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Advice on OM Lenses

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HatTrick66

HatTrick66

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I have been using the E510 and kit lenses for 2 years, I feel I have learned very well with them. I also enjoy the camera and they work very well in good light. I am looking to get a FF camera sometime early 2011 to take care of the low light and important shots, but I would like to try something in the mean time to improve my indoor and lowlight shots.

I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.

Any advice would be much appreciated. I have searched around online and I am pleased with results in good light, but not many seem to venture into the low light arena with the OM lenses, perhaps due to manual focusing in that tiny viewfinder. Just wondering if anyone has any experience or advice to offer.

Thanks in advance!
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinmallick/
 
I have been through your thought process. I also had the E-510 with the 14-40 and 40-150 kit lenses.

I also have the manual focus 50 f1.8 lens. Its not the best option. The 50 f1.8 needs to be focused in live view, and since it was made for the film 35mm camera, it is not as sharp as digital.

I upgraded to the E-5 and it works fantastic with the kit lenses in low light situations. I can crank up to ISO 1600 which effectively gives me four stops of light without visible noise.

Olympus is probably the only company that makes a quality kit lens sharp enough to give professional results. The E-5 brings all of this home.

I have seen my fellow photographers lugging full format lenses around. They need backpacks, with the Olympus lenses I can carry the camera and 4 lenses in a small camera bag. And I have made quality enlargements up to 20 X 30.
 
HatTrick66 said:
I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.
Click to expand...
Probably not, because the depth of field at f/1.8 is so razor thin it's tough to end up with a photo where the subject looks in focus. Maybe if the child is sleeping and you use live view and move the whole camera back & forth until one eye is in focus.

And the lens quality is best when stopped down a couple of stops.

Nevertheless, for the low price of a lens plus adapter, it's a very good thing to use as a learning tool. It may not solve the problem at hand, but it may help you come up with new ideas.

A 3rd-party split image focusing screen might help too - they're available cheaply on eBay and are easy to swap out yourself.

Sterling
--
Lens Grit
 
I would agree with Sterling; wide open the 50/1.8 has a depth of field on 4/3 of around 3/4" going up to double that at F4. Have you considered getting a used FL50 and using it in fill-flash mode. This would give you the benefit of AF with your kit lenses and TTL-auto, or, FP TTL-auto with a higher shutter speed. OM lenses can be focused under relatively low light, but only with static subjects really which means either catching your two-year old when engrossed with something, or, when napping between hyperactivity :)

regards,

Mike
 
I have the OM 1.8 and I have been able to use it on my 520 with a focus confirm adapter. Their are a few guys on here that use that lens, you should be able to find some examples with a search.

Have A Great Day!

Darrell
 
I would highly recommend picking up a TTL flash like the Olympus FL-36 or the Metz 50. Face it, when you're taking pictures of kids, you're taking pictures of action, and no manual focus lens will help you there. The red beam non-stroboscopic AF illuminator on the flash alone is an immense asset; the ability to bounce flash doubly so (for this purpose, I'd lean toward the Metz more than the Olympus--as the Metz is much more powerful, which is needed for bounce).

If you go the OM lens route, keep this in mind: Because of how it's designed for maximum brightness rather than focusing accuracy, the focusing screen in your E-510 shows depth of field and therefore accurate focus only for f/4.0 and smaller. You pretty much have to use live view to get accurate focus for larger apertures (I myself can get reliable manual focus in the viewfinder with my OM 135mm f/2.8 wide open, but anything with a bigger aperture and you're SOL), and live view is quite slow due to the mirror dance.
--
http://www.photoklarno.com
 
HatTrick66 said:
I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.
Click to expand...
I shoot mostly with manual lenses. And all my friends have little kids from 1-5 yrs old, and on every event (like birthdays) i use OM lens to take pix of the kids that are almost always on the move, granted it's 55mm/1.2 and with it i can shoot inside without using flash (and i use it closed down at f2) but you could try getting 50mm/1.4 and fl-36R flash, and off course upping the ISO (that way you'll get faster shutter speed) while having photo resolution on highest setting , that way the noise wouldn't be so present on regular size photo printouts.

as for way to take photos of kids with manual lenses... if your kid is playing at certain distance from you, first focus on the general area your child is at and then fine focus to eyes...also "hunt" for the moments he/she is standing still, ready to shoot. also when you get focus right you could get blurry pix anyway because of kid moving head or your hand shaking, so use burst setting to get a set of photos, at least one of them will not be blurry.

--
my gear:
E-520+12-60+14-42+70-300+Sigma 105 + FL-50R+EC20
and good amount of legacy lenses (list in profile)
 
Gidday HT

E-510, OM f1.8/50 ("made in Japan" variant; s/no > 3,xxx,xxx), ISO 400 f/1.8 @ 1/20th, IS1, AWB, no flash, hand held. This is lightly PP from the RAW. The image is not cropped at all.



