State Route 120 is perhaps better known as the Great Southern Highway. It is the road that takes you to York once you leave Perth via the Great Eastern Highway. I always breathe a sigh of relief once we turn onto it because it means we’re leaving the madness of Perth and returning to our quiet country existence. I love driving down it watching the forest change gradually from Jarrah to Wandoo.The other thing I look forward to is the art work you see. For the last twenty or so years people have been decorating some of the trees. It maybe a complete paint job of a long dead tree or it maybe a small painting on board or sheet metal that has been attached to a tree.Every now and again a new piece turns up and its always a pleasant surprise.
Dave Minion. Great Southern Highway, Western Australia.
Australian Easter Stump. Great Southern Highway, Western Australia.
Startled stump. Gret Southern Highway, Western Australia.
Mary has seen better days. Great Southern Highway, Western Australia.
Tipper is not what he used to be – his ears have been broken off. Great Southern Highway, Western australia.
Happy to see you. Great Southern Highway, Western Australia.
Lucky The York Tree. Great Southern Highway, Western Australia.
I was feeling a bit of a loose end. The weather has been unpleasant and I didn’t feel like going out to photograph wildlife or wildflowers. I suddenly had the bright idea of documenting the art along the Great Southern Highway. To make it more interesting I decided to use some of my old classic film era Olympus lenses – specifically the OM Zuiko 21mm f3.5, the OM Zuiko 35mm f2, and the OM Zuiko 135mm f2.8 – on my Sony A7r. The whole process of framing up, setting up a tripod and manually focusing the cameras and carefully making the exposure is the complete antithesis of photographing birds and it made a nice change.
Helen starting the walk up to the summit of Boyagin Rock.
There’s no shortage of granite outcrops to walk up in the Wheatbelt of Western Australia. This time we chose to go to Boyagin Rock. The journey there was a bit eventful as the navigator in charge had me drive up a very steep, narrow and heavily rutted gravel track in the belief that it was the turn off to take us to Boyagin Rock. After a couple of kilometres the track deteriorated even further and it was obviously not the way. With no way of turning round I had to reverse back down the hill avoiding the larger holes all while the navigator in charge was warning me of our impending doom. After a few tense moments we got back onto Boyagin Road, whilst it is also a gravel road it was as smooth as a billiard table compared to what we’d just come down. After a couple more kilometres the sign for the turn off for the rock was visible and we got to the car park and picnic area with no further dramas.
It’s not the first time we’ve visited, but this time it wasn’t wet which made walking across the granite a lot easier because when it is wet it’s like walking across an ice rink . The bush around the base looked terrific with lots of flowers out and birds calling from the trees. We were hoping to see dragon lizards basking on the rock itself, but there was a slight nip to air that was enough to keep the lizards in the shelter of the crevices. We flushed some Australian Pipits as we walked up, unfortunately I didn’t have a long enough lens to photograph them. As we walked up onto the granite Helen had a close encounter of the spiny kind with an echidna – it was a bit on the shy side and curled up in a ball at the bottom of a tree.
Everlastings form in smasll patches of grass between the trees.
Lemon scented orchids could be found growing among the yellow everlastings.
A well earned rest on a convenient rock.
It’s not a difficult walk and the Nyoongar people, who call it “Boogin”, believe that if you walk to the top of the rock without stopping you will live a long life. We’ve now done it twice so we should live to a very ripe old age. When we got to the top I was surprised to see a pool of water, it must be fed totally by rainfall. Even more surprising was the number of tadpoles swimming in it. Australian frogs never cease to surprise me – you find them in all sorts of strange places and you can’t help but wonder how they survive.
The rock pile in the middle of the pool on the top of Boyagin Rock.
Helen celebrates reaching the summit.
A quick jaunt down the rock retracing our tracks and we were back at the car. A leisurely picnic followed and we discussed where we will go for our next trip.
Yep you read that right. You know how you can stand at a bus stop for ages and not see a single one and then suddenly three come along together? Well orchids are like that. I’ve been walking the same patch of woodland looking for the Curly Locks Orchid for years without seeing a single one and then the other day low and behold there were three of them just standing there.
Curly Locks, Thelymitra spiralis. Wandoo National Park, Western Australia.
Curly Locks, Thelymitra spiralis. Wandoo National Park, Western Australia.
Curly Locks, Thelymitra spiralis. Wandoo National Park, Western Australia.
I’ve spent the last couple of weeks walking the Wandoo forest looking for various orchids. I’ve bumped into a male emus and his brood (too quick to photograph), met bob tailed lizards and countless Western Grey Kangaroos (again too quick to photograph). So even if I’ve not found the particular flower I’m looking for it has still been quite an experience.
The slower bob tailed lizards are easier to photograph than fleeing emus and kangaroos.
Speaking of finding orchids well I’ve seen plenty. On Thursdays outing to Wambyn Reserve I saw eleven different species and was amazed by how early some of them were.
A very early flowering Clubbed Spider Orchid, Caladenia longiclavata. Wambyn Reserve, Western Australia.
Little Pink Fairy Orchid or dwarf pink fairy orchid, Caladenia reptans subspecies reptans. Wandoo National Park, Western Australia.
Sugar Orchid, Ericksonella saccharata. Wambyn Reserve, Western Australia.
Frog Greenhood, Pterostylis sargentii. Wambyn Reserve, Western Australia.
Jug orchid or recurved shell orchid, Pterostylis recurva. Wandoo National Park, Western Australia.
Common Donkey Orchid or wallflower orchid, Diuris corymbosa. Wambyn Reserve, Western Australia.
Stark White Spider Orchid, Caladenia longicauda subsp eminens. Wambyn Reserve, Western Australia.
Photographically I’ve been on a bit of a full frame kick preferring to either use the Sony A7r ii and sigma 105mm macro lens or the Canon EOS6d with Canon 100mm macro lens. All the shots are lit with a flash being used as the key light and natural light as the fill. I’ve enjoyed the change but my back doesn’t. There’s a huge weight difference between the full frame cameras, lenses and flash equipment compared to the usual Olympus micro four thirds system I usually use. But to be honest shooting at base ISO using artificial lighting and only printing at A3+ I can’t see any real advantage to shooting full frame so this next week I’ll go back to using the Olympus kit.
The Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens for Sony E mount cameras was announced back in November 2019 as part of a trio of prime lenses which share the same exterior design, construction, size, filter diameter and f stop. The other lens being the 24 and 35 mm. I reviewed the 35mm f2.8 back in June 2021 and was quite impressed with it.
TLDR
Vital Statistics
Focal Length
20mm
Maximum Aperture
F2.8
Angle of View (diagonal)
94º30’
Optical Construction
10 elements in 9 groups with 3 low dispersion lens elements and 1moulded glass aspherical element.
Minimum Object Distance
11cm or 4.3 inches
Magnification Ratio
1:2
Filter Size
67mm
Dimensions
(h) 64mm (2.5 inches) x ⌀ 73mm ( 2.9 inches)
Weight
220g (7.8 oz)
Number of Diaphragm Blades
7 curved blades
Accessories
included lens hood
Available Mounts
Sony E
Build Quality
The Tamron 20mm is pretty much the same design and build quality as the 24 and 35. They are all the same length and diameter. They all have the same filter diameter of 67mm. Weight wise the 20mm is the heaviest at 220g and the 35mm is the lightest at 210g. All three have the same magnification ratio of 1:2. So Tamron has worked very hard to ensure that uniformity is carried throughout this line of lenses. It will be interesting to see if they introduce longer lenses like an 85mm how they carry that out. When compared to my Canon EF 20mm f2.8the Tamron is only a smidge smaller and lighter which is quite surprising as the Canon is a retrofocus design built to accommodate the larger lens flange distance of 44mm compared to the 18mm of the Sony.
The body is made out of some form of engineering plastic and the lens mount appears to be chrome plated brass which is nice. There is an “o” ring which provides some semblance of sealing from the elements at the mount. There is no other weather sealing and no indication as to the level of sealing and Tamron on their website just say that it has a “Moisture-Resistant Construction”. Tamron also claim that the front lens element has a fluorine coating which is dirt resistant. The only control on the lens is the ribbed focus ring which is of the fly-by-wire type and it has no hard stops or any form of tactile feedback when turning it. Bad news if you want to do manual video focus pulls. The lens comes with a petal shaped lens hood that bayonets into place.
Optical Performance
Tamron on their website say “The expert arrangement of the LD and GM specialised glass elements greatly controls aberrations, including chromatic aberrations. Tamron’s proprietary BBAR (Broad-Band Anti-Reflection) Coating reduces ghosting and flare, which can otherwise occur when taking a photo against the sun.” When shooting with the camera’s lens correction function enabled “it delivers, throughout the frame, high resolution performance that maximises the benefits of the latest high-megapixel cameras”. So let’s see how those claims stack up to real world usage.
With no lens profile applied there is massive barrel distortion on the Tamron 20mm f2.8 Di III at f5.6.
Let’s deal with the whopping great elephant in the room. This lens has very profound barrel distortion, but for jpg shooters an inbuilt lens profile minimises the effect. For RAW shooters Adobe has made a lens profile available for Lightroom and Camera RAW.
When we look at the uncorrected image and look at the rulers on the bottom and the side we can see that it is 47.4 cm in width and 29.5 cm in height. Compare that to the corrected image which is 43.7cm by 28.3cm. So in percentage terms that is a 7.2% reduction in width and a 4.2% reduction in height. This means that with the lens profile applied the lens effectively becomes a 22mm. But if you shoot video with electronic stabilisation the image is cropped again and it will give an angle of view similar to that of a 24mm lens. So if video is important to you and you want an angle of view given by a 20mm lens then you either get a lens that doesn’t suffer from as much distortion or you get a wider lens– somewhere around 16-18mm.
So in real terms how bad is the distortion? Well comparing the Tamron, which is a very modern design to the Olympus OM Zuiko 21mm f3.5 released in 1984 and the Canon EF 20mm f2.8 USM from 1992 we can see that the Tamron has considerably worse distortion. This is very surprising as the two older lenses are retrofocus designs. SLRs have a big flippy flappy mirror between the lens and the film/sensor and this meant in the early days of SLR photography making wide angle lenses impossiblebecause the rear lens element would foul the mirror. The breakthrough camein 1950 when Pierre Angénieux invented the retrofocus lens which is akind of “reverse” telephoto design where the lens elements closest to the film plane have a negative effect making the image smaller. The downsides are more glass elements which means more air to glass surfaces which means more refraction which means more potential chromatic aberration and distortion. So the fact that the Canon and Olympus lenses have a better performance with their compromised design is saying something.
Slight barrel distortion on the Olympus OM Zuiko 21mm f3.5 lens at f5.6.
Slight barrel distortion on the Canon EF 20mm f2.8 lens at f5.6.
In terms of lateral chromatic aberration the Tamron 20mm shows mild CA in the corners and edges which is very slight when uncorrected and virtually invisible when the profile is applied. Wide open there is longitudinal chromatic aberration present – cyan and magenta fringing on the out of focus edges – but this is easily fixed by stopping down. Vignetting is quite apparent without the lens profile, but when it is applied it is a non issue.
Specular light sources in the frame or just outside it can cause ghosting and flare.
Using the supplied lens hood reduces the incidence of len flare.
When it comes to flare resistance, well extreme wide angles lenses are very prone to the effects of flare and don’t necessarily have to have a specular light source in the frame to cause it. The Tamron handles it reasonably well but is prone to veiling and ghosting flare. The lens comes with a lens hood and it would be wise to use all the time and it does a reasonably good job of reducing the incidence of flare. The seven aperture blades produce sunstars or diffraction spikes that are a bit messy and not very pleasant – although this is a matter of personal taste.
The sunstars or diffraction spikes are a little on the messy side.
The bokeh balls produced by the Tamron 20mm f2.8 Di III lens wide open at f2.8.
A close up of the bokeh balls showing the shape deformity and the onion ring artefacts.
The bokeh produces nice tonal transitions in the out of focus areas.
The bokeh balls aren’t very attractive, they have a very pronounced onion ring effect and even the balls at the centre of the image have a slightly elliptical shape and this gets more apparent towards the edge of the image. While you don’t necessarily buy a 20mm lens for its bokeh it is important on this lens because of its close focusing capabilities. When we look at real world examples we can see the tonal transitions in the out of focus areas are nice and smooth.
