In praise of the lowly Olympus 75-300mm

MiguelATF · Feb 9, 2022

Two more quick samples which reveal why I like the output of this lens. Both taken while strolling around a rural area of the southern Oregon town where I live.

cattails, growing along the side of a creek

And--

the bed of an old pickup; behind it, the foothills of the Cascades mountain range

A brief note about shooting at the extreme (300mm) end of the telephoto zoom: it helps (obviously) to use faster shutter speeds, as well as the vibration free electronic shutter. But I am discovering that it also takes practice, practice and practice.

--
"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed."
~Garry Winogrand~
https://migueltejadafloresphotos.wordpress.com/
Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/migueltejadaflores/
Blog: http://migueltejadaflores.wordpress.com

Boss of Sony · Feb 9, 2022

It's my favorite lens.

Henry Falkner · Feb 9, 2022

Vey well done!

Henry

tomhongkong · Feb 9, 2022

Henry Falkner said:
Vey well done!

Henry

Thanks. I simply wanted to show what is I am getting with a good copy of the lens. I am sure others can do better, and it seems as though there may be some poor copies out there.

tom

tomhongkong · Feb 10, 2022

tomhongkong said:
Henry Falkner said:

Vey well done!

Henry

Click to expand...

Thanks. I simply wanted to show what is I am getting with a good copy of the lens. I am sure others can do better, and it seems as though there may be some poor copies out there.

tom

And a couple more

Now that's a tail...Crested Drongo

Bathtime with helpers (the DoF got away from me)

All hand held.

tom

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

NZ Scott said:
GinaRothfels said:

I nearly bought a used copy of the Olympus 75-300mm today, but I found it impossible to control the camera shake at 300mm (I have extremely shaky hands and they were really bad this afternoon). No doubt the fact that I was using an ancient OM-D E-M5 (mark I) didn't help.

I ended up buying a used 17mm f1.8 instead.

Click to expand...

Nice - the 17/1.8 is a lovely little lens.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

I hope I do, but it won't help me with bird photography.

NZ Scott said:
NZ Scott said:

As the only Olympus lenses I've ever owned were the 12-50mm kit lens and version 1 of the 40-150mm, I guess this is a commitment to upgrading my camera, which I've hardly used since buying into the Canon M mount.

Once I've got a better camera, I may have another look at the 70-300 as I'd like a long lens for shooting the birds in my garden. I'm currently using the Canon EF-S 55-250mm on my M60 mark II but thought IBIS might give me better results than the stabilisation in that lens.

Click to expand...

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

3dpan said:
GinaRothfels said:

Henry Falkner said:

I am using the 75-300 with both my E-M10 II and E-M10 IV on a tripod mount using the camera body fixture. The slightest wind causes the shakes at the 300mm end.

I have been unable to find a bracket that fits on the body at one end and a lens support at the other to suit the 75-300 lens in particular.

There are such mounts for other long lenses, some even come with a built-in tripod mount.

I dread the day when I find I can't stop shaking. It will be the end of my photography.

Henry

Click to expand...

I hate using a tripod and certainly can't see myself using one for shooting birds, so I guess this isn't the lens for me.

Click to expand...

Have you tried a monopod ?

I have, but I don't find it very helpful, especially for birds which are high in the trees or on my roof.

3dpan · Feb 10, 2022

GinaRothfels said:
3dpan said:

GinaRothfels said:

Henry Falkner said:

I am using the 75-300 with both my E-M10 II and E-M10 IV on a tripod mount using the camera body fixture. The slightest wind causes the shakes at the 300mm end.

I have been unable to find a bracket that fits on the body at one end and a lens support at the other to suit the 75-300 lens in particular.

There are such mounts for other long lenses, some even come with a built-in tripod mount.

I dread the day when I find I can't stop shaking. It will be the end of my photography.

Henry

Click to expand...

I hate using a tripod and certainly can't see myself using one for shooting birds, so I guess this isn't the lens for me.

Click to expand...

Have you tried a monopod ?

Click to expand...

I have, but I don't find it very helpful, especially for birds which are high in the trees or on my roof.

A pistol grip ball mount can be useful for rapidly changing view angles.

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

tomhongkong said:
GinaRothfels said:

Henry Falkner said:

I am using the 75-300 with both my E-M10 II and E-M10 IV on a tripod mount using the camera body fixture. The slightest wind causes the shakes at the 300mm end.

I have been unable to find a bracket that fits on the body at one end and a lens support at the other to suit the 75-300 lens in particular.

There are such mounts for other long lenses, some even come with a built-in tripod mount.

I dread the day when I find I can't stop shaking. It will be the end of my photography.

Henry

Click to expand...

I hate using a tripod and certainly can't see myself using one for shooting birds, so I guess this isn't the lens for me.

Click to expand...

Gina

I am 82 and not nearly as steady as I used to be, and I am sure not as steady as you!

