Yeah, there's been a lot of talk about people wanting Sony to make a new version. Other manufacturers have modern versions that are very popular, so I'm sure they'll make one too. It's just a matter of time I think.
You could still pick up an origional. They do have CA issues and some people think they're too heavy, but they're definitely worth the cost. The bokeh is to die for. I'm hoping to get others to post their beercan shots, hopefully showcasing the bokeh..
Alright I'm going to pummel you with some of the shots from my last insect hunt. These are all pretty much the telephoto end macro focus of the lens so bokeh is pretty tight in there. The spider web is a bizarre one - the wiggly lines that come out right in front of and behind the spider, I don't know why those spiders build their web like that, but theres a legion of them on the side of the house and they are all built exactly like that....
Anbesol, brilliant shots I didn't realise you could use the beercan for macro as well! Great insects, so much more interesting than the ones around here. Love the colours of that blue-winged waspy thing Hey, I don't think we saw that squirrel in the squirrel thread!
Mette
My Sony Alpha 700 and I have been joined by a Tamron 200-500mm
It is pretty humid, close to sea level, with a ton of vegetation around here. So there are plenty of insects to go around. Did I not post that in the squirrel thread?
The beercan is a very picky macro, with a 1:4 magnification at 210, it doesn't give you a whole lot of wiggle room for focus, but I like the challenge, push it to the limits...
- Charlie
Feel free to edit and repost my work as a part of your critique.
Hmm... Don't have too many beercan shots handy right now... Here's one from a while back with the a100. Was going for a moody shot on a overcast day. Sure, looks a bit soft, but that was the idea...
Nice job. I'd say you did a fantastic job capturing the mood in that image!
The shots in this thread really do show off the abilities of this 20+ year old lens on modern DSLR's. I guess that is why the Beercan has such a strong "cult" following. Keep em coming folks!
[When was that second one taken - why were the flags at half staff?]
Thanks Canuck, it's from last Sunday. I'm not sure why the half mast, I think because an emergency team that died when a helicopter crash. All flags in the area where half mast except the one in the white house.
I thought I would dredge this back up with a little show-n-tell demo. My beercan died today - the focus won't. Since I imagine it has been going bad for some time, this could account for some of my sharpness problems. Well today since I didn't have it, I set up the Canon XTi with the 70-200 f/4 L IS in the same spot. Below are two shots with very similar settings - first with the beercan and second with the Canon. The Canon is certainly razor sharp, but it just ain't the same background. - TF
1 - Sony A350 w 70-210 f/4
200mm, ISO 400, f/4, 1/125 sec
2 - Canon XTi w 70-200 f/4 L IS
200mm, ISO 200, f/4, 1/200 sec
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I am no better than you. I critique to teach myself to see.
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Feel free to edit my photos or do anything else that will help me learn.
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Sony/Minolta - way more gear than talent.
Oldclicker - thanks for the comparison! Thats terrible your beercan died, I am sorry to hear that. Have you had a funeral service for it yet? You'd better hurry up and pick up a new one too - the price of that lens is not going down.
Okay, I'll add an other... This one is a good case study photo, showing one of the few faults of the beercan when wide open. I could not easily get an angle on this that did not have a blown highlight somewhere on the web do to reflections, etc... For the beercan at wide open, these get a nice red CA around them, as seen here. You can clean this up via PP for the most part, but it's something to look out for when shooting in similar conditions... It's just a snapshot for me, so I probably won't bother to work on it more...
Bringing this one back. Mette, lets see some of your beercan shots!!
one more from me - this one was tough, it was a windy day so the branch was swinging back and forth, for every in focus shot I got there was a good 6-7 others out of focus :-\
That is so funny - I just logged on to post one at long last...and what thread do I find at the top of the list??!! Anbesol, it must some sort of Trans-Atlantic telepathy
I pretty much had it on all day today on an outing with its previous owner and his family. I just finished looking through 200+ shots and
[B]I LOVE THAT BOKEH![/B]
Even the shots where the d...ed birds were out of focus had great bokeh
This shot isn't a bokeh shot but it's the only one so far that's ready for upload...more to follow....
If it hadn't been for you guys, I wouldn't have known the beercan existed, so a great heartfelt THANK YOU
Mette
My Sony Alpha 700 and I have been joined by a Tamron 200-500mm