Quite possibly a trip of a lifetime
Engine and Wing, Southwest Airlines
In a couple of days, I going to start, what may be, a trip of a lifetime. I’m going to travel internationally and in the US for the next two weeks. I’m very excited and a bit anxious. You see, it’s been a while since I did a real international trip and it’s the first time I’m going to a developing country (not including 4 hours in Mexico). For now, I’m not going to say where I’m going but I’m hoping to make a lot of great photographs. There should be a lot of architecture involved, along with street photography, photographic observations and possibly the occasional portrait. In other words, more of the same kind of things I typically shoot, except it will be different, because it will be from countries on the other side of the world. For me, it would certainly feel exotic. I’m not entirely sure how it’s going to turn out, which I guess is part of the fun.
In addition to the images, I’m also hoping that there will be interesting stories that I can blog about. I’ll also have a lot to say about the trip preparations that I’m doing. What cameras do I bring? How do I take a full range of gear without weighing myself down? Do I take the Canon 7D, the Olympus E-PL1s or the Sony NEX-5? Should I bring a tripod? I’ve thought a lot about this and I will see how my preparations turn out. There is almost an overwhelming amount of choices but a limited amount of practical space. Sure the photography will be fun, but I don’t want to be miserable touring around with a lot of gear. I also don’t want to stick out even more than the obvious tourist that I will be. So expect to see upcoming posts of how I decided what to bring and if my gear decisions worked out.
I’m not sure how good my internet access will be for part of the trip. I also don’t know how much free time I’ll have so I’m assuming I won’t be doing much blogging. If lucky, I may be able to post some images to mostlyfotos, my one image per day blog. I’ll preset mostlyfotos to post photographs from my library but I’ll also see if I can inject some images from my trip abroad. So check out mostlyfotos during my absence for some clues about my trip destinations. And see you in about 2 – 3 weeks for more updates to this blog.
Take care and keep shooting.
Olympus OM-D vs Sony NEX-7
With the introduction of the Olympus OM-D the natural question is how does it compare with the competition. From the pricing of the cameras and positioning in the market the Sony NEX-7 comes to mind as a logical point of comparison. Also, while the Sony was introduced several months ago, due to the terrible floods in Thailand, the actual high volume availability of the Sony will only be a month or so before the Olympus. There are surprising similarities and some big differences. I decided to write this blog post to help sort out the two systems for myself. Of course, Fujifilm also just introduced their high-end mirror-less interchangeable lens camera, the X-Pro1. However, from a pricing standpoint, this system is clearly for a different demographic. So how does the Olympus OM-D E-M5 compare with the Sony NEX-7? Let the comparison begin.
When I started looking at the feature set, it seemed clear to me that Olympus went down the Sony checklist to try to match or beat its features. Both camera companies are clearly going after the premium EVIL (electronic viewfinder, Interchangeable lens) market. When you look at the standard kit lens pricing, the two cameras are only $50 apart. The Olympus comes with a 12mm – 50mm lens for $1299. The Sony and the 18mm – 55mm lens sells for $1349. When you compare the focus length in 35mm equivalents the Olympus has a longer 24mm to 100mm range while the Sony has a 27mm to 83mm range. The Olympus also sells a less expensive kit with a very similar range as the Sony for $1099. Both cameras feature a premium build using magnesium alloy. The Olympus ups the game by adding weather sealing to the body and to the 12-50mm lens. The NEX-7 follows the previous NEX aesthetic which is a throughly modern design without any cues from the past. The Olympus plays the nostalgia card by taking styling elements from is old film based OM SLR line. Both feature touch sensitive, tilt-able OLED displays. Both have high-resolution electronic view finders. The Olympus and Sony both take HD video and feature fast focusing systems. So with all the similarities, what sets these guys apart? You can go down the feature list and you may prefer an implementation of one vendor over another but it comes down to a few key differences.
For me there are two important considerations in a camera. The first is, of course, image quality. And sure, the user interface counts for a lot and the camera needs to feel good in hand. Both cameras have loads of user configurable buttons and dials. Which you like better will depend on your individual taste. You will have to play with both and decide for yourself which feels better. The second consideration is if the camera’s design point matches your style of photography. This needs a bit of explaining. The Fujifilm X100 is a fantastic camera. It is great for street photography, casual shooting and even environmental portraits. However, it does not work at all as an action and sport camera. You have a fixed focal length lens (at 35mm) and it’s just not fast enough for most sports. If You are a sports photographer, the Fujifilm X100 would make a lousy choice even though it is a very good camera, make sense? Likewise, if you had a top of the line Canon 1DM4 or Nikon D4 which excel at sports, they probably won’t be your first choice for street photography. There are different kinds of photography and you have to keep in mind what kind of photography a particular camera is designed for.
So lets start with image quality. Image quality is determined by many factors. It is not simply just the sensor. The image processing engine, the available lenses and image stabilization all factor into the equation. And before getting into the image quality discussion, I have to say the technical image quality has very little to do with how good a photograph is. This is a point for a different blog post however, I just wanted to mention this because, I know very well that image quality is not the most important measure of a photograph. So with that out-of-the-way, here are the important differences that may set the image quality apart.
The Sony NEX-7 has a APS-C size sensor at 24MP. It is a larger sensor at a higher resolution than the Olympus micro 4/3 sensor at 16MP. Generally, larger sensors have a better image quality with lower noise at higher ISOs. While we still do not know how good the Olympus’ sensor is, the high ISO noise characteristic may not be too different. Yes, the Sony has as larger sensor but it also stuffs more pixels into their sensor. A high-resolution sensor should have a definite advantage resolving detail especially if the camera can be set at low ISOs. So for portraits, product photography and landscapes, the Sony may be a better choice.
One of the major strengths of the Olympus and a weakness for the Sony is the selection of lenses. The micro 4/3 format has been out longer and with both Panasonic and Olympus making lenses, there is a very healthy selection of good quality lenses. While some other manufactures are on board to make NEX compatible lenses, Sony is currently the only supplier. There are only a handful of lenses and many of them are not of stellar quality. Sony did release the Zeiss 24mm f1.8 which should be a great lens but with a premium price of $1000. On the Olympus side, there is a slew of high quality prime lenses such as the 12mm f2, 20mm f1.7, 25mm f1.4 and 45mm f1.8. There are super wide-angle zooms like the 7-14mm from Panasonic and the 9-18mm from Olympus and both companies have a large choice of telephoto zooms. It will take Sony a long time to catch up, if ever, with the lens selection available for the micro 4/3 platform. Note: When comparing these focal lengths to the 35mm equivalent, multiply the size by 1.5 for the Sony and by 2x on micro 4/3 lenses.
Another very large advantage for the Olympus is the in-body image stabilization (IS). All of the Olympus micro 4/3 cameras have IS but the new E-M5 improves this significantly with a 5 axis stabilization. The Sony has IS built into the lens but not every lens has IS. With the Olympus, every single lens has IS, even 30 year old manual focus lenses. Now, if you primarily shoot your camera on tripod or in good light, IS is not as much of a factor. However, if you are into street photography especially in less that ideal light, IS is a godsend. Want to shoot indoors without a flash, it maybe possible with IS and a large aperture lens. In darker conditions that expensive Zeiss lens is not going to help as much even with a f1.8 aperture. You will have to crank up the ISO to compensate. With the Olympus, I can use the 20mm Panasonic lens at f1.7, keep the ISO lower and still get the shot by relying on image stabilization. However, here is were the subject and the type of photography is a factor. If you are shooting action, image stabilization is not going to help you. IS is for slow or non-moving objects. IS will not magically stop action. So depending on what you shoot, IS can be crucial or just a nice to have option.
Finally there are purely personal factors in image processing which may sway you to one camera of the other. I have come to realize that I like the Olympus color and exposure more than the Sony color and exposure (I also own a Sony NEX-5). This, of course, is my personal taste. You may like the Sony’s image rendering better. So I can not claim an advantage for either camera in this area. This will be your personal taste.
I wrote in a blog post called Why I’m not buying the Sony NEX-7 – Revisited a couple of months ago where I talk about the factors that make me less interested in a Sony NEX-7. Don’t get me wrong, the NEX-7 appears to be a fantastic camera, especially if it fits your requirements. Getting back to what I said in the beginning, you really need to look at the camera fitting the type of photography you do. With the high-resolution sensor, the Sony NEX-7 will be a very nice camera, especially if you can shoot it at lower ISOs. The 24MP should give you fantastic resolution. Keep in mind though, that the Sony system does not have many lenses that can take advantage of this great sensor. A high-resolution sensor is no good without sharp, high quality glass. But for people who have, say a Leica lens, you can use an adapter to attach it to a NEX-7. You can get an extremely high quality camera that works with high quality Leica glass. The Sony also has a wonderful manual focusing aid called focus peaking. This allows manual lenses to be quickly and accurately focused by looking at the highlighted areas on the viewfinder. Some people claim they like to focus via focus peaking even more than the range finder focusing used on the Leicas. Michael Reichmann loves his Sony NEX-7 and compares it with a Leica M9. So there certainly people who have high praise for the Sony. However, for me, I like to shoot in lower light conditions. Having image stabilization and a selection of high quality primes is important. I don’t have a Leica lens to use and I don’t have much interest in manual focusing lenses. I’m also frugal and I didn’t think the Sony NEX-7 had the price performance that matches my Olympus setup. But how about the Olympus OM-D E-M5 (I still think this is a silly name, let call it a OM-D5 for short), it is basically the same price as the premium Sony?
