Shots from a Sony Alpha TT session, 8th November 2007:

(TT = Teh Tarik, the Malaysian national beverage of conversations. Screw you Starbucks!)

Contrary to popular belief, I am not chief poisoner. kenki has managed to poison me!

The original Minolta 80-200mm F2.8G APO HS. You can feel the weight of the glass shifting as it focuses! Rare indeed for its 72mm filter thread.

I prefer this over the Sony 70-200mm F2.8G SSM. Its weight seems better distributed to the back of the lens. Although the Sony is 1340 grams and the Minolta 1280 grams, for 60 grams difference, it feels like a world of difference. Plus, HS (High Speed focus gearing) means arguably faster focusing on the Sony Alpha 700 than what a Super Sonic wave Motor can give.

I did feel that the HS was fast, perhaps faster than the SSM. Lenses with lightweight focusing elements, fast gear ratios and limited focusing range (like my beloved Vivitar Series 1 28-105mm F2.8-3.8) focus instantly without a doubt.

The Minolta 200mm F2.8G HS holds the record for zippy screw-driven focusing, though. Having experienced ted‘s 790 gram wonder for sports, I cannot imagine how much faster it can get if Sony puts an even more powerful focus motor in future bodies.

200mm F2.8 1/60s ISO1600 on my Sony A700.

Poor, poor lufiahs. I pity him, too.

The Peter Lim, or mac on PhotoMalaysia. 80mm F2.8 1.80s ISO1600. Check out teh_oo_ais in the background, who is in a very weird position!

Still, that wasn’t what got me.

It was this.

The Minolta 85mm F1.4.

One of the finest samples of Minolta bokeh at work. Second only to the Minolta/Sony 135mm F2.8/T4.5 Smooth Transition Focus lens. Crispy where in focus, a nice liquid blend where out of focus. 85mm F1.4.

Note that the Carl Zeiss 85mm F1.4 is not the same optically; while it is blisteringly sharp and free of chromatic and spherical aberration, its background does not blend as nicely due to its MTF-chart-topping high contrast design.

Alphaein. 85mm F1.4.

I love the naturally saturated color wide open! 85mm F1.4.

teh_oo_ice. 85mm F1.4. He is more in focus than if he was shot with a 50mm F1.4 because he has to be further away to fill the frame the same way.

Alphaein on macdude‘s Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 EX DG. At 70mm F2.8 it passed the misai test (when focused accurately of course.)

Thanks teh_oo_ais for taking this! 150mm F4 (which came from my Minolta 50mm F1.4 original + Tamron 1.4x 4-element teleconverter + Kenko 2x 4-element teleconverter.)

It seems like Ted will always always have a spy shot of him taken whenever he eats at A&W Taman Jaya.