Pany 14-42mm II - the forgotten kit?

I often describe unique, well-taken photos as having a "you are there" feeling to them. But this, I mean to say that the photos have such gorgeous colors, the scenes are so sharp (without being overly sharp), and the whole scene has depth that it's like being there and you just wind up staring at the photo, wondering "I wish I could take photos like that."

This is often accomplished (IMO) by:

1. Knowing your camera - in particular, how the camera meter will react to different lighting scenarios (this is so important). Knowing when to use Multi-Segment (ESP), Spot, or Average metering.

2. Picking the right glass. Remember, good glass does not mean you have to spend a lot of money!  As I mentioned, Panasonic makes excellent lower to mid tier kit lenses and the glass in those lenses are superb.

3. Choosing the right aperture (I shoot in aperture priority mode - often from F5.6 to 6.3 - unless I want a shallower DOF.

4. Composition skills.  Know how to compose your scene. Too often folks will just shoot without sizing up the scenes they want to capture. Break up your scene into thirds - balance things out.  As an aside, I once knew a young lad (at the time he was only 16) and he had a cheap P&S camera.  One day (he worked for me part when I was still a park manager) I gave him an assignment (because he was getting on my nerves that particular day) to go out and find various "turds" in the park and photograph them.  As he left, I just giggled - but when he returned some 30 minutes later, he had captured some of the most gorgeous turds I had ever seen - their compositions were superb, the contrasts and color saturation were superior.  Heck, after seeing his work, I wanted to be a turd!!!!!    What I'm trying to say here is that he took his time and regardless of what he was shooting, he evaluated the scenes and got the best angles he could.  I obviously still talk about that young lad today.

5. Post Processing. Now this is where many folks can ruin images - I've seen it all too often. I shoot in RAW only because I want the dynamic headroom that my files have. I don't shoot in JPG mode because JPG's are lossy files - meaning that at the moment they are taken, much information is thrown out as the image is compressed. If you then have to make adjustments for over-exposures or under-exposures - well, good luck because the JPG's won't give you much latitude. RAW files, on the other hand, have a tremendous amount of information in them. But you have to become proficient in doing this, which takes time. And what I do in the RAW conversion process - I tend to use Lightroom or ACR within Photoshop - is so important.

5. Watch your sharpening!  Rather than use the sharpening sliders in ACR or Lightroom, I allow the sharpening to remain in the default position - but I do adjust the detail slider and this makes a world of difference. For example, within ACR or Lightroom, I will set the sharpening slider at 25 or 30 at the maximum. But my detail slider will be set to 50 or 60. There are other settings, but you have to know what to adjust. After awhile, you will become extremely skillful and it will become second nature.

6. The problem is that during post processing, many folks will second guess themselves, wondering, "gee, is this sharp enough (even though it is),?" and they will add every more sharpening just to be safe. The problem is that often-times they've now ruined the image as it now will appear digital, more nosier (over sharpening also sharpens digital noise), and this "sandy" or "scratchy" effect can detract from your image(s) big time.

Let's look at these samples - taken by different brand cameras. I am showing the same scenes below - that is of Yate Mill Historical Park in Raleigh, NC. The scenes are of the historic grist mill there (photographed by thousands of photographers). I always take my cameras (when I first get them) to this location to test out the cameras. Under each photo will be a description of the gear used. The scenes were obviously captured at different times during the year.

Please click on the "Original Size" link below each photo so you can see a sharper, larger, and more clearer image.

Canon EOS M3 (24 MP's) with the Tamron 18-200 F3.5-6.3 Di III VC lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F6.3 with IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.

Fuji X-M1 (16 MP's) with XC 16-50 f3.5-5.6 IS Kit Lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F6.3 and IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.

Olympus EP-2 (12 MP's) with the Olympus 14-42 II f3.5-5.6 kit lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F5.6 and IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.

Fuji X-A3 (24 MP's) with XC 16-50 f3.5-5.6 II IS Kit lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F6.3 and IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.

Canon EOS M2 (18 MP's) with the Canon EF-S 10-18 F4.5-5.6 Wide Angle lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F7.1 with IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.

Panasonic GX1 with 14-42 II f3.5-5.6 OIS kit lens. Shot in Aperture Priority Mode, AWB, RAW file mode, at F6.3 and IS engaged. Converted with Lightroom.