For me the OM-D5 is certainly enticing but I’m unsure if I’m going to get it. I will have to see how much better the sensor is. The expensive features such as the electronic view finder and the magnesium alloy body with weather seals are features that I can live without. I’m secretly hoping that the next Olympus Pen (E-P4?) will have the same sensor but at a much lower price. I’ll keep an open mind and see how the OM-D5 stacks up when the results come in. The good news is that we have a choice. The mirror-less EVIL market is very competitive and new products are battling it out for our money. I hope I gave you a fairly unbiased view of how these two cameras stack up. And while it’s true that I’m not interested in the NEX-7, I’m not necessarily a fan of all things Olympus. Yes, I like the lower cost of the Olympus Pens for their price performance, especially the E-PL1 which I use as a basis for my two camera setup. While I’m satisfied with my cameras right now, it is always fun to think about what’s new. I will continue to see what Sony, Olympus and Panasonic comes out with next. I’m certainly eyeing the new high quality Fujifilm cameras. I’m holding out hope that Nikon will come out with large aperture primes for their V1 and J1. Heck, I still have some hope that even Canon will come out with their EVIL offering, though their Powershot G1X seems interesting. But ultimately, all this dreaming and thinking of equipment is not going to make me a better photographer so I will need to get out there and keep shooting. See you out there on a photowalk.
The Olympus OM-D, micro 4/3 grows up
Olympus OM-D E-M5 (courtesy of dpreview)
This week, we saw the introduction of two major cameras. On Tuesday, Nikon announced their long-awaited 36 megapixel, full frame D800. The next day, Olympus took the wraps off the well leaked OM-D E-M5 (kind of a cryptic product name, why couldn’t they call it something shorter like the OM-D5), the most sophisticated micro 4/3 camera to date. While I have no doubt that the Nikon will be a fantastic camera, I’m really not going to talk about it much. Since I shoot with Canon, Olympus and Sony I’m not wed to any particular brand. Rather, I find a camera like D800 catering to a high-end clientele or high-end wannabes. Sure, for some people 36MP will be a necessity and will give them a competitive advantage but for the serious amateur is this over kill? I think so. Of course, if you’ve followed this blog, you know my bias. It’s not a brand bias, I have nothing against Nikon. Rather, I’m scaling down my interest to smaller, more practical cameras. In fact, I’m more interested in the Nikon 1 series than their high-end SLRs. Given this background, you might have guessed that I’m more excited by the Olympus OM-D announcement.
Spec-wise, there is a lot to love about the new E-M5, part of the new Olympus OM-D line. A lot of sites have published the E-M5 specifications so I won’t repeat them here. Keep in mind that all we have right now is marketing copy, written in the most enthusiastic and exciting way. That is what marketers do, right? We will have to wait for the actual test results. So I’ll take statements like the “fastest auto-focus” with a grain of salt. However, it is evident that this model has improved over the previous Pen line in some significant ways. With the magnesium, water-resistant build, the focus speed, the new sensor and the advanced image stabilization, this is the most serious and high-end micro 4/3 camera to date. Besting even the well regarded Panasonic G line.
Here are the 2 most exciting features for me.
New 16MP sensor The previous 12MP sensor is probably the weakest part the current Olympus PEN system. I love the quality of my Olympus but only up to ISO 800. I will be happy if Olympus could squeeze another stop of performance out of this new sensor. Basically getting the same quality at ISO 1600 that I get at ISO 800. The Panasonic G3 and GX1 uses a 16MP sensor with better high ISO performance, and some speculate that Olympus maybe using a modified version of this sensor. And, I want true sensor performance, not just better JPEG processing. I will be looking at this very closely.
5 Axis Image Stabilizer One of the key strengths of Olympus is the in-body image stabilization. This allows any lens, even old manual ones, to have the advantages of a stabilized image. This allows me to take photographs at a higher quality (lower ISO) because I can shoot with a slower shutter speed. The OM-D claims to have a super sophisticated stabilization that can be used for stills as well as video.
There are other great features but they are less important to me. This includes the weather resistant, magnesium body, the built-in high-resolution electronic viewfinder and finally the fast focusing speed. If I didn’t already have my Canon 7D, these features would probably excite me more. But for people who want one do-it-all camera these features would weigh more heavily.
Initially, the $999, body only price was a big, pleasant surprise. I expected, with all these features, Olympus would price the camera higher. Indeed, if you add the inexpensive 14-42 kit lens, the total package comes to $1,099. That is only $200 more than the E-P3 kit with the same lens. For a $200 price difference, it would be a no brainer to get the superior OM-D. The external viewfinder alone for the Pen series runs $200. Add to this you get a better sensor, better build, water resistance and a host of other features and benefits. The pricing does not make sense to me. If anything, I’m wondering if Olympus will drop the price of the E-P3.
Then, I really started thinking seriously about the pricing. Yes, while the price difference between the E-M5 and the E-P3 makes the new camera, relatively speaking, a bargain. $1000 is still a lot of money. Keep in mind that the current Olympus PEN line consists of 3 cameras. the E-P3 at $899, the E-PL3 at $699 and the E-PM1 at $499. All 3 cameras have the same sensor and image quality. Sure the more expensive camera has a better build and more manual controls but this is a wide price range. When I consider that my current two camera setup, where the camera and basic kit lens runs for a true bargain price of $230, all the other cameras seem pricey by comparison. Also consider that my older model E-PL1 has the same image quality as the current Pen line. Yes, there are certainly difference in focus speed, among other things, however, if you know what your requirements are, you might be able to get a true deal on your camera.
Ultimately, for me to be interested, at $1000 and beyond the new OM-D needs to take noticeably better quality pictures. Sure, I love the feature set and styling. I’m excited to try it out and I will reserve judgement until I see some reviews and hold the new camera in my hands. But remember, don’t be seduced by the camera, know instead what you need out of the camera. It’s important to keep this in mind whether you get a $230 bargain, a $1100 top of the line micro 4/3 camera and especially a $3000 full frame Nikon D800. Easily said when I’m calm and rational at home. I’ll see how I react when I have the new camera in my hands at the camera store.
Image post-processing, a necessity or cheating?
Heritage Boot, South Congress – Austin, Texas
I just finished reading Kirk Tuck’s blog post Hard work is hard. Everything changes. in which he compares the traditional photojournalist’s, get everything in camera, no post-processing allowed philosophy verses the more recent modifications are good, the more post-processing the better movement. That got me thinking about my views on post-processing images. I don’t have the years of experience that Kirk has in photography. If anything, I’m a newcomer, just getting seriously into photography less than 6 years ago. While I’m certainly old enough to have shot film, I never did any serious photography back in the film days. Back then I shot my point and shoot film camera and mainly took snaps during vacations. It wasn’t until digital that I really got interested in photography.
I must admit, I have a split perspective on this debate over post-processing. While chronologically, I’m now considered in middle age, at least according to Wikipedia, photographically, I’m more like a teenager. I’m old enough to appreciate the old photographic masters and the beautiful black and whites that I remember from my youth, while never actively participating in its creation. I find it very amusing that people younger than me, that grew up with film, wax poetically about how wonderful the film day’s were. I am a digital photographer. I have no true historic context and have no desire to return to the days of film. I am puzzled when people still seem to be stuck in the notion that images should not be post-processed. I see people brag that there was no post-processing done on the image and I think “Why?” you have a wonderful image, it could be so much better with post-processing. Why this hangup with no modifications after the shutter is clicked?
Ok, I’m not completely ignorant. I know there are still valid reasons to do things in camera without any (or much) modification. Photojournalists have a set of ethics that allow only minimal changes, if any, to their images. Their world is tricky because allowing changes is a slippery slope. What can they ethically change that doesn’t compromise their sense of journalistic integrity. While adding additional missiles and smoke trails to war footage certainly crosses the line, isn’t there some post-processing that improves the image and does not distort their message? I understand that high volume commercial photographers and event photographers need to get it right in camera so that they can minimize post-processing time. They run a business and any time spent cleaning an photograph or fixing things in post, takes money away from the bottom line. But how about the others. Artistic photographers, hobbyists and amateurs that have the time to craft each image. Why do some of these people get stuck on the notion that post-processing is no good or somehow is cheating? To me, creating the image starts with the camera and is only finished in post-processing. I feel the image coming out of the camera is still half-baked. Its potential is there but not fully realized.
That said, I see some of my fellow contemporary photographers take post-processing to a whole different level, and not all of it is very good. I understand why Kirk thinks HDR photographs are “Technicolor Vomit”. Yes, there are some truly horrific HDR images out there. And if it isn’t gaudy HDRs, then it’s their close cousins, which feature heavy textures on images, adds grunge and relies on retro cross-processing effects. Adding all this post-processing to a bad image does not improve the image, of course. So why go to extremes. There is a certain level of post-processing that can dramatically improve a good image but one does not have to resort to extreme HDR or other post-processing shenanigans to make an interesting image.
