Test shot with CZJ 135mm f/3.5 Sonnar and the Sony A7Sii. SOOC shot wide open.
A new-to-me Carl Zeiss Jena (CZJ) 135mm f/3.5 Sonnar medium telephoto lens arrived a couple of days ago. It was listed as excellent condition and CLA’d1. It sat on the table for a couple of days, but I decided to mount it on the Sony A7Sii and shoot it this morning. I might take it along on walkies as well.
The focus is a bit stiff and grabby, although not grinding as if the helicoid grease was hardened. It might just be the sample. It might be the age. Or it might need a little better cleaning.
The lens looks good, no obvious flaws. There is the usual minor internal dust and a few cleaning marks on the front element. Neither of these are of concern, although if I open it up to clean and relubricate the helicoid I will clean up the dust (of course).
I have a fondness for the Sonnar design. Lenses based on this old Zeiss optical formula generally produce very nice images, with out of focus areas smooth and a slight softening of the image toward the edge.
This is one of the things I prefer from legacy glass — the images do not have that clinical sharpness common to modern glass (and the computer designs), but have a certain character. There is nothing wrong with the former for the proper application. But for my images, which I shoot for art and fun, I like the character and quirky quality that some legacy lenses provide.
The area we hike in Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest was burned a few years ago. The forest is recovering, but the evidence of fire remains. Shot with Sony A7Sii and CZJ 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon at f/5.6.
Well, I wonder where the Interwebs will take me this week…
I thought that I lost my 6-inch crescent wrench. I found a list of best adjustable wrenches in an article on Popular Mechanics.
Given I want to use my drone to capture aerial imagery on my project sites, I need to earn my UAV pilot’s license. This course looks like a good place to start.
John Free was an American photographer and teacher. He died earlier this year. But, his work bears review and he left some good words on YouTube.
Vertx makes and sells some interesting looking gear.
The Eagles remain one of my all-time favorite bands. I never collected their recordings. I have all of them in my HD Tracks shopping cart at the moment. There will be a sale (I hope) this weekend and I will buy them to update my music file.
At the turn-around point of our normal summer hike, I pause, remove my pack, and give The Girl a drink. Shot with the Sony A7Sii and the CZJ 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon at about f/8.
Given the hot weather we are experiencing1, we are hiking up above 7,000 ft in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. I found a place there where there is ample room to park the 4Runner and we can hike off of the Kings Canyon trail up a fire road into the forest. A few other folks hike up that way, but not very many and most days we do not encounter other hikers.
The initial climb-out is steep and this old man is huffing and puffing by the time I complete that climb. The Girl runs out and back encouraging me to hurry up.
The remainder of the hike has a couple of climbs, but more moderate. It is good for me. I like it.
If we get out early enough, she does not overheat. However, if the sun is high, then I watch her. I always have water and a bowl. If she needs water, then we stop and I give her some (and usually take a sip myself).
The turn-around is a bit more than a mile from the rig. I sometimes go a little farther and that adds some elevation. But we always stop where we turn around and I doff the pack and water her.
I am liking this milsurp Molle II Patrol Pack. It is big enough but not too big. I have work to do on organization, but will get to it. I also think I need to trim the stiffener just a little — the pack bends slightly in the middle. I think the stiffener is just a smidge too long.
We were out early today. She did not overheat. But she still wanted, and I gave, water.
I am grateful. Life is good.
1It is very hot for Carson right now. Afternoon temperature is running over 100ºF and it is not cooling off in the evening as is normal.
Sera posed nicely for me Tuesday morning. Shot with the Sony A7Sii and the CZJ 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon at about f/4. No post processing; resize only.
On our way back from the trail’s terminus, we decided to explore a granite outcrop. I wondered if there might be a photograph in the jumble of textures.
Well, there was no joy from the rocks, but Sera posed for me. So I made the capture.
Shot with Sony A7Sii and a Carl Zeiss Jena 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon at f/4. Raw conversion in DX0 Photolab directly to JPG without modification.
