Phillip Reeve A7r and manual lens test conclusions (Sigma, Minolta MD/MC, Zeiss, Canon FD and Samyang)

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Philip Reeve posted all the test samples and final conclusion at SystemKameraForum.de. I kindly invite you kindly to visit the site. If you don’t speak German I got his permission to repost the results on SAR (translated by me):

Philip is extremely pleased by the lens performance on the A7r. Most lenses work extremely well on the Sony and here is the single evaluation of them:

Sigma 24/2.8: From f/11 you have very sharp corners..
Sigma 24/2.8 images |image detail overview | [shoplink 22453 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Carl Zeiss Biogon 2.8/28: A real disappointment. Massive Vignetting, Color Shift and Smearing on corners.
Carl Zeiss Biogon 2.8/28 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 9804 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Canon FD 35/2: The center is sharp wide open. At medium aperture corner sharpness is increases and shows decent results.
Canon FD 2/35 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22454 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Minolta MD 35/2.8: A real surprise! The Full Frame is sharp at f/2.8. Sharpness increases at f/8.0. Impressive for a lens that costs 15 Euro.
Minolta MD 2.8/35 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22455 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Carl Zeiss Planar 2/45: At f/5.6 the image is perfect.
Carl Zeiss Planar 2/45 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22456 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Carl Zeiss FE 55/1.8: One word: Wow! At f/1.8 very sharp in the center and in corners. At f/5.6 an astonishing performance.
Carl Zeiss FE 1.8/55 images | image detail overview | Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT

Minolta MC 58/1.2: Wide open it shows a certain” character” (not sharp but has a certain flair). Center sharpness is ok from f/2.0. At f/8.0 also corners are sharp.
Minolta MC 58/1.2 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22457 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Samyang 85/1.4: Already good at f/1.4. But corners never are truly impressive even at medium apertures.
Samyang 85/1.4 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22458 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Minolta MC 100/2.5: The lens is 45 years old but shows a very decent result at f/2.5 aperture (even corners are ok!). You will get the best results at f/5.6 aperture.
Minolta MC 2.5/100 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22459 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Minolta MD 100/4: Very good results at f/4.0. Improves a tiny little bit at f/5.6. A very solid performance for a 80 Euro lens.
Minolta MD Macro 4/100 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22460 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Minolta MD 135/2.8: A disappointment. Corners are never sharp at any aperture.
Minolta MD 2.8/135 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22462 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

Minolta MC 200/4: Sharp at all apertures.
Minolta MC 4/200 images | image detail overview | [shoplink 22463 ebay]lens auctions on ebay[/shoplink]

 

Again Thanks Philip and SystemKameraForum.de for posting such an interesting test!

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2% reward on Sony A7-A7r. Sony US eBay deals update: NEX-C3 for $212.

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If you have (or will place soon) an order on the new Sony cameras don’t forget to claim your 2% off at Amazon US (Click here). And if you are on shopping for more Sony NEX and Alpha stuff than check out this:

[shoplink 22443 ebay][/shoplink]
The current Sony eBay deals got extended. You can now buy the Sony Alpha NEX-C3 Digital Camera Body (White) for $212.00 on [shoplink 22443 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]. A new NEX body as cheap as it gets!

Al other current Sony eBay deals:
New $26 price drop: Sony NEX-5R White w/16-50mm Lens 16GB Package for $582.00 on [shoplink 22258 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony NEX-F3 Kit w/ 18-55mm / 55-210mm Lenses Black for $539.00 on [shoplink 22257 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony NEX-7 w/ 18-55mm Lens Black 2 Batteries, UV Filter for $956.00 on [shoplink 22264 ebay]eBay(Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony SLT-A58 w/18-135mm Lens, 32GB & More for $711.00 on [shoplink 22260 ebay]eBay(Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony NEXVG900 (Black) for $3,018.00 on [shoplink 22261 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony RX100 Digital Camera (Black) + 16GB, 2 Batteries + More for $544.00 on [shoplink 22262 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony DSC-RX100 II Digital Camera + 2 Batteries, 16GB & More for $673.00 on [shoplink 22263 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony E-Mount 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 OSS Zoom Lens for $234.00 on [shoplink 22265 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony NEX-VG30H Camcorder w/18-200mm + 2 Batteries, 32GB + More for $2,210.00 on [shoplink 22266 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]
Sony SLT-A99 Black (Body) + 2 Batteries, 32GB, Flash + More for $2,361.00 on [shoplink 22267 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]

Reminder: 20% off on all Zeiss Touit ASP-C E-mount lenses:
The 12mm f/2.8 Touit now sells for $999 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).
The 32mm f/1.8 Touit now sells for $720 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).