Sharpness. Wide open at the centre the lens is a little soft and lacking contrast. Things improve as you stop down and the best sharpness is attained at f5.6. At the edges at f2.8 the corners are slightly worse than the centre. It is not until f8 when the corner performance equals that of the centre.
The pergola in the middle of Tomato Lake in Kewdale.
Autofocus
For stills photography the Tamron 20mm is very positive in acquiring focus if just a bit slow. There’s no hesitancy and no hunting. In a sequence of shots of me walking backwards and forwards the camera and lens combo achieved an 88% hit rate. I would expect that to be better with the third and fourth generation A7 bodies.
Video is a different story. There is some hesitancy in focusing and a bit of wobble even with static shots. Performance is at its best at closer distances.
Usage Scenarios
For landscape and architectural work this would be quite a nice choice, particularly if you are travelling and want to keep the weight of your kit down. The fact that the lens doesn’t reach peak optical performance across the frame until f8 would not be a problem. Just remember to keep for your verticals vertical when shooting buildings.
The minimum focus distance and high magnification ratio means that you can fill the frame with small objects.
To achieve the magnification ratio of 1:2 you have to be very very close to your subject
The close up capabilities of this lens are what sets it apart from other extreme wide angle lenses. This lens will reproduce an object at half size at its minimum focusing distance of 11cm. Now remember that that distance isn’t measured from the front lens element but from the sensor plane. This means to achieve the magnification ratio of 1:2 you have to be very very close to your subject. So close that you may have to remove the lens hood as it casts shadow over your subject. I bought the lens for nature photography, particularly close ups of flowers. Wide angle close up shots allow you to show the detail of the subject and its context. That gives a more unusual look to the more standard viewpoint of a short telephoto macro lens such as 100mm. For this the Tamron works very well.
Cowslip Orchid, Caladenia flava subs. flava. Christmas Rock, Western Australia.
Astro – I don’t do this type of photography but from what I’ve read I think that you’d be better off getting one of the faster 20mm lenses from Sony or Sigma. F2.8 is borderline too slow an aperture and the lack of edge sharpness at wide apertures further handicaps the lens for this particular usage.
Video usage. This is where the lens is like the curate’s egg – “good in parts”. The autofocus is a bit of a let down and the manual focusing makes repeatable focus pulls difficult. The light weight is a boon for gimbal usage as is the fact that the lens doesn’t extend when focusing. If vlogging is your thing then the angle of view is just about perfect – giving your viewers more of the background rather than just having a large talking head – plus the light weight means the lens and camera combo is easier to hold at arms length.
Conclusion
Rainwater captured on Christmas Rock in natural forming crack, depressions and gullies.
A suprising number of plants grow on Christmas Rock.
Jug orchid or recurved shell orchid (Pterostylis recurva). Woottating, Western Australia.
Cycling along the Beenyup Swamp Boardwalk in Yellagonga Regional Park.
I bought this lens to compliment the 35mm f2.8 which I really like and use a lot. I find that the 20mm is somewhat underwhelming. I feel that the optical performance isn’t as good as it could be. The lens distortion is quite severe and the lens profile just blurs the detail in the corners. Couple this with the autofocus performance and I’m left feeling that it would be better to save more money and buy a better lens. In fact if it wasn’t for the close focusing capabilities I would be parting company with this lens.
If you are a regular reader of this blog then you’ll be aware that I’m trying to transition from my full frame Canon DSLR to a full frame Sony mirrorless system without spending a fortune. Initially the idea was to buy a second hand A7r ii body and use second hand lens adapters (the Sigma MC-11 and the Metabones V Smart Adapter) to enable me to use my existing Canon EF lenses. The experience went relatively well until I tried to use the kit for covering a couple of events. It was my experience of using the Canon 24-70mm f4 IS L lens mounted via the Metabones V Smart Adapter that made me start to reconsider the whole idea of adapting Canon EF lenses to Sony FE bodies. I’d already been using a Sony 28-70mm f3.5-5.6 OSS lens and while the AF and the stabilisation were good points I wanted a brighter lens and a constant aperture as it makes life easier when doing flash photography. My options in this focal range were:
Sony Zeiss FE 24-70mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens
Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 G Master Lens
Tamron 28-75mm F/2.8 Di III VXD G2 Lens
Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN Lens
The Sony Zeiss 24-70 f4 doesn’t have a very good reputation as there is a lot sample variation and it would appear that good copies are few and far between. Sony’s f2.8 GM, well at just under $3000 AUD was out of the running on price alone. With the Tamron 28-75mm well the original version is permanently out of stock here in Australia so goodness knows when the mk ii version will be available. So the Sigma won the day.
Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN Lens available in both Sony FE mount and L mount.
TLDR
Specifications
Focal length
28-70mm
Angle of view
75.4~34.3°
Maximum aperture
f2.8
Minimum aperture
f22
Filter Size
67mm
Stabilisation
no
Maximun magnification
At 28mm 1: 3.3
At 70mm 1: 4.6
Minimum focusing distance
Ay 28mm 19cm
At 70mm 38cm
Focusing modes
AF and manual
Optical construction
12 groups, 16 elements
Including 2 FLD elements, 2 SLD elements, and 3 aspherical elements
Aperture blades
9 rounded blades
Weather sealing
dust and splash-proof
Weight
470g
Dimensions
φ72.2mm × 103.5mm
Mount
Sony FE and L-mount Alliance
Build Quality
Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN Lens available in both Sony FE mount and L mount.
The 28-70mm DG DN is part of Sigma’s “Contemporary” line which up to recently was seen to be their line which had good optical performance while cutting costs in the materials and finish. Recent releases such as the 90mm f2.8 have muddied this somewhat as they spare no expense seemingly in their construction and performance. Anyway back to the 28-70 it has a more utilitarian approach to its design – it has a rather plain matte black appearance and is made out of Sigma’s Thermally Stable Composite which is a kind of engineering grade plastic that has similar thermal expansion properties as aluminium. The lens is compact and relatively light when compared to other standard zooms with a f2.8 constant aperture. When you pick it up it doesn’t feel cheap or flimsy, but rather it feels reassuringly dense and solid. Nothing creaks or flexes and there are no mould seams – Tamron I’m looking at you! The lens mount is chrome plated brass and there is an ‘o’ ring to prevent the ingress of moisture and dust.