I took The Girl up to our favorite place in the National Forest to walk this morning. It is too hot for her after 0900h, more from the direct sun on her body than the ambient temperature. So, rather than stress her out at Silver Saddle Ranch, we seek elevation and cooler temperatures as well as the shade from the pine trees.
I decided that I have to bring a camera with me. The iPhone makes acceptable images for a number of uses. But I prefer a purpose-built tool that has more control over the image and has better lenses. So I brought the Sony A7Sii with a Carl Zeiss Jena 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon mounted to it. I brought only the one lens so as to avoid the what lens do I choose for this image loop I sometimes fall into.
So, I had a 35mm focal length lens. I had a lens that has character, something a lot of modern glass lacks. So I made images as we walked. Out of the lot, I picked this one as the one I liked the best. It is not perfect and I can do better. I will shoot another tomorrow and see if I can get a better composition.
She’s looking for the neighbor dogs. Shot with the Sony A7Sii and a lovely little CZJ 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon wide open.
Late Sunday afternoon I decided that I needed a Blizzard in my life. The Girl agreed that was a good idea. So we loaded up and headed to DQ.
They were stupid busy at 1830h on a summer Sunday evening. They were having trouble getting orders done correctly and the timing was awful.
Maybe it was my mistake for going inside the store and not the drive-through. Lesson learned.
My Blizzard came out quick but the burger took forever. So, I ate dessert first (and saved some for The Girl).
I made the capture after we returned home. I have a new-to-me Carl Zeiss Jena (DDR) 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon that needs some love. I had it mounted to the Sony A7Sii and the image is straight out of camera with only resizing to fit my weblog.
Sera posed for me this afternoon. She is such a hoot. Shot with Sony A7Sii and a vintage Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f/2.4 wide open. Post processing with Nik Tools 6 Silver Efex to produce a Tri-X look.
I am still adjusting my new workspace. I did a bit of work on it this morning, while working through my coffee and getting started on my day. I am struggling to wait to work on the PC side because I need to get ready for Field Day and field work (next week).
Nonetheless, a new-to-me Carl Zeiss Jena 35mm f/2.4 Flektogon arrived in the morning mail. I retrieved it from the mailbox on the way out to hike, but did not open it until we returned, I finished the day’s activities, and rested after my hike. I decided to shoot a few images of Sera to see how it performs.
It will take more repetitions with the lens to get it. That is OK. The process is good for me. I have not worked with my post-processing tools enough and I have a lot of glass that will keep me busy for weeks, if not months.
Change of subject: It is so good to have my MBP back in the workroom and connected to my speakers. I listened to a few old favorites this morning while having coffee. Some of them are so poignant and take me back to when Wife and I so enjoyed exploring new music together.
In particular, I have To The Bride playing as I write. It was compiled in the mid-70s when Barry McGuire, The Second Chapter of Acts, and A Band Called David toured together. It was a time at the beginning of what came to be called contemporary Christian music and much of it sounds like worship music that is now common in the church.
Wife and I saw McGuire not long after this record was produced. He came through Kansas City while we lived there. I so loved hearing him sing and play and tell his stories. He was a true minister of God and I learned much from him.
I so loved Wife at the time and sharing those experiences was so good that I do not have words for it. My heart swells as I think on it and a tear comes to my eye. She is still truly, deeply missed.
But, life goes on. It is different, but still good. I am grateful for all the years we had together. I am grateful.
This capture came about as an experiment. The Girl and I were walking Silver Saddle Ranch and I carried the Sony A7Sii with a Carl Zeiss Jena 50mm f/1.8 Pancolar mounted on it. The shot was recorded in raw format at f/1.8. Post processing was in Silver Efex 6 with changes to exposure and contrast and a bit of Tri-X film grain added. I then downscaled the image with Iridient Developer.
I seem to be learning something constantly. Some might call me a scanner because I have a difficult time focusing on just one thing. I have been this way as long as I can remember.
