Nick De Marco Posted January 14, 2009 Share #1 Posted January 14, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) I have recently been testing various third party used lenses I own on my new Canon 5D Mk II. I have nothing against many of Canon's finest L lenses (my favourite of the moment being the 35mm f1.4L), but sometimes find other lenses have a special 3 dimensional feel and smooth bokeh. I love my Leica Summicron f2, for example, far more than the Canon 1.4 which I find quite brutal at f2. I have a few very nice Leica R and Contax/Zeiss lenses I can use on the 5D. Reading various forums made me look into Olympus Zuiko lenses too, a cheaper alternative. I bought the 21mm and 28mm f2 lenses on ebay. Both very nice lenses but the 21mm is nowhere near as good as my Leica Super Angulon 21mm f4 (at f4, f8 or f16 in my opinion). The 28mm, on the other hand, is a great lens. So, on the eve of a trip to Myanmar I narrowed down my travel options. Leica 21mm f4, Oly 28/f2, Canon 35L f1.4, Leica Summicron f2 (far nicer than the Canon) and Canon 135L f2 (another great Canon lens). Then I noticed an old second hand Olympus SLR on my shelf I had picked up for about #60. I wondered what lens it had on it. Sure enough it was the Olympus Zuiko 50mm f1.8. I tried it on my 5D mk II straight away and was immediately impressed. I then quickly compared it to the Leica Summicron and found, to my shock and disbelief, I think it produces better images than my Summicron, and even a smoother bokeh. Whilst it is not engineered as well as the Leica, it is half the weight and tiny. So the Leica will say at home and the surprise find, Oly 50/1.8, is coming on holiday to Asia. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted January 14, 2009 Posted January 14, 2009 Hi Nick De Marco, Take a look here Great find - Olympus Zuiko 50mm f1.8. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Ruhayat Posted January 15, 2009 Share #2 Posted January 15, 2009 Yes, this lens is brilliant for portraits. It's texture is quite soft and not so contrasty. I prefer it to my Elmarit-R, although the 50mm Summicron is still the one that lives on my camera the most. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisbo Posted January 21, 2009 Share #3 Posted January 21, 2009 Very affordable lens. Is an adapter needed to mount on the Digilux 3? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
osscat Posted January 22, 2009 Share #4 Posted January 22, 2009 I used Olympus OM1n for many years alongside a Nikon F2. The nikkor 28mm f2 was my standard lens but after the F2 tragically ceased to function I kept to the OM1n. My best lens was the Zuiko f2 24mm and 28mm f2 but alongside them I very occasionally used the 50mm f1.4 which was not bad at all. I know Jane Bown, Koudelka, Bailey and others found the Olympus a useful tool in their equipment bags. Not yet tried one on the Digilux3 but it might prove interesting to try - so long as I can find the right adapter. Osscat Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puplet Posted January 22, 2009 Share #5 Posted January 22, 2009 Olympus 21/2, 55/1.2, 85/2 and 100/2.8 are my most frequently used Olympus lenses. Could never get a decent shot out of my 50/1.4 for some reason. Suppose, like always, it depends on your style of photography. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruhayat Posted January 22, 2009 Share #6 Posted January 22, 2009 Jane Bown was the main reason why I sought out the 50mm Zuiko. To use it on 4/3 cameras you need an adapter -- Olympus used to give one away for free (or upon request). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick De Marco Posted February 12, 2009 Author Share #7 Posted February 12, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Just got back from Asia and found that I used, and got the best results from, the Oly 50mm 1.8 most of all. The Oly 28/2 and the Canon 35/1.4 had about equal usage, the Canon 135 was useful for some landscapes but that's all, and the same really for the one Leica lens I took (as it was so wide) the 21/4. I shall be updating my website with the results soon, and where any are Leica related putting some pics up here. The Oly 50/1.8 is a seriously nice lens Nick Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ravduc Posted February 12, 2009 Share #8 Posted February 12, 2009 You can buy adapters (OM to four thirds or M42 to four thirds, etc) on ebay for about 20 usd. They are made in China and work just fine. I have many of these that I leave on my legacy lenses that I use on my D3 and other Olympus E cameras. Your lenses will focus to infinity. Metering is done in the stop down fashion on aperture preferred. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick De Marco Posted February 15, 2009 Author Share #9 Posted February 15, 2009 One e.g. from Myanmar (taken, I think, at f2.8) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
biglouis Posted February 15, 2009 Share #10 Posted February 15, 2009 Nick The last picture says it all about the quality of your 50/1.8. I'm off to do some portrait work tomorrow and planning on using my lux-35 and lux-50 lenses. I'll be interested to see if I can create the same level of focussed details and separation from the background to compare with this. A good find, indeed. LouisB Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick De Marco Posted February 19, 2009 Author Share #11 Posted February 19, 2009 Thanks Louis I am just compiling my Myanmar galleries now, and will post some shots here of those taken on the Leica M6 and also those taken with my 21 Leica R lens on the 5DII. I am very happy indeed with the Canon 5DII, but I am glad I took the M6 as well, the photos I have developed from that add something else. In the meantime I hope admin will forgive one cardinal sin, a link to my first complete gallery from the trip, Bankcock Chinatown, which does not include any Leica shots. Its all 5D II, mostly with the Oly 50mm f1.8, which I now think is one of the finest 50mm lenses there is. Apologies for not posting Leica stuff on a Leica forum, its only as I value the comments of my Leica friends so much. Here is the gallery: Bangkok Chinatown Photo Gallery by Nick De Marco at pbase.com And this is my favourite photo from it, with the Oly 50 wide open Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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