The chrome plated brass mount and the “o” ring that surrounds it.
Compared to other lenses there is a paucity of controls – just a focus ring, a zoom ring and a focus mode selector switch. Both rings have a nice ribbed rubber texture to facilitate a good grip. The zoom ring has a smooth 90º which has just the right amount of resistance – not too sloppy or too tight. The lens barrel extends as you zoom to 70mm by 27mm. The focus ring is of the fly by wire variety with no hard stops. Again it is not too loose or tight and I found it quite pleasant to use.
The controls on the lens are few and far between. A focus ring, an AF mode switch and the zoom ring.
The lens comes with a plastic lens hood that bayonets into place securely. A nice touch is that the interior is ribbed to prevent reflections. The filter size is 67mm which is a modest size and keeps the cost of filters down. The first standard zoom I got had a filter thread of 55mm. Subsequent standard lenses went increased to 77mm and then 82mm so it’s good to see sizes slipping back.
The lens barrel extends by 27mm when zoomed out to 70mm. The lens comes with a petal shaped lens hood.
In terms of size and weight, well my Sigma 16mm f1.4 and Olympus 45mm f1.2 are almost as big and as heavy as the 28-70 DG DN and they were made for the micro four thirds system. It’s a little larger than the the Sony 28-70mm f3.5-5.6 OSS lens and while the same length as the Canon 24-70mm f4 IS L the Sigma is 135g lighter.
The Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN lens is only fractionally bigger and heavier than the Sigma 16mm f1.4 and Olympus 45mm f1.2 prime lenses for the micro four thirds system.
Optical Performance
To see any of the images larger just click on them.
OK lets get down to the nitty gritty. At 28mm wide open the centre of the image is sharp and contrasty. The edges are softer and there is a very, and I mean very, small amount of green fringing. Switching off the lens correction we can see that there is vignetting and barrel distortion. At f8 the edges catch up with the centre sharpness. By f16 the effects of diffraction are noticeable.
At 70mm f2.8 the centre performance is not as good as the wide end being slightly soft and lacking contrast in the centre and with corners a little worse. Stop down to f4 and the centre improves considerably and by f8 the corners are as good as the centre. Again by f16 diffraction is apparent. Without the lens profile there is vignetting and pincushion distortion.
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When it comes to chromatic aberration well axial (or longitudinal) CA can be observed when shooting wide open especially at the minimum focusing distance. This is easily dealt with by stopping down. It is more pronounced at 70mm than 28mm. Transverse (lateral) CA is very well controlled and images need to be forensically examined at 200% to spot it. Very impressive.
Ghosting flare, sensor flare and diffraction spikes. 28mm at f22. I you look carefully you can see a small amount of ghosting flare and some sensor flare.
Looking at the diffraction spikes (sun stars) for this lens the nine bladed diaphragm produces 18 points and stopping down to f22 produces the best effect. Diffraction blurs them a little but I quite like them.
Flare resistance is very good. There is little to no veiling flare and just a little ghosting flare. What is apparent is sensor flare aka red dot flare.This is caused by reflections from the micro lenses on the sensor hitting the rear lens element and the being reflected back onto the sensor. Unfortunately it seems that mirrorless cameras seem more prone to this due to the shorter lens flange distance.
Looking at the bokeh at 28mm wide open at f2.8 the balls don’t have a round shape – they are a bit misshapen and have visible onion rings. The tonal transitions are smooth. By f8 the balls take on a polygonal shape. At 70mm wide open the balls in the centre of the frame are nice and round with some onion rings. At the edge of the frame they have an elliptical cats eye shape. The tonal transitionsin out of focus areas are again nice and smooth. Stopping down to f4 the balls become tighter and the onion rings not so prominent. Interestingly the bokeh balls keep their round shape all the way down to f22.
Bokeh at 70mm f2.8
Auto Focus Performance
Auto focus test for stills at 28mm.
Shooting stills wide open at 28mm the autofocus is very snappy and sticky in daylight with lots of contrast. I shot several sequences of me walking towards the camera and achieved a 100% hit rate. At 70mm f2.8 the results weren’t as impressive but I averaged out with a hit rate of 81%. The problem seemed to occur when I got very close to the camera and the lens would struggle to keep up. It would focus for a couple of frames, loose focus for a frame and then re-acquire. Using the 28-70 DG DN with my Sony A7 r ii at a grip and grin I found that the AF wasn’t as confident in the low light and contrast setting. It wasn’t terrible but I found it wasn’t as quick as I’d of liked and a couple of times I lost a spontaneous moment because the combination hadn’t acquired focus quick enough.
Auto focus test for stills at 70mm.
When shooting the video test I mounted the camera on my slider with a repeating 20cm movement and then filmed myself walking back and forth. At 28mm wide open the lens did very well with just a couple of moments where it was hesitant. Overall a very good performance. At 70mm the AF wasn’t as confident and prone to loose focus and then not quickly re-acquire. I decided to re-test but not using the slider this time and everything was a lot better at both focal lengths so from that I can assume that the movement from the slider was stressing the autofocus too much.
Checking for focus breathing I found that it was very minimal which should keep the video crowd. Normally I don’t bother checking where a lens is parfocal or not, but, as the lens had so far done so well I thought I’d give it a go. And the Sigma 28-70 f2.8 is indeed parfocal.
Conclusion
Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN Lens mounted on a Sony A7r ii.
There have been a few criticisms about the Sigma 28-70 DG DN. People moan about the distortion present when you don’t use the lens profile. I would argue that using corrections like that enables manufacturers to make compact, lightweight and affordable lenses. Other have been very vocal about the reduced performance at the 70mm end, but it is not unusual for a zoom lens to be better optically at the wide end. Better performance would again mean bigger, heavier and more expensive lenses. The main criticism is that at 28mm it’s just not wide enough and that it really should be a 24-70mm f2.8. Well Sigma does make one and its $600 AUD more expensive and it is bigger. Sony’s GM 24-70mm f2.8 is $1300 AUD more expensive, 371g heavier, 33mm longer and 14mm wider. So if you want a small compact f2.8 constant aperture standard zoom some compromise has to be made and I think Sigma has made the right choices.
The focusing and zoom rings have a nice ribbed rubber grip.