I remember when I first got into digital photography and I saw some spectacular imagery with rich colors that were tastefully done. I was perplexed because none of my images came close to what I saw. My images seem dull and flat in comparison and it wasn’t the lighting. There was something tangibly different. What I discovered and what is usually not talked about as openly (at least back then) was the amount of post-processing that goes into the best images out there. I’m not talking about radical changes or body and face sculpting done in fashion magazines. I’m talking about tasteful but dynamic changes that greatly enhance an image. What some people out there may not realize is that a digital image, particularly when taken in RAW, is purposely dull. It is up to the photographer to alter or post-process the image to bring out its full glory. That would include some sharpening to counteract the built-in blurring filter (the anti-aliasing filter) that purposely designed to make a digital image less sharp. The saturation of the image needs to be increased to bring out the true colors that were locked in the digital negative. So, when people take pride in the fact that their image is SOOC (Straight Out Of the Camera) they are actually short-changing their selves and their image. Color from film is different from digital color, but have you ever seen how vivid an image shot in Fujifilm’s Velvia really is? I was really surprised how dull much of the digital images are in comparison to film. Much of this, I contend, is due to the lack of good post-processing. I not proposing that we need to emulate the exact look of film, but I am saying that we should unleash the potential of digital.
I have improved my post-processing over the years, at least I think so. I know there is a lot more to learn and I’m sure the look of my images will change and evolve over time. But I realize that there is a middle ground between the old-fashioned no post-processing stance and the throw every crazy effect in the book point of view. I enjoy vibrant color but I also don’t want some trendy over-processed, over-hyped image. I realize the line between tasteful and gaudy is not always clear and its interpretation varies with the individual. I know at times, my image may step over that fuzzy line, though sometimes it is on purpose. I am gratified that even Kirk acknowledged that my HDRs weren’t too crazy. The photograph at the top is something that I recently posted on mostlyfotos. It is an example of my most recent post-processing style. Colorful but not crazy. I took a single RAW photograph with my Olympus E-PL1 with no HDR processing. For comparison, the image below is what the untouched original looks like. Life is too short to have dull, unprocessed images.
Make sure to click on a photograph to see a larger image. Hover over the photo to see the exposure details.
Here is a sample of my work. I’ve posted them on my one-photo-per-day photo blog, mostlyfotos. There are a lot of images so click the << Previous Photo link to see more. You can also hover over the photos to see the exposure information.
Heritage Boot, South Congress – Austin, Texas (Unprocessed)
A trip to the supermarket can be exotic
Catfish packed like sardines, Chinatown Center – Austin, Texas
Do you know that Austin, Texas has a Chinatown? Well not exactly. It is a strip mall called Chinatown Center which does contain my Asian stores and restaurants. I headed up there yesterday to see the Chinese New Year celebrations and take some photographs of dancing dragons and such. Except I messed up. It turned out they were going to have the festivities next Sunday. At least I didn’t miss it. The Asian American Cultural Center in Austin was having a New Year’s event on Saturday so I just assumed that the shopping mall was having theirs the next day. Anyway, I decided that since I’m already here, maybe I can find something interesting to photograph.
I brought my big gun out to the event, my Canon 7D with my 70-200mm f4 and even my external flash, just in case it got sunny (a flash is really useful on sunny days, to even out the shadows). Luckily, I also brought my less conspicuous Olympus E-PL1 with my favorite 20mm f1.7 lens. If I’m walking into a supermarket, I was certainly not going to open fire with my Canon 7D. The Canon may be a bit less noticeable that a real gun but it was sure to attract attention just the same. WIth the small Olympus over my shoulder, I decided to go hunting for some dragons. This year is the Year of the Dragon on the Chinese zodiac, a particularly auspicious year I’m told. I wanted a nice dragon photo to put on mostlyfotos, my one photo a day, photo blog.
Stone Dragon, Chinatown Center – Austin, Texas
In the prominent middle building of the Chinatown Center, there is a large Asian supermarket. A sure sign that the Asian population in Austin is growing. There were also a healthy number of non-Asian customers, a cross cultural mix that is one of my favorite things about this country. I didn’t have to go far to find my dragon. Flanking the entrance were two large stone dragons. These imposing carvings would look good at a temple but with the shopping carts in the background, I found it changeling to get a nice composition. I decided a closeup was best to eliminate the background as much as possible. Once inside, I was greeted by a large, red, multi-language banner in English, Vietnamese and Chinese. I wished I had a wide-angle lens with me, the 40mm view didn’t allow for the best composition. I stepped back as far as I could but the image below is about the best that I can do. The rare times when a simple kit zoom would have worked a lot better.
Chinese New Year Banner, Chinatown Center – Austin, Texas
I found more dragons inside. Trinkets found in the gift area. There were comical hanging dragons, colorful dragon statues and even intensely golden dragons. Nothing too exciting photographically but it will give me something to post on mostlyfotos. The image at the top of this page is my favorite. Something a bit different from the norm. These catfish were alive, swimming in a packed tank, ready to be purchased and become someone’s meal. Turns out the most interesting photos I took during this outing were of dragons and fish. I didn’t feel comfortable taking candid people photos inside a private business, unlike an open air public market. The camera I had didn’t attract too much attention but I didn’t want to blatantly go around snapping tons of photographs, most stores tend to frown up this kind of thing. The point I wanted to make is that potentially interesting photos can be captured in all kinds of places, even in a supermarket. Photograph the world from your neighborhood. In the United States, there are enough ethnic festivals and stores to capture a slice of American life that a bit unexpected. Whether it be a Dia de Los Muertos Parade in downtown or a Asian supermarket, there are opportunities abound to see different things.
On the way home, I stopped at a Vietnamese sandwich shop. Did you know the Vietnamese make great French baguettes? Yup, Vietnam was once a French colony and there was certainly a culinary influence. They also make a ham and pork sandwich on a baguette with fresh vegetables that the Vietnamese usually put on their noodle soups. A tasty end to a mix-up that turned into a short Asian tour. Maybe next Sunday, I’ll get to the New Year celebration, which is a bit late since, today January 23rd is the official Lunar New Year.
Happy Chinese New Year!
May the year of the Dragon bring you success in photography and in life.
Lots of dragons and fishes all shot with the Olympus E-PL1 and 20mm f1.7 lens. Please make sure to click on a photograph to see a larger image and hover over the photo to see the exposure details.
Hanging Dragon
Dragon Statue
Golden Dragon
Stone Fishes
My New Two Camera Olympus Pen Setup
My two camera setup, Olympus E-PL1 with 45mm and 20mm – Austin, Texas
Introducing my new two camera Olympus Pen setup. For a couple of years, I’ve been looking for a smaller camera alternative to my current DSLR, the Canon 7D. I’ve used a couple of different cameras and did a bunch of research to come up with this setup. At first I used the Sony TX5. While I originally bought if for a beach trip, this tiny waterproof point and shoot has great image quality and a take anywhere size. And, while the image quality is very good for a small point and shoot, I ultimately wanted something better. Then, I got into the Sony NEX-5. After much research, this was the first mirrorless, EVIL (Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lens) camera I purchased. I’ve used it extensively and blogged a lot about the camera over the year. If you read my detailed review of the Sony, you know that I’ve had great success with the camera but there were a couple of things that weren’t ideal for me. I continue to use the camera but almost on a lark, this past summer, I found an inexpensive Olympus E-PL1 kit that change my equipment direction which culminated in this new setup.
I admit that I tend to analyze stuff, a lot. It’s in my nature and I have to admit that I enjoy the process. I don’t intensively concentrate on finding the solution per say. Rather, I think about the problem and I keep it in the back of my head. As I come up with a thought, read something on the web or hear something from a friend, I stuff those little nuggets of information somewhere in my brain. Eventually, those nuggets start combining and attach themselves to the problem. It’s almost like white blood cells swarming together to fight a foreign invader — I start getting possible solutions or directions to solve the issue. The problem that’s got me analyzing all this data is “What do I use when I wanted to take highest quality images but with the smallest possible camera?’” DSLRs are excellent general purpose devices that do almost everything well in photography but what If I were to narrow down my requirements so I could “make do” with a device that is more targeted. My desired smaller camera will not have to do action or sports. I did not need extreme telephoto zooms. It didn’t have to be built like a tank or be weather sealed, but the camera didn’t need to be tiny either — it didn’t need to be pocketable. I was perfectly willing to carry this camera in a small bag. I just didn’t want the bulk of the DSLR at times. I’ve been thinking about this issue for a while now. Along the way, I’ve read some great stuff on the web that has influenced my direction. First up is that whole, your camera doesn’t matter it’s the photographer mantra that is so popular on the web. Many have spoken and written about this and within certain parameters, I certainly agree. When I see spectacular images like this from Wilson Tsoi, taken with a low-end Canon PowerShot A80, I feel invigorated to take the small camera challenge myself. Then there is this excellent writeup by professional Danish photographer Thorsten Overgaard. He is a Leica shooter but loves his old, lower end Leica Digilux 2 which was introduced in 2004. I just love his understated images and they are also a source of inspiration for me. Over the years, I have a better understanding of what I like to photograph. I have gravitated towards street photography, candid images of people and city life. I’m taking up the challenge of finding interesting observations in mundane places and documenting them. Sure, its fun to go to some spectacular place to take beautiful scenery but can I make interesting images in the everyday places that I’ve been to many times. I like shooting a lot in lower light conditions, either indoors or in the evening or night. And finally, I’ve really like the quality and simplicity that prime, non zooming, lenses give me. These external inspirations as well as my internal interests have molded together to form the input to the new camera system that I’m looking for.
