The last entry I made on my photozine blog I was thinking about a change to Nikon Z and contemplating a big equipment trade. Subsequently looking at it from a long term perspective I decided to continue with Sony E as my system of choice. I’ve always tended to buy just behind the curve used. The idea is to avoid the instant depreciation of buying new. I could have gotten an A7R V or an A9 III if I really wanted to but I decided the wiser choice would be to go with an A7R III.
One reason is that was the model they moved from the FZ50 to FZ100 battery. Otherwise I could have probably made due with the A7R II which has similar stats in a lot of regards including a back side illuminated sensor. I used to have one when I was considering a change a few years ago and I did really like it. I tried that model along with the A7II and the A7S II. At the time I decided I’d stick with my Nikon D850 in part because I didn’t want an interruption in a state grant project to photograph the Whitewater River in SE Minnesota.
Now though I think the time is right for a shift. I sold off most of my old Nikon autofocus and Pentax K equipment and some of the M43 lenses. I might keep the rest of the M43 stuff but we’ll see, it is a nice travel kit. Of course so it the Sony A7R III compared to my old D850. What I might do eventually though is trade up to or buy a Sony A7R IV. The 60 MP sensor and other improvements might be worthwhile.
I’m not in a rush though. I did buy one lens with the new body (Sony 24mm f2.8) but otherwise I’m adapting vintage lenses from Canon, Nikon, and Pentax mostly. One I’m fond of is a cheaper Canon 40mm f2.8 EF and I also have a 300mm f4 Canon. The 300mm I received due to an error by a Japanese seller on eBay it was supposed to a Nikon. It’s worked out though. The first adaptor I picked up for the E Mount was a Metabone’s model that supports IBIS, EXIF, Autofocus, etc. I’ve been a Nikon guy since the late 1990s but I’ll probably think about using more Canon glass in the future. I’ll post up some articles on various lenses no doubt. I also have fully manual options from K&F Concept for AIS, CY, M42, OM, and probably others I’m forgetting.
One lens that I have on a K&F Mark V adaptor is the 50mm f1.2 AIS. I suppose you might still call it a vintage design but I actually bought it brand new back in about 2012. I would not be surprised if there are retailers that have them in stock. I have quite a few of the old F mount manual lenses dating from the 1960s onwards. An 85mm f1.4 is one and I have two of the 35mm f1.4 as I’m sort of fond of the 35/40 mm perspective. It’s not for everyone but I find I like it a bit wider.
Then of course there is the native Sony FE lenses not to be mistaken for the Canon EF! There I’m sort of interested in travel kit lenses hence the first one I got was the compact 24mm f2.8. I like the build of the lenses from Sony and Sigma like that in that they are primarily made of metal. They aren’t very fast optically but they do fit well with the vintage glass. The build and feel feel similar to vintage 35mm lenses when used on a 35mm body. The thing about adapting those to a mirrorless camera is the mounts generally are wider these days necesitating adaptors that move the lenses further out from the body. Hence the 50mm f1.2 (which is reasonably compact) winds up with a presence more like an 85mm. It’s needed to cover the full frame sensor with light.
Currently I’m in a coding bootcamp with the University of Minnesota so I don’t plan on getting much for new lenses. I’m going to shoot mostly with vintage prime lenses from Nikon, Canon, and Pentax. It will take some time to post profiles for them all in part because I’m planning on building a catalog of all lenses made by those manufacturers. Where I might add one or two now and then is Contax CY lenses. Currently I have one of their 40mm f2.8 lenses but that’s it. That and some Rokinon compacts just to see what I think of them.
