affordable lens options with a7sii or a6300?

PegLeg Media

PegLeg Media

Well-known member
So I currently have a panasonic gh3 and gh4 for video, and a nikon d750 for photography. I really dont like the image of the gh4 because the lack of DOF making the shot look so flat. i have even started using my nikon over my gh4 and like my results much better.

Soo, im looking to switch to Sony and probably start with the a6300 and then get the a7sii down the line. My problem is the classic 12-35/24-70 equivalent lens is 5x more expensive than other brands. I am hoping to find something affordable that will still have auto focus for photography.

What lenses do most of you guys use with your sonys? Maybe a couple primes and then a crappy kit zoom? I see canon has a metabones for canon to sony, will the nikon be coming out soon? I already have the nikon 24-70 and 85mm 1.8. I'd love to use these lenses and save 3 grand by not buying the sony version but I dont know if auto focus will work or if it will be good enough for stills?

So what do you guys recommend? Im hoping to keep my nikon and sell my gh3/gh4 and replace that with the a7sii and use my nikon lenses. If i cant use my nikon lenses I would be willing to sell everything i have and get canon glass, the 6d for photos and the sony for video... But if I have to buy sony glass to get good stills/auto focus I will probably only be able to get the a6300 and not the a7sii.

any help/suggestions anyone?
 
Hard to buy a great set of Sony lenses for BOTH FF and Crop. If you want to keep it cheap but still have flexibility I'd start with the FF kit lens. Look for used copies on eBay you can sometimes get it super cheap, like $250 to $350. Then I would probably look at the FE 28mm and perhaps the 21mm adaptor, this is around $450 to $500. These lens will work on full frame and give you decent results on Crop as well. Finally the E 10-18 only works on crop but it's a nice lens and actually works okay on FF in the 14-16 range. I've seen it go used for $650 and it's a great lens to put on the camera when you are on a gimbal.
 
You can get the 10mm for $550 new from Japan without warranty. I got mine this way through Amazon. No problems and no duty.
 
chrisbernard said:
Hard to buy a great set of Sony lenses for BOTH FF and Crop. If you want to keep it cheap but still have flexibility I'd start with the FF kit lens. Look for used copies on eBay you can sometimes get it super cheap, like $250 to $350. Then I would probably look at the FE 28mm and perhaps the 21mm adaptor, this is around $450 to $500. These lens will work on full frame and give you decent results on Crop as well. Finally the E 10-18 only works on crop but it's a nice lens and actually works okay on FF in the 14-16 range. I've seen it go used for $650 and it's a great lens to put on the camera when you are on a gimbal.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I didn't realize they had different lenses for crop and FF. I'm used to panasonic which is as small as it gets so all lenses work. I will only buy FF lenses even if I start with the a6300 so I can upgrade bodies in the future. I assume the 24-70 f4 would be my first big Must Have, just hate paying that much for a lens that doesn't even go to 2.8. Then maybe add in the primes over time.
 
Honestly I think I would go for the kit 28-70, auctions start at $199 for that lens, you can get it for less than $300 most likely, less than a third of what the 24-70 will cost you. The 24-70 is unremarkable for the price. Even though the E 10-16 is a crop lens it performs on FF as a decent lens. Great for gimbal work, etc. without vignetting. I think the FE 28mm and it's adaptors are the best value primes that Sony is making right now. Followed by their FE 35 and 55.

Starting from scratch I'd probably go:

28-70 for flexibility

Depending on shooting style

28mm prime and 21mm adaptor
55mm prime

Flexibility for wide angle on 6300 or gimbal work

10-16mm

Finally, if you think you are going to go with the 6300 first and keep it for a year or more before you can upgrade to FF the APS-C E mount 35 and 50 are GREAT lens options for APS-C and relatively affordable. My favorite APS-C lens for my NEX 7 is the E 24mm, it stayed on my NEX 7 90% of time. In fact I still own my 24mm and use it with A7RII in crop mode. It's tough when you want to be in a Sony ecosystem using both cameras because I think some of the APS-C lenses don't get enough credit. They are small and much cheaper and perform admirably (even the 50-210 and the older 16-55 that doesn't collapse down. I've seen those go for $150 each used. Amazing values at that price.
 
First off, are you sure you’re headed to the A7Sii? A lot of people prefer a A7Rii, especially if they are planning to do both video and still. A7Sii is optimized for full frame, A7Rii is optimized for crop. A7Rii is about 1.5 stops slower than A7Sii. This decision might affect your lens choice (full frame or not). In general, with some exceptions, full frame lenses will be more expensive.

Right now all Nikon adapters are mechanical only: no electronics. Supposedly one electronic one is about to be released. However with Canon lenses, there are several options that allow for autofocus, etc. But since you already have Nikon lenses, do you want to go down this route?

My personal opinion is: “Get one or two Sony lenses for times when you really need the automatic functions. Then purchase non-Sony lenses for everything else.” Not everyone will agree with me on this. Remember that you will never be able to use a Sony lens on another camera due to flange length issues. Your situation is somewhat special because you probably want to use the lenses on various cameras. Of course, many people are in this position.

I’ve read on these forums that the A6300 has incredibly fast autofocus, but you only achieve this with certain Sony lenses. It certainly makes sense to me to buy this camera with the kit lens for $150 extra. With some other lenses, the focus is sluggish, so people have reported. But still usable.

You may find it helpful to read threads on lenses for other e-Mount cameras such as FS5 and FS7. There are pages and pages of these.
 
Of course you do realize you don't have to switch cameras to get a more shallow depth of field? Fast prime lenses like an f1.4 Nikon along with a SpeedBooster on your GH4 will effectively give you the same shallow depth of field you would get from a S35 sensor camera. While not Full Frame shallow, still if you can't get shallow depth of field from a S35 size sensor then it's not the cameras fault.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top