Sony E-Mount Lens Guide Here >>

Sony A6000 using Lens Adapters, and AF Speed Test!

For the past few days I’ve been packing the Sony A6000 and the Metabones III electronic lens adapter along with the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens plus the Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor -X lens. Both work really well and I wanted to show you a few sample photos so you can see for yourself and no what to expect out of the A6000 and the new 24mp sensor.

It’s so much fun to use other lenses on the Sony cameras and I can totally understand if you have no interest in this, but you must recognize it’s one of the amazing strengths of the E-Mount system. With that being said, manufactures are making lens adapters like crazy for the Sony cameras including electronic units that allow for aperture control and reasonable slow auto focus. I’m happy to report the AF on the A6000 is actually faster than the AF on my Nex-6 when using the Metabones III electronic lens adapter. I’m guessing it’s because the contrast AF of the A6000 itself is much better due to the BionzX processor. It really does make a huge difference and is very noticeable and more accurate I’m finding after a decent amount of real world testing. The facial recognition was even working which I found remarkable.

A6000 w/ Metabones III Lens Adapter

I only used my Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS lens because it’s very reliable, predictable, and has a constant f/4 aperture and killer image stabilization for very easy hand holding. I’m telling ya it’s a lot of fun, but certainly harder to use than a native e-mount lens I will admit. If you already have the gear though, why not play?

We painted a bird house the other day and got it all hung up out back.  Layla was yelling out for the birds to come and it was really a great moment I must tell you 🙂 “birdies birdies, come check out your new house” lol, So cute and innocent..

Click Photos for larger versions!

Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens


Just below the birdhouse I noticed these shrooms growing in a nice pattern 😉 BW seemed fitting as the mushrooms where white anyway.

Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens

Her is Layla and Mom painting another birdhouse we actually made from scratch this time. It’s ruff, but not bad for on the spot engineering I’m thinking. I want to make a much nicer hosue next time, but starting small is key to success right?

Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens

We planted a few flowers on the deck this past weekend and this is my favorite angle at the moment, but more to come as the flowers grow and change.

Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens
Sony A6000 w/ Metabones II and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS Lens

Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 PG Rokkor-X lens

I also took a few snapshots with the amazingly fast old school Minolta 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X lens via the Sony alpha A6000 and the focus peaking feature worked really well to help get sharp shots even at f/1.4 which can be really hard. Take a look at what I got below.

If you’re interested, you can pick up the Minolta MC Rokkor-X PG 50 F/1.4 Lens for ~$50 – $90 US on Ebay (Click Here) The RainbomImaging Lens adapter I’m using is no longer available, but here is a link to the current units @ Amazon (Click Here)

 Please click the photos for a larger view!

Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens
Sony A6000 and Minolta MC 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X Lens

Sony A6000 AF Speed Test

Courtesy of the TheCameraStoreTV, we have a killer video review the Sony A6000 vs all the relevant competition and the Nikon D4s DSLR as well. Where? At the Motocross track of course where fast moving action is everywhere. I tried doing several tests with the A6000, but I could not get anything to show how good or not good it is compared to my pro Canon DSLR for example. This video shows you everything you would ever want to no and it’s done better than I could do. I would check this out if you want to know just how good the AF really is on the A6000 and the other competition including the Fuji X-T1, Olympus OMD E-M1, Panasonic GH4, and Nikon D4s!

Closing Remarks:

The Sony A6000 is proving to be just as awesome as we all hoped I must say guys. The higher pixel density 24mp sensor is pretty much identical to the my Nex-6, but with lots more pixels to play with. The dynamic range for all intense purposes when shooting raw is about the same. The colors are slightly different, but still very close to my Nex-6 from what I can tell. High ISO gets a little hairy, but it does on my Nex-6 also. Using lens adapters is awesome and I programed the C1 button near the shutter as the focus magnify. This makes focusing in manual mode much easier in combination with focus peaking which gets you really close.

As you can see from the excellent AF testing done by TheCameraStoreTV above, the A6000 is clearly the best bang for the buck compared to the relevant competition. It’s accurate and extremely fast with a decent buffer size. If you need a larger buffer, shoot jpeg and lower resolution images! Get it perfect off the camera, and you will be much better off in the end. If you need a huge buffer and amazing AF in all situations, then the Pro quality DSLR is still the best option, surprise surprise 😉 All the cameras tested well in the real world when you boil it down. Some are just slightly better than others, but worth knowing for sure that you get the best for your money with Sony. Most of us have known this for some time, but not everybody is on board the Sony train just yet 😉

That is about it for now, but thank you again for checking in and please feel free to ask question or comment below as always,
Jay

  1. Always enjoy your site. I have an A6000 and like it. As TCS video shows the auto focus is quick with native e-mount lenses. When shooting with the Metabones III and the Canon 24-105 did you form an opinion about the focus speed.
    A side question, have you or do you plant to test the Sony e-mount 70-200 f4.0? It looks good in the video.
    Keep up the good work. Your fortunate to have such a vivacious model. Lots of charm.