I really like standard zooms – I have one for each of my camera systems (Canon EF, M4/3, and now Sony FE). I find they fit in with my way of working with just one camera and one lens. This lens with its useful close focus ability makes it ideal for shooting small subjects, food, and products. Its constant f2.8 aperture is good for low light, flash photography and video. While 70mm at the long end makes it a bit on the short side for some types of portrait photography the focal range is great for environmental portraiture. Overall this lens is perfectly suited to being used as an everyday carry or part of a lightweight travel kit. Occasionally I wished for something a little wider, so what I ended up doing was carrying my Tamron 20mm f2.8 and then everything was just dandy.
Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN Lens available in both Sony FE mount and L mount.
I really enjoyed using this lens. While it’s not perfect by any means it is a very solid and workman like performer that lets you get on and take photos.
Sample Images
A selection of images taken with the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 DG DN lens.
A glass of bubbles to celebrate.
York Town Hall as the sun begins to set.
The Tourist Wheel on the Esplanade Park in Fremantle.
The point that tghe Wagyl (Dreamtrime Rainbow Serpent) leaves the Swan River and swims out to sea. Fremantle, Western Australia.
Greg James Sculpture Studio Gallery at the J Shed in Fremantle.
South Metroploitain TAFE Fremantle.
The pusher/tug Svitzer Nana berthed at Fremantle Harbour.
WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle Harbour.
The cargo ship William entering Fremantle Docks.
The cranes at the dry dock that houses HMAS Ovens at the WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle Harbour.
HMAS Ovens in dry dock at the WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle Harbour.
One of the cranes at the dry dock that houses HMAS Ovens at the WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle Harbour.
Part of the HMAS Ovens display at the WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle Harbour.
The Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro compared to its newer variant the Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Both lenses have their lens hoods attached.
Back in the annals of time, well 1999 to be precise, Sigma released the Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX Macro lens. Twenty one years later they released the Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN Art Macro lens. So let’s see what has changed in macro lens design.
As always click on the images to see them larger.
TLDR
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Physical Attributes
Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX Macro
The Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens in Canon EF mount. The lens has no weather sealing.
As I said above this lens was introduced back in 1999 and it was well received by reviewers and users alike. In fact it cemented Sigma’s reputation for producing excellent macro lenses. One of my photography lecturers reckoned that this was one of the best lenses he’d used so I bought the lens new in 2003 to use with my then Canon EOS 3 and 30 and it remained in regular use until 2016. I’ve used it for macro, product shots, still life, portraits, fine art reproduction and copywork and of course close ups of flowers.
The lens was designed with film use in mind and was made available in the following mounts:
Canon EF
Minolta A
Nikon F
Pentax K
Sigma SA
Pick up the lens and it feels very well made. It is light by modern standards but it has a nice heft to it. The lens barrel is metal – none of your plastic composites here – and the lens mount is a chrome plated brass affair. The front lens element is recessed 25mm into the lens barrel and it is ribbed to prevent reflections and acts as shallow lens hood. Combine it with the included metal lens hood and it is virtually impossibleto induce flare. The lens hood screws firmly into place on the lens’ front filter thread and is threaded to take 77mm filters which is a neat idea as it makes it possible to quickly attach filters without having to take the lens hood off.
The finish is the peculiar matt black finish that Sigma had for all their EX range of lenses with a gold ring at the end of the focus ring and the text done in a mixture of white and gold. The focusing ring is 35mm wide and has ribbed rubber to aid grip. In autofocus mode the ring spins freely, but pull that ring back and flip the AF switch and it has a nice smooth 270º throw taking you from infinity to 31cm. The lens barrel extends as you focus closer by 50mm and there are magnification scales marked on the barrel extension for both manual and auto focusing. This means you can quickly set the lens to a desired magnification ratio. It is to my mind still one of the best implementations of manual focus on an autofocus macro lens. The lens motor makes quite a bit of noise and it can’t be called quick by any stretch of the imagination, however, macro lenses are not noted for their speed of use.
The Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens at full extension to give 1:1 magnification. Note the magnification ratios marked on the lens barrel. This makes manual setting of the lens for specific ratios a breeze.
Behind the focusing ring is a clear panel over a focusing scale in both feet and metres. There are two switches on the right side of the lens. The first is a focus limiter which speeds up auto focus by preventing the lens racking back and forth through the whole focus range. The second switch is the previously mentioned focus mode switch. Both are very positive in their action.
Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN Art Macro Lens
Sigma’s 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens attached a Sony A7Rii.
Announced in September 2020 the DG DN is available in Sony FE and Panasonic/Leica/Sigma L mounts. It is part of Sigma’s Art series and so shares the same gloss black finish with understated white graphics and lettering. No 1990’s gold bling here, just a minimalist workman like appearance. The body is a combination of metal and Sigma’s Thermally Stable Composite a kind of plastic with thermal expansion properties the same as aluminium. There are a number of ribbed panels to facilitate a secure grip. It’s great to see that Sigma has not abandoned the chrome plated brasslens mount – it’s a proven method and lasts a long time. Pick the lens up and the first thing you notice is the weight. It is very heavy for its size. The 17 lens elements really make their presence felt when compared to the EX’s 10.
Both lenses are focused at their minimum focusing distance to give a maximum magnification ratio of 1:1. The DG DN focus internally and remains the same length while the EX’s barrel extends.
So weight and appearance aside how else does the DG DN differ from its distant ancestor the EX? Well the DG DN is 40mm longer, but it is important to remember that it is made for mirrorless cameras with a shorter lens flange distance than DSLRs. Put a Sigma MC-11 on the EX and they are virtually the same length. Another difference is that the new DG DN focuses internally – there’s no extending barrel and this will help with the weather sealing. The large ribbed focusing ring is of the fly-by-wire type, there’s no pulling it back to engage a manual focus mechanism. Consequently there are no hard stops and you get no feedback as you focus other than the image in the EVF or on the back panel. Macro photography is an area where you do use manual focus a lot and using it on the DG DN is not a very pleasant or positive experience to my mind.
The controls on the Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens include an AF/MF switch, a reprogrammable focus lock button, a focus limiter switch and a switch to de-click the aperture ring.