So how did I end up with this two camera Olympus system when there are so many excellent cameras out there? I talked about the two Sony cameras I’ve personally used. There are great new cameras by Nikon, Panasonic, Fujifilm as well as the famous Leica. I admit that I’m a fairly frugal person. Above all else, price performance is an important consideration. Sure, I appreciate Leica’s legendary image quality and incredible fit and finish but I really can’t justify the $10,000 and up price tag. The $1,200 Fujifilm X100 is an enticing camera and I’ll have to confess that I’ve spent many a night researching and dreaming about the camera. It’s on the upper end of what I was willing to spend but it has some spectacular capabilities . I’ve played with a friend’s X100 and thought about it a lot. I had my inexpensive Olympus E-PL1 with a kit lens at the time but I was willing to switch to the X100 if it made sense. Ultimately, I decided to get the Panasonic Lumix 20mm f1.7 lens for my Olympus instead. This lens gives the Olympus a similar angle of view as the Fuji X100, 40mm vs 35mm. And while the Fujifilm has a larger and better low light sensor, I came to the conclusion that the built-in image stabilization of the Olympus generally compensates for the Olympus 4/3 sensor for my type of photography. Based on my friend’s feedback, the Lumix 20mm f1.7 appears to be sharper wide open (at the f1.7 aperture) than the Fujifilm’s f2.0 lens wide open. Indeed, I usually shoot with this lens at f1.7 and at ISO 800 with image stabilization and I can make photographs in most places that I care to. I also believe that focusing with the Olympus is superior to the Fujifiim, especially in low light. The X100 has some strengths over the EPL-1 though, in particularly I love how the Fuji balances flash exposure with ambient light — this is definitely one of the E-PL1′s weaker areas. Panasonic makes some great cameras also in the micro 4/3 format. They seem to be superior for video but I prefer the Olympus color and exposure and the Panasonic cameras lack that all important in-body image stabilization. I can’t overstate how important image stabilization (IS) is for the type of shooting that I do. Sure, IS does not freeze action, but it allows me to get higher quality images for static scenes, so much so that I often get superior results with my small Olympus compared to my big Canon 7D. There are other things I like about the camera and I talk about the good and the bad in my detailed Olympus E-PL1 review. Finally, there is the new Nikon 1 system. There is a lot to like about the new camera but right now there are two things holding me back. First, they don’t have any large aperture prime lenses, I’m sure that this will be remedied in the near future. The camera lacks in body IS which probably means that their future prime lens will also lack IS. This is a concern but we will see what the future brings.
I recently add the Olympus 45mm f1.8 lens to my kit. My initial test confirms that this is a spectacular lens and it gives me the capability to make images that are different from the 20mm f1.7. It creates a shallower depth of field and would also make an excellent portrait lens. I’ve shot quite a bit with just the 20mm and at times, I wish that I have more reach. There is only so much you can do when you zoom with your feet. The 45mm, which is equivalent to 90mm in 35mm terms, gives me that extra reach when it is needed. For a brief time, I actually considered getting the Fujifilm X10, which is the less expensive baby brother to the X100. It has a 28mm – 112mm equivalent fast f2.0 – f2.8 zoom. At $600 it more expensive than the $400 45mm Olympus lens but it would give me more flexibility. In the end I opted to go with the higher quality with the 45mm lens which will give me the range I want but in a somewhat less convenient package. Then, I noticed a deal at Cameta Camera that I found too to good to pass up. Cameta is where I originally purchased my E-PL1 kit and they had a spectacular deal. They had a factory refurbished body only E-PL1 for $179. They go in and out of stock on the refurbed units but the deal is still there as of this writing. You can check out their refurbished Olympus deals here. I figured If I get the second Olympus body, I can have the 45mm lens mounted full time on the new body and have the 20mm on my other. Ever see those photo journalists or wedding photographers that have two DSLRs with them, strapped to their body? They usually have a wide angle zoom on one body and a telephoto zoom on the other. Well, I guess my new two Olympus camera set up is the poor man’s version of this. I’ve taken this two camera setup several times now on my photo walks and its been working great. I get to use two identical bodies so the controls are exactly the same. I also get to quickly switch between a normal 40mm view and the 90mm telephoto view. On a recent conversation with Kirk Tuck, local professional photographer and blogger, he mentioned that the old Leica CL system shipped with two lenses, a 40mm and 90mm. Intrigued, I did some research. It turns out that back in 1973, Leica worked with Minolta to come out with the Leica CL. Here is some background on it, if you are interested. So my two lens setup with a 40mm and 90mm wasn’t a complete fluke. I guess it does make for a decent setup.
So is this the perfect system and am I completely covered? Well no but this setup should cover much of my daily needs. It would be nice to add a wide-angle to the package, like a 24mm. Olympus did recently release a really nice 12mm which is 24mm when you consider the crop factor. It’s a bit pricy at $800 so I won’t be getting it anytime soon. I have the Sony NEX-5 with the 16mm lens which is equivalent to 24mm on that system. So, when I want to shoot wide, I’ll use the NEX-5 in conjunction with the E-PL1. The major weakness I see in the current Olympus E-PL1 is the video. It’s only adequate but not especially great. Video is not a major component of my photography and I’m still looking for the elusive do all video and still image camera. The camera market is rapidly changing right now and until something remarkable comes out, I’m set with the current Olympus system. There are no more equipment excuses. I just need to go out there and continue to practice my photography.
Here is a sample of my work using the Olympus E-PL1. I’ve posted them on my one-photo-per-day photo blog, mostlyfotos. There are a lot of images so click the << Previous Photo link to see more. You can also hover over the photos to see the exposure information.
Coffee with Kirk and Frank, Life’s Good.
Cafe Life, Caffe Medici – Austin, Texas
I had a delightful time at the Caffe Medici last Sunday and I’m not even a coffee drinker. Of course, for me, it’s about the people I’m with and not necessarily about the drink, though serious coffee drinkers may disagree. What makes this special is it was all unplanned. It all came about because I decided to change my usual pattern and do something different. As I mentioned in my previous post, I was dropping my parents at the airport and decided to take a photo detour through downtown.
After I captured some contrasting flora, I headed south toward the train tracks. I’m constantly amazed by the pace of change and the new development in downtown Austin. It’s a trend that I like. Now, parts of downtown actually resembles a real city with the critical mass of buildings, people and businesses to make it a living entity. The train situation is decidedly backwards and depressing. Tucked away at the end of the downtown core is a pathetic, small AMTRAK station. Quite understandable since we probably get one or so trains passing through the city per day. Maybe because I’ve grew up in the East Coast and have visited the great train cities in Europe and Japan, but it just saddens me that such a great and growing city like Austin has such a diminished rail presence. Yes, cars now rule the country and Austin is no exception. Stepping over the rails and shooting the newly rising downtown condos, I hear a familiar voice. Well, if it isn’t my friend Kirk Tuck, commercial photographer and blogger from the very popular Visual Science Lab. He was riding his very cool and sleek Bodhi Electric bike and was on his way to his own photo excursion. He was generous enough to let me tag along and we headed east towards the center of town.
We were busy making our compositions when Kirk remarks, “Is that Frank?”. “You mean, our Frank?”, I responded. Yes, it was Frank, another one of our photo friends. He too was walking along with this camera, practicing his craft. So now, 3 strong, we continue east towards a 2 block area that almost resembled New York City in activity. There were tons of pedestrians, people at outdoor cafes and even a loud siren from a passing fire truck. Of course, what was cooler than the Big Apple was the fact that people could eat outside and stroll around in long sleeve T-shirts in the middle of January. Yes, we suffer through the summers here in Austin, but in winter, we get to enjoy these outdoor café sitting days. Frank had his new Olympus E-P3, while I carried my trusty E-PL1. Ironically, Kirk had his Nikon V1. Ironic because, Kirk, through his blog, had influenced me to get in the Olympus Pen gear and he most likely influenced Frank too. Maybe Frank and I are just a step behind Master Kirk. Maybe in a year or so we too will be sporting the small Nikons. Of course, by then Kirk will be at the forefront of the next big camera trend.
Window Logo, Caffe Medici – Austin, Texas
I knew where we were headed since Kirk and Frank are big coffee drinkers. The Caffe Medici at the base of Austin’s swankiest Condo, the Austonian. And though I didn’t drink the stuff, I knew the company will be interesting and the conversation would be good. Of course we talk about photography, the industry, hardware trends, the photography business as well as about blogging. We shift into other topics, take pictures of the interesting people that surround us and then drift back into conversation. Photography has been a source of creativity and challenge but equally important has been the friends I’ve made along the way. Meeting people face to face during photo walks and the eating and drinking that follows has truly improved my well-being. I’ve greatly expand my circle of friends. I read once that men, unlike women, tend not to have enough friends and social interactions, especially as they grow older. Pre-photography, that was probably true for me too.
Beyond enjoying the photographic craft and making new friends, the quest to make images have gotten me out of my old suburban patterns. You know the one where you get into the hermetically sealed car, open the garage door and drive the suburban loop roads to the industrial park. Very little interaction with real people. Now, I make frequent trips to downtown Austin, where on foot, I get to experience the real life. It is not always pretty or controlled like the suburbs but there is an authenticity that the new simulated pseudo-cities called life-style malls lack. You know these new malls, the ones that are outdoor and have fake town squares in them to give you the impression that they are real urban places. Now I walk the streets of downtown Austin, observing, capturing images and if lucky run into friends and strike-up conversations in cafes — even if I don’t drink the coffee.
