Camera Gear Part 2: Lens

In all honestly, I see myself gutting some of these lens when I actually start the trip. But these are the lens I have, and right now, all o...

In all honestly, I see myself gutting some of these lens when I actually start the trip. But these are the lens I have, and right now, all of them fit into my tankbag without having to mess around. There are far better reviews of all these lens made by real photographers, so I'll just add my cliff notes for each lens.

Not my collection, but something I can relate to very much. Original author

  1. Sony 16-50 F3.5-5.6 kit lens (SELP1650): This is the camera kit lens, but it is impressive as far as kit lens go. It's tiny, it's compact, is quick to autofocus and takes good images for a slow lens kit. Also, the 16-50 is a more usable range compared to the usual fare 18-55. I don't use it as much, but it takes next to nothing in space, and is a good lens to have as a backup.
  2. Sony 16mm/2.8 prime (SEL16F28): A much maligned lens, this one is horrible for corner sharpness wide open. I wouldn't pay what Sony asks for a new one, but you can find them used for $ 100. Which isn't bad. I like shooting wide angle, so this is the only prime worth getting in it's focal range. (There is also the fully manual Rokinon 12mm, but I prefer this with the adapter combo for it's versatility.
  3. 12mm wide angle converter (VCL-ECU1): This adapter for the 16mm adds fresh life to it. The focal range is truly wide angle, and for some reason I don't understand, this is an adapter that adds corner sharpness to the original lens. I have been happy shooting landscapes with it, and this is one of walkaround combos that I have when out riding.
  4. 10mm fish eye converter (VCL-ECF1): Not as useful as the 12mm, this one is even wider, equaling about 9.9mm. The problem at this focal length is that this becomes a rectilinear fish eye. Makes for some good shots, but this lens has limited utility. Also, I still haven't figured out how to frame a shot properly with a 180° field of view.
  5. 30mm F1.7 CCTV lens. This lens costs $25 brand new with the adapter, macro tubes (why would someone want frikking macro tubes?), and lens caps. Yes it's meant for a CCTV, and has just about the amount of sophistication that you would expect in that application - it has every sort of optical flaws that you would find in a 19th century lens - spherical focus planes, vignetting, softness, and what I can best describe as astigmatism. But it's compact, takes good photos, and there is something about this lens that I just love.
  6. Sony 18-105 F4 G lens (SELP18105G): One of the most versatile lens in the E mount lineup. This has a very real world useable wide-ish focal length on one end, and a medium telephoto on the other. It has it's quirks - it makes the camera look bigger, it's the heaviest lens I have, it has both pin cushion and barrel distortion, everytime the camera turns on, it resets to 18mm, it eats the ridiculously tiny battery of the A6000. But, the range beats everything else in the lens lineup (there aren't that many), it's affordable, has amazing contrast and resolution, and it is awesome for any kind of video work. 

Most of the lens here have minimal overlap. The 16mm and the converters cover the ultra/hyper wide angle side of things. The 18-105 is a good walkaround lens, reasonably fast, wide angle on one end to medium telephoto on the other. The CCTV lens and the kit lens pack really small, and can serve as great backups, one is fast with great color reproduction, the kit lens is stabilized, light, and pancake. All the lens and some small accessories fit into my tankbag, it's hard to argue with that convenience.

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