Perceptive Light

Olympus OMD f11 1/500s ISO 320 Canon FD 50mm Macro

Olympus EM-5 OMD  f8 1/250s ISO320 Leica R 250mm

Both of these images look to me at least as good as the results that I achieved regularly from the Canon 5D MkII. In fact I think looking closely at the forest section I think that the dynamic range is actually greater. This was shot without a tripod.

In the shot of the rose (grown with nothing but waste water) the Canon FD 50 macro proves that it is still a star after 35 years of use. The OMD handles the soft yellow colour beautifully. Thus far I have to say that the OMD looks like a winner it handles well I still have to get used to the button placement but apart from that I am well pleased with the the EP-2 replacement .

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Leica M9 f3.4 1/125s ISO320 Zeiss Biogon 25mm T ZM

I have had a Leica M9 for almost a year now, do I like it? Yes I do, Why did I buy it? Not a long story by any means but basically I have used Canons for the last 27 years starting with FD’s 2 x F1′s AE1′s A1 EOS 1000FN EOS 1 etc etc and they have with the lenses gotten larger and heavier and me older and less able. Last February I had a garden and architecture assignment it was a rush job I couldn’t pick the day or the time of day and it was hot – absolutely stinking hot about 45 degrees C in the shade. The area to cover was large, some climbing on to roofs and a fair amount of walking with 2 x 5Ds and four lenses Lee filters wide hoods a large tripod bit of flash kit 4 lts of water it all added up to too much to carry in that heat.
So I bit the bullet and bought an M9 with 4 Voigtlander lenses. The Leica lenses I wanted were not available and the ones that were I couldn’t afford so Voiglander it was, a 21mm, a 1.4 35mm which I really think is a top quality lens by any measure, a 1.5 50mm Nokton and the absolutely fabulous 1.8 75mm Heliar.
After using them for a year I decided I needed a wide lens at least as good as the EF 16-35mm mkII which I used a lot. The 24mm Summilux was really the only Leica lens that fitted the quality requirement I tried the Elmarit but to be honest Leica (if your reading this) it did not perform to my expectations. Its small and light but the optical performance to my eye was lacking. The f2.8 I could live with so enter the Zeiss 25mm I looked at both 21mm and the 28mm then I started reading up on the 25mm and it began to look like a gem of a lens. It was, It was the zero distortion that attracted me. What I had not bargained for was the total lack fringing, its a bad nuisance when shoots a lot of leafy things. Its not there, absolutely none, zilch even at sunset against a southern sky. Next is its resolution and definition. At 25 meters individual leaves can be seen in a forest with hand held shots. These shots posted were taken in the reserve at the back of my garden I focused on Mime the dog who was about 20m away, every element of the photo is sharp and well defined from the centre to the side, even to the corners and this is at f3.4 !! Take a look at the image in the previous post… I have not found what the lens should be coded as yet so there is probably some scope for improvement in image quality there. Same in Adobe Camera Raw I don’t have a profile yet and past experience has shown that this can all assist IQ.  I only used the default sharpening in ACR plus a bit of clarity. I have nearly always used LAB colour for basic correction and I tickled the shadows with a curve in the L channel and no further sharpening at all – it isn’t really needed. What else can I say about the IQ not too much yet… This lens is good very very good…

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Leica M9 f3.4 1/125s ISO320 Zeiss Biogon 25mm T ZM 100% crop

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I’m seriously interested in a Fuji Xpro1 or the Olympus OMD. A month ago I sold my canon 5D MK II not there was anything wrong with it was probably the best DSLR I have ever used. And with the MK I which has now been converted into a IR camera they both have been the workhorses of my practice since the 5D first appeared. But after lugging them, three or four large L lenses plus a pile of other kit through 40 degree heat on various jobs I decided enough was enough. The weight and the bulk were taking their toll and the physical effort required was taking all the enjoyment out of the work. This week I handled the Fuji curtesy of Camera Electronics in Perth – Western Australia. It is so light and the viewfinder is gorgeous. The auto focus was quick in fairly low light and contrary to what I have read elsewhere the menus were reasonably logical and whats more its half the price of a 5D MKIII? It also looks like there is going to be a lot of adaptors to allow legacy lenses and I have a few of those. I have also just read a really good review by Nick Devlin on Luminous Landscape. The only other choice that is in the wind at the present is the Olympus OMD which also has a lot going for it and cheaper still with a weather proof body and that 5 axis stabilisation which will be wonderful for closeups on the fly when I’m too lazy to set up a tripod, so which is it to be? I will leave it a while longer to see what adaptors appear for the Fuji – I like my old lenses some of which I even used on the 5D’s And hope that someone will publish some RAW shots on both using common lenses .

