Manual mode Sony a6000 and Tamron 150-500mm tele---no photo
Oct 7, 2023 15:30:08 #
I put the Tamron 150-500mm tele on my Sony a6000 crop sensor. I can get photos in S, A, and Automatic modes...but nothing in Manual mode. What am I doing wrong? What settings do I need to change? This is to be my setup for shooting the Annular Solar Eclipse next week. I will need to set focus in advance. There are choices on the lens barrel---VC modes, VC on/off, and AF/MF. (I will use ND100000 filter then. And not look through viewfinder.) I searched 'net. Could not find any answers to this dilemma!
Thanks.
Diane
Thanks.
Diane
Oct 7, 2023 16:03:52 #
When you say "nothing in Manual mode", do you mean you can't press the shutter or the picture is blank? If the later, you might check the settings, shutter speed, F stop, etc. And again I assume when you say manual, the auto focus is still on? If not, turn on auto focus first and put the camera in Manual mode which should still allow auto focus and see if you can take a picture first before switching to manual focus.
If using a tripod, you can turn the VC off. The MF (manual focus) should only be turned on after you can take a picture in Manual mode by setting the correct shutter speed and F stop.
If using a tripod, you can turn the VC off. The MF (manual focus) should only be turned on after you can take a picture in Manual mode by setting the correct shutter speed and F stop.
Oct 7, 2023 17:18:42 #
ricardo00 wrote:
When you say "nothing in Manual mode", d... (show quote)
Ok. Thanks. I’ll try those things. I was getting no picture—just black. Thanks again.
Oct 7, 2023 17:36:18 #
dbfalconer wrote:
Ok. Thanks. I’ll try those things. I was getting no picture—just black. Thanks again.
Try the auto first, see what the f stop and shutter speed are, and then manually set those to the same settings after turning it to manual.
Oct 7, 2023 18:27:07 #
ricardo00 wrote:
Try the auto first, see what the f stop and shutter speed are, and then manually set those to the same settings after turning it to manual.
I got a shot in auto first, then manual.But when I put on the ND100000 and aim at the sun, all I get is black. No matter what aperture—8, 6.3. 16. SS 15-30. I am clearly in over my head! Missing something very basic. I am a rank novice with filters.
Oct 7, 2023 18:29:43 #
Oct 7, 2023 18:32:16 #
Your filter will reduce light by 16 3/5 f-stops! So you need a much slower shutter speed. Are you shooting at maximum open aperture for this lens? You should and do a very slow shutter, maybe try 1 sec?
Oct 7, 2023 18:32:25 #
dbfalconer wrote:
I put the Tamron 150-500mm tele on my Sony a6000 c... (show quote)
Have no fear of looking through the eyepiece. You are not looking through the lens. Keep that in mind, cuz you should not trust any focus set in advance. If you have access to a sturdy old long tele from the preAF days thaz a lens that holds focus. Modern lenses use so many delicate moving parts that you cannot trust them to not shift a bit in transit or when being handled. Carefully focus that lens in magnified MF after framing your subject. On a tripod you could also use the horizon as a substitute for infinity focus distance. The extra 93,000,000 miles wont matter. No infinity can be larger or longer than any other infinity. IIRC infinity focus is anything beyond 1,000 FLs ... about 600 yards for that lens. For a solar eclipse, your foreground object is about 440,000,000 yards away.
Oct 7, 2023 20:00:07 #
User ID wrote:
Have no fear of looking through the eyepiece. You ... (show quote)
All this is in preparation for trying to shoot the annular solar eclipse next week. So I thought aiming at the sun I would just have to rely on LCD screen. And set focus on the moon tonight while there is one visible. Tape the ring in place.
Maybe I can focus on horizon and set settings just before the shoot, then put on the filter and aim for the sun/moon.
I really appreciate your advice…and everyone on UHH is so helpful! I’m also relying heavily on my pro friend who is going on this trip with me! No matter how the shoot or the weather turns out, it will be a great experience! First time at Mesa Verde! (I have another camera —Sony a7iii—to use for all my other photo opps on the trip.)
Oct 7, 2023 20:54:04 #
dbfalconer wrote:
All this is in preparation for trying to shoot the... (show quote)
The LCD screen and the eyepiece image are the same thing. Neither is looking through your lens on your a6xxx nor your a7xxx ... same as your phone image, just video feed.
Oct 7, 2023 21:22:09 #
User ID wrote:
The LCD screen and the eyepiece image are the same thing. Neither is looking through your lens on your a6xxx nor your a7xxx ... same as your phone image, just video feed.
Right. Thought so. Just being cautious. Thanks.
Oct 7, 2023 21:46:43 #
dbfalconer wrote:
Ok. Thanks. I’ll try those things. I was getting no picture—just black. Thanks again.
What does the playback data say about the black frames ? 1/8000 at f/22 at 100 ISO ? That would be black in most situations even although the camera is fully functional.
The bright daylight setting for your filter at 25,000 ISO at 1/10 second is about f:4. Test that out. (Cloudy or rainy use at least a full second or more.)
Set a 5-digit manual ISO at a 2-digit shutter speed and widest open aperture. Does that render daylight scenes as black ? It should NOT. If still black, time to put the old a6000 into semiretirement, partially functional only.
BTW I am taking Riccardos word that you "ND100,000" is 16 stops. In the real world 16 stops is about ND4.0. Beats me what sort of scale your filter maker uses.
Oct 7, 2023 23:48:38 #
User ID wrote:
What does the playback data say about the black fr... (show quote)
I’ll take a closer look at the playback. Good idea. Thanks for breaking it down.
I don’t understand the math re ND numbers but charts here confirm the ND100000 is 16plus stops. Anything over 16 seems ok for solar photography.
https://kolarivision.com/what-do-the-numbers-on-nd-filters-mean/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=pmax1&gclid=CjwKCAjwg4SpBhAKEiwAdyLwvJv3XF6rVgLvq81ErG7b1zb8mK_JXdeIj-eGll7C4crD32RQ3rVWWxoCMnQQAvD_BwE
Oct 8, 2023 08:01:44 #
User ID wrote:
BTW I am taking Riccardos word that you "ND100,000" is 16 stops. In the real world 16 stops is about ND4.0. Beats me what sort of scale your filter maker uses.
BTW I am taking Riccardos word that you "ND100,000" is 16 stops. In the real world 16 stops is about ND4.0. Beats me what sort of scale your filter maker uses.
Since I never used ND filter (light is so precious to waste any) I don't know much about the rating. But if ND100,000 means 1/100,000 of the light intensity then it's 16 stops (16.6).
Oct 8, 2023 10:33:28 #
User ID wrote:
What does the playback data say about the black fr... (show quote)
I did as you instructed and got photos! It still functions! Yea! I had been following settings in an article. F8. 1/500-1/1000 and ISO 100. Started today with your formula and worked down to these and got a series of photos. Need to work on fine-tuning by putting it on a tripod and adjusting 1 factor at a time to get best histogram, then work on focus. Lots to learn! If I get any decent eclipse shots, I’ll post and let you know. Thanks so much.
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