More equipment decisions! Ah, Autofocus's siren song!

Went out for my walk to the shopping center today deviating from the shortest route to check a body of water for bird life. The winter sun was starting to slant down in the west and I thought here was a chance of some decent back or cross lighting.

I had the 100-300 on the G6 in my backpack -- the first time I have taken out the G6 to shoot since I got it back from repairs. The all purpose 12-32 lens has all but glued itself to the usurper, the scarlet woman, the GX7, so I have been taking the new slimline seductress out for all purpose photography.

Wot's over there? And where's my right foot anyway? There was interesting side/back light, but it coincided exclusively with the back view of the birds.

Duck! Not a bad pic but not as sharp as I would like.

Ah, there’s that foot! Seagulls often have a left missing, maybe this one just had corns or something.

As I said, I was shooting with the 100-300. I was beginning an experiment with a Tokina 500mm mirror lens with Pentax thread and an M43 adapter, but have abandoned it after only days.

The Tokina, beautifully made and presented, is being listed on eBay (from whence it came) tonight along with the adapter if the buyer wants it.

It is quite clear to me after a few days' sporadic trials that it is simply not my cup of tea. Manual focusing and I don't mix; wehaven;tactually for more than 10 years now.

In addition, I have just ordered a dot sight which presupposes (for me) auto focus so the 100-300 will remain my ultra long choice. I can't have two of really long lenses; not enough work.

One thing this little outing confirmed for me in respect of the G6 vs GX7 -- the latter has significantly greater DR with its superior sensor. I have been thinking of it as a stop or so; I suspect it is actually more like double that, even triple. You can see it in these high contrast situations where the G6's highlights have a tendency to blow out. The GX7 has a softer finish.