Olympus mZD 75mm f1.8 Medium Telephoto Lens

Recently, Olympus has launched a new telephoto prime lens for the Micro Four-Thirds (m4/3) System. It is the mZD 75mm f1.8 lens.

Picture courtesy of Olympus Imaging

Ain't it a beauty? Full metal body construction with fast f1.8 aperture. It takes very sharp pictures from wide open till stopped down. Its performance matches the Four-Thirds System's ZD 150mm f2 SHG (Tuna) lens. Those familiar with the Tuna's performance will be in awe from what this new kid on the block can do.

MTF Chart courtesy of Olympus Imaging

Olympus Malaysia has sponsored a walkabout to celebrate the launching of this lens in Malaysia and I was one of the lucky participants. Using an Olympus PEN E-P3, a couple of shots were taken with this amazing lens.

The end-to-end sharpness is amazing and it handles flare very well. It is difficult to get any flare even when I deliberately tried to.The bokeh created is very smooth and creamy. Excellently produced for great portraitures.

This is one of the lenses to be in many, if not all, PEN and OM-D owner's wish or must buy list. I am drooling on it as well. Anyone game to buy one for me as a birthday gift?

Miki F @ Bukit Jalil Park

Armed with an OM135 f3.5 lens from many many years ago - I believe the lens MIGHT be older than myself - comes the time when we move forward one step and brace the world of everything in manual. Gone is the time when you will hear the "beep beep" of an AF lock. Gone is the time when the lens will move itself to get everything in focus. Gone is the time when A and S values will somehow be in sync to what you want.

It is very important that you are able to see things in focus through that small little viewfinder of the camera. There is also a need to have the brain control the hands in twisting the focus barrel of the lens while your eyes interpret what is being seen. This is where even the most sophisticated electronics will never be able to match the power of how our brain works in tandem with other limbs and senses.

It is a great feeling able to embrace what senior photographers from the film days feel while in a photo shoot.  Even though we have the advantage of being able to manipulate images easily post shutter click, nothing beats getting it right the first time! Setting the perfect exposure and focus based on instinct then clicking the shutter, the feeling is priceless. The adrenaline flows when you see that same picture on the camera LCD for a short review and found out that it is what you have imagined in the first place.

There is no doubt that lens quality from the olden times still perform strongly in the digital age. Pristine glasses from days of old work perfectly till the present day. The built quality of the olden lenses still beat those of the new, in terms of toughness and sturdiness. Those old lenses are made to kill! Imagine throwing one onto someone's head!

Oh yeah, have I mentioned that the bokeh from the old lens is SUPERB! It beats new digital lenses easily. It is so smooth and creamy, not to mention more pleasant to the eyes. The bokeh quality can only be matched by digital lenses which cost 10-15 times more. Oh! Those creamy bokeh just melts my heart each time I see it...

This is the first but definitely not the last photo shoot which full manual is used. The joy of controlling and deciding all aspects of getting things right the first time is just great. Satisfaction guaranteed!

The rest of the pics can be viewed here. All images taken using Olympus E-3 with OM135 f3.5 lens.

Angel T @ Thean Hou Temple

Sorry for the delayed posting as I was in the transition of being posted overseas for an assignment. However, please find below the introduction of Angel T.

 

 

 

 

The rest of the pics can be viewed here. All images taken using Olympus E-3 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 Mk I lens and FL-50 external flash.

Ice T @ Thean Hou Temple

As Chinese New Year (CNY) approaches, out goes the ferocious Tiger and let's welcome the cute Rabbit, I would like to post a recent portrait shoot I took at Thean Hou Temple in Kuala Lumpur with the rest of the MyChiaroscuro members. Every year during CNY, it will be lighted up with lots of lanterns and for this year some nice miniature landmarks.

There were 2 models for the photoshoot. First up I would like to introduce to you the cool Ice T (pun intended) while I will introduce the other in the next blog post. The photoshoot was conducted in the morning but the sky was cloudy and gloomy that day. Enough talk, let's get on with the pictures...

The rest of the pics can be viewed here. All images taken using Olympus E-3 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 Mk I lens and FL-50 external flash.

Nelly G

Set in an office environment, we had the opportunity to photograph the lovely Nelly G. No studio lighting was present and lighting was handled through the external flash in a bounced setting.

 

The rest can be found here. All images taken using Olympus E-510 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 lens and FL-50 flash.

Aries K @ The Aperture Studio

The final portraiture for 2009 was the lovely Aries K. The photoshoot was done at our very own studio. She's a charm to work with and as a little advertising here in the blog, the studio is opened for rental for you all to take these kind of photos.

The rest of the album can be viewed here. All images taken using Olympus E-510 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 and ZD 14-54 f2.8-3.5 lenses.

Joliv K @ Bukit Jalil Park

Sharing an outdoor portraiture shoot at Bukit Jalil Park with the lovely model, Joliv K.

 

  

 

The rest can be found here. All images taken using Olympus E-510 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 and ZD 14-54 f2.8-3.5 lenses.

Chloe S @ Bukit Jalil Park

I'm also actively involved in portraiture photography. My style tends towards natural presentation by taking advantage of what is available and doesn't rely heavily on post-processing. I will be posting portraiture of past and future when available.

As the start, this was taken not too long ago at the end of September 2009. Her name is Chloe S and it's her first time being in a photoshoot.

The rest can be viewed here. All images taken using Olympus E-510 with ZD 50-200 f2.8-3.5 and ZD 14-54 f2.8-3.5 lenses.