There are a lot more controls on the newer lens:-
an AF MF switch
a focus lock button that can be reprogrammed
a focus limiter switch with 3 settings – 0.295 to 0.5m, 0.5m to infinity, full range.
a switch for de-clicking the aperture ring
an aperture ring
a locking switch for the aperture ring
The aperture ring on the Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Not only can it be de-clicked it can also be locked in the auto position for those who would prefer to chasnge aperture using camera dials.
The focus limiter switch has three settings. 0.295-0.5m macro, 0.5m to infinity normal range, and a full range option.
So let’s have a quick gander at the specs for both lenses.
Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX Macro lens
Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN Art Macro lens
Focal length
105mm
105mm
Angle of view
24º (on full frame)
23.3º
Maximum aperture
f2.8
f2.8
Miniumum aperture
f45 for Canon, Sigma, and Minolta
f32 for Nikon and Pentax
f22
Filter size
58mm on the lens body
77mm on the lens hood
62mm
Stabilisation
No
No
Maximum magnification
1:1
1:1
Minimum focusing distance
31cm from the film plane
29.5cm (from the sensor plane)
Focusing modes
Auto and manual
Auto and manual
Optical construction
10 elements in 9 groups with 3 special low dispersion elements
17 elements in 12 groups with 1special low dispersion element
Aperture blades
8
9 (rounded)
Weather sealing
No
“Dust and splash proof construction”
Weight
456g (Canon EF mount)
710g
Dimensions
95mm (h) x 74mm ⌀
135.6mm (h) x 74mm ⌀
Optical Performance
Sharpness
A comparison between the 1999 Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens and the 2021 Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Aperture: f 2.8
This is where we really start to what has changed in terms of lens design over the years. Wide open at f2.8 the DGDN is sharper and more contrasty in the centre of the frame. The corners are sharp but the contrast is lower. The EX on the other hand is softer and has less contrast in the centre and the corners are not only softer but display prominent chromatic aberration and have a warm tinted vignetting. Older Sigma lenses were known for having a warmer look than other brands and it is clearly visible.
A comparison between the 1999 Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens and the 2021 Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Aperture: f 4
A comparison between the 1999 Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens and the 2021 Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Aperture: f 5.6
By f5.6 the corners of the DGDN have improved considerably and the centre is even sharper. The centre of the frame for the EX has improved but not to the same extent as that of the DGDN. The corners of the EX are still quite soft and still exhibit vignetting.
A comparison between the 1999 Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens and the 2021 Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Aperture: f 8
At f8 the DGDN really hits its stride and produces its best optical performance with both the centre and the corners having excellent sharpness and contrast. The EX has reached its best centre performance but it is still not as good as its younger sibling. The corners have improved slightly but vignetting is still present.
At the aperture of f11 the DGDN’s performance remains the same as it was at f8 in both the centre and the corners of the frame. The EX now turns in its best performance but some vignetting remains.
A comparison between the 1999 Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro lens and the 2021 Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens. Aperture: f 32
At f16 diffraction is taking effect on both lenses. Interestingly the EX will stop down to f45 but you wouldn’t want to use it as it looks like someone has smeared vaseline over the front lens element.
Chromatic Aberration
Chromatic aberration is the failure of a lens to focus all colours at the same point and there are two types:-
Axial or longitudinal chromatic aberration – this where different wave lengths of light are focused at different distances from the lens. Generally it can be reduced by stopping down thereby increasing the depth of field so that all the wavelengths fall with acceptable focus. This is very hard to remove in post processing.
Transverse or lateral chromatic aberration – different wavelengths of light are focused at different positions in the focal plane. It does not occur in the centre of an image and increases as you move out to the edges. It is not effected by stopping down, but can be removed in post.
The DGDN is exceptional well controlled for both kinds of chromatic aberration and even at magnifications of 200% I could not observe any. The EX is really showing its age here as both types can be seen. The transverse chromatic aberration is very prominent.
Flare
The Sigma 105mm DGDN shows good resistance to flare. In this extreme case we can see some evidence of veiled flasre and a little reflection.
The EX despite having that recessed front element that acts as a de facto lens hood suffers badly from halation, veiling flare, and reflections when specular light sources were in the frame. The DGDN has better lens coatings which means that the halation and reflected glare is minimal and there is no halation. This means that there’s little loss of contrast.
Bokeh
Sigma 105mm f2.8 DGDN Macro lens bokeh test.
Both lenses at f2.8 have nice round bokeh balls in the centre of the frame and at the edges exhibit that elliptical cats eye effect. The tonal transitions are nice and smooth, there is no busyness or swirly effect. At f4 the EX is starting to develop polygonal balls while those of the DGDN are still nice and round. At f11 the bokeh balls in the corners of the DGDN are starting to develop into sun stars and the effect on the EX is more profound. The 9 rounded aperture blades are producing much more pleasing bokeh effects than the 8 straight ones of the EX.
Autofocus
Continuous autofocus with the Sigma 105mm f2.8 mounted on a Canon EOS 6d.
Autofocus is where there has been an enormous improvement in performance over the last 22 years. The EX when mounted on the Sony A7r ii with either the Metabones V Smart Adapter or the Sigma MC-11 just won’t autofocus. When you switch the camera on the lens racks through its entire focus range (depending on where the limiter is set) and then does nothing. So to test the AF performance I had to mount it on a Canon EOS6d which wasn’t known for its blistering AF speed. I shot several sequences with the focus limiter on at f2.8 of me walking slowly towards the camera with it set Continuous AF and obtained a nit rate of between 70-75%. Video AF was a non starter and it just would not find focus. To be fair the CAF of the 6d in video mode is pretty lacklustre. With the DGDN mounted on the Sony A7r ii the stills burst rate for AF averaged out at 94% which is pretty impressive. The DGDN handled the video AF test with aplomb, it was smooth and positive keeping up with me moving about in the frame. The AF was noisy and was picked up by the shotgun microphone mounted in the camera hot-shoe. Speaking of noise the EX was incredibly noisy.
Continuous auto focus using the Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN macro lens on a Sony A7rii.
Conclusion
Both lenses mounted on Sony bodies. The EX is mounted via the Sigma MC-11 lens adapter.
