Home

Please support mflenses.com if you need any graphic related work order it from us, click on above banner to order!

SearchSearch MemberlistMemberlist RegisterRegister ProfileProfile Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages Log inLog in

The Great Cheapo Lens Challenge - 3 (Focal 2.8/28)
View previous topic :: View next topic  


PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2012 11:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

PM received. Thanks, Peter!

I will take this lens to my "photo weekend".


PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

OK, here are 4 of my 5 entries. Shot on the NEX-3.

Post-production: basic level adjustment, resizing and compensating re-sharpening. Nothing else.

1. A building


2. A close-up


3. A landscape
[placeholder]

4. A portrait


5. A street-shot

OK, perhaps not the typical "street shot" but a photo of a street, even if it's a tiny one. Wink

And one more which does not really fit into any of those categories, but which I like:


After I have shot the landscape, I'll send the lens to the next destination.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Shocked They seem really nice...I do like the tiny street shot.. Very Happy


PostPosted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 10:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice pictures, nice town! Judging the lens, it does not look bad at all. Sharpness is okayish, the bokeh is neither good nor bad, just somehow "boring". Curious to see how it performs on Full Frame!


PostPosted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 1:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd say this is a better lens than either of the other two in the challenge.


PostPosted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 2:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

pst wrote:
Curious to see how it performs on Full Frame!


I'll try that at the Easter weekend. Wink


PostPosted: Sun Apr 08, 2012 5:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My copy of this lens is also incredibly sharp with great color and contrast rendition. This is probably the best $5 lens ever made.


PostPosted: Wed Apr 11, 2012 9:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sorry, due to an illness over Easter I was not able to shoot more photos.
The lens is now on the way to Austria.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 23, 2012 12:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The lens is with me now. But the weather has been extremely sucky, so I have to wait till next weekend to shoot with it. Next week I will post pictures and send the lens on. Curious to see it's performance on FF.


PostPosted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 6:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi everyone!

I put the lens through my rigorous 3/4 hour test drive Wink. I am spending the weekend at my parents house, in the small village where I grew up. A very photogenic place in an alpine valley, with medieval walls, gates and a castle.
About the lens; I have mixed feelings, it's certainly not crap, but it's not good either. No post except resizing and sharpening, camera: 5DII

The first picture at F2.8:



At the right is the main entrance to the church in the previous picture. Shot at F11:


Our church from 1248 (paintings from 1777). Shot to F5.6 [slight motion blur]:


As in the last shot, I'm no fan of the bokeh. Shot at F4:


I also checked the lens for flare, which it handles real bad. I live at the end of the road. Shot at F2.8:


Finally a landscape of the entire town. Shot at F11 or F16:


PostPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 2:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I really like my copy of this lens and I think it's a highly underrated 28mm.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 8:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

@David: When you get the lens later in the competition you could compare it to your example. But I doubt it would have a different character.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 1:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The lens is on its way to Portugal.


PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 1:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I absolutely plan to run side-by-side tests!


PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 7:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

pst wrote:
The lens is on its way to Portugal.

Thanks Patrick, brilliant work.

This lens definitely looks the best of the three to me. The 5D gives it a strenuous test of corner to corner performance, which I think it handles very well compared to the others. I really like the church entrance picture very much, and the landscape is fantastic.


PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 3:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, the corner performance is good stopped down. Wide open is a different story....


PostPosted: Wed Jun 13, 2012 9:55 am    Post subject: Arrived in Porto, Portugal Reply with quote

Hi,

Just to let you know that I received today the lens. Will start using it tomorrow.


PostPosted: Sat Jul 14, 2012 11:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

How are this and the other lenses progressing? I've been working stupid hours the last month and haven't been able to keep up on all of the lens' progression and images.


PostPosted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 10:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi David, this is the current situation:



The Optomax is currently with Patrick in Austria. It has almost caught up with the Focal, which is currently with Luis in Portugal. He has had an unavoudable delay but he's posting it on to hoanpham tomorrow I hope. Jes is missing his turn while he's on holiday. I have brought the Travenar home with me from Australia. I need to take a portrait pic and then I'll be sending it on to Graham (ManualFocus-G) this week.


PostPosted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 4:31 pm    Post subject: Finally my pictures Reply with quote

Hi guys,

Sorry for the delay, but finally here are my pictures, all taken in Porto, Portugal:

A building




A close up




A landscape





A portrait type picture




A street shot



PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 11:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Got the lens but too busy today to try it, maybe later at home.

Cosmetically, it looks much better than some of my lenses
Laughing

Edit: This lens is NOT sharp at all. There is almost no focus peaking in my nex with it.


Last edited by hoanpham on Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:19 am; edited 1 time in total


PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 6:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My contribution. Using on Nex5n.
No resize, sharpness very good when it is in focus.

A building:


A landscape:


A close-up:


A portrait:


A street shoot:


PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This lens had been the most difficult for me to use, so far. It can be sharp, in spite of the focus plan is not flat, but we can always turn the weak spots to advantage. I may re-take the photo of a building as it is difficult to have even sharpness across the frame.

I use it at first with regular adapter, but difficult to focus sharp. When mounted on the Nex, focus peaking indicates that the focus plan is not flat, more like a 45 degrees/diagonal tilt, and cannot focus sharp longer than 6-10 meters, at least not as sharp as any crap lenses I have.

Next is to mount the lens with a tilt adapter and try to compensate for the focus plan. After a few minutes, I found the correct tilt and rotate angles, and the lens can function as a regular lens. It can be sharp, in fact very sharp when I viewed at 100% crop.

Another interesting thing I notice is that the lens behaves differently from regular lenses when I use as tilt lens. Since the focus plan had been screwed up, tilt does not flip the focus plan, but have an interesting focus plan angle: I can now use the focus grip to adjust the focus plan *side way using focus and not the tilt angle* - never had this experience before. adjust the focus to MFD the sharpness is about the center, and moving outward as I turn the focus to infinity.

Tilt adapter, 'accidentally tilt element', make it possible to shot a close-up that is sharp near and far, and some what closer than MFD which is 30cm. Based on this test, the focus is set to MFD when I shot the portrait photo - that to maximize the bokeh effect.

Other photos taken with this lens are submitted here:
http://forum.mflenses.com/focal-28mm-f2-8-from-cheapo-challenges-t52046.html

Next, if time allows, I will try to use with tube/bellow and reserve for macro, perhaps stacking another lens.

PM me with name and addr next person to receive this lens.


Last edited by hoanpham on Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:41 am; edited 1 time in total


PostPosted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hoanpham wrote:
PM me with name and addr next person to receive this lens.

Hi, the next person on the list is Jesito. I have PMd him to ask if he's ready for it now, and I'll let you know his details when I hear from him. Otherwise it goes across the Atlantic, but I don't want Jes to miss out.


PostPosted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hello! Any chance of putting my name on the list? Smile