My year long project to photograph using only a Sony A7II body and legacy lenses is nearing completion. I plan to do a full postmortem of the project later this year. In the meantime some things have become clear. Most importantly I have discovered that using manual focus lenses is an advantage in almost all situations except for fast action shooting. Going into the project I expected that manual focus would be a limitation. It is not a limitation at least for me. Slowing down and thinking before shooting has improved my photography. I see no reason to go back to using auto focus lenses any time soon.
Another interesting thing I’ve discovered is a preference for using shorter focal length lenses. In the past I relied upon zoom lenses and often used long focal lengths of 200-300mm simply to frame shots without moving. That is a bad habit. Now I find myself using a 35mm prime lens for almost all my photography. Long lenses do have a place but they should not be a crutch for sloppy technique.
This photograph was shot a few days ago using a forty plus year old Super Takumar 35mm m42 mount lens. It has proved to be my absolute favorite lens for the project.