Here is Kirk’s post about our chance downtown encounter.
Also, here are a few more images that I shot between our conversation at the Cafe. I used both the 20mm f1.7 lens and the 45mm f1.8 lenses on the Olympus E-PL1. Please make sure to click on a photograph to see a larger image and hover over the photo to see the exposure details.
Drinkable Art, Caffe Medici
Preparation, Caffe Medici
Bethel #1, Caffe Medici
Bethel # 2, Caffe Medici
New Year’s Photo Resolutions
New Year’s Baby – Austin, Texas
As a the calendar flips over again to start a new year, I started thinking of what 2012 my bring for my photography and blogging. I’m generally not much into New Year’s resolutions. I figure, why wait for the beginning of the year to start a new habit? If something is worth changing, doesn’t it make sense to change it immediately? I won’t bore you with non-photographic stuff. I did want to discuss observations and changes that have occurred in my photographic realm and my guess at the future direction of these trends.
I talked about some of this in a post called Canon losing the buzz, why I’m not interested but I’ve noticed this year that my interest in using my big Canon SLR has been decreasing. The initial trend started more than a year ago when I got my first mirrorless EVIL camera, the Sony NEX-5. I would carry by NEX-5 and the Canon 7D along on photo walks. I discovered, however, that the small Sony camera gave me a freedom of composition and expression that I didn’t have with the larger camera. Mid-year this year. I purchased the Olympus E-PL1, initially to play with and to get a color and exposure that I wasn’t getting on my Sony. It turned out that the slightly clunky E-PL1 especially with the Lumix 20mm f1.7 lens have become my go to camera for casual shooting. When I want a camera to make snaps of may family, the Olympus is in tow. When I want slightly more “serious” images from my photowalks, I still press the Olympus into service. The 40mm equivalent format is really easy to shoot but it also challenges me to see and make interesting compositions. I no longer, just relay upon super-wide images with HDR enhancements to make interesting shots. I’m hoping to create worthwhile images even with a lens that has a normal view and with a single exposure. I’m not sure if I’m succeeding or not but I’m starting to see changes in my newer images. I also feel more freedom when I’m no longer tendered to a larger camera and a tripod. I can move around easily, unencumbered and really explore alternate compositions. For 2012, I’m going to continue with this style. Less weight, more flexibility and a simpler way of shooting.
I also learned that skills and ability drop quickly. The downside of all this shooting with my small cameras is my loss of familiarity with my Canon DSLR. When I used the 7D all the time, I knew the controls and could make adjustments quickly. Now, when I pickup the camera, I’m sluggish and I need to search through my brain to set the controls. Recently, during my son’s school performance and at the Christmas gift opening, I broke out the good old 7D. I immediately noticed that my handling skills have dropped off and it took me a bit of fiddling to get the shots that I used to get with ease. Bounce flashes off the ceiling weren’t exposed right. I eventually got dialed back in but my hard learned skills were fading quicker than I imagined. While I’m planning to use the smaller cameras more than ever, I must remember to use my Canon and keep my skills refreshed. That, unfortunately, is the downside of having several different cameras — different interfaces. I need to rotate though my cameras to keep their usage parameters fresh in my head.
I’m still looking for the elusive camera/video multi-function camera, maybe 2012 will be the year. When I bought my NEX-5 back in 2010, I thought this might be the camera that combines high quality still images with an easily usable, auto-focusing video camera. As I wrote in The Sony NEX-5 Review and the new NEX-5n there were a few limitations with the NEX-5 that ultimately disappointed. The NEX-5n has addressed much of my frustrations but I’ve decided to wait. There are rumors of a new Fujifilm EVIL camera coming out, there is always a chance that Canon might finally address this high quality mirrorless market. This market is rapidly changing and I’m excited to see what is in store for this coming year. What will the successor to the NEX-5n be like? Will a Olympus E-P4 come out with a better low light sensor and better video? Will Nikon release large aperture primes (at least f2.0 or better) for their Nikon 1 line? Of course, If I do end up getting yet another camera, I exacerbate the issue I talked about in the previous paragraph. I add yet another interface to the array of interfaces that I need to remember.
Shifting gears to social media, I’ve noticed that in 2011, keeping up with my photo friends have increasing been difficult. It used to be simple for me. Everyone I knew was on Flickr. Now people have scattered to the different social medial islands that compete for our attention. Google+ is the new shiny site that has pulled many photographers away from Flickr and Twitter. There is also that large Facebook world and lone island that is personal blogs. I have two blogs, this one which has longer form posts and mostlyfotos which is my daily photoblog. I’ve developed these sites over the last year and a half and put significant effort in to them. And while I like how they are shaping up, concentrating too much on my site isolates me from my online friends. This year, I need to return to my roots, somewhat. I need to post more on Flickr again. When I return there, it feel like I’m back in the neighborhood in which I was born. Some of my old friends are still around and posting just as much. Some of the gang have left for greener pastures and are no longer around. I probably can’t spend as much time as I originally did a couple of years ago but I need to show up more often on Flickr. I’m still unsure of the Google+ world. While I have posted some to G+, I really have not spent the time to make too many new friends. I’ve bumped into people I know from Flickr, which is aways a pleasant surprise. It feels like running into an elementary school friend in the large out-of-state University. Social media seem to be changing quicker than cameras so I know I won’t have this figured out in 2012. I will just have to make adjustments that seem to make sense.
Finally, I’ve learned that writing is a skill like photography. I don’t know if my writing has improved any over the last couple of years but I find that I can craft together posts quicker than before. I also found that I have no shortage of topics and ideas that I can write about. Maybe, if I keep at this, my writing skill will continue to improve and I’ll be able to crank out these posts. Of course, blog post creation time has to complete with photography, photo processing and organizing not to mention all the rest of my life activities, so it is always an uphill battle to find time. I hope 2012 will bring more interesting and useful posts to anyone that my stumble upon my blog and my photography. I hope you all have a great 2012.
Happy New Year
Canon losing the buzz, why I’m not interested
Back last month, our local full service camera store, Precision Camera had their 3rd annual Camera Expo. As I explored the vendor booths, tempted by the latest photo gear, I discovered something interesting about my recent camera tastes. I was spending the bulk of the time at two booths, Olympus and Fujifilm. Conveniently, there were located right next to each other. I also did a couple of stops at Nikon and spent some time at Panasonic and Sony. However, one place I didn’t spend any time at all was at the Canon booth. In the past, Canon would have been the first place that I visited. Not this time. What changed? Well, they just didn’t have any compelling things for me to look at and drool over. Maybe I already have most of the Canon lenses I need. Maybe it is because they haven’t introduced any significant still camera products. Or maybe they just seem to be behind the times and do not offer anything in the mirrorless system camera market. All Canon seems to be doing these days is to push their video, of which I have very little interest.
Amber from Olympus shot with 45mm f1.8
My immediate decision point was, do I get a new Olympus lens or get yet another camera, this time from Fujifilm? I’ve been eyeing a really neat $400 lens from Olympus, the 45mm f1.8 that works on my E-PL1. I extensively use my 20mm lens on this camera and the 45mm would make another neat low light lens. It would have a shallower depth of field and it should also be fantastic for portraits. On the other hand, having a high quality point and shoot with a large aperture zoom will really come in handy at times. The new Fujifilm X10 is such a camera. It has a 28mm to 112mm zoom that ranges from f2.0 to f2.8. The camera runs more than the lens at $600 but it could be really handy at times, especially on trips. As much as I love the Olympus E-PL1 and 20mm lens combo, there are times that I can’t zoom with my feet. Having that zoom with a bright lens in a small body would be enticing indeed. There are pros and cons with either decision and I went back and forth testing the lens and the camera to decide where to spend my cash. I guess I was having fun doing the empirical analysis and the weighing it against my gut, emotional feel. I finally made my decision after 2 days of much thought. I’ll talk about that in a future post.
I also visited the Nikon both to check out their new Nikon 1 line of mirrorless cameras. I posted Nikon Creates a Tablet (Nikon 1) but is it an iPad? 2 months ago and I wanted to play with the new camera to see how I like it. I’ve seen the camera in stores but I was able to use different lens combinations at the Camera Expo. Early verdict. The body seems bigger than I expected given the size of the sensor. The longer 30-110mm zoom lens was a lot more compact than I expected. I really love the way this camera shoots video. There are interface features that seem confusing for both novices and experience users. I would be much more excited if Nikon releases some large aperture prime lenses, which they are rumored to do. At that point, I would look at the system more carefully. The current crop of lenses really don’t interest me right now. From a pure, sense of desire point of view, I found the Fujifilm X-10 to be more interesting at this point that than the Nikon 1 series. Time will tell since the Nikon 1 will continue to get better as they build out their system.
