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EM-1 Trying to Control my Spending

JMaher

New member
Ok - the E-1 will be here this week. I have the 25 1.4. The 12-40 2.8 is on order.

I still have my Canon 5D3 with a number of lenses. I shoot a little landscape, a little real estate and a lots of people.

Here's the endlessly repeated question: If I can only buy one or even two more lenses which should they be? :)

Jim
 

mmbma

Active member
60mm macro or 45mm 1.8 depending on if you are a 90mm FOV guy.
In my mind m4/3 lends itself so well for Macro you just need to get one
 

Knorp

Well-known member
Jim, a macro lens definitely and perhaps something with more reach like the Zuiko 75-300 II or Lumix 100-300.

Well, plenty choices to get you out of control and into serious GAS ...

Kind regards.
 

kweide

New member
I made the decision too when i switched over from FT TO mFT. I added the 45 and the 75 mm lens to my 25 mm. For landscape the 12 mm and i won a17 mm f1.8 in a photocontest. And th 60 mm jumped intp my bag as well, into my good old Domke. I did not by a new bag. So controlled my spendings very well :)
 

Brian Mosley

New member
Hi Jim,

I think that I'd recommend the Olympus mZD 45mm f1.8 and the mZD 9-18 - both terrrific value for money and would suit your interests.

Later on, perhaps the mZD 75mm f1.8 would be a luxury to own.

Cheers

Brian
 
V

Vivek

Guest
The Noctilux 50/0.95. Buy one and it will automatically put a stop your urges. :p

A cheaper option, in the EU, currently will be a Speed Booster plus 14/2.8, 24/1.4 & 85/1.4 (brand new Samyang lenses sold for a ~89 Euros each by amazon.de. Canon EF mount!!!). Fast to super fast lenses for a very small amount of cash. No clicking sound problems either. :)
 

JMaher

New member
Thanks to all - while obviously this is for me it's great to hear what lenses others would choose.

I currently have a number of these in my Adorama cart and I just don't want to get carried away. The 45 1.8 seems like a good choice, for one, based on its reputation and price.

The 9-18 and 75-300 would give me range but that's two more and I am trying not to do that.:)

Jim
 
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httivals

New member
I have quite a lot of MFT lenses. For shooting a lot of people, the lenses I would want are the 45mm f1.8, the 25mm f1.4 and the 75mm f1.8, in that order. I have all of the above.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I would extend in both directions; Pana 7-14 and Zuiko 75/1.8, but I can see that the Zuiko 45/1.8 would be an interesting choice too, but myself, I'm waiting for the PanaLeica 42.5mm f/1.2. For macro, I don't use AF, so legacy lenses work fine and are sometimes very inexpensive. OM Zuiko 50mm f/3.5 macro?
 

Godfrey

Well-known member
Ok - the E-1 will be here this week. I have the 25 1.4. The 12-40 2.8 is on order.

I still have my Canon 5D3 with a number of lenses. I shoot a little landscape, a little real estate and a lots of people.

Here's the endlessly repeated question: If I can only buy one or even two more lenses which should they be? :)
Thinkin' out loud:

My gut feeling was to buy nothing in way of new lenses until I spent a week or three shooting with the E-M1 and one lens. I have/had already Olympus ZD 11-22/2.8-3.5, ZD 25/2.8, and ZD 35/3.5 Macro lenses which will mount on it nicely with the adapter.

Then I ordered the Summilux 25/1.4 out of fondness for my old FT Summilux, but I'm not happy by what I see in its behavior on the E-PL1. Perhaps using the option on the E-M1 it will not misbehave like that, but I'm sorely tempted to ship it back, stick the ZD 25 on the E-M1 when it arrives, and shoot with just that for a month.

Buying nothing until it's clear to you what you want (or need) to do the photography you have in mind is the best way to save money. We all buy way too much equipment ... ;-)

G
 

cjlacz

Member
I'd be tempted just to get the 45mm or maybe 75mm. The 12-40 has you pretty well set on the wide end, unless you need ultrawide.

In your position I'd probably be waiting for the 40-150 that's coming next year.
 

JMaher

New member
Godfrey, we do all spend too much on equipment or at least I do. Hopefully you will be pleased with the 25 once you get the EM-1.

I am tempted to just use the 25 for a little while and wait for the 12-40. However I do think I will at least order the 45 as it's a good lens and very inexpensive. Then again 45 is not that far from 40 and the 12-40 is on order.

Decisions - right now I have the 9-18, the 45, the 60 macro, 75 and the 75-300 in my basket but I know I am not going to buy all of them. Trying for a max of two.

Besides all the other things I photograph we do vacation reasonably often and one of the reasons for a smaller camera is to use it when I travel.
 

Brian Mosley

New member
Hello again Jim,

before you hit "confirm" on that mZD 75-300, I'd suggest you take a close look at the Lumix 100-300, which is a bit faster on the long end and possibly cheaper, though fatter and heavier than the 75-300.

Kind regards

Brian
 

Annna T

Active member
Ok - the E-1 will be here this week. I have the 25 1.4. The 12-40 2.8 is on order.

I still have my Canon 5D3 with a number of lenses. I shoot a little landscape, a little real estate and a lots of people.

Here's the endlessly repeated question: If I can only buy one or even two more lenses which should they be? :)

Jim
The 12mm F2 and a short tele : may be wait for the Panasonic 42.5 F1.2 if you like to take people pictures, or the Olympus 45mm F1.8 or go a little longer for the 60mm macro (if you shoot macro); or if you really like it sharp, get the 75mm F1.8, but it is a little long already.

