First lens

[sammykhalifa]

Oh, it exists--I just don't think it's the disaster people make it out to be. A lens like the 45 is noticeably faster though

 

[Phillip]

Thank you all for the lens suggestions, appreciate all the advice given!

Unfortunately the weather here is rainy to try the camera out properly outside but have quickly gone out to the garden to use the camera and it's very strange not having the massive bulk a camera to carry! Have no regrets about getting the EM10 as my DSLR was so big that it was awkward to carry the majority of the time and it was putting me off taking photos!

Kit lens is as sharp as have been suggested in this thread but bookeh produced by the kit lens is definitely not compatible to the Nikon 1.8 I am used to! The lens doesn't seem to blur enough for my liking and you can still see what the subject is in the background.

Will definitely be a tough decision to know which lens to pick, my gut says I will probably end up getting the 45mm lens only as it is so cheap now and the examples of flower photography I have seen are excellent with the lens and hopefully it would be usable for landscape shots. Will try to use the kit lens for the next few weeks and see what focal point is best on the camera.

First shot from the lens - slightly edited in lightroom. Nice sharpness but wish the bookeh on the kit lens was better!

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[Wisertime]

I'd get the 45, but the 25 (oly and panny) are both excellent too. Really depends on your style, but I use the 45 for all purpose (landscape, portrait, etc). You will probably end up with both eventually (or one of the pancakes). There really aren't many bad choices you can make in the primes or pro zooms, unless size weight is an absolute must. Many used 45s can be hand under $240.

 

[svenkarma]

Greetings from a different bit of Welsh coast!

I think you would be better off with the O25 than the O45, which is a nice lens but its field of view is fiddly for landscapes and its minimum focusing distance (0.5m) is not altogether satisfactory for flowers either.

 

[Phillip]

Greetings from a different bit of Welsh coast!

I think you would be better off with the O25 than the O45, which is a nice lens but its field of view is fiddly for landscapes and its minimum focusing distance (0.5m) is not altogether satisfactory for flowers either.

Would you recommend the O25 over other lenses such as the P20, sigma's etc.? The O25 is about £100ish over my budget really but since I have wanted the camera for ages it makes spending more money easier. Nice to know theres someone else on here from Wales on here!

 

[Phillip]

+1 Beautiful landscapes. Where is that hill with the lake at the bottom and the border collie on the ridge?

Thank you, it was taken in Pen y fan which is a mountain in Wales in the UK

 

[dornblaser]

Would you recommend the O25 over other lenses such as the P20, sigma's etc.? The O25 is about £100ish over my budget really but since I have wanted the camera for ages it makes spending more money easier. Nice to know theres someone else on here from Wales on here!

Boy, you will get a lot of opinions about lenses. I prefer Olympus lenses on Olympus bodies. My wife uses the O25 + EZ on her E-M10 and it is a nice combination. With the O25 you will get fast AF and beautiful pics. You will find the FL very familiar. The O25 + O45 make a nice prime combo if you decide to add another prime in the future.

Thank you, it was taken in Pen y fan which is a mountain in Wales in the UK

Thanks. My wife works for an UK firm and one of her colleagues lives in Wales.

 

[svenkarma]

Would you recommend the O25 over other lenses such as the P20, sigma's etc.? The O25 is about £100ish over my budget really but since I have wanted the camera for ages it makes spending more money easier. Nice to know theres someone else on here from Wales on here!

My recommendation (depending on where you live) would be to go to Carmarthen cameras and see if they will let you try out some lenses in the park across the road. I've part-exchanged stuff there and what you lose on internet price you do gain on real world hands-on.

Long-term P25 owner here, but 50mm being such a classic length I can't see why the O25 shouldn't be as good.

Alternatively, the Sigma 60 and your remaining budget on something else! The S30 is also nice, but out of the pancake lenses the one I've ended up with is the O17/2.8.

 

[RamblinR]

You advise that you already have the kit lens which should be a good all rounder and fine for landscape work. It might be worth considering the 60 macro instead of the 45 as you are interested in macro. The 60 could also be used for portraiture etc.

 

[Phillip]

Thanks for the responses, ended up ordering the 19mm Sigma lens based on the price compared the other lenses! Hopefully I will like it and can then save for a nicer lens down the road or for Christmas at the end of the year!

 

[dornblaser]

Enjoy! I am looking forward to seeing more you landscapes and other pictures.

 

[agentlossing]

That's a great first lens.

 

[Phillip]

Enjoy! I am looking forward to seeing more you landscapes and other pictures.

Thank you for your kind words! Glad you like the photos and itching now to get out there and take new ones with my olympus, loved my Dslr but can't want to have a lighter camera!

That's a great first lens.

I'm glad you like it, been hoping that I have made the right choice considering how cheap it is!

 

[Jfrader]

I had the S 19mm as my first prime some time ago. It is very sharp, small and light and handles very well. The only drawback, in light of your comments about bokeh, is that it will not perform particularly well in that regard compared to your old Nikon prime. The Sigma renders very nicely at f2.8, just not near as shallow as f1.8 on a DX body.

 

[Phillip]

I had the S 19mm as my first prime some time ago. It is very sharp, small and light and handles very well. The only drawback, in light of your comments about bokeh, is that it will not perform particularly well in that regard compared to your old Nikon prime. The Sigma renders very nicely at f2.8, just not near as shallow as f1.8 on a DX body.

Yeah guessed the s19 wouldn't have as good bokeh as the oly/Panasonic bit the prices were out of my budget unfortunately, the lenses on the mft are so much more expensive compared to dslrs

 

[Klorenzo]

To have a strong blur you need some focal length and aperture, so the 45 and the 60 are the best budget options. A used 45 can be be found for a reasonable price.

Another option is to get a cheap adapter and a fast manual focus 50mm lens for almost film camera. If you are not in a hurry you can get a good one for 10 pounds. With focus peaking and magnify is quite easy to manually focus and is fun.

 

[Phillip]

To have a strong blur you need some focal length and aperture, so the 45 and the 60 are the best budget options. A used 45 can be be found for a reasonable price.

Another option is to get a cheap adapter and a fast manual focus 50mm lens for almost film camera. If you are not in a hurry you can get a good one for 10 pounds. With focus peaking and magnify is quite easy to manually focus and is fun.

Taken your advice and ordered the Fujian 35mm CCTV lens with the adaptor for my EM10, never manually focused before so may be a struggle but it was only £20 so worth a go for the price and the photos taken from it look good with nice bokeh.