I'm a lot younger than you, but I doubt I'm more steady because I have a benign tremor which is really bad some days, especially when I'm nervous. For some reason testing that lens seemed to make it worse because I'd tried an old Canon mount Sigma 70-300mm lens on my OM-D E-M5 (mark I) the night before in low light and the results were a lot better. The differences were that it's a heavier lens, so possibly easier to keep stable, as well as being a faster lens. Unfortunately the adapter I own only gives me manual focus and no aperture control and I'm not sure it's worth buying a better one if it won't give me continuous autofocus. The adapter doesn't cost a whole lot less than the used Oly 75-300mm lens I was considering.

tomhongkong said:
The shots below were taken hand held with the 75-300 on my EM5iii in poor light with back lighting. I did everything wrong according to the pundits, the exposure correction for the backlight reduced my shutter speed even below what I would normally use. to 1/250! I used iso 640, I could have upped it a bit to shorten shutter speed. I used f6.7....I personally don't find a great benefit of stopping down to 7.1 but I sometimes do. I used the full 300mm.

All around me were the local photographer gang, with big DSLR's and HUGE lenses. I felt very inferior, but the results are fine for me.

So, first the SOOC shot to give you the context and the distance to the bird

Then, the next image is ready for printing. I find I can crop to 2000 on the long side and get decent prints on my Epson L4160, so this is cropped. It was opened in PL5, I upped the exposure a bit and added some micro contrast. I exported in Deep Prime normal setting, but PL5 sharpening was turned off. I sharpened with Topaz Sharpening. (Takes longer to type than do!). Any suggestions for improvement to my workflow would be gratefully received. I am still experimenting with Topaz.

I guess the message is to persevere, the 75-300 can produce acceptable output (for my needs) even in bad conditions. Initially I was disappointed with the results I was getting. If I had to take a tripod it would spoil the enjoyment of walking light with this set up

Nice shot. I'd be very happy to get results like that.

tomhongkong said:
Good luck

tom

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

3dpan said:
GinaRothfels said:

3dpan said:

GinaRothfels said:

Henry Falkner said:

I am using the 75-300 with both my E-M10 II and E-M10 IV on a tripod mount using the camera body fixture. The slightest wind causes the shakes at the 300mm end.

I have been unable to find a bracket that fits on the body at one end and a lens support at the other to suit the 75-300 lens in particular.

There are such mounts for other long lenses, some even come with a built-in tripod mount.

I dread the day when I find I can't stop shaking. It will be the end of my photography.

Henry

Click to expand...

I hate using a tripod and certainly can't see myself using one for shooting birds, so I guess this isn't the lens for me.

Click to expand...

Have you tried a monopod ?

Click to expand...

I have, but I don't find it very helpful, especially for birds which are high in the trees or on my roof.

Click to expand...

A pistol grip ball mount can be useful for rapidly changing view angles.

I have one which I no longer use. Maybe I should see if it fits my monopod - if I can find where I put it!

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

UrbanHobbit said:
I have found 200mm to be about the threshold where I turn off IBIS and let lens IS take over from my E-M1 II. When I shoot my adapted EF-S 55-250, I am very happy with the IS performance in that lens, on that body – especially at the full 250mm. The tradeoff there is that sometimes I have to take a shot before the lens IS will kick in. I find this more the case with the Viltrox EF-M1 adapter than with the Commlite AEF-MFT adapter.

Having said all that, the 75-300mm is still on my list as an everyday-carry lens, now that my interests have shifted to photographing local birds. With that setup, I will have to rely on IBIS, or hope for good enough light to allow for very fast shutter speeds. (The 55-250 is optically terrific, but I would like faster autofocus target acquisition, as well as C-AF. Hence the switch to a native lens.)

That last point is what worries me. It would be a costly exercise to see what kind of results I could get because my adapter is manual. It works for manual focus with my ancient Canon mount Sigma 70-300mm (a lens which such a poor reputation that I couldn't even use it as a trade-in on better equipment) but not my Canon 55-250mm which is STM.

3dpan · Feb 10, 2022

Gina, I use an E-M5 II with the m.zuiko 75-300mm lens. It's my favorite way to photograph birdlife around the house. It's lightweight, very good IBIS.
I'm nearly 80, I don't have shaky hands but my balance can be a bit wobbly, so I tend not to wander around looking for photo opportunities, instead I set up a bird feeder/bird bath with an adjacent photo hide and then let the birds come to me. Makes life so much easier.

For example, in this case the hide was the kitchen window, with camera resting on the window sill, but same principle, let the birds come to me.

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

3dpan said:
Gina, I use an E-M5 II with the m.zuiko 75-300mm lens. It's my favorite way to photograph birdlife around the house. It's lightweight, very good IBIS.
I'm nearly 80, I don't have shaky hands but my balance can be a bit wobbly, so I tend not to wander around looking for photo opportunities, instead I set up a bird feeder/bird bath with an adjacent photo hide and then let the birds come to me. Makes life so much easier.
For example, in this case the hide was the kitchen window, with camera resting on the window sill, but same principle, let the birds come to me.