    1. For me the A6000 offers amazingly fast AF and FPS. I am using mainly with the FE 70-200 and am having a lot of fun particularly using this camera and lens combo shooting birds in flight. Coming from the Nex 6 AF/FPS all I can say is WOW !
      When I first received the FE 70-200 I was worried because it seemed such a large and heavy lens compared to my other Emount lenses–but after a few hours of use the A6000/FE70-200 combo becomes very comfortable/balanced in my hand and the white lens coating seems to keep the lens cool to the touch when out in the hot sunshine. I am also very happy with the optical performance of this lens particularly the colors and on the A6000 the APS-C crop factor gives me just enough reach for birding ( APS-C crop factor = 105-300mm). I haven’t tested this combo on a tripod yet but should be able to get to that this weekend.

      1. Hi LBier and thank you so much for sharing your personal experience with the A6000 and new FE 70-200mm G lens which I can’t get yet 😉 I wish Sony would just send this stuff to me already!
        I had the same issue with the size and weight when I first got my really heavy 70-200mm f/2.8 canon lens years ago. It requires you to really use your other hand and arm a lot more. Once you adjust to that, it’s smooth sailing! Great to hear the crop factor and extra “free” zoom is helping you out as well.
        Interesting point about the white color as well thanks again for sharing,
        Jay

    2. Thank you very much G. S. Gass for the comments and question.
      The AF with the Metabones III sucks compared to a native lens on the A6000. It’s still much better than manual focusing though 😉
      I have the FE 70-200mm on pre-order, but it’s still not available in the USA for some reason. As soon as it comes out I will get a copy to test on my A7r, even though the so-called shutter issue will supposedly make it unusable I read. I doubt that though based on my own testing, but we shall see!
      Layla is the best model ever, no question and thanks again,
      Jay

  2. I’m so glad I came across your website since I’ve migrated from Canon to Sony. I always look forward to your posts, and I was particularly happy to see this one on using lens adapters on the a6000. Since I still had some Canon lenses, I purchased the Metabones adapter. But I was so disappointed in the slow focus, I’ve given up and will sell my adapter as soon as all my Canon lenses have sold. However, I’m very impressed by your images with the Minolta lens and adapter. The bokah is amazing! You’ve tempted me to see if I can find a used Minolta lens. And thanks for the link to the Minolta adapter! BTW, using the Sony 70-200 FE G OSS on the a6000 is amazing! I highly recommend this combination for action shooting (you can see some samples of my surfing shots taken with this set-up at http://www.flickr.com/photos/kgschoening). Thanks again for your website!

    1. I see one advantage to the Canon to e-mount Metabones adapter, the ability to use Canon’s line of T&S lenses. If you do architectural or landscape shooting it could be invaluable.

    2. Hi Ken and thank you for the comments 😉 Awesome Surfing photos and that really makes me want the lens even more!
      Jay

  3. Nice article. I have an A57 on which I have used the 55mm f1.7 with a Fotodiox adapter with wonderful results. To digress a bit, have you ever done a review of the Tokina 11-16mm ATX-PRO DX? If so please give me the link.

    1. Hi Dr.Gopinath and thanks for the comments/ question.
      I have never used that Tokina 11-16mm ATX-PRO DX lens personally, because I chose the Sigma 10-20mm back in the day. I have heard nothing but good things about that lens though, so I would not hesitate to pick one up if you need and ultra wide angle lens. ePhotozine rates it really well and they do solid reviews! http://www.ephotozine.com/article/tokina-af-11-16mm-f-2-8-at-x-116-pro-dx-lens-review-16534
      I hope that helps,
      Jay

  4. Great one Jay!!
    And also this video from the TheCameraStoreTV only makes me pretty happy with my a6000 for the price 🙂
    Looking forward to your comparison between a6000 and NEX-6.
    Have a nice weekend!

  5. I’ve spent there weekend playing with my A6000 and some Canon FD lenses with the Metabones Speed Booster. No problems with autofocus there! Finally brought my 50mm f/1.2 FD back to life.

