This is a guest posy from Dierk Topp:

Shooting very high ISO and get clean images with (almost) no noise

A few days ago I saw a great tutorial about achieving high ISO images with low or almost no noise. I found it at lenswork.com, my favorite photo site with incredible picture series. The link to the tutorial follows at the end.

In astro photography this method seems to be very common, but using it for any hand held shooting is something different.

The main idea is, that by stacking multiple shots of exactly the same scene or object the different noise patterns of the images get combined and disappear. This can be very effective with high ISO and especially with small sensors. You set the camera on Hi continuous shooting and shoot a series of pictures. You will get a feeling for the amount of pictures depending of the exposure time it may take a while.

I got so exited, that I went out and started shooting the Christmas tree in front of our beautiful townhall with up to ISO 6.400. After learning the processing in PS I found, that I should try even higher ISO the next day. The problem that day was, that it was very windy and the tree and the flags where moving a lot.

Here is my first test shot
made with the Sony A7RII and the Sony 16-35mm Vario-Tessar T FE F4 ZA OSS hand held 1/20 sec. at ISO 6.400, stacked from 12 images

Bernd Smid from our A7rIII group tested the [shoplink 65175 ebay]Nikon 400mm f/3.5[/shoplink] autofocus performance using the [shoplink 65176]Techard adapter[/shoplink]:

And here is an autotofocus test with the Canon 85mm:

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Sony A7rIII at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Calumet DE, Wex UK. Photo Porst Neuwied. Sony Netherland. Sony Australia. Sony Japan.
Sony 24-105mm at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Amazon DE, Calumet DE, Wex UK.

Join the A7rIII facebook group to discuss the camera features and tests.

Kai: “Sony’s latest water-resistant, shock-resistant camera looks set to be tough competition for the GoPro Hero 6 with its bigger 1″ sensor and S-Log2 but can it outdo the most popular action camera around?”

And here is the RX0 presentation video from Sony Europe:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J25zECy6uD4

Evan sent me his latest video showing INCREDIBLE tethering speeds of the a7RIII:

Shooting tethered with the Sony a7RIII over USB-C to a Microsoft Surface Book 2, using Profoto B1 lights, I test the tether speed of single shot for the first part of the shoot and then burst speed in the second part.

Sony A7rIII at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Calumet DE, Wex UK. Photo Porst Neuwied. Sony Netherland. Sony Australia. Sony Japan.

And this is a picture I took today with my A7rIII:

100% crop from an image shotwith the new #sonya7rIII and Zeiss 55mm FE #sony #sonyalpha @sonyalpha

Ein Beitrag geteilt von Andrea Photographer-Explorer (@andrea_pizzini_photographer) am 12. Dez 2017 um 23:53 Uhr

New A7rIII video tests roundup:

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Sony A7rIII at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Calumet DE, Wex UK. Photo Porst Neuwied. Sony Netherland. Sony Australia. Sony Japan.
Sony 24-105mm at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Amazon DE, Calumet DE, Wex UK.

Join the A7rIII facebook group to discuss the camera features and tests.

Imaging Resource really likes the new Sony A7rIII:

Does the Sony A7R III deserve the hype and excitement it has been getting across the photo community? After several days shooting with it and numerous hours working with both photos and videos produced by it, I have to say yes, it absolutely does. The Sony A7R III does a fantastic job addressing the concerns fans of the A7R II had, while simultaneously introducing new features perhaps few asked for.
It’s pretty clear that Sony was actively listening and taking notes on what improvements they needed to make to their third-generation A7R camera. This is probably the first camera I’ve personally ever shot with that feels like a true advancement in areas in which its predecessor was decidedly weak.

Also Jim Kasson is happy with the camera:

The camera is faster and more responsive than the a7RII in almost every way, which translates to greater confidence and less tension when shooting an event. That seems to include the autofocusing, although I can’t be sure without a real test.

ThePhoBlographer posted their full review too:

I mean, what is there to not like. Anything that isn’t that great about the Sony a7r III can be overcome and in no way do I see it being a burden in the long run. The Sony a7r III is replacing my Sony a7 as my main camera, although I still still keep the original due to just how good it still is. I recommend the Sony a7r III for working professionals and semi-professionals. And if you get it, I strongly recommend using it with Capture One to make the most of it.

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Sony A7rIII at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Calumet DE, Wex UK. Photo Porst Neuwied. Sony Netherland. Sony Australia. Sony Japan.
Sony 24-105mm at Amazon, Bhphoto, Adorama, BuyDig, FocusCamera, Amazon DE, Calumet DE, Wex UK.

Join the A7rIII facebook group to discuss the camera features and tests.

Opticallimits (former known as Photozone) tested the [shoplink 65031]Zeiss 35mm f/1.4 FE lens[/shoplink]. And the conclusion is a bit disappointing:

It isn’t easy to come to a conclusion about the Zeiss Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA. Technically it has some weaknesses but then we have seen these weaknesses in other representatives of this class (high-speed wide-angle primes). The resolution characteristic is great in the image center straight from f/1.4. However, the image corners are not that hot till about f/2.8. Now does that matter from a real-world perspective? Usually, it doesn’t. If you use the lens at large apertures, the corners are rarely of relevance and, most likely, not on the same focus plane as your main subject anyway.
So if you require such a fast 35mm prime lens, the Zeiss is certainly worth a look. However, if you are willing to look beyond the mainstream, you may also check out the new Samyang AF 35mm f/1.4 FE although keep in mind that Samyang doesn’t really have the best record when it comes to centering quality.

I can’t wait to see Sigma releasing their 35mm f/1.4 lens. If rumors are correct this lens will be also smaller than the Zeiss which for me (as a hiker) is very important.

Buy the Zeiss at [shopcountry 65031].