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A7r sensor gets DxOmarked (Same result as D800-D800E). And more new reviews.

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DxOmark (Click here) just published the full Sony A7r sensor test. And according to their measuresand ranking system the camera scores the same points as the Nikon D800-D800E (and that for $500 less). And it literally kicks the Canon5DIII in the butt (DxO comparison here). This is what DxO writes about the A7r:

“Although we can’t provide any commentary on image sharpness at this stage in our tests, the sensor in the Sony Alpha 7R performs exceptionally and is on a par with that found in the D800 models. Given the Sony’s small size, low weight and outstanding sensor performance, it’s one of the most intriguing and compelling new additions in recent times.”

And here are more brand new A7r tests:

Cameras.reviewed published their first impression review:

“At first glance, it’s really hard to find fault with the package Sony has put together. Admittedly, the company’s lens roadmap is very ambitious, and Sony has a spotty track record when it comes to actually getting its high-profile releases on store shelves. But if the launch goes smoothly and the A7s are well-received, Sony has a real chance to steal Canon and Nikon’s thunder.”

Sony A7R vs Nikon D800: which full-frame camera should you buy? (Digitalcameraworld):

“It’s easy to scoff at a comparison of a new, as-yet-unproven full-frame mirrorless interchangeable lens camera and a full-frame DSLR that has set the benchmark for sensor performance.
However, it becomes less of a laughing matter when you consider that the Sony A7R delivers the same sensor resolution of the Nikon D800, but in a camera body that’s cheaper and easier to carry (with the right lens), and comes with a wealth of tech that makes it easy to take and share photos.”

What We’re Finding Wrong With the Sony A7 and A7r So Far (ThePhoBlographer):

“When it comes to focus peaking, the accuracy isn’t perfect. Unfortunately, when we use full auto focusing, spot focusing zone, multi, etc. And based on the way that someone would compose a scene, the focusing can be hit or miss. Metering: we’ve found that the system underexposes by a full stop. We’ve been using the A7r a lot. It’s by far our favorite for the image quality that it can deliver when you nail the image absolutely perfectly. However, nailing that image is tougher because the sensor amplifies the slightest issue (such as camera shake) and any other problem by ten fold. We almost feel like anything we do with it requires a tripod.

New A7r image samples can be seen at CameraLabs.

Specs and Preorders in US and Canada (Click on store name to see direct preorder page):
Dedicated Sony announcement page at Amazon US (Click here).
Sony A7r body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony RX10 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 24-70mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 35mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 55mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
70-200mm A-mount at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony A-Mount to E-Mount Lens Adapter at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
Sony A to E adapter with mirror at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
A7/A7r leather case at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
A7/A7r vertical grip at Amazon, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony W Series Battery Charger at Amazon, BHphoto.
Sony FA-CS1M Off-Camera Shoe at BHphoto.
Semi-Hard LCD Screen Protector for A7-A7r at Amazon, BHphoto.

Specs and Preorders in Europe:
Sony A7r body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PTWexUK, WexDE.
Sony A7 body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit Sony  DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony RX10 at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE.
Zeiss 35mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT,
Zeiss 55mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT

Asia:
A7r at Digitalrev
A7 at Digitalrev.
A7 with 28-70mm lens at Digitalrev.

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The super compact E-mount Full Frame camera patent!

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Egami spotted a new Sony patent describing a sort of Full Frame [shoplink 22467 ebay]NEX-5 alike camera body[/shoplink]. This would become an insane small body! Yes, it’s possible to make such a camera but does it make sense if the FF lenses are so big? I doubt it Sony will launch a camera like that.

But on the other site one very trusted source already told me that there will be a couple of new FF E-mount bodies in 2014. So let’s see! I would prefer to get a NEX-7 alike FF camera first….

This is the NEX-5 vs A7r size comparison via Camerasize:

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Zeiss Touit 50mm macro to ship from February 27.

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The Zeiss Touit 50mm f/2.8 macro lens for Sony E-mount APS-C cameras is set to ship from February 27 according to BHphoto (Click here). The store still doesn’t take preorders nor show the price. But Brian Hirschfeld who talked with the Zeiss guys at the PDNshow said the lens will cost around $1,000:

“A very nice man from Carl Zeiss showed me a prototype of an upcoming lens for the Zeiss Touit line of lenses, the Ziess 50mm f/2.8 Touit Macro. This lens will be available in Sony NEX and Fuijifilm X-mount’s at the beginning of 2014 for a price of somewhere around ~$1,000.00. Since this was a prototype the autofocus wasn’t the best but I was assured and expect this will improve before the final version considering how well most mirrorless lenses are focusing now. The lens was very sharp and got down to 1:1 and I wish that it would come in the MFT mount, though I understand why it won’t. My main complaints (which many share) are that these lenses don’t seem to be weather sealed or weather proof or really weather anything and that the focusing ring is lackluster at best. My main concern / complaint which Zeiss is apparently aware of (but not doing anything about?) is the absence of a focusing scale which would have been especially nice on a macro lens considering there is no way to know you are at the minimum focusing distance which is super annoying. This seems like a big oversight to me, but oh well.”

found via Photorumors.