  6. Thanks for all the great info Jay.
    I’m interested in a side by side comparison of pictures from the NEX-6 and the A6000 with the same optics mounted. My main concern with the A6000 is the impact of the higher pixel density on color depth and resolution. I’d love to see straight out of camera jpegs(web sized) from both cameras of the same scene with same exposure settings. Try shooting scenes where light and colors capture lots of feeling and atmosphere.
    Again, thanks for the great work you do on this site.

    1. Hi Jonas,
      I read this after I posted the other article, but I will take a few more photos in jpeg mode asap.
      Thanks,
      Jay

  7. Hi Jay – Just wanted to add my own feedback on the a6000 which I’ve been using it with the 16-70 F4. I have to say I’m really enjoying this combo as a travel/excursion camera. The shots are super sharp. There is lower noise at high ISO than the NEX-6 and my D7000. Focus is fast so it feels like i’m using a DSLR, but without the bulk. The one issue I ran into is the lens shadow when using the flash. With the larger lens, I get a shadow from about 16mm – 28mm. Most times I can just try to bounce the light off the ceiling with the built in flash, but sometimes that’s not possible (super high ceilings, etc). So now I’m debating whether I want to get the HVL-F20 to keep my travel package small.
    Of course, now I’m starting to look at my next acquisition and I really like that 70-200 F4. I wonder if you review that lens if you could do a comparison of high ISO with the a7/a7R in crop mode vs. the a6000. I need the extra reach the crop mode would give me, but I would like to be able to take shots at high ISO with as little noise as possible. Perhaps if they are comparable, I just need the lens and can hold off on the a7 and just use it with my a6000.

    1. Hi Jose and thanks for taking the time to share your experiences so far with the A6000 and Zeiss lens 😉 I must tell you the 70-200mm e-mount lens is awesome and I totally want one for my A7r to do portrait work and just general photography. It really opened up the A6000 as well for sports shooting and helps create that distance required for good separation and accurate focus. It’s not cheap, but I would take it over the Zeiss in a heartbeat personally.
      ISO 6400 and even 12800 is usable a lot of the times depending on your purpose. If you need really clean low light shots, then f/4 is not good enough and a fast 50mm f/1.8 OSS lens would be a much better option. You have to zoom with your feet, but the camera will love it in low light!!
      The HVL-F20m is also a great little flash unit and 100X better than the on camera garbage. I highly recommend it if you use your flash more than barely ever 😉
      Have a great day and thanks again,
      Jay

  8. Hi Jay,
    I just purchased an A6000 body but having a hard time choosing an all around lens to lug around for travel. I’m currently debating between the Zeiss 16-70 f/4 or getting a Metabones IV adapter and a lens w/ a similar range but faster f/ (e.g Sigma 17-70, f/2.8). Would you have any suggestions or advice?

    1. Hello Emerson,
      The metabones is so slow in comparison to the a6000 and native glass, so I would recommend the 16-70mm f/4 OSS Ziesss lens first for best quality and speed.
      If you don’t care about the slower focus, then yes the Sigma 17-70mm is a killer option. High Quality all in ones for the APS-C are not as common yet, but the selp18105g I just reviewed is not bad for the money. It’s a bit large and heavy though for photography, but the range and constant f/4 is pretty nice. Optics are not as good as the Zeiss though.
      What is your budget looking like?
      Jay

    1. Devin,
      The AF with the adapter is really slow compared to using a native lens like the selp18105g for example. It does gove you aperture control and IS support though, so it’s worth it for killer optics in a lot of cases. Not sports or moving kids though realistically.
      I hope that helps,
      Jay

  9. I have a Nikkor lens for my aged but much beloved Nikon film SLR. I would like to try it out on the Sony a6000, but cannot seem to get a clear reccommendation on an adapter. Can you point me in the right direction?

  10. Hi Jay,
    I moving from Canon to Sony A6000 (ordered and waiting for it to arrive), and have been reading some of your articles regarding Lens adapter and need some advise from you.
    I got the Canon 70-200 f2.8 II USM lens but I am not sure whether to sell it or not because this lens is a beauty.
    I wanted to use it on the A6000 with a lens adapter (for e.g., Metabones III / IV), but worry will have compatibility, quality and AF speed issue, as well as the 1.5x crop factor, will it be meaningless to attach this lens to A6000 body?
    Would appreciate if you can give me some suggestions and feedback.
    If possible can you provide some photos or videos taken with Canon 70-200 lens with Sony APS-C camera.
    Thank you.

