Lumix 20mm f/1.7 on Olympus E-P1

I've been waiting for the Panasonic micro-4/3rds Lumix 20mm f/1.7 lens to become available since I got my Olympus E-P1 back in July.

(See blog entry here.)

I prefer the grey Lumix 20 (shown on the left with UV filter attached) to the standard Olympus collapsible zoom (14-42mm f/3.5-5.6).

There are several reasons:

1. It's a fast lens f/1.7 useful for subject isolation (bokeh) and for indoors/low light situations.
2. It's not a macro lens but manages to focus down to 0.2m.
3. It's pancake in thickness and weighs just 100g. Much slimmer than the kit zoom. Perfect size for walkaround use.

The lens has received excellent reviews.

Styling-wise, it's very plain and looks a bit oversized in diameter compared to the E-P1 body. It's definitely not as attractive as the classic f/1.4 Voigtlander 35mm M-mount I also have:

It's about the same thickness as the E-P1 body.

Enough about the lens, some initial test photos (all taken at maximum aperture f/1.7) showing the subject isolation/bokeh characteristics of the lens. I was curious about the depth of field given the impact of the quarter-of-35mm size 4/3rds sensor.

From the lobby of the Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel in Shibuya, Tokyo:

Of technical interest only...

Depth of focus chart Click to zoom in.

E-P1: Panasonic Lumix 7-14mm vs. Olympus Digital Zuiko 8mm fisheye

A hobby of mine is spherical panorama photography.

The ultra wide angle Olympus 4/3rds Zuiko Digital 8mm f/3.5 fisheye lens mounted on my Olympus E-P1 allows 360° in all directions to be captured in just 7 (or 8) shots.

Shown here attached using a 4/3rds to micro-4/3rds adaptor.

As is standard, I shoot one row around using 6 shots (every 60°) in portrait format for maximum vertical coverage, plus 1 zenith and optionally one nadir. This provides decent image overlap for stitching.

The Panasonic Lumix G Vario 7-14mm f/4.0 is a rectilinear zoom lens that is quite compact and light by comparison. It's actually nearly half the weight: 300g vs. 568g = 485g + 83g for the Olympus MMF-1 adaptor. However, the maximum diagonal angle of view is spec'd at 114° vs. a claimed 180° (computed 170.2°).

See http://slash72.club.fr/gurl/Olympus/Copy%20of%20fisheye.htm for the Olympus 8mm fisheye technical details.

Let's compare the true coverage of the Lumix rectilinear lens at 7mm against the Olympus fisheye (8mm).

Pictures below were taken at Yodobashi Camera in Shinjuku.

Landscape format

Lumix (@ 7mm): Olympus (fisheye): Olympus Studo (fisheye correction):

Compare the coverage in the above image to the Lumix 7mm image shown earlier. The fisheye is definitely wider. And actually, the fisheye image extends beyond the rectangular portion at the corners. See below.

Olympus (defished): The defished shot above was created using Turk's free defish program with the following parameters:

Seems like the aspect ratio is a bit off. One of my parameters must be a bit wrong. Oh well. But you get the idea about the extra coverage.

In spherical panorama photography, the shots are taken with the camera rotated into portrait position.

Portrait format

Lumix (@ 7mm): Olympus (fisheye): Olympus Studo (fisheye correction): Olympus (defished):

Olympus E-P1 lens cases

The Olympus E-P1 is the most compact interchangeable lens digital camera currently on the market. See my earlier entries:

• Olympus Pen E-P1
• Part 2: Some test shots

Consequently, I've been looking for a secure yet highly configurable solution for carrying a few lenses with the camera.

I decided to search secondhand camera shops to find small lens cases for my Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f1.4 classic portrait lens and the M.Zuiko 14-42mm collapsible kit zoom.

My sincere thanks to Ivy Hou, photographer and camera otaku, for taking me on the equivalent of a "pub crawl" through selected used camera shops in Tokyo despite the summer heat.

The mission was successful. As you can see below, the Takumar f1.8/55 lens case from Pentax is exactly the right size to hold the kit zoom: it fits so snugly it seems amost purpose-made for the job.

The Nokton has a protruding focus tab so the same degree of fit is not possible, But the slightly slimmer and taller Pentax Takumar f3.5/28 lens case seems to work reasonably well.

Currently, the E-P1 body goes in the Kata DF-408 case shown above in the middle.

I plan to put the body attached to a pancake lens, possibily the pre-advertised Panasonic when it becomes available, in that or a similar rectangular soft case unless something special in a secondhand camera shop turns up.

The idea is to be able to string required lenses and plus other accessories and take only what I need.

My lightweight carbon-fiber/magnesium Gitzo Traveler can also go on the belt comme ça.

Olympus Pen E-P1 part 2: some test shots

I took some random test shots using my new Olympus Pen E-P1 micro-4/3rds camera.

(See previous blog entry here.)

I have four compatible lenses and two adaptors.

1. Shown mounted on camera: Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm (f/3.5-5.6) kit zoom (micro-4/3rds mount).
2. Back left: Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 manual focus prime lens (Leica M mount).
3. Back right: Olympus ED Zuiko Digital 8mm (f/3.5) Zuiko fisheye lens (4/3rds mount).
4. Not shown: Olympus ED Zuiko Digital 9-18mm (f/4-5.6) wide-angle zoom (4/3rds mount).

5. Voigtlander VM adaptor (Leica M to micro-4/3rds).
6. Olympus MMF-1 adaptor (4/3rds to micro-4/3rds).

First light with the Nokton (1/100s, f1.4, IS, noise filter: low). Available light, ISO 3200.

