This image in particular shows what this lens can produce. Just look at the fine detail on the nearest flower, especially the leaves at bottom right. This to me is just amazing, and to think that this lens isn't in the €1000 league. The price was very affordable and is a real bargain when comparing this lens to the new Voigtlaender 35 f1.2 II. OK, some might argue that a 50 isn't a 35 and that f1.5 isn't f1.2 but please ask yourself how many people will notice the difference in everyday use. I know I personally find it difficult to distinguish which image was made with which lens.

I think this image is a perfect example of what this lens is capable of producing. It's also a good example of what the Nex-7 can also produce. I was out looking for this type of photograph where I could separate the forground from the background. I just had to see what the bokeh was like with the lens and the APS-C sensor as I've only used this lens with a 4/3 sensor in the past. It really does make a difference.

I thought I would give my Voigtlaender lenses a go on the Nex-7 since the weather was nice and I felt it was time I started going out more after a long winter. I've come to the conclusion that not all lenses are constructed or designed to be a landscape lens. This is the feeling I have with the Voigtlaender 50 f1.5 lens. The lens performs better at close to middle range. The statue here was taken at a distance of maybe 5 meters with the background being about 2 meters behind the statue. Nice clean separation (albeit the background is a bit busy) with the statue being very sharp and detailed. Very impressive performance from the Nex-7 sensor.

The second image with the Nikon lens. I don't know what you think of this but I am very impressed by the image quality. There's a bit of a glow at f1.8 but stopped down one or two notches and it is very sharp. This will be my one and only Nikon lens that I will own. I had to try one out to see what all the fuss is about these lenses. I'm not going to sell it either because it is one of the sharpest manual focus lenses that I have tested, and one can never have enough 50 f1.8 lenses about the house...right?

My first manual Nikon lens, the 50 f1.8 E-Series. These 50 lenses are so numerous nobady can claim that they can't afford one. This one cost me next to nothing...really. Then comes the Nikon to Nex adapter for something like 10 Euro and away you go. I really didn't know what to expect of this lens. I have NEVER owned a Nikon camera and I know nothing about their lenses, so I had nothing to lose by trying one. Well, I was very surprised at the quality of the lens, good build, focusing was smooth and the aperture ring change was very well controlled; meaning it clicked easily and nicely into place. Focusing was an easy task on the Nex-7 and it was also a pleasure to use. The next couple of images in the blog will be from this lens. Let me know what you think.

This combination works very well. I've tried the Alpha 85 f2.8 and the 35 f1.8 Alpha lenses so far (because they are cheap, small and image quality is good). Both are pretty snappy to focus and the image quality is quite good. I thought the adapter was much larger than it really is and adds nearly nothing in weight when carrying it when out on a shooting session. It also adds phase detect focusing which is very nice to have. This is the first image I've posted using this equipment and I'm hoping to test and post some more images using these two lenses. 

Nex-7 and the 18-55 kit lens again. This was one of the best sunsets seen on the whole trip. This is also the last image from this series from Norway. I hope that you've found them to your liking and of course, any feedback would be welcome.

This is another one of these scenes that take your breath away. Taken with the Nex-7 and 18-55 kit lens. The Norwegian coast is simply stunning, and I can only recommend it to all. Perhaps not in winter but you do have more room as it's too cold for a lot of people. If you are planning a trip with the Hurtigruten Line then March, April or May would be the best months. In summer the ships are simply too full.

We were lucky enough to see the Aurora Borealis on a number of occasions. Normally we would get woken up at some ungodly hours ( 2 a.m.) to go out on deck and have a look. Really not easy to take these images in pitch black and travelling at a mean speed of 15 knots. This was taken with the Nex-5 and the CV 15 f4.5. Set the aperture to f8 and the focus at just under 2m. Focus should then be ok for everything to be in focus. Problem was, a tripod doesn't help in these situations because of the ship movement. All these images of the Northern Lights were taken hand held.