With the release of Sony’s first A7 series camera we saw a renaissance of many legacy lenses from “dead” mounts like Canon FD, Olympus OM, Minolta SR and several more. Because of flange focal distance issues these lenses often couldn’t be attached to modern DSLRs. And even if it was possible, it was a pain to use them on DSLRs, thanks to their matte screens being unsuitable for manual focus lenses.
Let’s have a look at the history of focusing aids in fullframe mirrorless cameras and who does it best.
If you ask all the photographers, which single prime lens they would choose if they could own only one lens in the world, the majority would say the 35mm, and most of the rest would say a fast 35mm. This is because it is one of the most versatile prime lenses. Although it’s a wide-angle lens, it is sometimes referred to as the alternative normal lens because it is so close to the standard focal length that it does not distort the subject much. With such lenses, you can also get a good background separation with a nice bokeh. They are useful in almost all kinds of photography, especially in everyday photography, street photography, environmental portraits, landscapes, weddings, events, and travel. Additionally, it works well for stitched astrophotography.
Its popularity has led to numerous 35mm lenses being produced by various manufacturers from the early days of photography to the modern era. In this article, I will compare six of them, from vintage to old to new. Let’s have a look together!
Do you want to use Sony E mount lenses on your Nikon Z cameras? Maybe you want to switch systems and go from Sony E to Nikon Z, but you have some or many Sony E lenses you want to keep and use. Or maybe you just like one of the Sony GM lenses or a lens from a 3rd party that is available in Sony E but not in Nikon Z? No worries, for any reason it is, you can use Sony E lenses on your Nikon Z camera through a mount adapter.
I have been using two adapters; Megadap ETZ21 PRO and Techart TZE-01. I compare them against each other and give you my thoughts here. Let’s have a look!
UPDATE (August 21, 2024): Neewer has come up with a new option, their ETZ adapter shows the focus confirmation (green box) even with completely manual lenses without any electric contact when used on Nikon Zf and Z6iii, while the two tested adapters here can not do that.
Sony A7s with Leica 90mm 2.0 Summicron M (pre Asph) and VM-E Close Focus Adapter
Classic rangefinder lenses usually spot less staggering minimum focus distances compared to (D)SLR and the latest lenses for mirrorless cameras because of how focusing with rangefinder cameras works. In 2022 several manufacturers are offering close focus adapters. These adapters have their own additional helicoid which allows you to focus your lenses much closer than you could with a conventional adapter. I have used several of these myself, so let’s see which ones are worth the asking price. Last Update: December 2024
Having reviewed a lot of things this year I thought it might be a good idea to mention this year’s highlights, giving them some well deserved spotlight.
Unfortunately there was also a noticeable amount of junk I reviewed, so this list ended up being a bit short.
Sony α | Leica M | Nikon F/Z New article every week
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