What Photography related item have you bought or sold this week?

[AlphaWorld]

Happy dance

The last component of my “encourage Sony to do more announcements like 8 November 2023” efforts arrived today: I collected the 300mm GM.

It arrived in a Sony printed box 29cm x 29cm x 48cm! Plain brown, not black or orange. I looked at the box and wondered what could be inside - it looked much bigger than I expected. There was a collection of folded paper sheets (Sony’s usual documentation for lenses), a neck strap, and another strap which I think is for the bag. And the lens bag is triangular in one profile, and rectangular in another - so it’s not exactly conical, but sort of. There is a fair bit of folded cardboard in the box to support the bag - that’s nice.

The bag has about 3cm of padding in the bottom - that’s impressive.

Now the piece of news that will upset Clint! It has no lens cap because it has no filter threads for the cap to clip to. It comes with a slight refinement to the kind of lens hood we got on the 70-200 GM II, and it’s “lens cap” is a pleather “hat” that goes over the hood (I have seen similar arrangements on other super-teles - even Canon’s EF 200/2). Sorry, “Deleted Member 5045” - you have to have the hood on this lens to be able to cap it!

The front of the lens is about 11cm across. The glass goes all the way across - Sony clearly decided to make this lens as small of possible, even with a lot of glass inside it.

I have packed my bag to take the lens on its first outing: both TCs, and the A9 III. This is going to be fun!

 

[Unframed Dave]

I got my hands on my long awaited secondhand 600 f4 yesterday. Here it is alongside the 200 - 600. Now I need to use it.

• SM-G981B
• 5.4 mm
• ƒ/1.8
• 1/33 sec
• ISO 640

 

[Soundmike]

I got my hands on my long awaited secondhand 600 f4 yesterday. Here it is alongside the 200 - 600. Now I need to use it.View attachment 54781

Wow didn't realise how much bigger it is ,I have the 200-600 and was hoping to get a second hand one but as I'm getting on in years maybe I'll stick with my 70-200 as backup .

 

[Unframed Dave]

Wow didn't realise how much bigger it is ,I have the 200-600 and was hoping to get a second hand one but as I'm getting on in years maybe I'll stick with my 70-200 as backup .

It handles much better than it looks. Whereabouts in the UK are you? If I'm nearby, I can let you have a play with it.

 

[Brownie]

I got my hands on my long awaited secondhand 600 f4 yesterday. Here it is alongside the 200 - 600. Now I need to use it.View attachment 54781

Too many buttons! Where's the zoom ring?

 

[spudhead]

Too many buttons! Where's the zoom ring?

All the primes have loads of buttons always have

 

[spudhead]

It handles much better than it looks. Whereabouts in the UK are you? If I'm nearby, I can let you have a play with it.

What can he play with?

 

[alexpler]

I got my hands on my long awaited secondhand 600 f4 yesterday. Here it is alongside the 200 - 600. Now I need to use it.View attachment 54781

And to think I disregarded the 24-105 for being too heavy/bulky for my needs

 

[Unframed Dave]

Too many buttons! Where's the zoom ring?

You can never have too many buttons. Never.

 

[AlphaWorld]

All the primes have loads of buttons always have

Not all the primes. Only the big whites. And most of those aren't buttons - they are switches.

There are the black buttons on the black ring at the front of the lens (they default to Focus Hold)

The 600 GM has:

• AF/MF
• OSS on / off
• OSS mode (probably 1/2/3)
• Focus limiter (might be Full / Long / Short)
• Full-time DMF on / off

The 200-600 has all of those except the Full-time DMF. The 70-200 f/2.8 GM II has all of those

Then two I haven't seen before:

• Function ring select plus a button to set the function ring's "target"
• Beep on/off

The 300 GM has a function ring, but what I've read so far suggest that it's rather different from the 600 GM's function ring. The 300's function ring is spring loaded and can be held either to the left or the right - it seems to be power focus (like power zoom on PZ lenses) - you can rack focus in or out based on the direction you hold the ring, and it moves steadily through the focus - that feels like a video feature to me, used for those "artistic" shots where you rack focus slowly from one person to another.

 

[spudhead]

Not all the primes. Only the big whites. And most of those aren't buttons - they are switches.

There are the black buttons on the black ring at the front of the lens (they default to Focus Hold)

The 600 GM has:

• AF/MF
• OSS on / off
• OSS mode (probably 1/2/3)
• Focus limiter (might be Full / Long / Short)
• Full-time DMF on / off

The 200-600 has all of those except the Full-time DMF. The 70-200 f/2.8 GM II has all of those

Then two I haven't seen before:

• Function ring select plus a button to set the function ring's "target"
• Beep on/off

The 300 GM has a function ring, but what I've read so far suggest that it's rather different from the 600 GM's function ring. The 300's function ring is spring loaded and can be held either to the left or the right - it seems to be power focus (like power zoom on PZ lenses) - you can rack focus in or out based on the direction you hold the ring, and it moves steadily through the focus - that feels like a video feature to me, used for those "artistic" shots where you rack focus slowly from one person to another.