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A must read , I wish I had written this…
http://blakeandrews.blogspot.com/2012/01/butt-ugly-cameras.html

I have felt for a long time that camera designers are taking their cues from the wrong sources. So many of the digi cams are just so unfunctional for western hands over the age 14. Making things smaller is fine but for pities sake allow enough space to be able to press one button at a time. At the other end of the scale the Leica M9 needs a built in hand grip not the post modernist add on that replaces the bottom plate. Yes I will get covered in vitriolic bile for suggesting that the M’s are anything other than perfect. Yes, that design has stood the test of time but lets not forget that when the M’s were first made the metal forming methods were primitive to what they are today I sincerely hope the M10 moves closer to the S1 than to the M2…

To be continued no doubt

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Following Michael Reichmann’s extensive review and thoughts on the Sony NEX 7, Lloyd Chamber’s adds his views. Interestingly his comments echo my thoughts after I learned that there are a few hardware similarities between the NEX 7 and Sonys DSLR’s… My source was Amateur Photographer 5/11/11 and  12/11/11

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There was an interesting post on Serious Compacts from member wt21 who has owned 2 NEX cameras and sold them off I was curious as the day previous I read the rolling review from Michael Reichmann (NEX-7 vs M9 Part Deux) I was impressed to say the least. The EP2 which I have used for some of my work is a really good little camera. I have been a fan of Olympus cameras since the OM1 In that  case you might wonder why do I use Canons for 75% of my work. the answer is simple – Full Frame. For magazine work size matters, and while some of the APS  produce wonderful results editors want often want larger files so now that a 24mp camera that takes all the major  legacy lens marques looks like a usable substutute. so here are my reasons for the NEX to be NEXT perhaps…

 Originally Posted by Pelao 

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Weekend observations on 4/3 rumors.com
What Olympus and Panasonic could learn from old cameras: Contax G2
An interesting thought stream and my comment:
The Contax G1/G2 were cameras I lusted after, disgustingly expensive in most countries because of duties and taxes. They were an almost perfect marriage of wonderful glass, cutting edge design, brilliant technology and absolute quality. Probably the camera that Leica should have emulated as a second range to the M.

I was told when I was on the cusp of purchase of a G2 that internally they are complicated and need a factory trained service technicianI to even carry out a simple CLA. I don’t know what the service availability for them is like in the US but if something goes wrong and you happen to be in Australia it has to be sent back to Japan and the minimum charge was horrid!
As much as I would still like one I now think technology has moved on, the Olympus EVF can just about see in the dark and I think that in some instances a camera with an EVF is actually better to work with than my M9, final image quality aside. With each generation of mirrorless cameras optical rangefinders loose some of their advantages
I am really looking forward to the next generation of micro four third cameras there are still a lot of current useful features that can be added and no doubt will.

Photo curtesy 4/3 rumors.com

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A good micro four thirds intro article on digitaltrends.com
I first saw the Olympus concept camera (above at) Photokina in ’08 and thought Geez I like that design, then a few hours later I handled and ran off a few shots on the first micro four thirds G1 at the Panasonic stand. After I removed the lense for a squiz inside I was instantly drowned in thought bubbles hey this mount ring is close enough for this camera to take any numbers of legacy lenses. My next thought was OMG I will be able to use my Canon FD lenses on a digital camera. I was floating on thought bubbles! FD lenses are beautiful things many of which are the equal of Leica and Zeiss lenses. These lenses were made at a time when the now behemothic Canon was the underdog of the camera manufacturers world and really struggling to compete with likes of Nikon and as such produced some wonderful glass. A few of those fast FD lenses and the certainly their macro offerings were better than most at the time and brilliant on any of the current micro four thirds cameras.

I know of one top flight Perth wedding photographer who still uses the FD 85mm f1.2 on a T90 just for his in church shots and he is an absolute dyed in the wool Nikon digital shooter! With some work, some of the FD lenses can be adapted to Leica M mount and often are – High praise indeed.

I bought into micro four thirds system with Olympus’s second camera the EP-2 and it is a great camera in just about every feature. Olympus design has always been ahead of the game in many areas and the current PENs are no exception. I once handled an Olympus TLR and the attention to detail was every bit as good as some of the German equivalents, then there was the X1A and the OM series whose features were eventually copied by all the main players. The one area that is a bit weak in the new PENs is the UI, its well… er not as good as it could be but then again which current digital camera is. I am craving the day when I can connect my iPhone to my camera and use IOS 5 to control my camera! Anybody from Canon Olympus or Nikon Sigma Fuji etc listening?? If any of the majors do this I will buy their camera…. In the meantime if you are not that familiar with micro four thirds read this…

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