I strolled over to the Panasonic both to see some of their latest goodies but was disappointed. Not with their products but the lack of products they had on display. Do you have the new GX1? Nope. Do you have the new Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4? Nope. Well luckily, the Sony both was right next doors. I commented about how it was interesting that the two giant consumer electronics companies, Sony and Panasonic were placed right next to each other. Sony was better prepared. They had the new, spectacular NEX-7 and the premium Zeiss 24mm f1.8 available to use. And though I explain in my previous post, Why I’m not buying the Sony NEX-7 – Revisited, I do think the NEX-7 is a very drool worthy camera — it’s just not for me at this time. I also wanted to do some more testing with the NEX-5n but they only had the NEX-5. The 7′s build quality and interface is fantastic. It is certainly the premium mirrorless camera on the market. Image quality shot in a dull and dark show floor was well, dull and dark. The image lacked the pop of the Olympus or even the Fujifilm X10.
Finally, the title of this post says it all. Though I am a Canon user, currently with a 7D and a slew of lenses, I did a quick walk by the Canon booth. I complimented the Canon video guy on a great presentation and that was about it. I hope that Canon, the last hold out in the new mirrorless race, will come out with something fantastic. If Canon makes the bold move with such a new camera, a move that Nikon did not make, then they can still potentially dominate the next big trend. Sure I would buy new lenses for such a camera system but I also have a bunch of EF lenses that I would love to use. Let’s see what 2012 will bring.
Why I’m not buying the Sony NEX-7 – Revisited
Sony NEX-7 (courtesy of the Sony website)
A little over a month ago I wrote a blog post Why I’m not buying the Sony NEX-7 where I discussed my personal reasons for not being excited about Sony’s high end EVIL Camera. Since then there have been some new reviews and I got to hold and use the camera for a short period. Therefore, I wanted to revisit some of my assumptions that I wrote down in my original post.
Precision Camera, the local Austin full service camera store, recently had a camera expo where I had a chance to play with the Sony NEX-7. As I expected and other people have mentioned, the NEX-7 is a beautifully crafted camera. Incredibly solid and oozes quality. I’ve always been a fan of the NEX-5 design and its fit and finish. Its bigger brother, the NEX-7 ups the game considerably. The camera is a bit larger and heavier than the NEX-5 but not to the detriment of making it too large. It is still about the size of the relatively compact Fujifilm X100, for example. The larger size gives it more real estate for better controls and the added weight adds to the feeling of quality. Also, because of its larger body, the NEX-7 seems a bit more in proportion with the lenses. The NEX-5 looks very lens heavy and its design seems more unconventional, though I like it personally. The NEX-7 still retains the modern and unique styling but seems more balanced. While some companies such as Fujifilm and Olympus are designing cameras that appeal to a retro aesthetic, Sony is boldly designing a camera for the 21st century. I applaud Sony for not trying to evoke a nostalgia for times past. We are 40 years past the range finder era with new technologies and functions, why put on a façade of nostalgia for a different kind of device? I’ve only used the camera for 10 – 15 minutes however, the tri-navi interface seems very usable and flexible. I believe there are enough physical controls and interface flexibility to address most of my NEX-5 interface concerns.
In terms of image quality, specifically noise levels, a new review at Luminous Landscape has some interesting details. Michael Reichmann has posted a series of rolling reviews on the NEX-7 which is well worth a read. Regarding high ISO noise, the review does confirm at the pixel level, the NEX-7 is indeed nosier than the NEX-5n. No surprises here, it is consistent with other results. However, the NEX-7 is a higher resolution camera than the 5n. If you scale the NEX-7′s image size down to the NEX-5n’s size, the noise levels seem about the same. So in real world terms, if you make prints at a certain size, both the NEX-7 and NEX-5n should show about the same level of noise. This should also work for on-screen viewing, as long as you don’t view the images at 100% magnification. Encouraging and positive results especially for people creating high resolutions prints. If you shoot at low ISO’s the increased resolution of the 7 should give you more detail over the 5, assuming the optics are able to resolve additional details.
Speaking of lenses, Michel Reichmann also has a review of the Zeiss 24mm f1.8 lens that has been designed specifically for the NEX line. This lens will work best on the NEX-7 with its high-resolution sensor but it will should also work on all NEX cameras including the NEX-3, NEX-5 and NEX-5n. In his review, He compares this Zeiss lens against a $6,500 Leica 24mm f1.4 Summilux. The Zeiss lens does quite well and appears to almost match in sharpness, an impressive feat considering the Zeiss costs $1,000. There are other image quality factors that need to be considered and Michael talks about them in the review. Therefore, while $1,000 is still an expensive lens it does seem to perform well in the Luminous Landscape tests.
So do the new reviews and my personal handling of the NEX-7 change my opinion? Am I more exited about buying the Sony NEX-7? Well, maybe ever so slightly but ultimately no, not yet anyway. I like Sony products and I’m encouraged by what Sony is doing with its cameras. With the NEX-7, they are certainly creating a premium compact camera and it should appeal to the hobbyist what wants the “best” or the fanciest. However, for me, I have always considered price performance as the most important factor. Sure, I like expensive, premium products but only if there is a corresponding performance increase or something else, maybe less tangible, that makes me “lust” after a product for purely emotional reasons. The NEX-7 while being a beautiful camera just does not appeal to me on a performance or emotional level. Why is this? Well first, for all its resolution and features, I’m not very excited by the images it creates. This is true of the photos I shot as well as the images I see on the web. This camera, like the NEX-5 exposes on the darker side. The colors, while hopefully better than the NEX-5, still appear dull. There doesn’t seem to be that liveliness that I see in the Olympus images, for example. Second, while beautifully constructed, the camera is very expensive. Maybe, if I didn’t already own 3 cameras I’ll be more willing to shell out the bucks, but at this point, such an expensive camera must be able to do something tangibly better than what my other cameras are already doing. The NEX-7 may do some things better, but at this point I can’t think of what this might be. Third, the $1,000 Zeiss lens does appear to be very nice but it lacks image stabilization. For the type of things I like to shoot, at low light, this is a deal killer.
Ironically, while Michael Reichmann’s review of the Sony NEX-7 is very positive and he clearly likes it, he made this comment about the Zeiss lens at the end of the lens review.
Having said that, I currently do most of my shooting on the NEX-5n and NEX-7 with Sony’s other lenses, because of their light weight, autofocus and stabilization. For me convenience often trumps absolute image quality.
I agree wholeheartedly. I already have my Zeiss 24mm f1.8 lens it’s called the Lumix 20mm f1.7 lens that works on my Olympus E-PL1. This Olympus and Lumix combo can be had for about $550. Yes, there are certainly big differences. This Lumix is a fantastic lens but I’m not sure how it stack up against the Zeiss. Any of the NEX cameras are faster and have higher resolution than the old Olympus E-PL1. But here is the thing. I personally like the Olympus color and exposure better than my NEX-5. High ISO quality is definitely not as good but the Lumix 20mm with image stabilization more than compensates for the high ISO deficiency for the type of shooting that I do. As street cameras, both setups have a similar angle of view. When considering crop factors, the Sony with the 24mm is equivalent to 34.5mm and the Olympus with the 20mm lens is equivalent to 40mm. The key thing is, for my type of photography, the Olympus combo works well. Your photography requirements might be entirely different. Having image stabilization, for example, will do nothing if you need to capture fast action. So for now, I will save the $2,000+ and continue to use my Olympus as my carry around street camera and my Canon 7D for fast action and wide-angle landscapes. And, once in a while, especially when I want to do video, I will still use my Sony NEX-5, but without the expensive Zeiss lens.
Why I’m not buying the Sony NEX-7
Sony NEX-7 (courtesy of the Sony website)
Read my latest option about this camera after the latest reviews and getting to personally play with the camera.
The Sony NEX-7 is the current hot camera in a string of must have cameras. Last year it was the Fujifilm X100. Each year the camera manufactures ramp up the specs and features to entice the consumers to open up their wallet and upgrade to the latest shiny object. That is understandable, I guess it is their job to create desirable products to increase sales. However, as customers, we need to think about if what is being offered really is a benefit to us. While it seems like many people are excited about the Sony, it just does not seem to interest me.
At first blush, it seems curious that I’m not more excited about the new NEX-7. After all, I’m already a Sony NEX customer. I purchased my NEX-5 last year. And while the NEX-5 is a fine camera, there are definitely things that I would like to be improved, as I wrote in my review. The NEX-7 is targeted for the serious hobbyist and it seems to address many of my gripes with the NEX-5. I seem like the perfect demographic. So why aren’t I interested?
First, I admit it is a bit unfair to judge a product before I personally used it for a while. And it is true, I have not used or even seen this new Sony. However, the reviews and photographic samples are starting to trickle in and something just does not seem right. The biggest issue I have is with the 24MP sensor. I had some major concerns when this camera was first announced and the early reviews seem to confirm my fears. Sony did not have a breakthrough in sensor technology or change the laws of physics. The sensor is indeed a lot noisier at higher ISOs, much more than the lower cost NEX-5n. For me, high ISO performance or low light performance is very important. If you see my work, I often take photographs indoors or in the evening or at night. Having great low light performance is very important to me. Clearly the NEX-7 is a disappointment in this area.
