50-200mm SWD Finally! Learning curve commence!

It's been a long time on the 4/3ds systems & now I finally have the 50-200mm. The reach is so NICE!. I have a quinceneara to shoot in 2 weeks so time to get learning on this monster.

Any tips? I do plan on using my tripod for some shots especially once it starts getting darker but over all use & things to remember I'm open to all information. I do see a definite sharpness change when I mount on tripod especially when I'm at 200mm.

--
'All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for
an inability to notice.' - Elliot Erwitt~ Olympus E-3 & E-500
Zuiko Lenses - 12-60mm, 50-200mm, 50mm, 14-45mm,
40-150mm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cuegeee/

Congratulation. It is a very nice lens.

Start getting use to the narrow depth of field. Test it out extensively to make sure it will focus correctly with your body. On my E520, I had front focus problems with my 50-200mm (old one). Had to get my body adjusted. I did not notice the front focus problem much with my kit lens.

Cuegeee said:

It's been a long time on the 4/3ds systems & now I finally have the 50-200mm. The reach is so NICE!. I have a quinceneara to shoot in 2 weeks so time to get learning on this monster.

Any tips? I do plan on using my tripod for some shots especially once it starts getting darker but over all use & things to remember I'm open to all information. I do see a definite sharpness change when I mount on tripod especially when I'm at 200mm.

--
'All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for
an inability to notice.' - Elliot Erwitt~ Olympus E-3 & E-500
Zuiko Lenses - 12-60mm, 50-200mm, 50mm, 14-45mm,
40-150mm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cuegeee/

Click to expand...

Cuegeee said:

It's been a long time on the 4/3ds systems & now I finally have the 50-200mm. The reach is so NICE!. I have a quinceneara to shoot in 2 weeks so time to get learning on this monster.

Any tips? I do plan on using my tripod for some shots especially once it starts getting darker but over all use & things to remember I'm open to all information. I do see a definite sharpness change when I mount on tripod especially when I'm at 200mm.

Click to expand...

For portraits, I try to use this lens at between 50 and 70mm or so... this gives a nice portrait length, f/2.8, and good sharpness wide open.

Even at f/2.8 it is a bit slow for real dark shots, but it can definitely be used indoors quite well.

Cheers
--
--Wyatt
http://photos.digitalcave.ca
All images (c) unless otherwise specified, please ask me before editing.

Cuegeee said:

It's been a long time on the 4/3ds systems & now I finally have the 50-200mm. The reach is so NICE!. I have a quinceneara to shoot in 2 weeks so time to get learning on this monster.

Any tips? I do plan on using my tripod for some shots especially once it starts getting darker but over all use & things to remember I'm open to all information. I do see a definite sharpness change when I mount on tripod especially when I'm at 200mm.

--
'All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for
an inability to notice.' - Elliot Erwitt~ Olympus E-3 & E-500
Zuiko Lenses - 12-60mm, 50-200mm, 50mm, 14-45mm,
40-150mm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cuegeee/

Click to expand...

Great great lens. Don't be afraid to use it close-up either. Attached is a photo I grabbed Hand held with IS1 on last weekend.

George H, You wrote that you had to get your body adjusted. Did you send the camera to Olympus for adjustment or did you take measures yourself (and what were those)?

I have the non-swd 50-200mm with the 520 and find that I get a lot of back focus.

Thanks

Oh no, I am not brave enough to do it myself.

I sent it back to Olympus twice. They finally got it right the 2nd time as I actually talked to the Oly technician what was happening.

Stephen Jenkins said:

George H, You wrote that you had to get your body adjusted. Did you send the camera to Olympus for adjustment or did you take measures yourself (and what were those)?

I have the non-swd 50-200mm with the 520 and find that I get a lot of back focus.

Thanks

Click to expand...

Carry it around, wear it around in your free time and get comfortable handling it. It may see large at first but not so much after you get used to it. I've had good luck with it on E-3, E-30, E-1 and even E-620.

With IS you gain a bit of flexibility with it. This old shot was shot at 1200 I think and handheld.

Congrats! I just love mine for portrait work, but it's so good at almost anything I throw at it. Once I got one it quickly became my most used lens.

