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Sony alpha 200 lense options Anonymous
Got one a month ago and had loads of fun playing with it and its kit lens (its my 1st DSLR) but now I'm getting tired of not being able to snap shots of birds and other things at a distance. It can use the AF Minolta lenses, whats a decent telephoto lens for ~300 or less (pref 200 and under) that isn't complete shit that I'll regret buying. I'm thinking 200m or 300mm would be a nice step up from the 70mm max kit lens it came with.

pic related
>> Anonymous
OP:

Look for the 70-200/f4 minolta "beercan" on ebay. best bang for your buck. probably run you about $250 but is built like a tank and kick ass.

failing that, look for the 75-300 f/4.5-5.6 that you have pictured.
>> SAGE
id go for the 100-300 its slower than the beercan, but its APO. same price.
>> Anonymous
OP needs moar beercan.
>> Anonymous
also, the APO is ~$400usd from what i remember.
>> Anonymous
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>>272999

Hmm, is the 70-200 better than the 75-300 in overall quality/use by a huge amount? I was thinking about the beercan but it seems it has alot of cult-status pricing going on with it.

Also, bonus wood-duck shot done with camera (cheating, since we trapped them for banding with the USFWS during my internship)

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeSONYCamera ModelDSLR-A200Camera SoftwareDSLR-A200 v1.00Maximum Lens Aperturef/5.6Focal Length (35mm Equiv)105 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:08:26 11:18:51Exposure Time1/200 secF-Numberf/6.3Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating100Brightness8.1 EVExposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashNo Flash, AutoFocal Length70.00 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width3872Image Height2592RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceAutoScene Capture TypeStandardContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessNormal
>> SAGE
>>273004
no. varies greatly on ebay from what ive seen
>> SAGE
>>273005

the 70-200 is nothing short of excellent.
>> Anonymous
>>273005


speaking as someone who has used both the beercan and the 75-300/4.5-5.6, yes, the beer can is worth the extra money. Sure, you lose some reach on it, but its a constant f/4 aperture and has amazing build. the minolta 75-300/4.5-5.6 is decent for the money, but the beercan is better.

tl;dr beercan
>> Anonymous
needs more definition.

the 70-210/4 beercan is no longer made and is excellent.

the 70-200/2.8 is epic but godly expensive.

the 75-300/4.5-5.6 is a consumer zoom and is decent.
>> SAGE
>>273008
theres one lens that ive avoided, the 100-400
its HUGE and i dont need that much focal length, but is it any good?
>> SAGE
>>273009
id want the 20-200HS but its HUGE. i cant see how anyone would want HUGE lens. the 100 f2 is about the limit of what id want as a walk around.
>> SAGE
>>273011
oops meant 70-200 hs
>> Anonymous
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oh hay op


i herd u liek a mount

http://www.dyxum.com/lenses/index.asp
>> Anonymous
OP here, I'm settling on the beercan.


As an semi non-serious aside, how "bad" are the 500mm manual mirror lenses that only cost ~$100? Would it be a good shit's n' giggles lens for long distance pics that dont have to be crystal clear, or is it not even worth that?
>> SAGE
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>>273013
oh hi
this is from the 500f8 minolta

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNoritsu KokiCamera ModelQSSCamera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:10:10 15:02:59Color Space InformationsRGBImage Width1220Image Height892
>> SAGE
>>273014
look at what i just posted
film is kodak ultra color 100
>> SAGE
>>273016
Actually fuji superia 400. fuck thats some awful film
>> SAGE
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snapshot with minolta 24mm this time kodak ultra color

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNoritsu KokiCamera ModelQSSCamera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:10:10 14:44:54Color Space InformationsRGBImage Width1544Image Height1024
>> Anonymous
>>273015

hmmm, would the $100 versions be close to that or will it be a mess?
>> SAGE
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100/2.8 minolta macro, wide open at infinity
kodak ultra color
notice the shit skintones. rubbish!

