Camera Labs

Hi,
Just thought I would share this news with you. Sony haven't made a big deal about it, but I happened to see it on their website.
http://www.sony.co.uk/product/ddl-nex-5 ... /sel-30m35
What are your thoughts on this lens?

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Nikon D3100, 18-55mm, 80-210mm

While they have announced it earlier, I'm guessing they don't want to make too much noise about it until you can actually buy it.

If I had a NEX, I think I'd be very much interested in this lens.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Yea, I agree. They say it will be available in shops in September, so not long after the NEX-C3. No word on pricing though.

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Nikon D3100, 18-55mm, 80-210mm

I think it should come in around the same or less than the alpha 30mm f/2.8 macro in the long term.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

I think there are some major flaws with this lens.
Firstly, it's f3.5 - that is far too slow for a macro lens of this caliber.
Second, 30mm is too wide for macro, as you would have to be really close to your subject; especially as the NEX cameras use APS-C sized sensors.
It should be about 60mm at least for a decent macro lens.

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Nikon D3100, 18-55mm, 80-210mm

Overall, they are not flaws. They are design choices.

f/3.5 is not an issue for macro photography. Normally you would have to stop down to get usable depth of field. A big reason most SLR macro lenses are f/2.8 is to allow the phase AF to keep working at full magnification. Contrast AF of NEX doesn't have the same limit and can work at higher effective apertures. If f/3.5 makes the lens smaller or cheaper, I think that is a positive.

As for the angle, it may not be to everyone's tastes, nor suit every situation, but it still is a macro. I want a wide angle macro myself for the different perspective it offers compared to longer focal length macro lenses. It doesn't replace them wholesale, but supplements them. A shorter focal length at this time means the lens can be smaller. I'd guess longer ones will appear in time.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.