I think you know what I was talking about Tony I have primes for years, I would suggest you read less and use the lens, you will find out what every button switch is for and you might even enjoy using it mate enjoy the new lens

 

[liggy]

well... I was a couple glasses of Elijah Craig in last night and was thinking about my last kayak outing. I had been hoping for a stacked sensor crop Sony body for a while but I don't think one is coming anytime soon.

Even though I really love the old school Fujis with dials I don't care for the X-H2S. Not really amazing to use and not even close to my A9II, much less the A1.

One of my buds is a m4/3 shooter and the appeal of a very weather resistant stacked sensor crop body and compact glass led to a lowball offer on Greentoe on an OM-1 that was essentially what *used* ones are selling for.

To my surprise it was accepted so I found a used Oly 100-400 lens to go with it.

For just about what my used A9II might fetch on the marketplace I've got precapture with a stacked sensor, 25-50fps and a 200-800 FF equivalent lens.

Certainly not going to replace the Sony kit but on paper this will be a great kayaking/hiking/walkaround setup. We'll see.

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

well... I was a couple glasses of Elijah Craig in last night and was thinking about my last kayak outing. I had been hoping for a stacked sensor crop Sony body for a while but I don't think one is coming anytime soon.

Even though I really love the old school Fujis with dials I don't care for the X-H2S. Not really amazing to use and not even close to my A9II, much less the A1.

One of my buds is a m4/3 shooter and the appeal of a very weather resistant stacked sensor crop body and compact glass led to a lowball offer on Greentoe on an OM-1 that was essentially what *used* ones are selling for.

To my surprise it was accepted so I found a used Oly 100-400 lens to go with it.

For just about what my used A9II might fetch on the marketplace I've got precapture with a stacked sensor, 25-50fps and a 200-800 FF equivalent lens.

Certainly not going to replace the Sony kit but on paper this will be a great kayaking/hiking/walkaround setup. We'll see.

What kind of waterproof bag do you use on the kayak for your camera? I've always been curious to take my camera with me on kayak trips, but I'm terrified to expose it to saltwater.

 

[Brownie]

well... I was a couple glasses of Elijah Craig in last night and was thinking about my last kayak outing. I had been hoping for a stacked sensor crop Sony body for a while but I don't think one is coming anytime soon.

Even though I really love the old school Fujis with dials I don't care for the X-H2S. Not really amazing to use and not even close to my A9II, much less the A1.

One of my buds is a m4/3 shooter and the appeal of a very weather resistant stacked sensor crop body and compact glass led to a lowball offer on Greentoe on an OM-1 that was essentially what *used* ones are selling for.

To my surprise it was accepted so I found a used Oly 100-400 lens to go with it.

For just about what my used A9II might fetch on the marketplace I've got precapture with a stacked sensor, 25-50fps and a 200-800 FF equivalent lens.

Certainly not going to replace the Sony kit but on paper this will be a great kayaking/hiking/walkaround setup. We'll see.

Been there. Panny G9 and 100-400 + a lot of other glass. Was fun, but AF fell short for me. OM just released the OM-1 II.

 

[liggy]

What kind of waterproof bag do you use on the kayak for your camera? I've always been curious to take my camera with me on kayak trips, but I'm terrified to expose it to saltwater.

Running an old roll top REI dry bag. Still works a treat. I don't see it on their site any longer.

Anecdotal posts from Oly owners on how their gear gets exposed to salt water and they just rinse 'em off and go. The OM-1 is actually rated IP53 water resistant. Not exactly something you'll want to submerge but at least it's been formally tested and rated. I'm confident it'll be more robust than my Sonys and Fujis.

Been there. Panny G9 and 100-400 + a lot of other glass. Was fun, but AF fell short for me. OM just released the OM-1 II.

Was looking at the launch of the OM-1 MK II and seeing that it isn't vastly better than the OM-1 I was looking into used OM-1 pricing. Lots of m43 folks are kind of salty and calling it a $2400 firmware update. For $1000 less than that I am treating this as a possible catch and release with a very minimal downside. I can sell and not lose much at all if any.

From here on out I don't want to go back to a non-stacked sensor and the AF is supposed to be pretty good on the OM-1. I'll know soon enough.

 

[pointreyes]

From here on out I don't want to go back to a non-stacked sensor and the AF is supposed to be pretty good on the OM-1. I'll know soon enough.

