This recent discussion about doing the minimalist equipment packing had me
thinking over the weekend. Those of you on facehook may have seen the two
pictures I posted last night. One of some Blue Phlox and another of a
railroad crossing gate. Both were taken with the Panasonic L1 with Zuiko
35-80. (I'd post the links here, but I'd rather not deal with the grousing
from the facelessbook crowd).
Yesterday, I went for a several hour hike. It has rained so much that it was
a slippery, gooey mess and I grew an inch in height from the clay packed on
the soles of my hiking boots. My choice in gear wasn't all that compact. I
had in mind to do some experimentation so I had a field macro configuration
in the bag along with a pair of Vivitar 285HV flashes and modifiers. The
wind was honkin so I knew that any macro photography would have to be with
flash and I was most certainly correct about that. But the weight of the
kit, combined with my back-pain conspired to make it a rather uncomfortable
hike.
So, as is usual when out hiking with cameras, (the cameras are usually an
excuse to get out and hike), I think about cameras and photography. I
thought about a Leica kit. If I purchased Leicas, what would be my preferred
lenses to get? Probably the 35, 50 and 90 focal lengths. Maybe a 28 or 24.
Would I get a digital Leica? Oh, mamma, yes. If the funds would allow. But
not with my finances the way they are right now. So, I like film, so maybe a
film Leica would do? Sure, no problem. If I had a Leica I could shoot B&W
and be happy.
OK, OK, so I'm rambling...Hey, this is my post, I'll ramble if I want to.
On Saturday, I used the OM-3Ti along with the L1 for some archetechural
pictures. It never ceases to amaze me how blasted easy it is to focus the
OM-3Ti. There is absolute confidence in focus and the IMAX view through the
viewfinder is inspiring, to say the least. The metering system is completely
opposite of the guesswork system we have with digital too. Score one for the
OM.
For several pictures, over the weekend, I sought to do best possible working
methods to maximize image sharpness. Well, within reason, that is. The Zuiko
35-80 is a fine lens, but I've had plenty of pictures which were not sharp.
What's up with dat? Turns out, the problem has nothing to do with the lens,
but everything to do with technique. Anytime I can stop camera or subject
motion, the image quality goes up dramatically. The 5.6um pixel pitch of the
L1's sensor was pretty much maxed out by the lens. The E-1 masks the lens
resolution so much with the hyper-active AA filter that you really have no
clue how sharp things are, but the L1 is a bit more brutal and remains one
of the edgier sensors around.
If I do my math correctly, as the 35-80 zoom is at least as sharp as the
L1's sensor, I think that pretty much reflects the limits of almost any
reasonably usable film. So, inotherwords, the 35-80 bests film. Score one
for the Zuiko.
Back to the Leica question: I would expect to get 35mm and 90mm lenses.
Granted, formfactor of the lenses is much diffrent than the 35-80/2.8 and
I'd probably want the F2 versions (or 1.4 of the 35mm--dream dream dream),
but overall, I'd be looking at an almost pure overlap of the 35-80 with the
Leica lenses. For film photography, the question is: If all of these lenses
max out what film can capture, then is there any gain from one over the
other?
An age-old question, for sure. One that open up many cans of worms, but
suffice to say that the OM-3Ti and 35-80/2.8 really are in an unique
position as together they represent a "best of format" configuration.
Granted, they aren't "better" than a Leica or Nikon equivalent, but at some
point they have attained maturity of design AND have exceeded the limits of
the medium.
So, to bring this back around to a point. Oh, screw the point, can't I just
ramble once in a while?
OK, OK, the point to all this is that a person could do rather nicely if
he/she had JUST the OM-3Ti and 35-80/2.8 zoom.
For the upcoming trip, this summer, I ask myself if I could be so bold as to
take ONLY the OM-3Ti, 35-80/2.8 and B&W film? Nothing else except the tripod
and filters? No digital, no color. Just the B&W film?
Hmm....
AG Schnozz
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