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Fun with the Lumix/Leica 45 macro

Diane B

New member
I'm guessing that this will be a lens I will add--but also betting that there will be a good bit of input here before I ever have the opportunity to buy one LOL--so time to consider (anticipating there will be more good examples from macro, to portrait to 'general').

Diane
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
I'm rethinking my kit actually 7-14 and the 45mm. Sell the 20 and kit lens. This camera fills a little niche around my main system that I like to explore
 

Terry

New member
It looks like this lens won't be available in Canada for a while (where I live)... what was your experience like buying it from a vendor in Japan?

Take care,
Try Bill Wilby at Contact Photo Arts (he posts here so you can send him a PM or look for a link to his site in the Commercial Vendor forum. I thought they were going to be available in Canada this week.

My lens was hand carried back from Japan by a friend so the transaction was very simple :p:clap:. There are several vendors that are reliable. I'm just not sure who the best are.
 
V

Vivek

Guest
On my way home from the bridge I was caught in some rush hour traffic so what's a girl to do. Play with lights. So I focused close on the dashboard of the car and then lifted the camera to get the lights from the streets and the cars and see what happened. Yes, I know this needs to go in the "photographing your bokeh" thread...just there is really no subject matter here just trying to see how they rendered.

yellow + red is the car in front of me


same idea at f9
Terry, The OOF highlights show that your sensor needs a thorough clean.

FWIW, I clean the sensor on an average twice a week. While the glass plates in front of the sensor make sure that no dust shows up (since they mush up everything, in general), even when they are there, you can see them when the lens is starting show diffraction and in the highlights.

Again, FWIW, the highlights appear to indicate some coma projected by the lens.
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Also, IMO coma is not necessarily a bad design characteristic, and can in fact help render "swirly" bokeh. FWIW...
 

Roel

New member
Try Bill Wilby at Contact Photo Arts (he posts here so you can send him a PM or look for a link to his site in the Commercial Vendor forum. I thought they were going to be available in Canada this week.

My lens was hand carried back from Japan by a friend so the transaction was very simple :p:clap:. There are several vendors that are reliable. I'm just not sure who the best are.
Thanks. I spoke to my dealer last night (The Camera Store in Calgary) and they had no idea when they would be available in Canada (the same was true with the 7-14mm f/4 as well).

I am getting lens envy now ...
 
V

Vivek

Guest
Also, IMO coma is not necessarily a bad design characteristic, and can in fact help render "swirly" bokeh. FWIW...
I did not say that as something negative.

"Swirly" seems to be a term of endearment here. :ROTFL:
 

Rich M

Member
I've been waiting for this day, tracking the shipment (kinda since I can't read Japanese) for the last five days. I got home from work and found that I missed the mailgal. Just a notice to pick up my package tomorrow at the PO.

I took a chance and drove to the PO. Got there as the door was being locked. Luckily my mail carrier had returned from her route and the lens was waiting. $67.40 later (first time I have EVER paid customs on a package from Japan), I had the lens in hand.

I raced out to the farm with the sun setting. Really challenging shooting conditions.....everything was moving, me....the bees.....the flowers. I banged off about 30 shots. Here are the ones that jumped out at me. Straight out of the camera, converted in LR2.5, no PP, converted (and downsized) to JPEG. The four JPG's are stored here. Shooting information is noted.

Comments are much appreciated. (I love this place.)

Regards....Richard







 

Roel

New member
Rich,

Those are excellent. You have a good eye and also, your lens is sharp! I just ordered my 45mm today, it should ship sometime next week... I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas to come now...

BTW - in the DPR review of this lens, Andy Westlake (the DPR reviewer) recommended that for best results using OIS, mode 1 be used (OIS on all of the time) vs. mode 2 (OIS on when you press the shutter). Can anyone who has this lens confirm this?
 

Rich M

Member
BTW - in the DPR review of this lens, Andy Westlake (the DPR reviewer) recommended that for best results using OIS, mode 1 be used (OIS on all of the time) vs. mode 2 (OIS on when you press the shutter). Can anyone who has this lens confirm this?
Roël,

I always leave the camera in mode 1, so no way to compare. I like the OIS in this lens. My subjects always seem to be moving and never static. Even though I have a nice tripod/focusing rail setup, I am shooting handheld 90% of the time.

Earlier this morning, before the wind kicked up, I was out in the same field with the macro-Takumar 50/4....a very nice lens. Shooting handheld and focusing manually was extremely challenging. I shot about 90-100 pics and had about 2-3 shots that were keepers. My percentage was significantly higher with this lens.

Make sure you post your shots when your lens gets in.

Regards.....Richard
 

Roel

New member
Roël,

I always leave the camera in mode 1, so no way to compare. I like the OIS in this lens. My subjects always seem to be moving and never static. Even though I have a nice tripod/focusing rail setup, I am shooting handheld 90% of the time.

Earlier this morning, before the wind kicked up, I was out in the same field with the macro-Takumar 50/4....a very nice lens. Shooting handheld and focusing manually was extremely challenging. I shot about 90-100 pics and had about 2-3 shots that were keepers. My percentage was significantly higher with this lens.

Make sure you post your shots when your lens gets in.

Regards.....Richard
Hi Rich,

Thanks for that. When I first received my GF1, I found the following article on the web, so I normally keep my camera in mode 2:

http://www.panasonic.ca/english/audiovideo/camerascamcorders/digitalstill/megaOIS.asp

I did do some highly non-scientific testing with my 14-45mm and 45-200mm and found the % of keepers was higher with mode 2 vs. mode 1, but not by much. Having said that, I did find it easier to "frame" my subjects in mode 1, especially with the longer focal lengths.

Anyway, thanks again.
 

Rich M

Member
This is my third day with this lens and I am really liking the versatility. It seems to suit my shooting style. I tend to shoot tighter than wider (if I shoot wide, I shoot UW and I don't have that kind of lens....yet :D). Even though f/2.8 isn't super-fast, it is faster than the kit lenses. It is VERY sharp, and will do just fine shooting portraits.

I have to admit, the autofocus is nice. It doesn't hunt...(I leave it on full focus, not limited). As much as I love all my MF lenses, this looks like it will be my "walk around" lens.....instead of the 14-140mm.

Here's a shot at pretty low light.....f/3.5, 1/50sec, ISO100. Uncropped, no PP, converted in LR2.5.

Regards....Richard

 

Terry

New member
A lot of people have asked for some portraits with this lens. Since I'm about to torture others it is only fair that I also put one of myself up (uggh). Hopefully Godfrey will fill in with some shots as well. There were a few of us out shooting today and we played a bit of musical lens. We kept switching lenses and bodies so that each person could have their own samples from the 45 macro. So, since this was a test, instead of doing processing on these you are getting them pretty much untouched (yuck). This lens is plenty sharp. While it won't throw the background out of focus like an 85 f1.4 or my yummy Zeiss 135 f1.8 it does provide some very nice subject isolation. From everything I've shot so far this lens has a permanent place in my bag.





100% crop


The background here is probably about 4 feet behind him



100% crop (where I think I slight missed the focus on the eye)


Background across the street



100% crop



 
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