Title: Lunch

Checking for noise and detail at the C-clamp area below the Guinness. 100% crop:

Title:焼酎 (Shōchū) [Nokton 35mm/f1.4, 1/100s, ISO 800.]

Soft focus image courtesy of natural means: from condensation on refrigerator in the humidity of summer.

Title:京王線 (Keio Line) [Nokton 35mm/f1.4, hyperfocused 1/30s, ISO 125.]

Taken from a moving train. IS comes in handy. Using Manual mode to explicitly set a slow shutter speed. Normally, one would use a manual aperture lens in Aperture priority mode on the E-P1 (the camera will automatically choose a shutter speed that gives proper exposure).

Title:愛ちゃん (Ai-chan) [Nokton 35mm/f1.4, 1/1000s, f/1.4, ISO 200.]

Outside Tokyo Taiikukan (東京体育館). Notice only subtle blurring of the background despite f1.4 on the 4/3rds sensor and 1/1000s fast shutter speed.

f1.4 on 4/3rds depth-of-field is equivalent to f2.8 (2x) on a full frame sensor. Given that, and subject distance required for framing, perhaps a lens with f1.2 capability or even faster would have been better. But then the it wouldn't be so nice and compact as the 35mm f1.4.

Title: Tokyo back street [14-42mm M.Zuiko kit zoom, 1/125, f/6.3, ISO 200.]

Taken through the window of Ootoya (大戸屋) just behind Yoyogi station (代々木駅). Just a stone's throw but a world away from the severe modernity of the NTT Tower and the hustle and bustle of Shinjuku station (新宿駅).

If one doesn't need shallow depth-of-field from the f1.4, or its low-light capabilities, the slower f3.5-5.6 14-42mm kit zoom is actually much more versatile and less fiddly than the manual focus Voigtlander prime.

Title: Natural lighting

360° spherical panorama: interior.mov (full resolution, 12MB)interior2.mov (low resolution, 1.6MB)

At Tokyo University. Use Quicktime Player to view either of the full panorama .mov files.

This is my first spherical panorama with the E-P1. Taken with the 8mm fisheye lens attached via the MMF-1 adaptor on a special rig. More details next post.

Olympus Pen E-P1

The Olympus Pen E-P1 represents a new generation of compact, interchangeable lens cameras on the micro 4/3rds lens mount.

Here, I have the equivalent of manual transmission on a car. That is a Voigtlander Nokton Classic (35mm, f1.4) manual focus prime lens mounted using a VM (Leica M mount to micro 4/3rds) adaptor. No information is transmitted via the adaptor to the camera. Metering works in stop-down fashion. Manual focus assist is available on the E-P1 using liveview.

The camera came with a neat Olympus standard zoom that collapses for compactness. Here is my 3 lens kit:

These are three different lenses all with different mounts. Two adaptors are used here.

Shown mounted: my general low light and portrait lens. Voigtlander Nokton Classic (35mm, f1.4) Leica M mount. VM Leica M to micro 4/3rds adaptor (no electrical contacts to transmit lens information, so manual use only).

Back left: general purpose mid-range zoom. Olympus micro 4/3rds 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 collapsible kit zoom. No adaptor needed (full range of functions).

Back right: my spherical panorama lens. Olympus 4/3rds 8mm f3.5 fisheye lens. Shown with Olympus 4/3rds to micro 4/3rds adaptor (information about lens communicated to camera, full range of functions).

Lenses made for micro 4/3rds and Leica M mounts are much smaller and lighter than regular DSLR lenses. For example, the regular 4/3rds format fisheye shown above is huge by comparison. I also have a 9-18mm 4/3rds wide-angle zoom lens (not shown here). And that is similarly large.

As more lenses get released in micro 4/3rds mount, there will be concomitant weight and size saving to be had without loss of image quality. There is a Panasonic 7-14mm wide angle zoom available now. Plus a 45-200mm telephoto zoom. (Double those focal lengths to get the 35mm equivalent values.) And rumor has it a pricey Leica Summilux 30mm f1.4 in micro 4/3rds native mount is coming.

The camera body is much smaller than my year-old Olympus E-520 DSLR yet has superior image quality. It's a breakthrough in terms of technology and versatility for cameras of this size.

[Unfortunately, my E-520 has a busted LCD display. That's my excuse for getting the Pen E-P1.]

In fact, it's not much bigger than my point-and-shoot (P&S) Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5.

It's pictured here with the collapsible Olympus kit zoom (14-42mm, f3.5-5.6) mounted (collapsed).

Given the 2x crop factor over full frame 35mm, it actually has the same maximum wide angle as the Lumix lens (4.7-47mm, f3.3-4.9) but does not reach anywhere near as far in terms of telephoto ability. The Lumix has a tiny image sensor by comparison, which allows for lens miniaturization but has other tradeoffs in terms of image quality.

In short, normalizing focal lengths to 35mm equivalent sizing, the Olympus kit zoom would be equivalent to a 28-84mm zoom, and the Lumix to a whopping 28-280mm zoom.

(According to the specifications, Olympus kit zoom also slightly slower in terms of max aperture than the Lumix lens, though that not a meaningful parameter here given the difference in image sensor size.)

As a hiker, I've been looking for lightweight but versatile equipment for taking landscape and 360° spherical panoramas. In terms of portability, I will carry on a belt the 3 lens kit setup shown previously:

Shown here is a tiny Kata DF 408 case surrounded by a pair of Lowepro lens cases.

One holds the 8mm fisheye. The other holds the Nokton 35mm/f1.4 and Olympus kit zoom. Padded belt not shown.

Going modular is the most versatile solution for me. For example, when hiking I will leave the Nokton behind but carry a lightweight Gitzo carbon/magnesium tripod and panohead.

I've re-organized and expanded the test shots that were here to a separate blog entry...