[LeicaLens]

Very nice. I recently started shooting with film again since my father-in-law gave me his old Canon AV-1 with a 50mm lens. Great fun, but the manual focus has taken some time to master.
I am currently messing around with different film types; I have fallen in love with Velvia.

I have to see what else he’s got. Last time I was at the in-laws in pulled out an old folding camera he called what sounded like “Brauni”…Must be a Brownie. I will have to have a look at it tomorrow as we are going round again.

[LeicaLens]

I recently bought a Canon MP990 that has everything with bells. I got it to scan film negatives into my computer, but it can also do slides, though I haven’t tried it with them yet.
Things I have scanned in seem pretty good, better than my old scanner, a Canon MP770 (IIRC).

[LeicaLens]

And I can’t spell “wander” right today.
I wander why…

[LeicaLens]

I often wonder into camera shops (Yodobashi and Bic Camera in Fukuoka) and try out the cameras on display. I have an Olympus, which I find really easy to use. The Canons are fairly intuitive – I can find my way around without needing a manual – and the Pentaxs and Sonys are alright too. But the Nikons I find hard to use.
Plus, the D3 (and D3x) may be sweet, but it’s a lot to carry around if you want to wonder around and take a few shots. The D700 and 5D Mark II are quite a bit lighter, with the similar, or perhaps better, picture quality. In fact, if I ever win the lottery, I will definitely be splashing out on a 5D Mark II.
Of course, I would have to start playing the lottery in the first place for that to happen, but still, a boy can dream, can’t he?

[LeicaLens]

I’m also looking to purchase a macro lens. The three lenses I’m looking at are all around the same price, but offer different things.

The first is an Olympus 50mm f/2.0 Telephoto Macro ED Lens, it’s been reviewed as highly recommended by dpreview.
The second lens is a Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC SLD ELD Aspherical Macro Lens, the flexibility of a zoom would be nice
The third and final option is a Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Medium Telephoto Macro Len, the focal length is the selling point on this lens

The main subject for the macro would be flowers, but I’m sure insects would also be in the mix. I’m leaning towards the Olympus 50mm right now, but any feedback on the three lenses listed would be helpful.

I looked at the Sigma 105mm, and it was okay, but with the FourThirds system it functions as a 210mm lens, which I thought was a bit unnecessary. I really like the Olympus 50mm macro; the bokeh is especially nice. I currently use the cheapo Olympus 35mm macro, and while it is okay, I would very much like to upgrade to the 50mm.

Oh, and Olympus is apparently going to release a 150mm macro this year, in the High Standard range. Summer, I think.

[LeicaLens]

I picked up a Leica/Panasonic 25mm f1.4 secondhand that I really like. It is for the FourThirds mount, so it works as a 50mm. Pretty good bokeh, and sharp too. Great for indoor, ambient-light shots.

[LeicaLens]

Is the K2000 the same as the Km? I have tried the Km and the K20 in the shops, and I thought they were both pretty nice. The Km though is so small that I found it a bit hard to use with my big hands. However, I like the variety of pancake lenses available with Pentax.

[Author]

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