Should I upgrade my lenses from 2.8 to 1.4 ? (GAS problem)

[nwphil]

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On 12/2/2019 at 9:23 PM, hillavoider said:

instead of blowing it on lenses you may or may not need save it for the upcoming M10M with 41mp sensor, it will be every street photographer's wet GAS dream 

aka shart

lenses can be used in any M and even other makers - eventually the electronics will fade to grey (loosing most of its green upon opening the box)

[jwr50]

13 hours ago, maxfairclough said:

What does GAS mean? I read it a lot on this forum.

Thank you for asking that question.  I had the same question but was too embarrassed to ask it!  😉

[pedaes]

On 12/3/2019 at 12:22 PM, Mark II said:

FWIW, most of my street photography is at f1.4 (at the moment), because most of it is at night

Can we see it anywhere?

[Mark II]

2 hours ago, pedaes said:

Can we see it anywhere?

They are hidden in my blog, and mostly shot on film. eg: SOI18 (50mm f1.4) and BD4 (28mm f2 - which was basically a lesson in why f1.4 lenses are so important). Exposures are typically from 1/30th or 1/60th at f1.4, notionally at ISO 1600, although it is probably higher than this as I have extended the developing time to give the results I wanted without dropping below 1/30th.

I have not shot much at night on the M10. One example is this set, taken using a diffusion filter to give a more filmic look. The M10 is much easier to use, as for B&W I can just set ISO to 800 or 1600, set the shutter speed to something I can easily manage such as 1/125th, and aperture to f1.4. The aim is to underexpose by around 2 stops, lifting the RAW files in post processing. The end results are largely indistinguishable from using a higher ISO except that I gain highlight headroom and can mostly shoot without worrying about exposure settings (or relying on auto settings that are easily confused at night).

I would love to try an M10 Monochrome as an alternative to shooting film... 🙂

[Ko.Fe.]

I used to travel a lot until recently and I'm doing street photography at least five days per week. Was using f3.8 lens with ISO6400 yesterday after sunset and I wish I could have ISO 12800 instead or f1.4 lens.

So, as street photog, I do need f1.4 on 35 lens and I use my f1.5 50 lens on travel and street. Just year ago I went to Boston, then up North and back. I used nothing but truly compact 50 1.5 Jupiter 3 on my M4-2. 

But.

Would I use it on M10? No. Why, if M10 gives usable ISO way above 6400? What is the purpose to pay 7K USD for small camera and slap big f1.4 lens on it if it is not necessary for exposure?  Bokeh? And only.

[evikne]

http://www.yanidel.net

Here is a guy that does street photography, mostly wide open. The pictures are truly amazing and inspirational. 

Unfortulately it seems that he currently has some problems with his website, but the images are still there.  

[Ko.Fe.]

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It makes sense on M9 as he has. I would also prefer 35 1.4 on my M-E instead of 35 2.5. Or M10 with 2.5.

[farnz]

1 hour ago, evikne said:

Here is a guy that does street photography, mostly wide open. The pictures are truly amazing and inspirational.

Yanidel was a member here for a number of years.  I particularly remember his pictures because he shot with the wonderful but very rare M-Hexanon 60/1.2 lens that has a character of its own, which he exploited beautifully I thought.

Pete.

[evikne]

34 minutes ago, farnz said:

Yanidel was a member here for a number of years.  I particularly remember his pictures because he shot with the wonderful but very rare M-Hexanon 60/1.2 lens that has a character of its own, which he exploited beautifully I thought.

Pete.

I've read his blog, and his all manual shooting technique is amazingly similar to my own. We share almost all the same ideas about exposure and focusing, including things I thought no one else had thought of.

Edited December 5, 2019 by evikne

[tobey bilek]

All my fast lenses gather dust replaced by 3.8 or so.  24 mm 3.8 is fantastic and all you need unless you do deep into darkness photos.  35 & 24 is my favorite wide combo.

I do think most of us get hung up lenses.  You need 2 or 3 or maybe even a 50 alone which you make work.  

[250swb]

On 12/2/2019 at 1:54 PM, seekwul said:

I should probably use the money to have my head examined, but that ship has sailed a long time ago. 😉

 

The traditional rule for photojournalism or 'street' photography is 'f/8 and be there'. And that came from the days of film where what you had loaded even more limited what you could do, but it makes sense, f/8 means you get a decent DOF, and the photographer's skill deals with the shutter speed. Now you can have your ISO set on 'auto' and get an infinitely adjustable range that keeps your f/8 usable. So, why would you need an f/1.4 lens for street photography? Sure you can use f/1.4 but if it's fast moving street photography and not the 'look at the bokeh' artifice then catching the action still needs f/8. 

[Mark II]

15 hours ago, 250swb said:

The traditional rule for photojournalism or 'street' photography is 'f/8 and be there'. And that came from the days of film where what you had loaded even more limited what you could do, but it makes sense, f/8 means you get a decent DOF, and the photographer's skill deals with the shutter speed. Now you can have your ISO set on 'auto' and get an infinitely adjustable range that keeps your f/8 usable. So, why would you need an f/1.4 lens for street photography? Sure you can use f/1.4 but if it's fast moving street photography and not the 'look at the bokeh' artifice then catching the action still needs f/8. 

The f8 rule works well in many situations, but not all. Shooting in the narrow streets of Barcelona on a wet and stormy day it is easy to end up Needing f1.4 and ISO 1600. Add a colour contrast filter or shoot at night and things are worse still.

It is really not that hard shooting at f1.4. You need to adopt a different strategy and anticipate images, pre-focussing. With a 35mm lens this is usually only a problem when at very close distances. I loose more images from an inadvertent slow shutter speed than from depth of field. 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Mark II

[maxfairclough]

On 12/5/2019 at 10:21 AM, a.noctilux said:

😉

Someone made it a Science ...

The Science of Gear Acquisition Syndrome

 

 

 

Thanks haha!

[seekwul]

Thanks everyone for all of the advice. Wound up picking up a slightly used 28/1.4; should be here later this week. 

[oldwino]

2 hours ago, seekwul said:

Thanks everyone for all of the advice. Wound up picking up a slightly used 28/1.4; should be here later this week. 

Please share your impressions of it when you can!

[IkarusJohn]

4 hours ago, seekwul said:

Thanks everyone for all of the advice. Wound up picking up a slightly used 28/1.4; should be here later this week. 

Good choice.  Take your time to come to grips with it.

[seekwul]

Supposedly, the supereon is the largest unit of measured time. I find that the time between deciding to buy something and actually receiving it in person usually feels longer. 🙂