12mm, 25mm and short tele would make a very nice three primes setup and you would have the zoom for when you need more flexibility (aka when travelling or in non specifically photo outing)
 
Ok - the E-1 will be here this week. I have the 25 1.4. The 12-40 2.8 is on order.

I still have my Canon 5D3 with a number of lenses. I shoot a little landscape, a little real estate and a lots of people.

Here's the endlessly repeated question: If I can only buy one or even two more lenses which should they be? :)

Jim
Because you shoot lots of people, get either the Oly 45mm f/1.8 or the 75mm f/1.8 now (depending on your FOV preference). The Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.2 would also be a strong candidate, but not yet available. At the long end, wait for the Oly 40-150mm f/2.8 later this year.
 

JBurnett

Well-known member
Landscape: What do you use currently? The 12-40 would handle the core of what I shoot. You could choose to extend the range in either direction with, for example, the 9-18 or 7-14, or with one of the tele-zooms. But it sounds like landscape is less of a priority than people.

Lots of people: Again, what do you use now -- primes or zoom or both? Are these more "directed" shots, or "catch the moment"?

The Oly 45 is a terrific little lens and the 75 is on my wish list. However, when shooting primes in situations where I need to work fast, I like to use two bodies with two focal lengths mounted. With a single body, the 35-100 or forthcoming 40-150 might be worthwhile considering. You won't get the same shallow depth of field as a 70-200 on your 5D3, but you'll have a similar range.

I'm with the others who enjoy shooting close-up/macro with micro-4/3. I have the Panasonic/Leica 45mm, but the Oly 60mm is very highly regarded.

Of course, some of these lenses are about the same cost or more expensive than a second body, which gives rise to another possible scenario. :)
 

Godfrey

Well-known member
Godfrey, we do all spend too much on equipment or at least I do. Hopefully you will be pleased with the 25 once you get the EM-1.
I hope so. I'm just not comfortable with the 'rattlesnaking' it does on the E-PL1 indoors. It's very disconcerting to me.

.. I am tempted to just use the 25 for a little while and wait for the 12-40. However I do think I will at least order the 45 as it's a good lens and very inexpensive. Then again 45 is not that far from 40 and the 12-40 is on order. ..
For me, it's not the focal length that's the issue, is the difference in size, weight, and shooting frame of mind between a zoom and a prime lens that are significant. I find that when I fit a zoom ... particularly a wide to portrait "normal" zoom ... I see differently when when I have one or two discrete primes in my bag. And I seem to get better results with the primes.

The ultra-wide zoom and tele-zooms options don't affect me the same way. I think this is because with either of them, I'm operating outside of my normal shooting range which is already forcing my visual thought processes into a different pattern.

One thought I had was to return the Summilux 25 and order the two Sigma lenses (19 and 30mm) or just the 30 and the Olympus 17/1.8. The goal was to get a dedicated, modestly-sized, normalish prime lens that was fully mFT mount optimized. But I've not made a decision yet—tough when the camera hasn't quite arrived. ;-)

(Or maybe return the Summilux and beg off the whole game for the moment by spending a couple hundred bux on 20 packs of Impossible Project film for the SX-70 and Spectra ... ]'-)

G
 
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JMaher

New member
John, On the 5D3 I primarily shoot people in a controlled setting (many times with flash or studio lights) and use a 70-200, 85 or for versatility the 24-105.

I now use (on FF) the 24-105 for landscape and travel mostly on the wider end. I admit to being tempted to go for the 9-18 and go WIDE.

Godfrey - I have thought about going primarily prime on the EM-1 with maybe a 17 1.8 as my walk around lens. I am committed to purchasing the 12-40 as I think it will make a great travel lens.

Thanks again to all - one of the joys of buying a new camera is that it opens up all kinds of opportunities for discussion as well as purchase.

Jim
 

Annna T

Active member
I hope so. I'm just not comfortable with the 'rattlesnaking' it does on the E-PL1 indoors. It's very disconcerting to me.



For, it's not the focal length that's the issue, is the difference in size, weight, and shooting frame of mind between a zoom and a prime lens that are significant. I find that when I fit a zoom ... particularly a wide to portrait "normal" zoom ... I see differently when when I have one or two discrete primes in my bag. And I seem to get better results with the primes.

The ultra-wide zoom and tele-zooms options don't affect me the same way. I think this is because with either of them, I'm operating outside of my normal shooting range which is already forcing my visual thought processes into a different pattern.

One thought I had was to return the Summilux 25 and order the two Sigma lenses (19 and 30mm) or just the 30 and the Olympus 17/1.8. The goal was to get a dedicated, modestly-sized, normalish prime lens that was fully mFT mount optimized. But I've not made a decision yet—tough when the camera hasn't quite arrived. ;-)

(Or maybe return the Summilux and beg off the whole game for the moment by spending a couple hundred bux on 20 packs of Impossible Project film for the SX-70 and Spectra ... ]'-)

G
The 25mm F1.4 is a lovely lens, don't let it go !

 

JBurnett

Well-known member
John, On the 5D3 I primarily shoot people in a controlled setting (many times with flash or studio lights) and use a 70-200, 85 or for versatility the 24-105.
It sounds as if the 35-100, 40-150, and/or the 45 would feel quite natural to you for this type of work (in conjunction with the 12-40 and 25). In a controlled environment, changing lenses isn't as much of an issue, so the 45 and 75 might also work well, and their wider apertures could be welcome for situations when you want to use available light, and have a touch less DOF.
 
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