In December, as I’ve mentioned, I picked up a lens for my Panasonic Micro 4/3 outfit – the Olympus M. Zuiko 45mm. There’s plenty to say about it, but let me start by saying that since I first opened the box I’ve been savoring it’s compactness. This is a lens that could snuggle up next to a golfball. But more to the point, it’s the very satisfying speed of this lens which has been making most of the news.
By designing it both small and speedy, they’ve escorted handheld telephoto imaging into a new dimension. Interestingly, the M. Zuiko suggests a miniature version of my much-used 90mm Sonnar (for my Contax G2)–a Zeiss telephoto that was another good performer when used without a tripod.
Much has been written about the M. Zuiko’s ability to deliver a creamy soft focus when used wide open (aka bokeh). As you might know, this is an old technique which everyone is infatuated with at the moment. Very shallow depth of field is possible, to an extent not previously achievable with point-and-shoot. If you’re into bokeh, then this lens is your huckleberry. At ISO 400 you can roam around indoors without a flash, getting portraits with good contrast and no one will even know you’re there.
Needless to say I’m using it for landscapes. The picture above demonstrates how an effective handheld picture is possible with this lens in low light outside. I shot it at ISO 100, at a fairly wide f2.5 aperture and a shutter at 1/160. The aperture was wide, but not entirely open. This was good for several reasons: the image was recorded in the central part of the glass rather than shooting at the very edges. (If I’d used a fast zoom I would’ve been shooting wide open and probably at a higher ISO). I’ve taken advantage of both the speed of the lens and the finest part of the optics by doing this.
Most importantly, the depth of field in the image is surprisingly good. The slight bokeh which one achieves with not-entirely-wide f stops can be very effective in landscapes. In this picture, that effect is most apparent in the darkest part of the foreground. I was able to shoot handheld at ISO 100 after sundown and achieve adequate depth of field. In these terms, the Olympus 45mm f1.8 is extraordinarily versatile.
The lilliputian character of the M. Zuiko relates directly to the Micro 4/3 sensor. It should be interesting to see if the (significantly larger) Sony NEX 7 system will have a comparable fully automatic prime telephoto available in the next year. I doubt it, but even if one comes along, it’s likely to be larger. For landscapes I much prefer a fast telephoto that’s usable without a tripod. I’m not ditching my Panasonics, and I suspect there’s an argument to make for using both formats.
BTW–This is how I’m currently working with my 4/3 primes:
I pack the Panasonic G 3 and the GF 2 into a small Tenba bag. The weight of both cameras (and all three prime lenses) is less than my old Hasselblad 180mm. That’s a lot of lightweight equipment using very little space. I keep the 14mm Panasonic on my G 3 and the 45mm Olympus on my GF 2. Since my GF 2 is silver, the lens is quite bewitching when paired this body.
The odd man out is my equally speedy 20mm f 1.7 which I can quickly install onto either body when needed. Having two bodies affixed with prime lenses makes it very easy to switch horses in the middle of a shoot. Advice: if you already have a GF body and are considering the G 3 (or GX 1)–keep your original camera. With prime lenses in your bag, having more than one body makes a lot of sense.
Here’s some specs on the lens from the Olympus press release:
http://www.olympus-global.com/en/news/2011a/nr110630zuiko45e.html
