Lensbusters.com

I've been looking for a few small but sharp lenses for a travel kit for my Sony A7r IIs. Finding what's out there was surprisingly hard. The criteria for my search: 3rd party (non Sony branded) Native mount (no adapters) Autofocus and fully electronically compatible Full Frame So here's what I found: Rokinon/Samyang 14mm f2.8 24mm f2.8 35mm f2.8 24mm f1.4 35mm f1.4 50mm f1.4 Sigma 14mm f1.8 "Art" 20mm f1.4 "Art" 24mm f1.4 "Art" 50mm f1.4 "Art" 70mm f2.8 Macro"Art" 85mm f1.4 "Art" 105mm f1.4 "Art" 135mm f1.8 "Art" (also announced but not yet available 28mm & 40mm f1.4 "Art" lenses) Tamron   28-75mm F/2.8 "Di III RXD a036" Tokina 20mm f2 Firin Zeiss 16-35mm Vario-Tessar T* ZA 18mm f2.8 "Batis" 24-70mm f2.8 Vario-Tessar T* ZA 25mm f2 "Batis" 35mm f1,4 "ZA Distagon T* FE" 50mm f1,4 "ZA Planar T* FE

*NEWSFLASH* Sigma just released a new lens adapter to supercede their MC-11. The new adapter is called the MC-12b and MC-12W and MC-12SB (B for black and W for white, SB is the Speed Booster model) The new features include: Faster AF Weather sealing on the adapter to camera end Color choices Allows users to update Sigma Art and Contemporary lenses (replaces dock) Uses more common micro-USB cable The SB is only compatible with Sony EF cameras reducing the focal length by approximately 30% (matching the magnification of the full frame lens) and adding a full stop of light All versions of the MC-12 will can be used to update Art and Contemporary lenses ending the need for a separate dock Sigma has yet to give out a release date, but rumors suggest Winter 2018 Photos to follow (Early April Fools !!!)

Just wanted to let you all know of a fun resource for creative stuff including photo related items..... In Oakland there's a place called the  East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse . There's usually a little bit of photo related sludge in a designated area, but also interspersed throughout the jumbles of  junk   treasures. On my last visit I picked up: a mostly full case (500x) of those  old airmail envelopes   a few dozen sheets of  letraset a bunch of 35mm and 4x5 negative sleeves (ca. 50-100) various laser labels a seemingly unused cable release (for conventional film cameras) a couple of old maps a roll of old Kodachrome (I know I can't develop it!)  multi-colored sheet feed paper for impact printer (dot matrix) and some other miscellany.  Box of Misc Crap in the "Camera Corner" (not really in a corner, and not all cameras) In the end it  all fit in a medium size moving box and cost about $28 out the door. There were a few 35mm SLRs

A couple of decades ago, I traded my 12" f4.5 Ektar I had on my 8x10" Burke & James for a WWII vintage 36" (ca. 1000mm) Aero Ektar. The lens itself weighs - well - alot. It has no shutter. I'm assuming this pointing facing down on a Flying Fortress or something confirming bombing hits over Germany or Japan in the 1940's. Way back when my dad and uncle built a camera around this lens. The camera consists of a couple of interleaving wood boxes (more or less light tight) with the Aero Ektar in the front, and the back half of a Speed Graphic in the back. The rear-end of the Speed Graphic has a shutter in addition to a ground glass and all the accoutrements required to place a film holder. My dad made a label for the front calling it the "Neardorf" (spoofing the famous large format Deardorff .) Recently- well actually a couple months ago I convinced my daughter to go to the park to test this out. And recently (really this time) I developed the tes