Nice shot.

I like that idea as my bird photography is currently limited to the birds that visit my garden anyway. I've considered getting a birdbath but our garden has a low wall and crime is quite high in my country, so I'm scared it would be stolen. Even a hosepipe was stolen from our garden and it wasn't even visible from the street.

At this stage I'm stuck with what I've got though as I've just discovered that the 75-300mm lens I looked at yesterday has been sold.

3dpan · Feb 10, 2022

GinaRothfels said:
3dpan said:

Gina, I use an E-M5 II with the m.zuiko 75-300mm lens. It's my favorite way to photograph birdlife around the house. It's lightweight, very good IBIS.
I'm nearly 80, I don't have shaky hands but my balance can be a bit wobbly, so I tend not to wander around looking for photo opportunities, instead I set up a bird feeder/bird bath with an adjacent photo hide and then let the birds come to me. Makes life so much easier.
For example, in this case the hide was the kitchen window, with camera resting on the window sill, but same principle, let the birds come to me.

Click to expand...

Nice shot.

I like that idea as my bird photography is currently limited to the birds that visit my garden anyway. I've considered getting a birdbath but our garden has a low wall and crime is quite high in my country, so I'm scared it would be stolen. Even a hosepipe was stolen from our garden and it wasn't even visible from the street.

At this stage I'm stuck with what I've got though as I've just discovered that the 75-300mm lens I looked at yesterday has been sold.

My bird bath is a heavyweight concrete job, too heavy for one person to lift, and quite ugly. But the birds don't care.

The 75-300mm is very good value for money, as is the E-M5 II. Second hand prices.

GinaRothfels · Feb 10, 2022

3dpan said:
GinaRothfels said:

3dpan said:

Gina, I use an E-M5 II with the m.zuiko 75-300mm lens. It's my favorite way to photograph birdlife around the house. It's lightweight, very good IBIS.
I'm nearly 80, I don't have shaky hands but my balance can be a bit wobbly, so I tend not to wander around looking for photo opportunities, instead I set up a bird feeder/bird bath with an adjacent photo hide and then let the birds come to me. Makes life so much easier.
For example, in this case the hide was the kitchen window, with camera resting on the window sill, but same principle, let the birds come to me.

Click to expand...

Nice shot.

I like that idea as my bird photography is currently limited to the birds that visit my garden anyway. I've considered getting a birdbath but our garden has a low wall and crime is quite high in my country, so I'm scared it would be stolen. Even a hosepipe was stolen from our garden and it wasn't even visible from the street.

At this stage I'm stuck with what I've got though as I've just discovered that the 75-300mm lens I looked at yesterday has been sold.

Click to expand...

My bird bath is a heavyweight concrete job, too heavy for one person to lift, and quite ugly. But the birds don't care.

I don't know how I'd get a heavy one here. We don't like to give strangers access to our home since the pandemic began.

3dpan said:
The 75-300mm is very good value for money, as is the E-M5 II. Second hand prices.

I'm happy to buy second hand lenses, but not cameras. I want the best technology possible. Even the E-M5 III autofocus is said to be worse than what I've got on my Canon, but I really want IBIS and some of the other uniquely Olympus features.

Mait · Feb 11, 2022

This one i did noise reduction

MiguelATF · Feb 11, 2022

Mait said:
This one i did noise reduction

Two lovely shots.

--
"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed."
~Garry Winogrand~

MIGUEL TEJADA-FLORES. PHOTOS.

"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed." (Garry Winogrand)

migueltejadafloresphotos.wordpress.com

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/migueltejadaflores/
Blog: http://migueltejadaflores.wordpress.com

MiguelATF · Feb 11, 2022

Supposedly, stopping down to f/8 increases the optical quality of images this lens produces. But even wide open at 300mm (f/6.7), it does rather well.

This visiting Scrub-Jay acts like he owns the tree... perhaps he does.

--
"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed."
~Garry Winogrand~

MIGUEL TEJADA-FLORES. PHOTOS.

"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed." (Garry Winogrand)

migueltejadafloresphotos.wordpress.com

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/migueltejadaflores/
Blog: http://migueltejadaflores.wordpress.com

MiguelATF · Feb 15, 2022

One more photograph which illustrates, better than words can, some of the strengths of this lens.

taken just before sunset, in southern Oregon, the Cascades mountains in the distant background

--
"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed."
~Garry Winogrand~

MIGUEL TEJADA-FLORES. PHOTOS.

"I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed." (Garry Winogrand)

migueltejadafloresphotos.wordpress.com

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/migueltejadaflores/
Blog: http://migueltejadaflores.wordpress.com

Mait · Feb 16, 2022

Lately a lot of arguing, smashing and comparing happening here.

Enjoy your gear and take pictures instead

Tetrao urogallus:

In praise of the lowly Olympus 75-300mm

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