Amateur Photographer - UK (2020-08-22)

http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk 47

http://www.parkcameras.com

01444237060

Allusedproducts

Sony

FE35mm
f/2.8ZA
£339

from

excellentcondition before oin onsale

aretested&cleaned

Ataglance

●Sensor24MPCMOS,35.8x23.9mm

●SensitivityISO100-25,600

●AutofocusHybrid,117-pointphase

detect,25-pointcontrastdetect

●Continuousshooting5fps

●VideoFullHDupto 60p

●Reardisplay3in,1.23m-dottiltLCD

●Viewfinder2.36m-dotelectronic,

0.71xmagnification

IN ASSOCIATION WITH PARK CAMERAS

Oneof themainpictorial

advantagesof full-frame

oversmallersensor

formatsis itsincreased

abilityto achieveshallow

depthof eldwhen

shootingat large

apertures,whichis

consideredto be

particularlydesirable

whenphotographing

people.Sony’sFE85mm

F1.8is a classic

short-telephotoportrait

primethatdeliverssharp

imageswitha good

degreeof background

blur,butwithoutbreaking

thebank.To matchit on

APS-Cyou’dneeda

56mmf/1.2;onlyFujilm

makessucha thing,and

it’sconsiderablymore

expensive.Rapidinternal

focusingis provided,with

fullsupportforSony’s

Real-TimeEyeAFonmore

recentcameras.At 371g

and82mmin length,this

f/1.8opticis also

considerablymore

manageablethanSony’s

hugeFE85mmF1.4GM,

whichweighsmorethan

twiceasmuch.

FE Lenses

Pretty much the smallest

and lightest ‘proper’

autofocus lens that you

can get for Sony’s

full-frame E-mount

mirrorless cameras, this

is a great option for when

you want to travel

super-light. It’s also

extremely affordable

when compared to its

Sony equivalent. Despite

its compact dimensions

• just 33mm long and a
  featherweight 85g


• Samyang has managed
  to  t in an optical system
  that includes 7 elements
  in 6 groups, including two
  aspherical elements and
  one made of high-
  refractive index (HR)
  glass. In addition, its

internal focus design

delivers reasonably

snappy AF. Images are

pretty good at f/2.8, with

the sweet spot of

maximum sharpness

being two stops down at

f/5.6. It’s a compelling

option for photographers

who want full-frame

image quality in the

smallest possible

package.

Sony FE 85mm F1.8

● £409

Samyang AF 35mm F2.8 FE

● £169

The shutter operates with a loud clack,

and while the camera sports no fewer

than four dials to set exposure, the

control layout is frankly a bit of a mess.

Battery life is unimpressive, but

thankfully third-party spares are cheap

and easy to  nd.

Lenses old and new

The Alpha 7 is compatible with a large

range of full-frame E-mount lenses, not

just from Sony but also third-party

makers such as Samyang, Sigma,

Tamron and Zeiss. Even better, it will

also work with a vast array of old

manual-focus lenses originally designed

for 35mm  lm SLRs and range nders

via mount adapters, making it a great

way of reviving optics from long-dead

systems. The electronic view nder

previews exactly how your shot will turn

out, in terms of brightness, colour and

depth of  eld, and the tilting screen is

handy for shooting at high or low angles.

When shooting in raw, you can expect

image quality that’s not all that far

behind contemporary models, with

excellent dynamic range at low ISOs,

and very respectable high-ISO

performance. JPEG quality isn’t so great,

though, and has been much improved

on subsequent generations. The Alpha 7

was on sale new for a very long time,

which means that it’s quite plentiful on

the second-hand market, and relatively

easy to  nd in good condition. If you can

live with its quirks, it’s one of the best

ways to get into shooting full-frame

on a budget.

The Alpha 7 delivers

full-frame image quality

on a budget

Sony Alpha 7, 24-70mm f/4 at 24mm,

1/60sec at f/16, ISO 1000