This should really come as no surprise, time has marched on and the advances in lens design are easily apparent.The Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX macro was considered a very good lens in its day, and even now it is remembered fondly on photographic forums. The DGDN is just at another level of performance both in terms of optics and auto focusing. The EX while being optically suited to a number of tasks its AF performance let it down when it came to anything that moved quickly or erratically. The DGDN on the other hand can be confidently used as a general purpose short telephoto with a wide variety of subjects as well as being a dedicated macro lens. The only area in which the EX is superior to the DGDN is in the handling department. The manual focusing experience and the ability to pre-set specific magnification ratios makes the lens a joy to use manually. The DGDN is clearly aimed at the autofocus only photographer. A great shame.
So if you have a Sony FE or one of theofferings from the “L mount alliance” then the lens is worth a look at. Well it is your only option in L mount. It is also a worthy competitor to the Sony 90mm f2.8 FE macro OSS G at a cheaper price.
Sample Images
Looking through the Olympus OM Zuiko 135mm f2.8 lens at an Olympus OM 40.
Lime slice oozing juice.
Cream runs down over a strawberry.
Where there’s smoke there’s fire.
Australian one and two dollar coins.
Sigma 105mm f2.8 DG DN Macro lens auto focus test. Auto focus tracking a subject walking towards the camera while the lens is wide open at f2.8.
Darth Vader divided by the light.
Bee feeding on lavender flowers.
A bee feeding on a daisy.
A ladybird looking for aphids.
Clubbed Spider Orchid, Caladenia longiclavata. Mount Observation, Western Australia.
Custard Orchid, Thelymitra villosa. Mount Observation, Western Australia.
Known by a variety of names the dancing spider orchid (Caladenia discoidea) is also known as the antelope orchid and sometimes the bee orchid. St. Ronan’s Nature Reserve, Western Australia.
A visual representation of the differences in sensor size.
Since 2011 I have been primarily a micro four thirds (m43) shooter supplemented by occasional full frame usage. Until about 18 months ago I was very happy with my choice. I accepted that the benefit of a lighter more portable camera system would come at the cost of reduced megapixel count, reduced dynamic range, and high ISO performance that was less than stellar. But now I have this desire to return as it were to the full frame fold. The reason why is that I sell prints and I felt that if I had a camera with better dynamic rangeand more megapixels then I would generate more sales. This belief was what was really behind my recent dalliance with the 42Mp Sony A7r ii.
Canon EOS 550D with EF75-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens. Exposure: 1/100, f8 at ISO 400.
Olympus EM 1 mk ii with Panasonic Leica 100-400mm lens.
Sony A7r with Olympus OM Zuiko 135mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/1000 sec, f4, at ISO 200.
Canon EOS 6d with Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens. Exposure: 1/100 s at f/11.0 at ISO 1600.
The other day I started going through my statement for print sales for this year and surprisingly I’d had a very good year which buoyed me up considerably. When I started looking closely at what images had sold and what they were taken with I made a startling discovery. Full frame made up 26%, APSC came in at 26% and m43 took 48%. In terms of Megapixels:
36 Mp + 6.66%
20 Mp 33.33%
18 Mp 26.66%
16 Mp 6.66%
12 Mp 13.33%
Intrigued I decided to look at print sales going back to 2004 when I went digital and the results were as follows:-
Full frame 34%
APSC 14%
m43 37.5 %
Compact cameras 5.5%
Mobile phone 1.5%
Scanned film 7.5%
My two best selling prints of all time were taken with a Panasonic Lumix FX-01 which was introduced all the way back in 2004 had a sensor that measured 6.4mm x 4.8mm and had a whopping 6.4 Mp of resolution. It also suffered badly from noise at anything beyond 100 ISO and had a very limited dynamic range.
Panasonic Lumix FX-01
Panasonic FX-01
Dropped from use. The Panasonic FX-01 was a 6Mp camera introduced in 2004.
Moving beyond prints sales to look at PR and editorial work I’ve never once had a complaint about image quality or size. So do all these buyers of my images know something that I don’t? Well I think that they’re not looking at the images as photographers, they are looking at the subject and how it makes them feel. When photographers look at images they see all the technical deficiencies and then think they need better cameras and lenses. When we look at new gear we always see the promise of more resolution, more frames per second, more dynamic range. The manufacturers know that we’re easily seduced by bigger numbers and they play to our insecurities.
So in the light of this do I need a bigger and better camera? Need – no. Want – yes. But needs and wants are two different things. What I’ve got is perfectly adequate and so perhaps the answer to generating more sales is, therefore, taking more pictures with appealing content.
Christmas Rock Walk Trail that is. Christmas Rock is in Wongan Hills and I’ve written about going there before. This time I’m writing about the Christmas Rock walk trail which is located in a 2000 hectare reserve. It is an easy 2.7Km walk along relatively flat well marked paths not far from the centre of the town site. Along the trail are interpretive panels which give insights into the reserve. What makes it worthwhile is that at wildflower time the walk passes through country that is a riot of colourful flowers. It is a gobsmackingly beautiful sight this year as the weather conditions have been ideal. The bird life in the reserve is also pretty impressive and their song provides a fitting score for a very pleasant walk.
Cristmas Rock Walk trail is an enjoyable easy 2.7Km walk trail in the Wheatbelt Town of Wongan Hills. Sony A7r with Tamron 35mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/160 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
Yellow everlastings at Christmas Rock, Wongan Hills. Sony A7r with Tamron 35mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/125 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
Pink Everlastings, Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r with a Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/160 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
The rock gets its name from the Western Australian Christmas Trees (Nuytsia floribunda) which used to be found there and flowered at Christmas time. On the top of the rock is an elaborate series of channels that were designed to harvest rain water run off for the “Railway Water Supply” which was built in 1916. But the rock is also home to a wide variety of plants such as lichens and mosses. On a warm sunny day if you’re quick enough you might see the lizards who live in the various cracks and crevices.
The walk takes you up on the top of the rock which was part of the “Railway Water Supply” built in 1916. Rainwater runoff was harvested through a series of channels and creeks. Sony A7r with Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/800 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
A suprising number of plants grow on Christmas Rock. Sony A7r with Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/320 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
Rainwater captured on Christmas Rock in natural forming crack, depressions and gullies. Sony A7r with Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/400 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
But for me it is the display of orchids which brings me to Wongan Hills. There are so many different types in large quantities. It made me feel like a kid on Christmas Day. The funny thing is that it could have been very, very different. Prospectors actually dug pits looking for asbestos. Luckily they didn’t find it in large enough quantities to make it a viable commercial operation and went looking elsewhere. So in September give Wongan Hills a visit. This isn’t the only walk as there’s Mount O’Brien Lookout, Gathecole Nature Reserve, and the Mt Matilda walk trail. Then there are the lakes which host lots of water birds. So instead of a day trip why not make a long weekend of it.
