Cheers from soggy Southern BC (left coast of Canada)

[-ST-]

Hi All!

New to photography - at this point, not quite five months in.

I'm out for two to three hours every day - mainly on the same patch of beach and environmentally protected area*, and decided to get into photography. I had an A7C with the 28-60 mm kit lens for about a week but switched that up for the A7 IV with a FE 24–105 mm F4 G OSS. That's been great company on my daily walks and a lot of fun. (*Southern coast of BC, Canada)

In September, I got Capture One, and that was a new experience.

In November, I got the FE PZ 16–35 mm F4 G to do some environmental portraits and some video (not vlogging, although I understand it's good for that too). I support an organization that has weekly musical events. Lately, I've been taking promotional photos and videos for that. Hence, the motivation for the 16-35. Wow - that lens compels you to get in close to the action. It's also intriguing to explore landscapes through the wide-angle perspective.

For the last month or so, I've been frustrated with the 105 end of the 24-105. There are lots of birds, and well - they often feel out of reach. Spring is coming, and there will be plenty to see, so after a lot of hemming and hawing over the 100-400 GM or the 70-200 GM II, I picked up the 70-200 GM II last night and took it out this morning. I had planned to get a 2X teleconverter too, but it looks like they are out of stock everywhere.

Here's something from this morning - the first outing with the newest lens.
SONY ILCE-7M4 197 mm f/6.3 1/640 IS01600 EXP 0


Oh - there's so much to learn!

Thanks for having me.

• ILCE-7M4
• Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS II (SEL70200GM2)
• 197.0 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/640 sec
• ISO 1600

 

[Tim Mayo]

Welcome ST and thanks for joining up here. Spending 2-3 hours on the beach each day sounds fantastic! The 70-200 F2.8 GM II works really well with the 1.4x and 2x teleconverters, hopefully one comes into stock soon.

 

[evacguy]

Hi All!

New to photography - at this point, not quite five months in.

I'm out for two to three hours every day - mainly on the same patch of beach and environmentally protected area*, and decided to get into photography. I had an A7C with the 28-60 mm kit lens for about a week but switched that up for the A7 IV with a FE 24–105 mm F4 G OSS. That's been great company on my daily walks and a lot of fun. (*Southern coast of BC, Canada)

In September, I got Capture One, and that was a new experience.

In November, I got the FE PZ 16–35 mm F4 G to do some environmental portraits and some video (not vlogging, although I understand it's good for that too). I support an organization that has weekly musical events. Lately, I've been taking promotional photos and videos for that. Hence, the motivation for the 16-35. Wow - that lens compels you to get in close to the action. It's also intriguing to explore landscapes through the wide-angle perspective.

For the last month or so, I've been frustrated with the 105 end of the 24-105. There are lots of birds, and well - they often feel out of reach. Spring is coming, and there will be plenty to see, so after a lot of hemming and hawing over the 100-400 GM or the 70-200 GM II, I picked up the 70-200 GM II last night and took it out this morning. I had planned to get a 2X teleconverter too, but it looks like they are out of stock everywhere.

Here's something from this morning - the first outing with the newest lens.
SONY ILCE-7M4 197 mm f/6.3 1/640 IS01600 EXP 0


Oh - there's so much to learn!

Thanks for having me.

HI ST, I'm also new to the group, only joined a few days ago, I'm also relatively new to photography as a hobby, started about 9 months ago, and we have the same kit, I have the A7iv and the GM 70-200mm f2.8 OSS II. I've had both a bit longer than you though, but just for a few months. I bought the G 50mm f2.5 with my camera, but since I got the 70-200mm I never take it off my camera, it is permanently on the camera. I live in an inner borough of London (Greenwich) and take my kit with me everywhere, especially on my daily walks. There is a surprising amount of wildlife in London (of the animal kind) and the street, architecture and landscape photography is also great.

I was thinking about getting Capture One, but ended up getting Lightroom/Photoshop and the entire Creative Cloud suite, I get a good deal through work so it was an easy decision in the end! There is a heck of a lot to learn with the camera, lenses and software, all part of the fun I guess. I'm also considering a TC, but can't make up my mind.

I'd like the 2.0x but not sure this is the right solution for me (due to both image quality and reduced stops). It would be great for terrestrial photography, but I also want to do deepsky night sky photography, so can't decide on the TC, a longer lens telephoto, a long lens prime, or a telescope? I read rumours last year that Sony was going to release a new range of TCs, so I put off the decision until they come out with their new range or the rumors a definitely proven to be false. The solution might simply be to get the 1.4x for terrestrial photography, and buy something else for longer reach nightsky stuff.

Oh, I also use my Iphone 14 Pro, that has a great little camera! Not sure if we can post pictures in this group from kit other than Sony Alpha.

Enjoy!

 

[-ST-]

Hi, Ed.

Great meet you.

I noticed your previous post about teleconverters and being new here, I was reluctant to comment. Well, since we're talking, I haven't seen anything online that would discourage me from getting a 2X teleconverter. I watched and read everything I could find comparing our
FE 70–200 mm F2.8 GM OSS II (SEL70200GM2) with 2X teleconverter
to
FE 100-400 mm F 4.5/5.6 GM OSS (SEL100400GM)

Thoughts
Light loss - at the far end, both are f 5.6, and if I was going to put the teleconverter on the camera, I'd probably be shooting in good light. I wouldn't be constrained at f 5.6 at 200-400 mm either.

Image Quality
I haven't read or seen anything that would deter me from using a 2X teleconverter with the FE 70–200 mm F2.8 GM OSS II. Have you seen this article?
Alpha Shooters - Comparing 100-400 vs 70-200 GM II with 2X
and video

Sony 70-200 F2.8 GM II + 2x Tele VS Sony 100-400 GM AF Comparison With the Sony A7 IV

A comparison of the autofocus performance between the Sony 70-200 F2.8 GM II lens with the 2x teleconverter and the Sony 100-400 GM lens using the Sony a7 IV...

youtu.be

I can't find a 2X teleconverter in stock in my part of the world right now. If I could, I'd have one.

If I was collaborating with other photographers, I might have gone with Light Room. Just to be contrary, I started with Capture One to learn the universal concepts. I'll go shopping and comparing again when my one-year subscription expires.

I'm sure there are lots of interesting photo opportunities in Greenwich (being over 400? Years old). I have a forest across the lane and a beautiful beach about a kilometer away. Because I usually start well before dawn, I tend to walk at the beach, but when there's more daylight, I'll probably get back into the woods. There's not much in the way of interesting architecture here.

Cheers!

ST

 

[-ST-]

Welcome ST and thanks for joining up here. Spending 2-3 hours on the beach each day sounds fantastic! The 70-200 F2.8 GM II works really well with the 1.4x and 2x teleconverters, hopefully one comes into stock soon.

Hey Tim,
Your video and article about the 70-200 F2.8 GM II with 2x teleconverter were a big part of my decision to get the lens.

Cheers!

For others who haven't seen them

Sony 100-400 VS 70-200 F2.8 GM II With 2x Tele at 400mm - AlphaShooters.com

In this article I'll be comparing the Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS II with the 2x teleconverter attached.

www.alphashooters.com

Sony 70-200 F2.8 GM II + 2x Tele VS Sony 100-400 GM AF Comparison With the Sony A7 IV

A comparison of the autofocus performance between the Sony 70-200 F2.8 GM II lens with the 2x teleconverter and the Sony 100-400 GM lens using the Sony a7 IV...

youtu.be