Avoid the earlier s/no lenses. They are all much softer than this wide open. I have an early f1.4/50 (first version), and it is far softer than my late version f1.8/50 ...

BTW, this was focused using the OVF of my E-510. I have no trouble doing this with any of my legacy lenses on any of my three bodies.

--
Regards, john from Melbourne, Australia.
(see profile for current gear)
Please do not embed images from my web site without prior permission
I consider this to be a breach of my copyright.
-- -- --

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



Bird Control Officers on active service.

Member of UK (and abroad) Photo Safari Group
 
John King said:
Gidday HT

E-510, OM f1.8/50 ("made in Japan" variant; s/no > 3,xxx,xxx), ISO 400 f/1.8 @ 1/20th, IS1, AWB, no flash, hand held. This is lightly PP from the RAW. The image is not cropped at all.


[/QUOTE]
This image does not really show anything meaningful. We do not know how big the pattern is and how it looks in real. The only thing you can show with flat surfaces is how the lens shades and distorts, which from this example is not possible to conclude either.

Good portrait, or several, would be better examples.

--
[I] - sergey [/I]
Click to expand...
 
HatTrick66 said:
I have been using the E510 and kit lenses for 2 years, I feel I have learned very well with them. I also enjoy the camera and they work very well in good light. I am looking to get a FF camera sometime early 2011 to take care of the low light and important shots, but I would like to try something in the mean time to improve my indoor and lowlight shots.

I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.

Any advice would be much appreciated. I have searched around online and I am pleased with results in good light, but not many seem to venture into the low light arena with the OM lenses, perhaps due to manual focusing in that tiny viewfinder. Just wondering if anyone has any experience or advice to offer.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
If you are thinking of getting FF later then I would consider getting the lens for this same format first, and not Olympus OM. The lens that would be usable to you after you have bought a different camera. I know it is a bit of an overkill for Olympus, but Samyang 85 1.4 for Nikon could not be a better example. And Nikon adapter for Olympus is not that hard to get.

Ask around what people think of this lens. My guess is that once you try it on Oly you will move to different format sooner ;).

--
- sergey
 
I'm afraid it will make you unhappy most of the time... My son is four years and I have tons of blurred images, taken with manual focus. But every now and then there is a sharp one and with lots of luck you can even see his face. These guys are way too fast (at least for me).

But nevertheless I would recommend the OM Auto Macro 50/3,5. It is really sharp and I found it easier to focus than the 50/1,8.
 
atw999 said:
I'm afraid it will make you unhappy most of the time... My son is four years and I have tons of blurred images, taken with manual focus. But every now and then there is a sharp one and with lots of luck you can even see his face. These guys are way too fast (at least for me).
Click to expand...
You can still pre-focus, but smallish viewfinder does not help it much either, does it?
atw999 said:
But nevertheless I would recommend the OM Auto Macro 50/3,5. It is really sharp and I found it easier to focus than the 50/1,8.
Click to expand...
Slower lens kind of defeats the fun of it. Why not just use kit, they are dirt cheap as no-one wants them, and you won't have to focus manually.

--
- sergey
 
HatTrick66 said:
I have been using the E510 and kit lenses for 2 years, I feel I have learned very well with them. I also enjoy the camera and they work very well in good light. I am looking to get a FF camera sometime early 2011 to take care of the low light and important shots, but I would like to try something in the mean time to improve my indoor and lowlight shots.

I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.
Click to expand...
MF on a 510 in low light might be more of a problem than you think, but if you want to indulge there are some lenses worth investigating.
  • All the Konica AR will fit with modification, however the mods are not difficult. Of particular interest should be the 40/1.8, very cheap to buy and a very good lens, 50/1.2 which is a bit soft to f2.
http://cybernetdenis.net/lenses.htm
http://www.rokkorfiles.com/olympus.htm
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1022&message=18600868
  • Samyang make a 85/1.4 available under a number of brands of which Rokinon are the cheapest to buy and you can have one in 4/3rds mount with no need for an adapter. Roel on this forum handles a Rokinon and it looks to be a good solution wide open, you can find them commonly on ebay for $250+, no adapter required, but you could get Pentax K mount which can also be adapted to Canon EOS.
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1022&message=35933472&changemode=1
  • Take OM's on a case by case basis, the best of them are no longer cheap, not all of them work well on 4/3rds. You can get a look at that scenario here
http://www.biofos.com/cornucop/omz_e1.html
HatTrick66 said:
Any advice would be much appreciated. I have searched around online and I am pleased with results in good light, but not many seem to venture into the low light arena with the OM lenses, perhaps due to manual focusing in that tiny viewfinder. Just wondering if anyone has any experience or advice to offer.
Click to expand...
if you are talking about taking it to FF later, you are talking about Canon, it wont fit Nikon as there is no room for an adapter. Canons EOS mount and the 4/3rds mount are the most adaptable mounts there are

http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/adapters_5d.html

OMs will fit all Canon FF with an adapter without modification to the camera, perhaps worth noting now that some other alternate lenses protrude into the mount in which case you have to shave part of the mirror off the camera to allow it to clear.

as a result OMs have held their value very well, to the point where it can be worthwhile to look at alternates to OM's for which personally I favour Contax lenses on the basis of IQ, quality and cost.

