Springtime subjects

Springtime brings new photo subjects, and spring floods is one of them. This year was no exception, with lots of rain and melting snow saw water levels raise in many areas.

Covering floods means trying to figure out which spots will offer the best photo opportunities.

Pro lens

Are Pro lenses better?

Olympus 12-40mm 2.8F Pro

 I shoot with Pro grade lenses, a question I am often asked is are they better?
Pro lenses are built for heavy use and usualy weather sealed, and I shoot nearly everyday under all kind of weather situations. I leave my 12-40mm f2.8 pro lens on my Olympus OM-D  E-M1 all the time, I also have the consumer grade 40-150mm f4-5.6 in my camera bag for when I need extra reach.

My 40-150 lens is plastic and feels cheap compare to my metal built 12-40 lens, of course one cost me $1040 and the other $199.   Pro grade lenses are sharper, yes, faster and offer much better auto focus in low light situations. For general outdoor daytime use consumer level lens can do the job at a fraction of the cost of a pro grade lens.

Bellow are two photos shot at 40mm with the same camera, in ideal situations the difference is minimal.

12-40 f2.8 Pro

 

 

 

 A cropped view of the above image shot with a 12-40 f2.8 pro lens at 40mm, iso 200, f14, 1/125 sec.

40-150mm f4-5.6

 The second shot is a cropped version done with the 40-150mm R lens at 40mm that cost $199. In this case the difference is minimal because of the size of the photo. At just 190 grams and under 4 inches high, I carry this lens with me in my camera bag at all times. A great little lens for the price.  When purchasing lens, always buy the latest version, even if it cost a bit more.  The newer versions are always improved over the later versions and worth the small extra cost.

Last days of snow

With the arrival of  warm spring weather I was busy taking some of my last images with snow for the season.