A new lens in an old town.

Livnius

Top Veteran
Location
Melbourne. Australia
Name
Joe
Being as lazy as i am I've come to grow tired of constantly changing lenses, I'd much rather just pull out another camera...at the wide-standard focal lengths i find it to be not such a big issue, but longer is where it gets tiresome. My solution, albeit a tough one to make, was to sell both my Oly45 and 75mm primes :eek: and replace them both with the Pana35-100 and leave it permanently parked on an OMD body...other cameras take care of the regular focal lengths I shoot. It's a top shelf lens I reckon, I like it, even though admittedly zoom lenses kinda make my head hurt....it was ultimately a decision about maximising practicality. As wonderful as the O45 and 75 primes are, they just weren't being used enough....this lens now has me covered in everything from 70mm out to 200mm in 35mm speak. For what it is, it's ridiculously small and light.

So heres a few shots I took last week....a new lens in an old town.






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smoko by Livnius, on Flickr






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Tracks by Livnius, on Flickr







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RMIT facade by Livnius, on Flickr







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Untitled by Livnius, on Flickr







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take away by Livnius, on Flickr







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State Library. by Livnius, on Flickr






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Sleeping it off. by Livnius, on Flickr







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Exhibition Building by Livnius, on Flickr






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Exhibition Building. Mono by Livnius, on Flickr






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Flagstaff Gardens by Livnius, on Flickr






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Queen St by Livnius, on Flickr
 
Prime, Zoom?

I too hate changing lenses. Besides, the fumbling and juggling the various items, there is the time wasted (shot missed), and the opportunity for debris to find it's way in. Lately I have laid aside the MF 24 mm, 50mm and the Oly 45, for (Gasp), the 14-42 mm IIr. The others are there. when needed or wanted. The little Oly zoom is surprisingly sharp and compact, even wearing a small hood. Slow? Yes, but for what most of my shooting is, I shoot at around F5.6 to F9.0. The AF is actually a bit quicker and more positive, than the Oly 45, especially in low light/contrast. I have chased the prime lenses, looking for "perfection" for a long time, and I still use and like them, but there are times when, convenience, in more important, for an old, lazy man.:)
 
Thanks for sharing those. I loved seeing Melbourne through your lens :)

Your rationale re lenses has made me think too.

Inspiration for me to get out there...I'm always worried about shooting people in the street though. Do you ask or just shoot?

Irene





Irene,
Have camera will travel & shoot!
 
Thanks guys.



I too hate changing lenses. Besides, the fumbling and juggling the various items, there is the time wasted (shot missed), and the opportunity for debris to find it's way in. Lately I have laid aside the MF 24 mm, 50mm and the Oly 45, for (Gasp), the 14-42 mm IIr. The others are there. when needed or wanted. The little Oly zoom is surprisingly sharp and compact, even wearing a small hood. Slow? Yes, but for what most of my shooting is, I shoot at around F5.6 to F9.0. The AF is actually a bit quicker and more positive, than the Oly 45, especially in low light/contrast. I have chased the prime lenses, looking for "perfection" for a long time, and I still use and like them, but there are times when, convenience, in more important, for an old, lazy man.:)


I guess only time will tell if I'm happy shooting a zoom lens, but i reckon it'll be fine since shooting this long (70-200mm) is not a very common thing for me so it just may work out fine for the infrequent times i do need something much longer than the 28/35/50 I normally shoot. Besides, given that i always horribly over/under-estimate my long shooting the zoom will be pretty convenient. About a month ago I tried the same thing, using another zoom, but a wide-normal (pans 12-35----24-70eqv) but that proved a little tricky. So buying this zoom is a bit of a gamble, but one based on my own shooting patterns/preferences. Wide & standard primes....complimented by an ultrawide zoom and a tele zoom.





Thanks for sharing those. I loved seeing Melbourne through your lens :)

Your rationale re lenses has made me think too.

Inspiration for me to get out there...I'm always worried about shooting people in the street though. Do you ask or just shoot?

Irene


Thanks Irene.
I never ask, I just try get the shot without getting noticed...relatively easy to do with long lenses, a little trickier however with a wide angle prime because I have to get in pretty close. The more I do it, the better I get at pretending I just saw something really interesting behind the person I just photographed. Mostly though, I think people never even notice.
 
Great stuff Joe. I've thought about doing the same thing, but I like the Oly 75 too much to part with it. And for the kinds of limited shooting I do with it, the extra 1+ stop means more to me than the versatility of the zoom. So I'll probably sit tight. But I love the way you see with a long lens - I've never developed that knack. Really nice stuff and it seems like the right tool for you...

-Ray
 
Thanks Ray.
It's an experiment I guess...one that I thought long and hard about because it involved selling off an amazing piece of glass.
But all the thinking and planning doesn't necessarily guarantee an outcome so I'm just gonna go with it, enjoy it as much as I can and see how it pans out.
I'm never going to complain about being lucky enough to be able try nice new gear like this. Am happy as well that in recent weeks I've had way more shooting time than usual. More free time....just about the only positive of a slowing economy !
 
Very nice shots and I did the same thing: got rid of the 45 and 75 and got the 35-100mm which I like a lot.

I've even gotten rid of my 25 f/1.4 now. I keep a 20mm f/1.7 pancake on the GX1, but in my normal bag are a GH1 wearing the 12-35mm f/2.8, the G5 wearing the 35-100mm f/2.8, and the 17mm f/1.8 and 7-14mm f/4 in the bag just in case. That's my whole kit basically these days. I even have a little Sennheiser MKE-400 microphone in the bag for video should the opportunity present itself.

It all fits in a Think Tank Retrospective 5.
 
The more I do it, the better I get at pretending I just saw something really interesting behind the person I just photographed. Mostly though, I think people never even notice.

Not sure they don't notice or maybe I'm too scared :(
Might have to make it a project this year to work on my "street cred" :)



Irene,
Have camera will travel & shoot!
 
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