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09-05-2010, 08:14 PM   #1
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10 Reasons why manual focus primes are better than those new auto focus zoom lenses

  1. You can get some old ones very cheap
  2. You can get the best possible IQ with a prime
  3. You can buy glass of companies that don't even make auto focus lenses
  4. Most primes are not as big & heavy as the zoom equivalents
  5. Manual focus lenses don't suffer from back or front focussing offset
  6. None have failing SDM issues
  7. Very quiet, so best for video applications with sound
  8. Easiest manual focus "over-rule" implementation
  9. You don't need an UV filter for a < 50 USD lens...
Any other reasons why manual focus primes are better?

09-05-2010, 08:28 PM - 1 Like   #2
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10. It forces the photographer to walk through each step of taking a good photograph instead of allowing the camera to do it for you
09-05-2010, 08:32 PM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by JoepLX3 Quote
  1. You can get some old ones very cheap
  2. You can get the best possible IQ with a prime
  3. You can buy glass of companies that don't even make auto focus lenses
  4. Most primes are not as big & heavy as the zoom equivalents
  5. Manual focus lenses don't suffer from back or front focussing offset
  6. None have failing SDM issues
  7. Very quiet, so best for video applications with sound
  8. Easiest manual focus "over-rule" implementation
  9. You don't need an UV filter for a < 50 USD lens...
Any other reasons why manual focus primes are better?
1.) You can get a K10D cheap now too. Age and technology don't mix well.
2.) DA*50-135 would like to have a word with you.
3.) You couldn't give me a Voigtlander lens. Sorry, I only use AF lenses.
4.) AF primes aren't either.
5.) I've never needed to adjust any of my lenses, and if I did my camera bodies would allow me to make these adjustments.
6.) No MF lenses are weather sealed either.
7.) DA*50-135 is still waiting to have a word with you.
8.) I have no clue what you are talking about. Quick shift maybe??
9.) I don't use filters on any of my lenses (*except for polarizing).

c[_]
09-05-2010, 08:32 PM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by opiet70 Quote
10. It forces the photographer to walk through each step of taking a good photograph instead of allowing the camera to do it for you
Only when focus ring is broken.

09-05-2010, 08:37 PM   #5
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11. you can tell canikon friends that the glass you're using was from an era when canon and nikon's glass bowed down to pentax's, depending on how old your lenses are (Takumarsssss)
09-05-2010, 09:09 PM   #6
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It is pretty easy to rationalize about manual focus lenses especially if one doesn't have the dough to fork out for the current crop of AF lenses. With AF, focus is a lot faster than you could usually do manually, which translates to more keepers, especially when quick, unexpected photo opportunities occur. Also with AF you can shoot one handed and at different angles knowing the camera will handle focus, which opens up new options in composition and camera shooting angles. With Pentax DA series AF lenses, having Quick Shift allows immediate manual focus override, so there is no shortcoming so far as I can tell. Besides, why are you comparing old MF prime lenses with AF zooms instead of AF prime lenses???
09-05-2010, 09:10 PM   #7
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I think new autofocus zoom lenses have stuck around for a reason, you can't tell me that having a 18-55 zoom with autofocus just isn't easier than 3 old manual primes with stop down metering

the old manual primes are cool to use, I have one but I just never use it because the new fully automatic lenses are much more practical

09-05-2010, 09:14 PM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by fiveseven Quote
Only when focus ring is broken.
LOL


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09-05-2010, 09:15 PM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by JoepLX3 Quote
  1. Manual focus lenses don't suffer from back or front focussing offset
I respectfully disagree here. They suffer from wrong shimming of the focusing screen or slight misalignment of the mirror and other mechanical issues. As a general sentiment - yes, MF lenses are manual all right, but it is not necessarily an advantage in this very case.
09-05-2010, 09:36 PM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by ll_coffee_lP Quote
1.) You can get a K10D cheap now too. Age and technology don't mix well.
2.) DA*50-135 would like to have a word with you.
3.) You couldn't give me a Voigtlander lens. Sorry, I only use AF lenses.
4.) AF primes aren't either.
5.) I've never needed to adjust any of my lenses, and if I did my camera bodies would allow me to make these adjustments.
6.) No MF lenses are weather sealed either.
7.) DA*50-135 is still waiting to have a word with you.
8.) I have no clue what you are talking about. Quick shift maybe??
9.) I don't use filters on any of my lenses (*except for polarizing).

c[_]


Even though they're not zooms:
10.) FA limiteds are next in line to have a word with you after the DA* 50-135

But as for a few more zooms who'd like to dispute the MF prime IQ claim: see DA 12-24, FA* 80-200 and DA* 60-250

As much as MF is great for learning and MF lenses are beautifully dampened - the convenience and speed of AF is a virtue in a number of applications...
09-05-2010, 09:59 PM   #11
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AF or MF is a matter of photographer preference and the application for which it's being used much more than it is a matter of which is better.

For me, AF lenses kinda win because I can manually focus them if I need to, whereas with MF lenses, I can't make them AF if I need to.

That said, most of my primes are MF, most of my zooms are AF. I tend to manually focus a lot just because focus hunting is so damn annoying.
09-05-2010, 10:03 PM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by future_retro Quote
I think new autofocus zoom lenses have stuck around for a reason, you can't tell me that having a 18-55 zoom with autofocus just isn't easier than 3 old manual primes with stop down metering
Some things are easier, yes. Others not. Getting accurate focus in a complex scene in questionable light won't be as easy, nor will getting a fast enough shutter speed for sharp pictures.
09-05-2010, 10:19 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by JoepLX3 Quote
Any other reasons why manual focus primes are better?

Itchin' for a fight, eh?
09-05-2010, 10:27 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by JoepLX3 Quote
  1. You can get some old ones very cheap
  2. You can get the best possible IQ with a prime
  3. You can buy glass of companies that don't even make auto focus lenses
  4. Most primes are not as big & heavy as the zoom equivalents
  5. Manual focus lenses don't suffer from back or front focussing offset
  6. None have failing SDM issues
  7. Very quiet, so best for video applications with sound
  8. Easiest manual focus "over-rule" implementation
  9. You don't need an UV filter for a < 50 USD lens...
Any other reasons why manual focus primes are better?
1 - that makes them inexpensive. It is immaterial for any other comparison.
2 - perhaps, but the difference has shrunk over the years.
3 - So what?
4 - A single prime by nature does not have a zoom "equivalent". You must have at least 2 different primes to make some kind of "equivalent".
5 - Yay! I have not noticed a problem, though.
6 - Plenty of non-SDM lenses out there.
7 - Video in a camera?
8 - Lame.
9. Filters? And ruin that IQ?

What ever works for you is what is important.

And of course, it's the photographer, not the equipment, they say.
09-05-2010, 10:35 PM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by creampuff Quote
Besides, why are you comparing old MF prime lenses with AF zooms instead of AF prime lenses???
QuoteOriginally posted by civiletti Quote
Itchin' for a fight, eh?
QuoteOriginally posted by SpecialK Quote
And of course, it's the photographer, not the equipment, they say.
Good "discussion"?
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