--
Riley

any similarity to persons living or dead is coincidental and unintended
 
He once referred to himself as a "Hüpfdenker" (~ bouncing thinker)...
Sergey_Green said:
You can still pre-focus, but smallish viewfinder does not help it much either, does it?
Click to expand...
Doesn't at all. My eyesight is not at it's best anymore, so I use the Magnifier eycup. Helps a little (510). Maybe a split-prism would be a real improvement?
Sergey_Green said:
Slower lens kind of defeats the fun of it.
Click to expand...
No, it's still fun. I mentioned it because I have my doubts that the faster lenses would help a lot in low light (at least with the OVF).
 
Rriley said:
..
  • Samyang make a 85/1.4 available under a number of brands of which Rokinon are the cheapest to buy and you can have one in 4/3rds mount with no need for an adapter.
Click to expand...
If he is looking at Nikon as his FF alternative I would get Nikon mount from the start and be done with it. From what I gather you simply can not go wrong with it for what it sells and what it does. And when he buys the camera he will already have a lens.
Rriley said:
Roel on this forum handles a Rokinon and it looks to be a good solution wide open, you can find them commonly on ebay for $250+, no adapter required, but you could get Pentax K mount which can also be adapted to Canon EOS.
Click to expand...
The thing is, is it worth buying a FF camera so that one would use adapted lenses.
Rriley said:
...

if you are talking about taking it to FF later, you are talking about Canon, it wont fit Nikon as there is no room for an adapter. Canons EOS mount and the 4/3rds mount are the most adaptable mounts there are

http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/adapters_5d.html

OMs will fit all Canon FF with an adapter without modification to the camera, perhaps worth noting now that some other alternate lenses protrude into the mount in which case you have to shave part of the mirror off the camera to allow it to clear.

as a result OMs have held their value very well, to the point where it can be worthwhile to look at alternates to OM's for which personally I favour Contax lenses on the basis of IQ, quality and cost.
Click to expand...
Do the Contax lenses fit in without modification? I know nothing about it as you can tell. But I still probably would not bother about them.

--
- sergey
 
HatTrick66 said:
I have a 2 year old and one on the way, and I was wondering if despite the manual focus, if getting the OM adapter and an OM 50mm f/1.8 would help a lot in those situations where the kit lenses are killing me.
Click to expand...
AF is faster than MF and the DOF sort of helps you to focus more accurate with less accuracy. With the OM lenses you can forget about stopping down to f/5.8 or f/8 because the VF will become too dim. The OM lenses may work for static images but focusing is difficult if your kid is running around. While the AF of the kit lenses isn't very fast, I suspect that it is much faster than MF, especially with the E-510. The least you could do is get a chipped adapter to help you focus.
 
olyflyer said:
AF is faster than MF and the DOF sort of helps you to focus more accurate with less accuracy.
Click to expand...
incoherent

--
Riley

any similarity to persons living or dead is coincidental and unintended
 
Rriley said:
olyflyer said:
AF is faster than MF and the DOF sort of helps you to focus more accurate with less accuracy.
Click to expand...
incoherent
Click to expand...
Why didn't you correct it then?

Of course it is incoherent if you rip apart the whole message and just quote a tiny part of it totally out of it's context.

You get more DOF if the lens is f/5.6 than if the lens with the same focal length is f/1.8. From the same distance more accurate focus is necessary if your lens is f/1.8 than with an aperture of f/5.6 because of the DOF. In other words, with a fast lens you need higher accuracy in your focus than with a slow lens. But of course, you know this very well.

On the other hand, if you read the whole message I posted earlier:
olyflyer said:
AF is faster than MF and the DOF sort of helps you to focus more accurate with less accuracy. With the OM lenses you can forget about stopping down to f/5.8 or f/8 because the VF will become too dim. The OM lenses may work for static images but focusing is difficult if your kid is running around. While the AF of the kit lenses isn't very fast, I suspect that it is much faster than MF, especially with the E-510. The least you could do is get a chipped adapter to help you focus.
Click to expand...
You can surely understand my post was about the slower kit lenses versus the faster OM. To me that's not at all incoherent, and I am sure you know this as well.
 
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