The most surprising thing with the OM-1 AF. It will put a shape outline on the bird and another on the head and that is even with the lens not in focus. With my 40-150 f2.8 Pro, the lens snaps in focus very fast on those out of focus shapes.
Living in the PNW, the IP53 rating using PRO lens with the OM-1 does bring a certain degree of comfort.
BTW: The 100-400 MFD is 4.27 feet which in this case is 0.57x magnification.

 

[liggy]

The most surprising thing with the OM-1 AF. It will put a shape outline on the bird and another on the head and that is even with the lens not in focus. With my 40-150 f2.8 Pro, the lens snaps in focus very fast on those out of focus shapes.
Living in the PNW, the IP53 rating using PRO lens with the OM-1 does bring a certain degree of comfort.
BTW: The 100-400 MFD is 4.27 feet which in this case is 0.57x magnification.

You're giving me something to look forward to. The subject recognition sounds interesting. It's very good on the A7RV. I'm still not confident in the long term outlook for m4/3 at this point though. It almost seems that Panasonic has staked out the video users and hopefully OM Systems (what a stupid name!) will make even better products for the wildlife/tele/extreme market.

 

[pointreyes]

You're giving me something to look forward to. The subject recognition sounds interesting. It's very good on the A7RV. I'm still not confident in the long term outlook for m4/3 at this point though. It almost seems that Panasonic has staked out the video users and hopefully OM Systems (what a stupid name!) will make even better products for the wildlife/tele/extreme market.

To see someone that tested the OM-1 compared to the A1 and is not a fanboy. He is now comparing the OM-1 to the Z9.

https://www.youtube.com/@DennisJacobsenWildlife

And for what appears to me to be a fair review of the 100-400 compared to the 150-400 Pro lens.

OM Systems 100-400mm v 150-400mm Lens Comparison

In this video I compare the Olympus 100-400mm lens against the far more expensive 150-400mm. Is there a difference in optical quality? Well the good news for...

www.youtube.com

 

[liggy]

To see someone that tested the OM-1 compared to the A1 and is not a fanboy. He is now comparing the OM-1 to the Z9.

https://www.youtube.com/@DennisJacobsenWildlife

And for what appears to me to be a fair review of the 100-400 compared to the 150-400 Pro lens.

OM Systems 100-400mm v 150-400mm Lens Comparison

In this video I compare the Olympus 100-400mm lens against the far more expensive 150-400mm. Is there a difference in optical quality? Well the good news for...

www.youtube.com

Interesting comparison. I don't need the OM-1 to be best in class - just good enough to be better than my current kayaking setup. I think that'll be a slam dunk job.

Beats the 200-600 on size, weight and reach and should easily beat my Fuji kayak kit (X-H1 / 100-400) on AF and reach.

Part of the reason I'm holding off on the 150-400 Pro is that I'm hoping for a better Sony long tele option down the road and would rather spend the money there.

I've got no problem investing in Sony glass. I don't have the utmost confidence in OM Systems going much further than the OM-1 MIK II.

 

[pointreyes]

Oh, I did not realize you had the XF 100-400.
Have you thought of replacing the X-H1 with the stacked sensor X-H2s.
The 100-400 is one of those odd lenses. The size of them are similar for M.Zuiko, XF, and GM.
I had the X-H2s and loved it, but it made me discover that I have an ergo problem using the X-H2 cameras along with Canon - the location of the joystick requires me to adjust my grip just to use. My thumb is not long enough. If it was not for the 90 macro lens that was released last year, I probably would have kept with the X-H2s regardless my short thumb.

 

[AlphaWorld]

I think you know what I was talking about Tony I have primes for years, I would suggest you read less and use the lens, you will find out what every button switch is for and you might even enjoy using it mate enjoy the new lens

It was gentle teasing, or so I thought. Apologies if I offended.

I am using my new lens - first outing toda. Tomorrow is the second outing.

 

[liggy]

Oh, I did not realize you had the XF 100-400.
Have you thought of replacing the X-H1 with the stacked sensor X-H2s.
The 100-400 is one of those odd lenses. The size of them are similar for M.Zuiko, XF, and GM.
I had the X-H2s and loved it, but it made me discover that I have an ergo problem using the X-H2 cameras along with Canon - the location of the joystick requires me to adjust my grip just to use. My thumb is not long enough. If it was not for the 90 macro lens that was released last year, I probably would have kept with the X-H2s regardless my short thumb.

I need to pare down my Fuji kit. Sill have the 100-400 and 50-140. Just sold the 16-55 but have a full case of XF glass largely sitting unused.

Haven't touched the 100-400 except for a few kayak outings. I tried the X-H2S and honestly didn't care for it. The recognition was good. The af was good. Maybe not as good as the A9II but better than any other Fuji I have shot with.

