YS Mount - Sample Image

While we are on the subject of Sigma lenses, I might as well tried the manual focus Sigma lenses that have been neglected. No, I don't have many of them, just three that I remember having, and one of them has problem with a stuck aperture, and two of them have the same 28mm focal length, but different lenses.

My copy of the Sigma-Z 28mm f2.8 has a 62mm filter thread; way larger than most other 28mm f2.8 lenses which have 52mm or 55mm, or even 49mm filter threads. The other YS Mount sister Sigma lens, XQ 35mm f2.8, has the same filter size of 62mm. So, the Sigma 50mm f1.4, having a 77mm filter size, is not that unusual; they started this trend decades ago.

Unfortunately, this lens has a dusty, almost hazy interior, which makes pictures taken wide open very low in contrast and hazy. The lens needs to be cleaned to perform at its designed optical quality. At f2.8, the lens is actually quite sharp, even the edges, on the APS-C sensor. I would like to have the lens cleaned and see what it can do. As the way it is, it's ok when strong, directional light is not present.

Stairs - NEX-6 & Sigma-Z Multi-coated 28mm f2.8 YS Mount @f2.8

Sigma E-Mount 19mm f2.8 Shoots Kensington Market

Personally, I think the Kensington Market in Toronto is a quirky, off-beat place. Many of its buildings are old and run-down, but at the same time, many more are uniquely decorated and colorful. The shops sell a variety of products from second hand bicycles to freshly grown produce with many restaurants, cafes and specialty food stores spread through out the market.  What strikes most first time visitors is the many wonky shop names and interesting painted store fronts. Definitely a great place for photos.

The lens I used for this shoot was the E-Mount Sigma 19mm f2.8. It is the sister lens of the 30mm f2.8, which I am very enamored of. Although the lens is very sharp in the center at f2.8, its corner sharpness is not as good as the 30mm f2.8, even when stopped down. At f8, the corners are acceptably sharp, but not quite up there to the level of the 30mm. The barrel distortion is also quite a bit worse as well, but miles ahead compared to the kit zoom lens at the same focal length and it's quite a bit better than the Sony E-16mm f.28 pancake. I know it's not fair to compare a very wide angle (19mm) to a mini wide (30mm). The design is different. The wider the lens, the more challenges the designers must overcome to achieve a balance of cost vs quality; both material and optical. At $99, it's a very good deal.

Kensington - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Truck & the run-down house/shop - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

What colors - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

One of the many "painted houses" - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Bistro - NEX-6 & Sigma 19mm f2.8. 

Sigma E-Mount 30mm f2.8 - Mini Review

Of all the auto focus lenses I have ever bought, the Sigma E-mount 30mm f2.8 comes up on top of the value for the money category. I bought this lens along with the 19mm f2.8 when B&H had a dual lens deal for $199. Essentially, the cost of the lens is about $130 with taxes/shipping to Canada. It's indeed a great deal, especially when you factor in the exceptionally good optics that it possesses.

Build Quality
The lens has a metal mount, and high quality plastic lens barrel. It does not look or feel cheap. Compared to most plastic kit lenses, this one actually stands out as of very good build. For normal use, it will last a long time, I am sure. The electronics will probably die before you will see mechanical problems. It strikes a good balance between cost and quality of materials used.

Downtown Toronto - NEX-6 & Sigma 30mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Size
I think many people are disappointed that for this focal length and maximum aperture of f2.8, the lens is not pancake sized. It's just very slightly longer than the Sony E16-50mm kit lens, but almost twice that of the E16mm f2.8 pancake lens. Do I find this (relatively) larger size an issue? Not at all. The NEX-6 is not exactly a pocketable camera, even with a very thin pancake lens, it would be difficult to fit it in your pocket. I think the Sigma 30mm lens looks nice on the NEX-6. Would I like it smaller? Definitely, if image quality is not compromised.

Focus Speed
This is one aspect of the lens/camera combination that is disappointing. The NEX-6 is not exactly a speed demon when it comes to focusing speed. I can feel the difference between the Sony 50mm f1.8 OSS and this lens. I am not sure if it's due to the very cold (-10c) temperature, but this morning when I was shooting, even in very good light, sometimes it took a long time to achieve focus. It's not a deal breaker, but frustrating. One other thing. This lens does not support the new phase-detect auto focus feature of the NEX-6/5R. Not that it really matters much.

