snapped with FE16-35mmf2.8GM
The right side of the lens was wet and that produced a bit soft right corners.
I think this was my very first time to see snow and fog at the same time. The sky was dark and kind of whitish grey. The snow was getting stronger at this point.
Why I decided not to buy anything for my Sony kit for a while:
Last night I finally decided to return both my A7R4 and A7R2, I just decided to keep my two old A7R2 and Fuji X100V(ordered it but still not get it yet).
Actually I decided to use my camera money for Leg Curl machine that I always wanted to get in my room. I may also renew my squat rack and set of weights in my house.
I think the speed of the camera evolution in the Alpha world has been too slow especially in the sensor area, and it is really becoming hard for me to justify the each upgrade cost now.
If you are kind of person really care about the animal eye detect AF or a bit faster continuous shooting speed that the newer body might provide over the older bodies , then you may be able to justify the cost , but for me none of these features are exciting(in fact useless).
I do not need any more AF than say the 5DMK2 AF for my still photography, honesty I had no issue at all with even the AF system of my NEX7 from 2011 or my D7000 from 2010.
I do need a bit better AF in video, but none of the latest Sony cameras have decent video AF at all. I know most serious video people use manual focusing method , but I am a casual video shooter thus need a bit more reliable AF in video.
For stills though, I do not need any serious AF at all, in fact, about 90 percent of times I prefer MF-ing for stills.
Recently, I realized that even my ancient Ricoh GR3 has a decent AF for street snap, even my A7R2 and A7(the original one) still please me in terms of AF accuracy.
Honestly I am now thinking about it is time for me to just sit back and relax to see what lenses I really need for my camera kits ,and may be it is the best time to honestly reevaluate which system actually provides us the best value or the most practical lens lineup.
I think the Sony system is good , in some ways it is getting really matured, but in many ways it is still a very awkward system to use. It has a very weak slow processor even in the latest A7R4.
It has very poor lossy RAW format. It has very slow WiFi connection and poorly designed the camera WIFI and phone connecting software. Many other brands improving it with a series of FW updates but Sony.
Now Sony has the weakest video in the FF league(maybe besides Canon). Nikon, Panasonic, Leica, even Fuji surpassed the A7 series in video(both in file quality and in feature set).
Sony refuses to give us any sort of smaller RAW or lossless-ly compressed RAW that every other brand has kindly provided in the first place.
Sony still has the poorest quality touch screen and over all the worst monitor quality.
And, Sony again refuses to fix this issue. Sony seems to have some odd philosophy or ideology that serious camera should not have any sort of touch screen. One of Sony's general managers here many times repeated that in their recent technical discussion events with their users and so-called some special users(they call gold status users who are usually well known local pros or reviewers that are actually a team of Sony camera sells men).
While Sony primes are priced really right these days, their zooms are still way overpriced and of pretty low quality.
The FE70-200mm f2.8GM and the FE12-24mm f4G are seriously way overpriced , especially the FE70-200mm f2.8GM is a cruel joke. It should have been around 1800 USD or so considering the poor quality of that lens.
The FE70-200mm f4G? It is a horrible lens, I cannot say anything more than that about this lens. I had it and hated it , that is a lens Sony should update with their latest lens design tech and their best AF motors used in the lenses like the FE200-600mm G or FE135mm f1.8GM, but they refuse to do it.
IMHO, the FE70-200mm f4G and FE24-70mm f4ZA are the worst zooms in any mirrorless system.
The FE70-200mm f2.8GM is the most overpriced lens.
FE24-70mm f2.8GM is also a poorly designed poor quality lens that does not deserve the rather high (actually ridiculously high for the quality of the lens) price.
It should be around 1200 US, as it is the worst 24-70mm f2.8 of all mirrorless systems.
The Nikon Z24-70mm f2.8S is a great zoom, the Leica 24-90mm f2.8-4 is an outstanding lens, so is the Panasonic version. I never tried the Canon version yet, but I have read many raving reviews for it.
The most embarrassing fact about the FE24-70mm f2.8GM is it is not better than the 2 times cheaper Sigma and just as good as the almost 3 times cheaper Tamron 28-75mm f2.8.
Sure some of Voigtlander lenses for the E mount are amazing.
Also there are many good G and GM primes of Sony's own, but that alone no longer secure the Sony system as the Nikon Z can adapt any Sony E mount lens.
Also the L mount system has the Sigma art line and some super special Leica f2 APO primes. And I am sure they will get some Cosina lenses in near future, too, although I think Tamron will not make any lens for L as Sigma is one of the three official members of the L mount team.
I think Sony system is no longer leading in any area now.
AF? No more. The Nikon's latest FW 3.0 really improved the Z's AF and many people who own both Nikon Z and Sony E claim Nikon is now better in tracking and low light AF.
Sony may still be a bit better in eye tracking AF, but it is now really arguably so, not really decisively better than the CNL any more.
Canon R5 will have at least as good AF as the A7R4 or maybe even better as Canon now calls it as a pro body or a true mirrorless equivalent of the 5D series.
In fact, I personally believe their original R's low light and static AF is already slightly better than that of the Sony A7R4.
The latest respective FW update of Canon and Nikon really changed the game. It is no longer Sony's one side game or anything like that although many Sony shills try to tell us Sony is still far better than the rest of the industry. But it has never been like that and will never be. It is really a close game after all.
IMHO, every Sony FF camera is hyper overrated , everything about the competitors are underrated as most of those camera YouTubers in disguise of Sony fanboys or pro reviewers online are actually all Sony paid internet marketing guys.
It is pretty obvious that every critical thread on Sony is now deleted or locked at a various online camera forums. My last DPR comment was on the FE24mm f1.4GM and I told them it a bit overrated(although it is a still very good lens in its own right), then a few days after that it was deleted. So I decided to quit posting anything there.
FM is also very biased and if you prefer anything other than Sony E mount there , then you will be a super minority there(discriminated).
So I think now I avoid those fora, they are all extremely biased and never listen to others anyway, it is really wasting of my time and actually I consider it kind of dangerous as they try to brainwash or mislead the new people (maybe not intentionally but they do it very often) to share the same basic values on ILC cameras or camera systems.
In any case It is really stupid to ask their advice on any gear as they just have a different set of needs than his or hers or yours or any one else's. As I realized that I just stopped listening to them or any one else, I just buy whatever I need or want, not what they recommend or the forum consensus says great.
In any case, now it is one of the worst times to buy a new serious (over 3k us) camera as everything is updated in just a matter of 5 months.
There will be the A7MK3 successor announced in this coming autumn, I believe it will be announced at PHOTOPLUS show in NYC.
There will be the long rumored EOS R5 announcement in this summer just a couple of weeks before the summer Olympics(if it won't be cancelled or delayed).
There will be a new Panasonic body a bit cheaper than the current S1R. I believe it will be announced in October too(I think at the PHOTOPLUS show).
Now this year's Photokina and CP+ are doomed, so they will announce almost everything at the NYC show in this coming Autumn.
So I think it is a bit risky to buy anything before this coming October. I think I will still order the Fuji X100V but I will not get any ILC camera or lens before this year's Photoplus show.
Oh another reason why it is not a good time to buy any new ILC camera now is that the Corona virus pandemic issue has raised the production cost of every ILC (bigger than APS-C) camera significantly. Now Sony and Nikon announced they will have to slow the production speed by 34 percent or so(and thus upcoming price hikes).
And I am sure Canon and others will also follow them as their factories in China is seriously affected by the Virus.
Fuji has tried to bring the production back into Tokyo, but it is just too late.
The Corona virus has changed everything.