The dealbreaker was the controls. IMO were the opposite of what I loved about Fuji. Sucked the joy of use out of the experience to me.

Command dials without the dedicated dials of the X-T and X-Pro models. Not my jam.
For the size I might as well shoot my A1 - great dials, superior everything vs. X-H2S. Breaks my heart to just leave Fuji. I'm even friends with the local Fuji rep.

We go shooting together a few times a year but lately all I'm using when we're out is my A1.

In terms of shooting Fuji the one I grab the most often is the X-T2 in Graphite Silver - a beautiful thing to behold and use.

I keep the Voigtlander 23 1.2 mounted almost permanently on that body.

I bought an X-T5 to try and keep my Fuji love going. The autofocus is good, not great. 40mp resolution is nice but not necessary.
The X-T5 recognition is really good at putting green boxes over things but sadly that is not a guarantee of an in-focus shot.

The 150-600 is too dark. F8? Nope - might as well use the 100-400 + 1.4 TC. If Fuji had better tele options I might have stuck with them but that isn't a Fuji strong suit. I've come to really love using small character primes like the original 18 F2 and especially the 35 1.4 on the Fujis but anything high performance like the 33 F1 or 18 1.4 gets you in to the same size/weight as Sony and the 35GM and 50 1.2 GM on the A1/A7RV are just better.

Sony just overwhelmed me with performance - especially the A1.

Now I hope to have reach and stacked sensor goodness in a small package with the OM-1.
EVF is nicer than any other M4/3 camera and honestly better than most Fuji cameras.

The AF is supposed to be good and it has what should be good subject recognition.

We'll see. If I don't love it I'm pretty sure I can sell it for almost what I paid for it.

I have a real GAS problem but hey - better than hookers and blow.

 

[Unframed Dave]

I have a real GAS problem but hey - better than hookers and blow.

Yeah! Don't waste it!

 

[Soundmike]

It handles much better than it looks. Whereabouts in the UK are you? If I'm nearby, I can let you have a play with it.

Thanks for the offer I'm up in York

 

[Unframed Dave]

Thanks for the offer I'm up in York

Bit of a trek from deepest Norfolk, but you never know.

 

[Soundmike]

Bit of a trek from deepest Norfolk, but you never know.

Thanks ,if I'm ever birding down there I'll let you know . Feathered variety .

 

[Brownie]

Running an old roll top REI dry bag. Still works a treat. I don't see it on their site any longer.

Anecdotal posts from Oly owners on how their gear gets exposed to salt water and they just rinse 'em off and go. The OM-1 is actually rated IP53 water resistant. Not exactly something you'll want to submerge but at least it's been formally tested and rated. I'm confident it'll be more robust than my Sonys and Fujis.



Was looking at the launch of the OM-1 MK II and seeing that it isn't vastly better than the OM-1 I was looking into used OM-1 pricing. Lots of m43 folks are kind of salty and calling it a $2400 firmware update. For $1000 less than that I am treating this as a possible catch and release with a very minimal downside. I can sell and not lose much at all if any.

From here on out I don't want to go back to a non-stacked sensor and the AF is supposed to be pretty good on the OM-1. I'll know soon enough.

Check the Mirrorless Comparison website. It ranks much higher than previous M-4/3 gear, still not as high as one would expect. I truly believed when the camera came out the AF would eclipse Sony. Nope.

 

[Unframed Dave]

Thanks ,if I'm ever birding down there I'll let you know . Feathered variety .

I'm up for that, pretty sure uncle kev would come along as well.

 

[liggy]

Check the Mirrorless Comparison website. It ranks much higher than previous M-4/3 gear, still not as high as one would expect. I truly believed when the camera came out the AF would eclipse Sony. Nope.

When it was originally announced I had hoped it would at least be in the A9 league. Turns out not to be the case.

For me this isn't a Sony replacement thing - it's the final impetus to sell off more of my Fuji kit. It seems the OM-1 is still outperforming the X-HS2 and the 100-400 Oly lens gives me more reach than same FL on the Fuji.

My hope is it'll be more than "good enough" and best case the nerd in me will love the computational stuff the OM brings to the party.

 

[Brownie]

When it was originally announced I had hoped it would at least be in the A9 league. Turns out not to be the case.

For me this isn't a Sony replacement thing - it's the final impetus to sell off more of my Fuji kit. It seems the OM-1 is still outperforming the X-HS2 and the 100-400 Oly lens gives me more reach than same FL on the Fuji.

My hope is it'll be more than "good enough" and best case the nerd in me will love the computational stuff the OM brings to the party.

I still miss the reach of that 2X crop sometimes. And did you notice they just announced a 150-600 M-4/3 mount Sigma with sync stabilization? 1200mm handheld! That's some serious stuff right there.