E-520+50-200 SWD @ 76mm f/3.1 1/320 ISO100 shot in RAW, processed in LR 2



--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/daletreadway/

Gidday Cooee

Cuegeee said:

It's been a long time on the 4/3ds systems & now I finally have the 50-200mm. The reach is so NICE!. I have a quinceneara to shoot in 2 weeks so time to get learning on this monster.

Click to expand...

Congratulations. It is a lovely lens. I have the MkI.

Cuegeee said:

Any tips? I do plan on using my tripod for some shots especially once it starts getting darker but over all use & things to remember I'm open to all information. I do see a definite sharpness change when I mount on tripod especially when I'm at 200mm.

Click to expand...

The lens is very hard to hold steady at 200 mm ... Trust me. I do not use it on my E-1 at all because of the lack of IS (like your E-500). Even on my E-510 and E-30 it is very, VERY easy to get blurry shots, or worse, ones that are not critically sharp when you get them home on your computer screen ... The first are obvious and you (perhaps) have a second chance; the latter are dead in the water ...

I certainly need to get a good monopod. I am just too unsteady these days. By really concentrating on my technique, I get far more keepers than I did. But the monopod will help enormously, I reckon.

I would also not be in too much of a hurry to get rid of your 40~150. I have both mine (MkI & MkII) and they do get used. Sometimes I want a medium telephoto, but the 50~200 makes my total kit too heavy for me to carry far. This is where my other two come into play. My lightweight kit consists of my E-510, 14~42, 40~150 MkII and pancake. It weighs 1.4 kgs in its backpack.

The ability to play mix-n-match cannot be underestimated, IMNSHO ...

Cuegeee said:

'All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for
an inability to notice.' - Elliot Erwitt~

Click to expand...

And all the equipment in the world doesn't compensate for a lack of good technique, lol ...

--
Regards, john from Melbourne, Australia.
(see profile for current gear)
-- -- --

The Camera doth not make the Man (or Woman) ...
Perhaps being kind to cats, dogs & children does ...

Gallery: http://canopuscomputing.com.au/gallery2/main.php



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Thank you all for the info & examples. Just seeing what this lens can add to anyone's 4/3rds setup is amazing as well as more affordable then the 90-250mm.

This lens wont come off the e3 for the next month to force me become accustomed to it.

--
'All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for
an inability to notice.' - Elliot Erwitt~ Olympus E-3 & E-500
Zuiko Lenses - 12-60mm, 50-200mm, 50mm, 14-45mm,
40-150mm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cuegeee/

I use mine for candid street (actually...park more than street) photos. The reach is incredible for the size and weight when you get rid of the tripod mount .

Unless you regularly use a tripod, there is no reason to keep it on and add weight to you set up. You can always stick it back on when you need it. Personally, since I removed mine a few years ago (when I was still using an E-1 and E-300), I've never had to put it back on for what I use it for.

--
Olympus E-3, E-620 and E-420

Zuiko 9-18mm, 25mm pancake, 50mm, 14-42mm, 12-60mm, 50-200mm, and 8mm fisheye. FL-36R and FL-50R Flashes. HLD-4 Grip.
Canon PowerShot TX1
Ricoh GR-D
Sony DSC-V3

Chris_in_Osaka said:

I use mine for candid street (actually...park more than street) photos. The reach is incredible for the size and weight when you get rid of the tripod mount .

Unless you regularly use a tripod, there is no reason to keep it on and add weight to you set up. You can always stick it back on when you need it. Personally, since I removed mine a few years ago (when I was still using an E-1 and E-300), I've never had to put it back on for what I use it for.

Click to expand...

Every little bit of weight counts. The tripod mount is a bit in the way in the bag too. But mine stays on as I often use it as a handhold which wont change FL or focus to help point and steady the system. Also, I do put it on a tripod once in a while.

Gotta admit that for many shots though it's not necessary IF u have one of the cameras with built-in IS. My shot above goes a long way to prove that. I was frankly very pleasantly surprised that I was able to get that hand held, being a survivor of non-IS SLR macro shooting which required a tripod everytime. This shot, OTOH, is a 400mm equivalent focal length at pretty near minimum focus. Amazing that can be done hand held.

Again, best to ya.