In thinking about processing my images, I decided to update my copy of the Nik Software Collection so that it will run on my new MBP. In particular, I am interested in the black and white capabilities of the Nik software as that is where I really like to work.
One might ask why I am interested in post processing to produce more filmic (film-like) images from my digital cameras. It would be a fair question. I am an amateur photographer. I do not need the almost clinical images produced by modern cameras with exceptional lenses because I do not have a client who is expecting those kinds of images. Photography is one of my ways of reaching into the arts. Although there is something about striving for the ultimate in sharpness and extreme detail, that does not appeal to me most of the time. I want to look at and make images that speak to the heart and less to the analytical mind.
This will likely lead me to shoot some film. I have the Pentax 645NII out of the hutch and am building a kit for it. It is a big, heavy camera that shoots 120 film. But, this is a topic for another entry.
Yesterday seemed like a good day to take the Sony A7Sii out for a walk. I mounted the Carl Zeiss Jena 50mm f/1.8 Pancolar on the M42 converter and checked that the camera was setup for a 50mm lens1. (The camera has in-body image stabilization.) That done, I collected The Girl and we went out to walk.
Given it was after noon, the temperature was much warmer than this morning (about 40ºF) and the sun was shining. The Girl was very excited to get outdoors. She wriggled and chirped as we drove out to Silver Saddle Ranch. As we walked, I made some images. The different camera and very different lens challenged me a little, which is a good thing.
The Girl teased me quite a lot. Sometimes ranging out and sometimes staying close. I felt the tension melt away as I walked and I laughed at The Girl quite a bit as well.
On the return leg of the hike, I realized that having finished up another chunk of work took a big load off my shoulders. The tension melted away and I started playing grab-ass with The Girl, who jumped and twirled away, laughing her doggy-laugh. She looked over her shoulder, grinning that big, goofy pitbull grin, then spun around to run back in for another round. She grabbed a stick and teased me with it.
Her energy was dissipated as we neared the rig. I patted her while we drove home, and then gave her a couple of her small cookies. She was snoozing under my work table as I finished up the day. As I wrote this, it was time to feed her (she is asking) and time for me to get a shower and think about some supper.
I downloaded my images and picked this one to play with. I call it Points and it was shot raw with the Sony A7Sii, and then post processed with Nik Silver Efex 6 to make the black and white conversion.
I am learning some new tools. Life is good. I am grateful.
1I noticed the battery was at about 50% state of charge. I should have tossed a second battery in the bag. I ran out as I stopped to make my last few images.
This is a test shot of Lucas with a new-to-me CZJ 50mm f/1.8 Pancolar. It was shot wide open with a Sony A7Sii and the Sony in-camera black and white conversion.
A lovely Carl Zeiss Jena 50mm f/1.8 Pancolar in M42 mount arrived a couple of days ago. I have not yet had a chance to shoot it, certainly not to test it. But I did mount it on my Sony A7Sii a few minutes ago and shot one of my test subjects, my Lucas plushie.
The capture was made wide open and the background blur is evident in the shot. The lens is nicely sharp wide open and I think the background blur (bokeh) is very nice for this camera to subject distance. It will be fun to play with this East German lens and I will have to make a point of carrying the A7Sii and this lens (and maybe another) on walkies.
I captured this image this morning using the Sony A7Sii and a lovely Asahi-Kogaku Takumar 58mm f/2.4 rangefinder lens wide open.
The Hot-Crazy Matrix is such a funny bit of analysis that I have to preserve it. It will be at risk of censure because of the political correctness problem we have. I show it to female friends (and loved ones) and all have laughed at it to date. It is sarcastic humor at its best, I think. But I suspect the woke will label it misogynistic.
Simon’s Utak (YouTube) posted a review of the TTArtisan 100mm f/2.8 Triplet lens. The Meyer-Optik Göerlitz is a very expensive vintage lens that is highly regarded for its background blur and soap-bubble bokeh. However, the TTArtisan produces very similar images at a much better price point. It is worth a look.
Matt Day does a nice job of explaining the practicals of black and white film development.
