Not so.  I actually posted my message before yours.  Why it is showing up after yours is a mystery to me.  Yesterday, the date and time was correct, but today it is showing my listing as being two hours AFTER yours.  Stranger things have happened.

Evidently XKAES has me on ignore.  The online user guide I posted a link for is a lot better than the PDF manual. 

Welcome to the FORUM. I'm not familiar with that camera, but I use manual-focus lenses on my Sony DSLR all the time without any problem.  The difference between your camera and mine, is that yours has an electronic viewfinder.  You can get a user manual on-line at Sony's website.  That might explain what type of setting you have to make to brighten up the EVF. In any event, others who use that camera will jump in soon with an explanation.  Despite that, you should download the user manual.  It will take about a week to read and digest it all.  The Sony manuals are good at explaining how to set each feature individually.  What takes longer to grasp is how to use the various features in combination.  This gives the camera a lot more power, but can get pretty complicated at times.  You'll find out what I mean. There are undoubtedly some good books about your specific camera that go into more detail than the Sony User Manual. Happy shooting.