But there are other problems with 24MP sensor. What is the use of having such a high-resolution sensor when Sony’s current crop of Sony E-mount lenses are not sharp enough even at 14MP. From what I’ve been told, you need some spectacular lenses to resolve images well enough to take advantage of such a high-resolution sensor. It is interesting that the new EOS-1D X, Canon’s new flagship camera that was just announced, which has a full size 35mm sensor, tops out at 18.1MP. Even Canon has realized that just upping the megapixels does not improve image quality and in many ways decreases image quality. When you have large 24MP RAW files, you also have larger files that suck up more memory card space, uses more hard drive space and requires faster computers to process all those extra megapixels. I have a Canon 7D which is also a 18MP camera. My RAW files are 24 megabytes each. This seriously sucks up a lot of space and computing power. I wonder how big the RAW files are from the 24MP NEX-7?
The newly announced Zeiss 24mm f1.8, which lists for $999.99, may make a formidable pair with the NEX-7 but keep in mind this combination is going to set you back over $2000. Steve Huff, in his Sony NEX-7 review said “The Zeiss 24 1.8 QUICKLY became my favorite lens on the NEX-7. While it is not clinicaly sharp, it has character… and to me, that is way more important that hyper sharpness. … The Zeiss Sonnar has a “smooth” character.” I don’t know about you but for $1000, that lens should be clinically sharp AND smooth. I want my photographs to have character, but I’ll determine the character image and not have the lens do it for me. We are not talking about lens babies here. This Zeiss is the flagship lens for the flagship NEX product. It better be sharp enough to resolve gloriously sharp images with that 24MP sensor.
Another option for me will be to use some of my Canon lenses, with an adapter, on the NEX-7. I like to shoot urban landscapes and architecture. If I can have a smaller body and use my super-wide Sigma 10-20mm lens, that could be very beneficial for me. For my landscapes, I usually shoot them on tripod at ISO 100. The high-resolution 24MP sensor could be useful here. The thing is, I often use HDR techniques to enhance my landscapes and unfortunately the Sony’s exposure bracketing only goes up to 0.7ev. I need at least +/- 2.0ev range at 3 exposures to do a proper HDR. I can manually change these settings but this is less desirable since manual fiddling with the controls increases the possibility of camera movement between the exposures. If Sony changes the exposure bracketing to at least a 2ev range, the NEX-7 certainly will become more interesting.
So what would I have liked instead? Give me the NEX-5n sensor with the NEX-7 body. The Tri-navi interface looks wonderful. Sony did a nice job rethinking the camera controls. Too bad the sensor had to be pumped up that much. I admit it. I’m cheap or frugal, if that sounds better. I don’t want to pay for stuff that I don’t use and it looks like there is an awfully large number of pixels on the NEX-7 that I won’t be using. Maybe next year Sony will come out with the NEX-5n plus or NEX-6 that has that nice interface with a lower resolution sensor. While you are at it give me a super clean high ISO sensor at 12MP similar to what is in the Fuji X100. Now that would be a NEX that I’ll really get excited about.
Photograph the world from your neighborhood
Tall Man and Small Dogs, Dia de los Muertos Parade – Austin, Texas
This is a continuation of Dia de los Muertos with the Olympus E-PL1, a post I made a few days ago. This time, rather than talking about equipment, I talk about why I photograph instead of how I photograph.
As I thought about the Dia de los Muertos event that I went to this past weekend, I thought about how neat it is to live in the United States and experience these things. There are certainly may wonderful advantages about living in America but the multicultural aspect is certainly on of them. To experience the food and festivals of the various cultures around the world without leaving the country. Sure, the events, parades and food we have in the US may not by 100% authentic and not all places in the US have a large multicultural population however, it is certainly more convenient traveling maybe few hundred miles and not hopping on a plane to visit another country. Even in Austin, which is a medium size city, we have hispanic cultural events, we have German towns with Oktoberfest, we have Chinese New Year celebrations. Each is an opportunity to photograph. Each is an opportunity to document a world that maybe different from the typical suburban US experience.
Please click on an image to see a larger version
I was listening to a web-based photography seminar this past weekend. The famous photographer talked about how he leads photo tours to Nepal, India, Mongolia, different countries in South America and other photo-enticing world-wide destinations. Exciting, I’m sure and very expensive. By going on these elaborate photo junkets, do you really think this will make you a better photographer? Is going on some expensive and fancy photography seminar on the other side of the planet going to magically transform your photographic eye, allow you to quickly compose and adjust exposures or change your creative vision? Maybe, but I doubt it. It might be fun and it can certainly be a trip of a life time but that’s not the same as practicing the craft of photography. I think constant practice is the key to photography as it is in many other things. Save your money and shoot more often in your own town. Take advantage of the US’s multicultural heritage — closer to home — and shoot more often. Now, I have nothing against traveling abroad. It’s a fantastic way to get to know more people and learn more about their culture. Daily pilgrimages to Little Italy, Chinatown or a Little Tokyo is no substitute for the real thing. But, in terms of photography, practicing often and nearby is going to yield better results.
Consider that if you get really good at capturing events closer to home, imagine how much better you will be if you do finally get to that exotic location. I’m not claiming my photographs are any great shakes but I’m out there often and I practice. And just maybe, If I go out there enough locally, I may even transcend the need to travel to the other side of the world, at least for street and lifestyle photography. Now landscapes, that’s a different story and another blog post.
Here are a bunch more photographs from this event.
Dia de los Muertos Parade – Austin, Texas
Everything is a Photo Opportunity
Hopdoddy Restaurant, Kitchen – Austin, Texas
Last Wednesday, after a downtown photowalk with my friend Mike, we had a late dinner at Hopdoddy. Joining a bunch of restaurants in the trendy SoCo area of Austin, Hopdoddy is an upscale burger bar that also serves beer, wine and mix drinks. Even on a week night at 8:30 the place was packed. I had my current camera of choice, the Olympus E-PL1 with the Lumix 20mm f1.7 lens, all warmed up after a night of photowalking. The camera and lens make a fantastic street photography combination that I’m really enjoying right now. As we sat down to enjoy are delicious burgers, Mike and I talked photography, cameras and the challenges of life. He was sporting his new Fujifilm X100 which I eyed with interest.
Everything is a photo opportunity. When you have a daily photoblog like mostlyfotos you need to take a lot of photographs, all the time, to have ready material to post. Of course, not all photos make the cut so I need to have extra just in case. But my ultimate goal is not necessarily to fill a blog with images but it is to use the chance to practice my passion and craft. I’m hoping that by shooting all the time, I get to fine tune my brain into seeing better. To find interesting things or try to capture a moment in time. It’s the opportunity to overcome shyness and ask strangers if I can take their photograph. I’m not sure I’m getting better at this but I hope I am. Maybe I’m just annoying the people around me or maybe sometimes, in some rare cases, I might come up with an image that makes me happy and brings some enjoyment to others.
Here are some images that I captured at the restaurant. They are not works of art and not all of them will make it into mostlyfotos, however, they do help support this little narrative. I’ll leave my outside photowalk images for another post or you will see them mix in to my stream of photos at a future date. It was a good night. The food was fantastic, it was wonderful to catchup with a good friend and I enjoyed training my brain to see. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a chance to record the mundane, daily life around you because it’s not only the special events that make a photo opportunity. Everything is a photo opportunity.
Katie at Hopdoddy
Katie Shows Off Her T-Shirt
Hopdoddy Restaurant, Tippin’ Suggestion
Hopdoddy Restaurant, Numbers
Hopdoddy Burger and Fries
Hopdoddy Restaurant, Dinning Room
Nikon Creates a Tablet (Nikon 1) but is it an iPad?
Nikon 1 Cameras (courtesy of the Nikon USA website)
As I ponder Nikon’s announcement of their Nikon 1 line of cameras, I realized that Nikon has created a tweener camera. A photographic device between the large DSLRs and the portable point and shoots. In many ways, it reminds me of the new tweener computing device, the tablet, that recently has become popular. The tablet is an in-between product between the personal computer, which includes desktops and notebooks, and the smart phones. So the big question is, will Nikon succeed with this completely new product line? Does the Nikon 1 have the feature set and ecosystem to become the iPad of the camera industry or will become just another tablet?
There is no question the Nikon 1 has some fantastic technology. The ability to take high-speed movies, fully focused photos at 10 frames per second and a convenient, compact size makes this a potent camera system. Nikon worked hard. They tried to re-imagine what a camera means and what it can do. The Nikon 1 fuses video with stills and blurred the line between the two. Nikon didn’t take the easy route and just slap a smaller sensor into a camera and yank out the mirror and throw the camera out there as another me-to mirrorless (EVIL,Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lens) camera. If they did, their success, to some extent, would have been assured. Nikon has a great reputation and a large fan base. A smaller than DLSR mirrorless camera capable of using legacy Nikkor lenses would have been the easy way to go. The real controversy with the Nikon 1 is the size of its sensor. It is quite small. The sensor is larger than a point and shoot’s but smaller than the micro 4/3 standard. Sensor size is important since its a key factor in determining the quality of the image, particularly when taking photos in darker areas. By using a smaller sensor, the Nikon 1 is at a disadvantage, at least that is what the serious amateurs and pros would say.