Reminder: 20% off on all Zeiss Touit ASP-C E-mount lenses:
The 12mm f/2.8 Touit now sells for $999 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).
The 32mm f/1.8 Touit now sells for $720 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).

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A7-A7r availability changes in US (coming earlier in EU and Asia).

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Til yesterday BHphoto (Click here) said the A7 and A7r would ship late November. They now changed the delivery estimation to “beginning of December”. Amazon (Click here) says December 1. The great 55mm f/1.8 Zeiss will ship right before Christmas (Dec 22 according to Amazon). I hope you will be able to get your camera and lens preorders before Christmas!

The cameras will ship earlier in Europe (mid November says Sony Germany) and Asia (2-3 weeks says Digitalrev). Click on the links below to check the shipment estimation for single countries and stores:

Specs and Preorders in US and Canada (Click on store name to see direct preorder page):
Dedicated Sony announcement page at Amazon US (Click here).
Sony A7r body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony RX10 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 24-70mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 35mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 55mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
70-200mm A-mount at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony A-Mount to E-Mount Lens Adapter at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
Sony A to E adapter with mirror at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
A7/A7r leather case at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
A7/A7r vertical grip at Amazon, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony W Series Battery Charger at Amazon, BHphoto.
Sony FA-CS1M Off-Camera Shoe at BHphoto.
Semi-Hard LCD Screen Protector for A7-A7r at Amazon, BHphoto.

Specs and Preorders in Europe:
Sony A7r body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PTWexUK, WexDE.
Sony A7 body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit Sony  DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony RX10 at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE.
Zeiss 35mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT,
Zeiss 55mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT

Asia:
A7r at Digitalrev
A7 at Digitalrev.
A7 with 28-70mm lens at Digitalrev.

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New A7r/A7 test roundup (with Otus and Zeiss Zm lens).

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The A7r with the terrific (and huge) Zeiss 55mm f/1.4 OTUS. Image courtesy: ThePhoBlographer.

There was a new Sony event in USA and plenty of blogger added their image samples and new test. So here is a new A7-A7r article roundup:

Full size A7r RAW image samples at Focus Numerique.
Full size A7r JPG image samples at ThePhoBlographer.
Full size A7r JPG samples at Dpreview.
A7r at the PDNshow stand pictures on Flickr.
Sony A7r and Zeiss 55mm f1.4 Otus at ThePhoBlographer.
A7r image samples at SLRlounge.
A7-A7r with Otus and Zeiss 21mm and 50mm ZM lenses by Steve Huff.
One reason NOT to buy the A7r (Soundimagesplus).

Reminder: The $4,000 Otus 55mm Zeiss (here at BH) is aCanon or Nikon mount lens. It’s not coming as native FE mount yet. Here are the links ot the [shoplink 9804 ebay]Biogon T* 2,8/21 ZM (on eBay)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 9809 ebay]Planar T* 2/50 ZM (on eBay)[/shoplink].

Specs and Preorders in US and Canada (Click on store name to see direct preorder page):
Dedicated Sony announcement page at Amazon US (Click here).
Sony A7r body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 body at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS. TheCameraStore Canada.
Sony RX10 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 24-70mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 35mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Zeiss 55mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
70-200mm A-mount at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony A-Mount to E-Mount Lens Adapter at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
Sony A to E adapter with mirror at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
A7/A7r leather case at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
A7/A7r vertical grip at Amazon, BHphoto, SonystoreUS.
Sony W Series Battery Charger at Amazon, BHphoto.
Sony FA-CS1M Off-Camera Shoe at BHphoto.
Semi-Hard LCD Screen Protector for A7-A7r at Amazon, BHphoto.

Specs and Preorders in Europe:
Sony A7r body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PTWexUK, WexDE.
Sony A7 body at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony A7 with 28-70mm kit Sony  DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR.
Sony RX10 at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT, WexUK, WexDE.
Zeiss 35mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT,
Zeiss 55mm at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT

Asia:
A7r at Digitalrev
A7 at Digitalrev.
A7 with 28-70mm lens at Digitalrev.

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