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UltravioletPhotography

Minolta lenses


Terry

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Why is there not much information on Minolta lenses for use in UV photography - is there something I'm missing?

 

I have quite a few Minolta's from the years gone by and they seem to work great on my Sony.

I have just purchased a Minolta 100mm f3.5 macro which is not as good as the f4 but is a quarter of the price. Haven't been able to test it with UV yet as I need a 55 to 52 step down ring but it doesn't seem too bad in FS.

 

Attached photo taken with the Minolta 50mm f1.7 on a Sony a5000 FS TV1/5 AVf2.8 ISO400 Kolari Vision UV filter

post-164-0-95410300-1544216488.jpg

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Looks good, but it looks like you have a possible light leak, on each side, the fuzzy/fogginess shows up in background dark areas, vertical bands on each side.

Also, your white balance could be slightly different, with more gray/black foliage, would be the norm, instead of the violet/purple foliage, it should be gray.

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I have the 50/1.4, the 35/2, and the 24/2,8 "beer can" lenses. They are reasonably good for visible photography, but their UV bandpass and sharpness are notably inferior to the lenses I have accumulated for the purpose, so I tend not to use them for that. That is not to say they cannot be used, just that there are reasonably-priced alternatives that are better for UV.
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There would be no UV yellow in that scene or that flower...

 

I have a Rokkor-TC 100mm f/4, which as I recall transmits UV quite well, but I can't find a Sparticle test of it, I will make one later tonight and post it.

I know it isn't really in the same ball park as a 50mm and such... but does UV well, if I am not mistaken, will test it later and share.

It is a nice little 100mm, I should take it out for a spin sometime soon.

 

post-87-0-71932600-1544232889.jpg

 

Here is a really old pre-Sparticle UV test, the green dot is 340BP10.

post-87-0-48365900-1544233479.jpg

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Thanks for the input - I have no idea what a sparticle test is so please enlighten me. (I am assuming its some sort of variable test to check bandpass?)

 

Definitely have an issue with light leak which I hadnt noticed with the IR (much higher shutter speeds no doubt) and it stems from the NEX to MD adapter. I suppose having body and lens of the same brand such as Nikon avoids all these issues. I have a D200 FS but as Im a Canon shooter, I only have one lens for the D200 and seeing how its not the ideal body without live view I had no intention of buying any additional lenses.

 

@OIDoinyo - what are the better alternatives in the same price bracket? What would be the ideal starter lenses in your opinion?

 

In the first image I wrapped the adapter and the second it is open. Clearly this is a huge issue :(

post-164-0-93125300-1544234360.jpgpost-164-0-38621600-1544234385.jpg

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No, any false yellow at all, after white balance. In ANY flower. Not the original. The question was really an oblique way to ask what the band pass is.
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Yellow is good. It means you are getting at least less than 370nm. That dandelion looks like you might get yellow if you white balance it. The center should be black.
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Yeah, I’m not near a computer so I can’t play with it. Maybe? That example looks like it has a color cast also. Are you using a program that can set a UV white balance? Photoshop can’t...
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@OIDoinyo - what are the better alternatives in the same price bracket? What would be the ideal starter lenses in your opinion?

 

 

I have the Asahi 20/4.5, the Asahi 35/3.5, and the Steinheil Cassar-S 50mm as my three workhorse optics for UV (all in M42 mount.) The 35 was very inexpensive when I bought it; the other two were under $300 each as I recall. Some here use the Tamron 20/4.5 as well, but that lens is not as sharp as the Asahi.

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Ahah! Yes. That is what it should look like. As an aside, the center looks reddish still, which might indicate some IR getting through the filter?
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I would have thought so also, but there shouldn’t be any red here. I don’t know, maybe someone else will have an idea.
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Thanks for your help Andy - I am still looking for an alternative to Photoninja - do you possibly know if The GIMP would work? I haven't used GIMP for years but it was great before I got PS/LR etc

This white balance stuff is doing my head in with all the jargon/abbreviations on here :blink:

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Yes, and I’m known to be red green colorblind although I only have trouble a small percentage of the time. This may be one of them.

 

So maybe that filter leaks a little violet?

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I thought this question was a little odd. I have found this site to be one of the best without brand loyalty.

If you find a uv all star lens give us the heads up. Especially if its cheap. If its really good performer best to PM us before the ebay price shhots up :)

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Terry, I have no idea about GIMP. If you need a free solution, I think sometimes the manufacturer-provided RAW converters can manage it?
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