After attending a friend’s photography show at Icon gallery at the end of 2024, I was inspired to switch up my framing to a wide 16:9 aspect ratio. I personally love the Micro43 but I do have a collection of full frame gear for professional purposes. I just never cared to use full frame when I’m out and about on walks around the neighborhood. But I had a Panasonic S5 that I had mixed feelings about (still do), and was collecting dust, so I bought a Minolta MD to L-Mount adapter and put my favorite Minolta Rokkor lenses to work.
I went about my photography with the intent to spend a year shooting manual focus only with S5. It took some used to and I realized that I could not get the same type of images that I was accustomed to. It really came down to the handling. The S5 paired with a full metal Minolta lens came with added weight and having to use both hands compared to something like my Olympus E-M5ii or Panasonic GX7 and GX8.
Having to take the time to compose a picture vs capturing one added a lot to my perspective but it also detracted from the experience that I came to enjoy from one-handed shooting. I can’t actually say that I liked the experience, and it created a division in my approach; one for art and one for therapy.
I was happy to end the experience after a year, and went back to using my favorite Micro43 cameras and lenses, but then I went and bought an M-Mount lens for the S5, and that changed everything again. I’ll save my thoughts on that for another post, but for now, here are a few of my favorite wide-angles images.
Thanks for reading!
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