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNoritsu KokiCamera ModelQSSCamera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:10:10 14:53:46Color Space InformationsRGBImage Width1235Image Height819
>> SAGE
>>273020
you loose AF. also you have to use a special adapter since the sony thinks theres no lens unless it has a chip. i tried on my mnolta and had to trick it to use a juipter 9.
>> SAGE
also why do you need 500mm, its a special occasion maybe twice a year lens for me. i just like the small size. its what almost 600mm on a crop body?
>> Anonymous
>>273024

like I said, just a gimmic lens, but the whole camera wont read-it thing kinda kills the appeal
>> SAGE
>>273026
id get the beercan and not miss it. also remember the main reason people hate the reflex lenses. the bubbly bokeh only works in certain situations. looks awesome over water....
>> SAGE
100-300 sold
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&sspagename=ADME%3AB%3AEOIBUAA%3AMOTORS%3A1123&
viewitem=&item=230293333441
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>273022
No you dont.

OP BUY THE BEERCAN.

In the meantime im saving up for the 70-200/2.8 G (the new sony one :3)
>> Anonymous
>>273146

The new Minolta one, you mean.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>273154
quite, but i'll be getting the one with sony stuck on the side instead.
>> SAGE
>>273160
what 135mm would you buy? the f1.8 or the 135 stf?
>> Anonymous
>>273177


depends on what you want it for. if you want to shoot sports, or anything that's quickly moving at a decent distance, you want the 135/1.8 cause of the AF. if you want omgborkeh, get the 135stf.
>> Anonymous
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OP: here's two pictures with the minolta 500/8 (this is the MD Rokkor version, not the AF version, but they should be roughly the same inside.)

excuse the shitty resolution, i don't have the photo CD with me so these are from mah facebook.
>> Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
>>not being able to snap shots of birds

I doubt you'd really notice the difference between a mediocre lens and a great lens.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>273177
I would not buy the 135mm because it is of no use to me whatever. Given i'm buying a 70-200/2.8 id get a 300/4 or 400/4 or something instead.

Anyway, get the STF just to piss off the canikons who cant have one.
>> Anonymous
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>>273242

y helo thar
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>273286
Is that real/out/actuallySTF?
>> Anonymous
>>273288


it's nikon faggotry that is AF and only gives you stf effects either infront of or behind the focal plane.
>> Anonymous
more about the nikon faggotry.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1000&message=28532886


"With Soft Focus you can produce an overall soft-looking image. However; with Defocus Control you some control over whether the foreground and/or background are soft or sharp. Finally; with Smooth Transitional Focus, the in-focus areas of the image are pin-sharp whilst at the same time the out-of-focus areas are dreamingly smooth.

From what I understand of the technical details, it is like taking the same photograph with infinitely different apertures and then combining them all together. (Minolta also had that as a function on some of their film SLRs, effectively simulating the STF lens's results by taking many exposures at incrementing apertures.)"

and from

http://www.the135stf.net/apodisation.html
>> Anonymous
>>273290

>>273290

BAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWW it's AF.

It's a double-apertured lens that allows you to control the bokeh by adjusting each of the apertures separately. I've never used an STF lens, but the concept is pretty similar, just executed differently.

There's also a 105mm f/2 or f/2.8 DC as well, I think.
>> Anonymous
OP here, seeing them for ~200 online, that the usual price for a beercan? What should I make sure is in with the deal, caps/case/etc?
>> Anonymous
STF has no autofocus and no focus confirmation. It's also T4.5. It is a specialist lens on a par with or more so than choosing using old manual lenses. I wouldn't suggest it to everyone or as an essential lens by any means.

An excellent Minolta design for a specific purpose.
>> Anonymous
>>273293
WRONG.
STF is not AF.
STF has no focus confirmation due to diapodization (?) effect, simply the AF sensors won`t work with this lens.
This lens offers you a 135/2.8 DOF but in reality due to presence of diapodization element it is 4,5.
Lens was made with one thing in mind BROKEH, and its absolute king of it.
>> Anonymous
>>273318

I was talking about the Nikon lens because either you or someone else was crying about how the "nikon faggotry" is autofocus.
>> Anonymous
ebay and second-hand stores are good for the Sony DSLR, you can get a lot of stuff made for Minolta that just work.

I get those in the last year for a fistfull of euros each :

Minolta 50mm f1.7
Minolta 100-300mm f4.5-5.6 xi
Sony 18-70mm f3.5-5.6
Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 EX DG APO