All posts by BastianK

My name is Bastian and I am your expert here when it comes to ultra wide angle lenses, super fast portrait lenses (ranging from a 50mm f/0.95 to a 200mm f/1.8) and I also have reviewed way too many 35mm lenses. Don't ask me anything about macro or wildlife shooting though.

Review: Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0

Introduction

review minolta m-rokkor mrokkor 90mm 4.0 leica elmar cl cle c elmar-c sony a7rii a7riii 42mp high resolution m-mount
Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0 on Sony A7rII via Hawk’s factory helicoid adapter

Many of you might not even know that Minolta also produced M-mount lenses and even an M-mount camera (Minolta CLE). The M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0 is the longest of the three lenses and thanks to a reader who allowed me to use it for a few weeks I can present you this review now.

Sample Images

review minolta m-rokkor mrokkor 90mm 4.0 leica elmar cl cle c elmar-c sony a7rii a7riii 42mp high resolution m-mount
Sony A7rII | Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0 | f/4.0
review minolta m-rokkor mrokkor 90mm 4.0 leica elmar cl cle c elmar-c sony a7rii a7riii 42mp high resolution m-mount
Sony A7rII | Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0 | f/4.0
review minolta m-rokkor mrokkor 90mm 4.0 leica elmar cl cle c elmar-c sony a7rii a7riii 42mp high resolution m-mount
Sony A7rII | Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0 | f/4.0 | 10mm extension tube

Continue reading Review: Minolta M-Rokkor 90mm 4.0

Short-Review: Benro 150mm Filterholder for Canon TS-E 17mm 4.0 L

Introduction

Benro 150mm Filter Holder for Canon TS-E 17mm 4.0 L

I am always looking for new photography related accessories that might be useful for what I do. Furthermore when holding a workshop or going out with other photographers I constantly have a closer look at other equipment that I wouldn’t have bought myself to see how it works in the field.

Unfortunately every once in a while I come across a product flawed by design (sometimes deeply) and then usually the Team of phillipreeve.net has the misfortune of listening to my complaints. They suggested to make a series out of this so others might be warned about these products. This is one of these flawed products.

Continue reading Short-Review: Benro 150mm Filterholder for Canon TS-E 17mm 4.0 L

Review: Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton

Introduction

review voigtlander 50mm 1.2 nokton vm leica m mount rangefinder messsucher sony adapted a7rII a7riii a7r3 a7rm3 helicoid 42mp
Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton via Hawk’s Factory helicoid adapter on Sony A7rII

After Voigtlander gave us the 40mm 1.2 we now also get a 50mm 1.2. Is it just a slightly longer version of the 40mm or actually a better lens in the end? Read on to find out.
Update Oct. 2023: general update of the whole review

This lens is also part of my Comparison of 6 Super Fast 50mm M-mount Lenses together with the Leica 50mm 0.95 Noctilux-M, the Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M, the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton, MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM and Mr. Ding 50mm 1.1.

Sample Images

review voigtlander 50mm 1.2 nokton vm leica m mount rangefinder messsucher sony adapted a7rII a7riii a7r3 a7rm3 helicoid 42mp
Sony A7rII | Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton | f/4.0
review voigtlander 50mm 1.2 nokton vm leica m mount rangefinder messsucher sony adapted a7rII a7riii a7r3 a7rm3 helicoid 42mp
Sony A7s | Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton | f/1.2
review voigtlander 50mm 1.2 nokton vm leica m mount rangefinder messsucher sony adapted a7rII a7riii a7r3 a7rm3 helicoid 42mp
Sony A7rII | Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton | f/1.2

Continue reading Review: Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton

How to: Create Environmental Portraits

Introduction

Sony A7rII |Voigtlander VM 35mm 1.7 +5m PCX | f/1.7

With lenses like the Sony FE 24mm 1.4 GM or Sigma 35mm 1.2 Art in the E-mount lens lineup and the ongoing Instragram hype it might be a good time to talk a bit about environmental portraits.
What is an environmental portrait and what is the difference compared to a normal portrait? Which lenses work best? Which mistakes I made in the past but you can already avoid today?
These are the questions I will try to answer in this article.

Continue reading How to: Create Environmental Portraits