I've been working on my photography skills by visiting places around my area that are drivable so I can learn what a good photo is and is not.
Feeling solid about this photo, the morning was cold, but well worth it.
What would you change in the edit?
I love photography. To me, it’s some form of art. That’s why I wouldn’t make my work out of it. However, as I have been a hobbyist for a long time, I am thinking about what to do with all my photos. Anyone got any suggestions?
Feel free to follow me for more photos: @coenpercy
After posting here earlier asking for advice on an upgrade from my kit lens for my Sony a6000, I ordered the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 from Amazon. Package came today, and they instead shipped me the Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8. Honestly, first I heard of the lens and unsure of what do here. Do I can contact them and get the right one? Just keep this? I don’t know if I’ve ever gotten the wrong Amazon item shipped before.
I’m totally a beginning, but enjoy shooting photos around my city, hiking/landscapes, travel shots, my dog, and want this to eventually work for some baby/kid photos.
Here’s how I see the tradeoff from briefly looking:
The Sigma 30mm f/1.4 — what I originally wanted. Better in low light, more background blur/bokeh, sharper for portraits. Less versatile since it's a prime.
Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 — what I actually got. More flexible zoom range, still a solid f/2.8 aperture, and apparently the more expensive of the two. Better for travel and varied shooting situations.
beginner, but IIs the 18-50mm f/2.8 actually the better fit for how I shoot, or should I stick to my original plan and get the 30mm? Would love to hear from people who've used either (or both) on an a6000? Also how to handle a wrong package from Amazon in general?
Edit: took the advice and called them. They let me keep the 18-50mm and are shipping me a replacement 30mm. Thanks team!
First time posting my pictures publicly, happy to receive any feedback :)
I’m a wildlife and landscape photographer from Utah and randomly had an Alan Schaller YouTube video recommended to me and I just had to try Street Photography! Out of almost 300 photos I took I liked 2 of them lol.
These were shot with a Sony A7R V and a Tamron 28-75 g2 lens
Please give me any constructive criticism so I can learn this new type of photography!
When the ocean decides to shape-shift. Found this hidden skull in the middle of a massive sardine bait ball. 💀
You see it too?
The macOS default, Image Capture, has been pretending Sony video doesn't exist since OS X 10.5. JPGs and RAWs come over fine. But PRIVATE/M4ROOT/CLIP/ — where every XAVC clip lives — gets silently skipped. You don't notice until a client asks where the b-roll is.
So every shoot I'd do two passes. Image Capture for stills, then drag PRIVATE and MP_ROOT out of Finder, then manually reorganize because the layout is gone. Eventually got annoying enough that I built something.
cardgrab does it in one pass. Native Mac app, open source, signed and notarized so first-launch just works.
What it gets right that Image Capture doesn't:
.XML and .THM sidecarsfcopyfile with 4 parallel workers. My α7 IV ARWs come over at around 220 MB/s on a UHS-II readerApple Silicon and Intel .dmgs here: https://github.com/thetejasagrawal/CardGrab/releases/latest
Optional: brew install gphoto2 and it'll pull files over USB-PTP directly without you taking the card out. Slower at around 30 MB/s but useful when you can't be bothered.
Built it for my own α6700 workflow. If your body writes a layout I haven't tested or a format breaks, open an issue and I'll fix it. MIT licensed, made using claudecode
Sony Alpha 7 ii with the kit lens. Shot on 70mm on manual
4-hour drive Friday night for clear skies and Milky Way photography. Started at Tunnel View capturing the Milky Way rise over Yosemite Valley, then made the late-night drive to Glacier Point for the full arch. Long night, cold weather, and barely any sleep — but completely worth it.
Sharing a few of my favorite edited shots from the trip. Hope you like them!
Gear: Sony a1 + 14 mm f1.8
I tracked the sky with MSM and blend it with foreground in photoshop.
Some few pics I made over the WE.
The challenge was to deal with the weather and lighting conditions. This didin't make my editing easy.
Speaking of editing, this was made using DxO Photolab 9 (I genuinely liked it and will purchase a license as my trial is over)
Hey everyone,
I'm a wedding and family photographer shooting Sony, and I've been going back and forth on adding a telephoto to my kit. Would love some outside perspective.
Current setup:
- Sony A7V + A7IV
- Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM (my main workhorse — on camera 80% of the day)
- Sony 50mm f/1.2 GM (signature look, portraits, low light)
- Sony 35mm f/1.4 GM (details, occasional personal use)
- Sony 24mm f/1.4 GM (group shots, wide moments)
My shooting style: I came from the Tamron 35-150mm but switched because 35mm felt too tight indoors. The 28-70 f/2 solved that. But now I'm missing the long end — ceremony entrances, guests in pews, spontaneous moments across the room during cocktail hour. Those shots just aren't happening right now.
The dilemma: I'm torn between two very different approaches.
Option A — Sony 135mm f/1.8 GM
I'm drawn to the look. Shooting mostly with available light, f/1.8 matters. I think in primes, I work with my feet, and I can already imagine stunning compression on family portraits and couple sessions. But I'm aware it might leave gaps — sometimes 135mm will be too long, sometimes not long enough.
Option B — Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 GM II
Objectively the more complete solution. Flexible, covers the reactive documentary moments perfectly. But I wonder if I'll feel overwhelmed by the zoom range when I'm used to primes, and I'm giving up a stop of light and a lot of character in the rendering.
For context: I primarily use available light, I shoot weddings and family sessions, and the tele range is genuinely new territory for me — I'm not sure yet how I'd naturally work with it.
Has anyone made this choice? Do you find the 135 limiting on weddings, or is it a creative constraint you've learned to love? And for those using the 70-200 — does the zoom range actually help you, or do you end up parking it at one focal length anyway?
Would really appreciate hearing from people who've used either (or both) in real wedding conditions. Thanks.
Weird airshow as the city doesn’t currently have an airfield, they flew pretty far away and for short periods, so it was mostly spray and pray but I had fun!
Here are some of my inaugural shots with it paired with A7iv. Feel free to provide feedback both positive and constructive!
I tried my hand at aviation photography last weekend using my a1ii and a 300mm gmaster prime. First time trying this, so i’m more than open to suggestions or critique. Thanks!