    1. Hi Yoong,
      The Canon EF 70-200mm is a killer lens for sure, but the AF speed performance sucks even with the Metabones lens adapters. when compared to a DSLR or a regular E-Mount lens on the A6000. The results are still awesome quality wise, but the speed is just not there. The aperture control and IS is awesome and works, so I like to use manual focus and rapid fire mode personally. With focus peaking I can get a very good hit rate in most situations. Moving subjects are clearly very difficult.
      I hope that helps,
      Jay

  11. Hi Jay,
    I also plan to migrate from Canon to A6000. Would you please help to give suggestions?
    1. I have canon EF Lens 50mm 1.8 which I love very much, can you suggest which adapter that I can use?
    2. Can also suggest other adapters that I can use for Sigma 17-70mm beside metabone or LAEA4?
    Thanks much ! I love your site, it’s so informative 🙂

    1. Hi Dewl,
      If you want aperture control and auto focus, the Metabones is the way to go, with version 4 being the latest. I have version 3. If you want to shoot manual focus with no aperture control, then a basic lens adapter will do Like these @ Amazon >> I noticed Amazon now has an Signstek electronic lens adapter for $105, but I never used that unit or heard anything good or bad just yet.
      I hope that helps,
      Jay

  12. I’m planning on buying the A6000 very soon, and trying to decide on what lenses to get for it. I may have the opportunity to go to a university film program surplus sale and look over their old lenses and equipment this weekend, but want to figure out what I’m getting myself into beforehand.
    When using a lens adapter, what am I losing? Fast auto focus seems to be one thing, but is there anything else? Can the lens still communicate aperture and other important data to the camera like a Sony lens? I guess I’ll have to be aware of crop factor potentially, and I’m not sure how compounds with 35mm equivalent focal length conversion. Sorry, I can’t find a “beginner’s guide to using non-Sony lenses on the A6000” so here I am.
    Thanks, great post.

    1. Hi Nate and sorry for the delayed reply as you are going this weekend??
      You don’t really lose anything other than AF and possible some corner softness if you go wide angle. The lenses also tend to be much heavier. I would make sure the aperture mechanism’s work, because sometimes they get oily and stuck or whatever. 50mm f/1.4 is great 35mm, 85mm 100mm primes all awesome! Depending on the lens mount type will determine what kind of lens adapter you need. If the lenses are electroninc, then you will have no aperture control, unless an electronic lens adapter is available for them.
      Check out the different categories on the right side of the website and you will see many more articles on using lens adapters, and manual focusing, etc..
      Also check out the ultimate lens adapter guide for some of the most common killer old school and after market lenses available >>
      I hope that helps a little,
      Jay

  13. Dear Jay,
    Hey I’m a newbie on camera. and I have bought a sony alpha-6000 with the power zoom lens kit E PZ 16-50mm. And I also bought the sony fish eye converter lens VCL-ECF1 since it is said compattible with an E mount lens for 16mm. the instructions told to match the red dot line between the two lens. but I could not find the red dot on my power zoom lens kit E PZ 16-50mm. Any idea how can I make it works? like an extra converter or something?. really need ur advice 🙂
    thanks in advance, kind regards!
    helmi

  14. hi jay, im vhin from the philippines. and im planning to purchase a sony a6000 with the kit lens 16-50mm. right now sony has a promo where you can purchase another lens together with the a6000 kit and you could save around $200 however they only have 3 lenses to choose from for this promo the SEL50F18, SEL30M35, SEL55210. i would like to do mostly portraits , street photography,some landscapes, some night photography and some baby pictures for my 6mos old baby boy. i need your advice for the lens that could do most of the type of shooting i want, budget is a little tight so it might take me sometime to get a third lens. thanks in advance and god bless!

    1. Hello VHin and great question!
      I would go for the 50mm f/1.8 OSS lens for portraits and street photography, but that is my personal preference. Lots of folks like a wider lens for street like the 35mm, but that is not an option. The 55-210mm is also a great lens, but not really ideal for street or portraits considering the large max aperture. F/1.8 is much better for portraits as far as separating the subject from backgrounds. It’s also much better for low light photography.
      Jay

  15. Nice article!
    I was wondering, is the field of view too narrow when you used the Minolta Rokkor? Would that be a 85mm equivalent?

    1. Hi Simon and yes it would be pretty narrow due to the crop factor multiplier. 1.5 X 50mm = ~75mm I would not say that is to narrow, just depends on what you want and/or need 😉
      Jay

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