lens question

Brett

I own a Sony DSC-F717 and I am looking into buying a wide angle lens for it because I do alot of sports photography with my friends like mountain biking and alot of skateboarding. Im only 16 and money is kinda limited but I still plan on getting one. My question is do I have to buy the expenisive Sony wide angles or could I buy any 58mm wide angle for my camera?

wxwax

I'm sure there are aftermarket wide angles that you can buy. Before you buy one, you should search around for user reviews of the model you have your eye on. God bless Google!

I feel safer with the manufacturer's gear, but that's just me. If you go for an after market wide angle, of course, you'll want to make sure it's compatible with your camera.

pathfinder

wxwax wrote:

I'm sure there are aftermarket wide angles that you can buy. Before you buy one, you should search around for user reviews of the model you have your eye on. God bless Google!

I feel safer with the manufacturer's gear, but that's just me. If you go for an after market wide angle, of course, you'll want to make sure it's compatible with your camera.

I'd go even further than Waxy, and suggest that, if you think you want to buy a non-manufacturer screw in lens adapter, try shooting some frames with it and examining them carefully on a computer screen ( NOT on the LCD on the camera ) before you decide. The cheaper wide angle adapter MAY suffer from more chromatic aberration than the lens suggested by Sony. you may find there is a significant difference in optical quality - then you will have to decide what you value the most.
Poor quality lenses never get better with usage. And generally, good quality lenses never wear out - they can be broken, but usually don't wear out from years of use. Something to consider.

Steve Cavigliano

Brett wrote:

I own a Sony DSC-F717 and I am looking into buying a wide angle lens for it because I do alot of sports photography with my friends like mountain biking and alot of skateboarding. Im only 16 and money is kinda limited but I still plan on getting one. My question is do I have to buy the expenisive Sony wide angles or could I buy any 58mm wide angle for my camera?

Brett,
As others have mentioned, if you buy a brand, other than the mfgr's, you might run into problems. Best case you will have to test the lens out to make sure it works as advertised and doesn't degrade image quality. Much safer to stay with a known entity. But, you don't have to go with the HGD0758. You can still pick up Sony's MHG07A for around $115 from reputable etailers like B&H.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&kw=SOVCLMHG07A&is=REG&Q=&O=productlist&sku=250257

This version (the A version) comes with 2 adapter rings, for 37mm threads and for 58mm threads. I realize that $115 isn't exactly cheap, but there really aren't many WA converters that work that well on the 717. IMO, this one is very nice (and surprisingly heavy), will get you to 27.3mm's and you won't lose much, if any, image quality


Steve

Brett

Thanks alot everyone for the great feedback


Steve, I think I should take the advice and buy Sony. No big deal because I've never been let down by Sony products. Would any 58mm wide angle fit onto my 717 even if it was made for the 707? I was looking at one before and it sold for approx. $120 Canadian but a worker at a store said that it was garbage and if I wanted a good one, go for the one that cost $529 Canadian. I looked around, found it, fell in love with it and still want to buy it. I am unsure if I need it, because it seems alot better then others I really want it and even though it's expensive, I am willing to save up for it.

This is the one I really want. It's on the same camera as mine.
click for a bigger pic

Steve Cavigliano

Brett wrote:

Thanks alot everyone for the great feedback


Steve, I think I should take the advice and buy Sony. No big deal because I've never been let down by Sony products. Would any 58mm wide angle fit onto my 717 even if it was made for the 707? I was looking at one before and it sold for approx. $120 Canadian but a worker at a store said that it was garbage and if I wanted a good one, go for the one that cost $529 Canadian. I looked around, found it, fell in love with it and still want to buy it. I am unsure if I need it, because it seems alot better then others I really want it and even though it's expensive, I am willing to save up for it.

This is the one I really want. It's on the same camera as mine.
click for a bigger pic

Brett,
Yes any 58mm threaded converter/filter will attach to the 717. Same as the with the 707 and 828. I would highly recommend staying away from the really cheap converters (Crystal Optics, Digital Optics, most of the Raynox lens line up and any lens with the word titanium used to describe it). You really do get what you pay for. The WA convertor I mentioned, in my earlier post, has been around for years and works well. The cheap lenses either don't have the advertised multiplier, or they are very soft, except in the center of the frame, or they cause CA or induce other artifacts.

$529 Canadian is a pretty steep price to pay just to gain 11.7mm's of wide angle coverage, but many people do pay good money for a little wider view. I guess it depends on what you can afford, or how many pics you're gonna miss while saving up for the "better lens".

Good luck,
Steve

Brett

Steve, again, thanks alot for the help! Only one last thing, I'm young, and still advancing my knowledge about photography. The lens you showed me, you said gave 27.3mm's and the other gave 11.7mm's. Would you be able to explain that alittle more to me as to what one could be better for my usage (maily skateboarding to get closer for a cooler picture). The same lens that you showed me was selling for $229.99 on sonystyle.ca, Im guessing they don't drop their prices ever. So I would be buying from another store. Im leaning toward the lens you showed me, I'd just like to understand it a bit more. Thanks again.

PerezDesignGroup

If you do test the lens out, check the corners of the photos carefully. Most aftermarket lenses that are not original manufacturer tend to get extremely blurry around the edges. This could be a cool effect if you welcome it. But many prefer crispness from edge to edge.

Tim Kirkwood

Brett wrote:

(maily skateboarding to get closer for a cooler picture).

Brett, are you sure your looking at the right lens? If your wanting "to get closer for a cool picture" then you need a telephoto not wide angle. Just wanted to clarify for myself:D


Tim

Steve Cavigliano

Brett wrote:

Steve, again, thanks alot for the help! Only one last thing, I'm young, and still advancing my knowledge about photography. The lens you showed me, you said gave 27.3mm's and the other gave 11.7mm's. Would you be able to explain that alittle more to me as to what one could be better for my usage (maily skateboarding to get closer for a cooler picture). The same lens that you showed me was selling for $229.99 on sonystyle.ca, Im guessing they don't drop their prices ever. So I would be buying from another store. Im leaning toward the lens you showed me, I'd just like to understand it a bit more. Thanks again.

Brett,
The 717's wide angle limit is 39mm's. If you add a .7X wide angle converter, you will wind up with 27.3mm's when the converter is attached (39mm x .7 = 27.3mm's). I'm sorry I confused you with the 11.7mm number. That's the difference between the 717 without a .7 wide angle converter, and with it (39mm's - 27.3mm's = 11.7mm's).

You mention getting closer. Is this a case of you wanting to get closer to your subject, or do you want to magnify your subject? A wide angle conv will let you get closer and still provide a fairly wide field of view. If you want to fill the frame with your subject, a telephoto converter would be the way to go. Telephoto lenses provide a much narrower field of view.

If you plan to shoot your skateboarders inside of 10-12 feet (meaning they are within 12 feet of the lens) a wide field of view would be a good choice. If you are shooting from farther away, a telephoto conv would bring them closer, with a narrower field of view.

I guess we need to know which converter (wide or tele ?) you really want before going any further.

Steve

Brett

What I meant was I want to get closer to the action, but not a closer picture ie telephoto. If you've ever seen a skate video, you'll notice the photographers are close to the trick happening, and thats what I want to be able to do. It's definatly a wide angle that I'm looking for so when im close to the skater, it's getting the whole thing instead of standing back away from the action to get the whole thing. I just woke up so I hope I'm making sence