Pendant Spider Orchid (Caladenia pendens, subsp pendens). Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/40 sec, f5.6 at ISO 125.
Lemon Scented Sun Orchid aka the vanilla orchid (Thelymitra antennifera). Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/200 sec, f5.6 at ISO 125.
Lemon Scented Sun Orchid aka the vanilla orchid (Thelymitra antennifera). Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r with Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/250 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
A White Spider Orchid (Caladenia longicauda subsp longicauda) among the everlastings on Christmas Rock in Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/125 sec, f5.6 at ISO 125.
Chameleon Spider Orchid (Caladenia dimidia). Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/800 sec, f5.6 at ISO 200.
Sugar Candy Orchid, Caladenia hirta subsp. hirta. Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/250 sec, f5.6 at ISO 125.
Pink Candy Orchid, Caladenia hirta subsp. rosea. Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r2 with a Canon 100mm f2.8 IS L macro lens. Exposure: 1/80 sec, f5.6 at ISO 125.
Cowslip Orchid, Caladenia flava subs. flava. Christmas Rock, Western Australia. Sony A7r with a Tamron 20mm f2.8 lens. Exposure: 1/160 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
Lately I’ve been reading a lot of how photography has become really expensive. Sony released the A1 at $10,000 AUD, Canon are due to release the R3 at the same amount. As for lenses well the latest fast primes are priced in the stratosphere. But here’s the news – photography is very expensive if you treat it as technological proliferation. If you insist on having the latest and greatest you are going to have to pay. But do you really need the latest and greatest? Do you honestly need 30 fps shutter speed? 8K video? 4K 10 bit 4:2:2 video at 120fps? Fifteen stop dynamic range? Only you can say what you need, but I’m guessing that like 90% of photography enthusiasts you don’t. I know I don’t. Let’s face it the greatest photos of the Twentieth Century were taken with basic equipment. The vast majority on cameras that didn’t have autofocus or built in metering.
The back bone of my professional kit has been full frame Canon DSLRs since the launch of the original Canon 5d in 2005. Here is my 6d with my lenses.
Maybe you’re a bit like me. You’ve been doing the photography thing for quite a while. You were a happy SLR user in the days of film and when the digital revolution took place you patiently waited for the affordable DSLRs to arrive on the market and you made the switch. You bought into a system, acquired some nice lenses and upgraded the camera body as needed. But now something has come along that threatens that. That something is the advent of the mirrorless camera. These new wonder cameras are technological marvels with their WYSIWYG viewfinders and their information overlays, the incredible image stabilisation systems, the convergence with video, and the list of features goes on and on. The fly in the ointment is that to achieve this the manufacturers abandoned their lens mounts and developed new ones that could take advantage of the lack of the mirror box. This is where the expense comes in because to make the switch you have to spend big on not only a new camera body but also on new lenses. When I went digital I went Canon and over the years I ended up with a modest kit based around an EOS 6d, a 24-70 f4, a 70-200 f2.8, a 100mm f2.8 macro, a 50mm f1.8, and a Sigma 150-600mm. To get the equivalent kit based around an R6 body would cost me a few dollars under $20,000. That is a phenomenal amount of money. My wallet puckers up just thinking about it. So I looked at the more wallet friendly option of the R6, a Canon EOS-R Mount Adapter to adapt my EF lenses to the new RF mount, and a Canon RF 50mm f1.8 STM as my old 50mm f1.8 wouldn’t cope with CAF needed for video. The damage would be just under $5000 which while more wallet friendly was still more than I really wanted to spend. The other problem is that theCanon EOS-R Mount Adapter is currently back ordered here in Australia at the time of writing with no word on when stock would become available. Bugger!
The Olympus OMD EM1 mk ii with the Olympus m.Zuiko 60mm f2.8 macro lens.
Time to reappraise the problem. As regular readers will know I went mirrorless about ten years ago with the Micro Four Thirds system and this is what does the bulk of my work. But I wanted a larger sensor and higher resolution for certain situations. A bit like when I was running Canon35mm SLRs in conjunction with a Pentax 645n II. So m43 gives enough quality for about 80% of my needs. I wanted auto focus, 5-6 fps frame rate, in body image stabilisation, 4K video , and of course full frame. So the Canon R and RP wereimmediately excluded. Then it occurred to me that if I was going to have to adapt my Canon glass to use on an R series camera why not consider adapting them to another make such as Sony. Now again regular readers will be aware that I acquired a Sony A7r with which to use my old collection of manual focus Olympus OM mount and Voigtländer M mount lenses. So perhaps going Sony was the solution. From what I read the Sony A7r was not a suitable candidate for this because of its contrast based auto focus so it was going to have to be 2nd generation cameras or later. New prices were still out of my league, but secondhand looked promising. I also found that the secondhand prices on the Metabones Canon EF to Sony E-mount T Smart Adapter (Mark V) and the Sigma MC-11EF-Mount Lenses to Sony E mount were less than half the price of new. To keep within my $2000 AUD budget I decided to go for a Sony A7r II as I wouldn’t need to buy extra batteries as I already had loads for my A7r. So it was just a case of searching and eventually I came up trumps and found an A7r II with less than 50 shutter actuations, a Sigma and a Metabones adapter that kept me within my budget.
The Olympus OM Zuiko 35mm f2 mounted on a Sony A7r.
So did this end up a workable solution? Well I’m not going to review the A7r II as that has been done to death on the internet. But, suffice to say it gave everything I was looking for in a full frame mirrorless camera. The next two parts will look at how well the adapters worked with my lenses and the A7r II.
The Sony A7rii with the Sigma MC-11 and Metabobes V EF to FE lens adapters.
Mount your Canon EF lenses to your Sony A7rii using the Metabones V Smart Adapter.
Will the Sony A7rii work well with my Canon lenses? Is it time to say “Adios EOS”?
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