OM-D goes along for my biggest winter ascent yet.

All shot with 12-50 and of course my new Rokinon.  C&C welcome.

BTW, I didn't use the dramatic tone filter for everything, but I really did find that it did a better job at capturing the essence of some of the better shots from the hike than anything I could've pushed through RAW, but maybe that's partly my inexperience with RAW.  Harsh lighting is well served by that filter IMO.

Gnarly ridgeline

Pyramid summit in a squall

Icy rocks

Rocky ridge

Captain's Bay from the top

Mountains beyond mountains

Nice shots! And yes - winter is a great time for B&W due to the harsh tones of white / blue and maybe some green.

--
Vern Dewit
Calgary, Alberta Canada
http://www.explor8ion.com
http://verndewit.com/

Very impressive.

Great shots.  I like how the snow looks like flaked obsidian in that first shot.

If I were you I'd do RAW+JPEG when using the Dramatic filter.  You can always dump the RAW if you prefer the filter version, but it's pretty much impossible to undo the filter's effects.  In one shot, for example, you see an unnatural transition between blue and gray sky due to the filter.  It's a bit like the unnatural halo effect of an overcooked HDR photo.  On my E-PL2 the Dramatic filter looks good on the camera screen but falls apart on the computer screen.

BTW, is the OM-D quick with the live simulation of the filter effect?  If I turn that on with my E-PL2, everything slows down to a snail's pace.

Beautiful shots.

but that Rokinon shot is exceedingly cool.

It is such a super lens in the u 4/3 line up.

I presume you used the "dramatic effect" filter on that shot?

If I had the confidence that I had the skill to use it I would definately get that lens.

If you already had the Oly 9-18mm lens and  a PEN, how would you try to duplicate that look in PP?

Thank you in advance for your response.

tEdolph

Great images! Where are you, Alaska?

--
Reid Shay
www.sawatchpub.com

Sometimes I think the JPG is better when using art filters, and sometimes I find I can get a better result from the RAW file in LR4.

The OM-D seems to be just as fast with that filter anyway, I haven't tried all of them though.

Great series.  Looks like a wonderful day for a winter ascent.

Dave

--
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3571/3380136992_7c5a0986ea_m.jpg

Thanks, I definitely consider that shot to be the highlight of the hike.  I used to lug the ZD fisheye around, which gave me some experience with that lens type, though they are specialty lenses that are amazing for limited situations and boring for most.  Which is why the Rokinon is perfect, easy to have with you when the moment is in front of you.

I've tried to imitate the dramatic tone filter in RAW.  Seems like I can get similar things by pulling the clarity slider around like crazy in LR4, but I've never been able to replicate everything that filter does, like the (probably) odd tone curves, grainier look, and preferential saturation of some colors over others.

I would think I could get a similar look in some ways with a pen and 9-18.  I like to stop down like crazy to get that starry sun (something you could do with a filter on the 9-18 instead) even though people freak out about diffraction.  That was f22, and is still sharp enough to go big.  I'm sure the rest is just adding contrast and playing with tone curves and RAW parameters, but not sure which exact ones unfortunately.

Hope that helps,

Wally

These convey the harsh winter world above treeline very well, Wally--nicely done!

I think the filter effects are interesting and perhaps add something to the already very good shots. Have you ever fiddled with art filter bracketing? I occasionally remember it's there and try it to see what unexpected results it yields. It does take quite awhile for the camera to crunch through all the processing, but back home it's a lot of fun to pore over the results.

Looking forward to your next journey!

Cheers,

Rick

Very nice series Wally. Some guys & reviews don't rate the 12-50mm high but in real world test (no pixel pepping) this lens is very good. The weather sealing and macro features are bonus particularly in this condition.

The art filters are handy too yeah, raw + jpeg is  the logical choice for pp later.

--
reygon
----------------------------------------------------------------
Take nothing but photos... Kill nothing but time... Leave nothing but footprints...

All of them are excellent.

I know the amount of hardwear you need to carry for that sort of ascent and how tiring it is, so it makes it more impressive that you managed to get such hugh quality shots

OM-D has 2 modes for that - slow and fast.

And I mean that.  I know it's not bright, it's not a prime, blah, blah.  But being able to leave it and my OM-D dangling around my shoulders for that entire hike?  And it does take great photos, just not really ridiculously sharp.  Total package, it's miles above my previous kit lens.  A brighter zoom would be nice, but then it gets heavy.  And the 12mm is what I use most frequently.

--
John
Semper Fi!
http://jwhphotos.zenfolio.com/img/s1/v48/p327905257-2.jpg

Brilliant pictures, the better ones for me are 1, 5, and 6.

Really great to see. Well done. And the location is fantastic.

--
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Pure logic is the ruin of the spirit.
Imagination is more important than knowledge.
God is the tangential point between zero and infinity.
Aleo Photo Site

Did you used the micro contrast (clarify on LR) or a bleach filter on processing or it is just the effect of the dramatic filter ?

BTW, it must have been a wonderful experience. How the batteries have handled the cold ?

In fact it is two questions.

-- 
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Pure logic is the ruin of the spirit.
Imagination is more important than knowledge.
God is the tangential point between zero and infinity.
Aleo Photo Site

You are right, the 12-50mm did very well, that is why I don't rely so much on reviews, nothing like to see good results like this ones.

Great pictures.

--
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Pure logic is the ruin of the spirit.
Imagination is more important than knowledge.
God is the tangential point between zero and infinity.
Aleo Photo Site