But the thing is, the Nikon 1 system is not designed for the professional photographers and serious amateurs. It is designed for the point and shoot crowed that may want to upgrade into something with better quality and more speed. It is also for people who do not want the size and complexity of a DSLR. I have seen plenty of parents at school that have nice expensive DSLRs and they shoot those things in the green auto everything mode. They really don’t know enough to take advantage of a DSLR and I suspect most of them do not have the interest of dedication to learn. A smart and small camera that does take the high speed photos with better quality is what these people need. And for them the Nikon 1 will be perfect. They can shoot stills and take video at school plays and soccer games. They can get higher quality snaps that would run circles around a point and shoot. If you look at the Nikon 1, even the interface is different. Gone are the typical P S A M modes (though accessible from the menu) and all those icons that represent a sport mode or a portrait mode. According to DPreview, The main dial only has four options that contains an auto mode, movie mode and some interesting functions such as a motion snapshot, that combines slow motion movies with stills, and a smart photo selector mode that shoot 20 images quickly and intelligently picks what it thinks are the 5 best frames. This is no ordinary camera. It appears that Nikon has tried to rethink the entire camera interface. To support some of unique smart modes, the camera must be capable of incredible speed, focusing accuracy and data throughput. A true camera for the digital and computer age, something that just is not possible with film. Until now, digital cameras pretty much functioned the same as film cameras except for the addition of a movie mode. The digital sensor replaced the film but the interface and function stayed the same, particularly with DSLRs. In the same way, Apple reinvented the computer interface first with the iPhone and then with the iPad, Nikon has reinvented the camera interface. It seems to me, Nikon’s objective is to do for the camera what Apple did with iPad.
I believe many of the serious camera people were hoping for Nikon to come with a mirrorless, EVIL camera with a sensor the size of the micro 4/3 standard, used by Olympus and Panasonic, or the APS-C size used by the Sony NEX. I have to admit that this is what I was hoping for myself. And while the Nikon 1 may indeed be revolutionary, the sensor size issue and the non-traditional interface is what the experienced photographers are grumbling about. Despite the tremendous effort and years of development Nikon must have spent developing the new system, its success is not assured. There is a concept in computing called the Alpha Nerd, who is the person that has a larger than normal pull in their domain. They are the early adopters and the key people needed for a technology to succeed. The camera industry also have their equivalent of the Alpha Nerd. These are the people who adopt and push the latest technology that interests them. They are the go to people when other, less knowledgeable people ask “What camera should I get?” I believe, getting the support and buy-in from these people are essential for a product to be successful both for computers, cameras and technology in general. They are the influencers of their respective communities. Is the Nikon fan base, the Alpha early adopters, excited about the Nikon 1? From what I read, not so much. They were looking for that large sensored mirrorless cameras that would seamlessly use the existing Nikkor lenses. Something that is small, powerful with great image quality. To be fair, the Nikon 1 has not been released to the public. Maybe as the product gets out there, used and reviewed the Nikon fan base will warm up to the new system. This, I believe, is essential for Nikon. When their friends and family ask what kind of camera should they get, the Nikon early adopter fans are the ones that need to recommend the Nikon 1. I suspect that Nikon, with advertising alone, will not be large enough to get the word out on the street about their wunder-camera. They need the vast army of Alpha camera nerds to be excited about this thing. It is going to be an uphill battle.
What if Nikon were able to create the Nikon 1 with a larger sensor? The buzz from camera and photographic community would have been off the charts. Nikon fans would have sung the praise of the all mighty Nikon and non-Nikon customers would have switched to this system in droves. In one stroke, Sony’s NEX system would be in trouble and the more established micro 4/3 supporters would have to think very hard. I think the Nikon 1 would have been the system to get. A clear and definite upgrade for the point and shoot crowed and a second body for the DSLR crowd. I know that personally, even though I own a Sony NEX-5 and a Olympus E-PL1, I would have jumped to his new Nikon system. There is no question that such a product will kill the low-end DSLR sales for Nikon. But it would also kill the low-end DSLR sales for Canon and every other DSLR vendor. A tidal wave of people would have moved to Nikon. I once heard someone say, it’s better to cannibalize your own product rather than having your product cannibalized by a competitor. When I look at the Nikon 1, I can’t help but think that someone at Nikon was worried about cannibalizing their DSLR line. They figured they can come up with a third line, that slots nicely between their CoolPix point and shoot line and their DSLR line. This, to me, is a big risk and Nikon may end up loosing. By not taking the chance to come up with a truly revolutionary product that can potentially take on the DSLR, they have lost a golden opportunity to redefine the camera industry. While the analogy between cameras and computers may not be perfect, I’m left wondering has Nikon created just a regular tablet instead of an iPad? Only time will tell.
A Year of Blogging, What I have learned
W Hotel Staircase – Austin, Texas
A year ago this month I started this blog. For me it was a bold expansion of my online presence. I started humbly on Flickr two years ago and even that modest step into the online world seemed big at the time. How times have changed for me. Not only do I have this blog but I have added a second pure photo blog called, mostlyfotos and along the way have added an alphabet soup of social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler and more recently Google+. So what have I learned? A bunch of things, I think.
I knew starting out that I’m not much of a writer, never have been at school. At work I’ve written tons of emails and some documentation but I don’t think that really counts as writing. I knew that writing will be a challenge but over the year I’ve discovered that with some effort I can, at times, write some coherent thoughts. At least my photography friends have been nice enough to say encouraging things about my blog posts. While I think my posts will not win any awards, hopefully I’ve been able to write clearly enough to get my thoughts across. I find writing to be way more difficult than creating the photographs that I talk about, including both the capture of the image as well as the post-processing. Maybe that means that I’m either not trying hard enough in my photography or I really need help writing. That said, I am finding it easier to get my ideas down on the computer. Like any skill, even one that has hardly been exercised, repeated blogging has made writing a bit easier.
Before I started the blog, I made a list of 15 – 20 possible topics that I could write about. I really wasn’t sure that I would have enough to say. I found out that finding topics for the blog have actually been quite easy and I find that there are a whole slew of things that I can talk about. The challenge is getting these topics and stories written down. Tons of great ideas, it’s the execution that is the hard part. I takes me a while to write and proofread the post. I’m absolutely terrible at grammar and I’m sure, despite my effort to find my mistakes, there are a bunch that sneak through. Kirk Tuck, an Austin photographer that I’ve talk about in the past, is a prolific blogger. Not only does he take great photographs but he writes wonderfully and quite regularly on this blog. Amazingly he says most of his most of his posts only take 15 minutes or so to write. Now, if I could only do that. I know my pace of blogging has slowed down lately. I know I need to devote more time to putting my thoughts down on “paper”. One of the reasons that I started my other Photo Blog, mostlyfotos, is so that I can post something regularly, even daily, without having to write too much. On that blog, I get to highlight one photograph per day, nice and large, and just write a short caption.
I’ve really enjoyed crafting my online presence with my blog and photo gallery. Flickr is a great place for social interaction as is Facebook and Twitter but they don’t feel like my personal space. On my blog, I can really customize the look of the site. I get to test and play with my design and web layout. I have a few more changes to make but after a year I’m pretty satisfied with the look of my online properties. The concept of an online presence, your own site, really does not sink in until you try it. I remember about a year and a half ago talking to my friend Jim about his blog. I asked him what the advantage of a blog is over just using Flickr. While he probably gave coherent reasons, I just didn’t understand it until I tried it myself. I lacked the frame of reference to see the fun and benefits of creating one’s own space. Having friends and support around you certainly makes the process easier. Many of my photography friends in Austin already have a blog and a photo gallery so I had a lot of people to learn from. I get to see what they have done, ask questions and create my version based on my ideas. I think it would have been very different without the close physical proximity to people who share your photography and blogging interests.
I’ve learned a bit about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) which is the art and science of getting more people to your blog and online sites. I’ve learned that it takes a lot more effort to get noticed on the “full internet” compared to a social site like Flickr. The big trick in photography blogs is to do product reviews. People love to read about equipment and they do research before future purchases. My little review of the LowePro Edit 120 bag and how I use it for my Sony NEX-5 is my most popular post. Also my review on the Sony TX5 (when it was new) as well as my posts on the Sony NEX-5 always seems to draw viewers. If my entire purpose of this blog was to simply attract eyeballs, I would just do a whole bunch of equipment reviews. Now you know why so many photography blogs have product reviews. I, however, want to talk more about photography and sharing what I learned as I created my images. I also wanted to sprinkle some photo-philosphy and observations that I’ve made along the way. Since I now have mostlyfotos, I have moved away from just showcasing photographs on this blog. This blog will focus more on medium and longer form posts – a mix of text content with some photographs sprinkled in. And I probably will add more reviews of the equipment I use. Not just to increase viewership but to give my reviews based on real world observations rather than just simply talking about camera specifications.
The real challenge is to find the time to do all that I want. Of course shooting photographs, post-processing and organizing these images takes a bunch of time. Add to that, the two blogs that I have and all the social media sites that I maintain, something inevitably gets bumped. I see two big camps that compete for my time. The creative tasks vs the social tasks. The creative tasks involve the photographs, taking pictures, post-processing as well as the blogging, writing articles and selecting and posting my daily photo. The social tasks are keeping up with my friends and contact at Flickr, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter. Between the two, I tend to stay more on the creative side. My social media sites have become more of a way to post my creative results rather than socialize. I don’t just want to “post and run” but unfortunately that is what happens given the time constraints that I have. I hope that the creative stuff that I post on the social sites gives some benefit and joy to my contacts and they can forgive me for not being as engaged socially. Balancing my available time will continue to be a challenge and I’m sure things will evolve as time goes on. Also, writing about the use of social media sites maybe an interesting topic for another post.
Please stay tuned, we will see how this space changes over the next year. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to read my ramblings.