St. Lawrence Flea Market - NEX-6 & Sigma 30mm f2.8. Click for larger

Image  Quality
A very cheap lens that does not produce quality pictures is not a good deal, regardless how little it costs. Fortunately, the Sigma 30mm f2.8 is one of the sharpest lenses I own. In fact, the lens out-resolves the 16 MP sensor by a such a large margin, that in many situations, moire is readily more apparent than other lenses. Already very sharp at f2.8, even around the edges. Stopping down improves sharpness but not by much. One has to wonder how Sigma could design and make a lens this good, and sells it for so little. If this lens is a bit wider, say 35mm equivalent, I would probably have it on the camera most of the time. It's one of the best bargains in auto focus lenses today.

What Don't I Like About This Lens?
Very little. I would like it to be a bit faster, both focus wise and in terms of maximum aperture, but then it wouldn't be selling at this ridiculously low price. The noise from the lens when not powered, is unnerving, but knowing that it was part of the design with a linear motor, I am sure it is not a problem. Also, this lens, unlike almost every lens Sigma ever sold, does not come with a hood. It's true that flare resistance is excellent on this lens, but I still would prefer to have a hood on it, mostly for protection of the front element.

Cement truck - NEX-6 & Sigma 30mm f2.8 @ f2.8.

Old & New - NEX-6 & Sigma 30mm f2.8.

Sony E-Mount 50mm f1.8 OSS - Some Observations

The Sony E-mount 50mm f1.8 OSS lens has been one of my most wanted lens for my NEX camera system ever since it was announced.  As far as I know, it's the first with a lens-based stabilization 50mm lens in the world, and at a reasonable price. Finally, shortly after I got my NEX-6, I bought 50mm f1.8 OSS, and have been using it on occasions.

In a word, this is a fantastic lens, in terms of its optical properties. Extremely sharp lens even wide open. I use this lens at f1.8 most of the time and find that the only reason to stop it down is for more depth of field, or lower the shutter speed. I haven't shot any brick walls with it to check corner sharpness or distortion; only have used it as I normally would and it has not disappointed me, optically. It's a far departure from the serviceable, but mediocre 16mm f2.8 pancake.

The optical stabilization system works very well, in still photo or video. In fact, this is one of the best features besides the excellent optics. Very effective and easily gives two to three stops of usefulness. Despite my wish to have in-body stabilization on cameras, I still prefer in-lens stabilization system. It's far more effective as the system is tailored and optimized to the specific lens.

In terms of build, it's quite acceptable. The lens is surprisingly light weight despite the use of metal for the mount and outer lens barrel. It's no Leica in build quality, but few lenses are. For that, you will have to fork out a lot of cash, but I think it's a good compromise between cost, weight, and build quality.

The only gripe I have is the auto focus speed. It's painful if you are used to DSLRs or the later Olympus/Panasonic models. To be fair, the slow speed is probably not totally the fault of the lens, but the current NEX system as a whole. It's worse on wake-up from power save mode when you have to rack the focus from closes to infinity. If you need to shoot something quickly, and the camera is in sleep mode, by the time the camera wakes up and sets the lens in focus, the opportunity is often gone. I think this is the biggest problem for the NEX system at the moment. I am so used the quickness of my 1D III when I need auto focus, the NEX-5/5N/6 just drives me crazy. The only thing that saves my insanity is the fact that I shoot more manual focus lenses on the NEX-6 than AF lenses.

The Piano - Sony NEX-6 & 50mm f1.8 OSS @ f1.8. Click for larger

Walking the dog - Sony NEX-6 & 50mm f1.8 OSS @ f2. Click for larger.

Tree - Sony NEX-6 & 50mm f1.8 OSS @ f1.8.

Happy Valentine

For all you love birds out there, happy Valentine's day! I think everyday should be a Valentine's day and there is no reason to only celebrate love once a year :) May you and yours have a wonderful day!

Happy Valentine [2007] - Canon 20D & Tamron SP 17mm f3.5.