A Very Large Hen's Tooth

Saul has asked me to let you know that we have a very rare piece of glass in the shop right now. It is the Zeiss Otus 55mm f:1.4 lens in a Nikon ZF2 mount.

It is not hard to find it, as it is possibly the largest 55mm lens in the place. Possibly? It IS the largest 55 in the shop. That's a 5¢ piece in the photo for comparison.

Smooth as silk in the focusing. Totally precise in the aperture ring. Superb definition and colour fidelity on a Nikon camera body. Probably the ultimate in this lens focal length anywhere and Saul says they are super rare around the world.

We must be doing something right because this is the second one of these that I have seen - one of our professional customers has one in operation right now.

Yes, you can buy it, and no, you can't have it for a song. Not unless you are Dame Nellie Melba and have the entire chorus of La Scala behind you doing " Aida "...

The Last Puppy In The Pound

We sometimes look at the shelves here and wonder. First we wonder where we are going to put things. Then we wonder where we DID put things. Finally we wonder if anyone will ever buy some of the cameras.

The ones that cause bemusement are not bad devices - they have been purchased by us for sale and will do the job they are advertised to do, and in most cases do it very well. But some of them have been designed by manufacturers that were thinking well outside the trapezoid. With one eye shut. And a cheap haircut.

Unless the buyer is of the same mind, they can languish longer than they need to. Sometimes it is a case of a design that does not have what the competitors have, but sometimes it is just a product that has been wrapped in a strange body shape. It is wonderful that humanity can have such a variety of aesthetic appreciation, but a pity that it sometimes leaves the ugly puppy in the pound.

But there is hope. Every puppy has a friend somewhere. Look at the images taken at the recent Big Al's Poker Run show. Someone once loved the 1957 Hudson and someone still does - enough to have purchased it in NSW just this last year and to have brought it to WA. I don't think it takes pictures, though.

The moral of all this is come on down and look at the shelves. If you see something that appeals to you, for heaven's sake buy it. You might be the only one save the designer that has ever liked it - your reward will be the sense of style and whatever images it will churn out. And the admiration of the staff - always a valuable commodity.

Whoompf And Boomf

Looks as though the Nikon lens design bureau has decided the try something on one of their APS-C cameras that up till now has been seen on the smaller 1-series cameras; folding lenses.

Lest you think I mean folding in the middle, I hasten to clarify*. The lens parks itself in itself and only comes out to working size when you twist the main barrel. Users of the 1 -series cameras or lenses in the Olympus micro 4/3 range will recognise this as a very effective ploy to reduce the size of the thing for carriage.

The idea has been applied to the 18-55 standard zoom that comes with the smaller cameras. It will be seen on the new D3300 and some of the others, I suspect. If it proves useful, perhaps they will extend the design concept to other longer lenses. Logic tells me that to house concentric lens barrels that add up eventually to a longer focal length requires an increasing diameter in the main ring. Fatter lens - twist it to get longer.

We shall see. Don't know when but will photo it as soon as one gets here.

*All lenses can fold in the middle, but some only do it once...

Moving Right Along - With The Panasonic Lumix

This advertisement is the right price - we have just made sure of that!

The Panasonic Lumix GX-7 is a beauty of a mirror-less camera - it is one of the best handed cameras in this sensor size - the controls fall to your fingers without strain and the multi-angle viewfinder and LCD screen mean that you can operate it in any position - close to the ground for macro flowers or high above your head for event shots.

The files it produces are clean and clear - it handles low light very well.

It takes all the micro 4/3 lenses from Panasonic and other manufacturers. And here is where this deal gets sweeter. We have the perfect family party and tourist lens for it  -the Panasonic 20mm f:1.7 lens.

Today and tomorrow we have four of these camera body/lens combinations available - silver body and silver lens - with all the accessories for a snip price of:

                                        $ 1189.00

The lens alone sells for $ 450 so it looks as though this is the bargain of the day. We're trading until 5:30 today and until 3:00 tomorrow. Ring us up with the credit card and secure one.

Tamron Make You An Offer - 60 Days

It's not often that you hear the expression "Satisfaction Guaranteed". Hard to do in retail, harder to do in politics, and nearly impossible in family life...

Can't help in the parliament or the bedroom, but we can tell you that Tamron have made the offer in retail sales of their lenses. They have come forward with a 60-day satisfaction guarantee on any new Tamron lens bought before December 31, 2013.

Their flyer states that if you are not completely satisfied for any reason with your new purchase in that time you register with them at

tamron.com.au/satisfied

and they'll give you a full refund.

That's pretty bold, and speaks well for the quality of the products and for the sincerity of the manufacturer. Tamron lenses have been on the Australian market for a very long time - there were many series of them way back into the film era that did marvellous things. They could be adapted and switched in strange ways between different camera systems. Times have changed, of course, and lenses made by Tamron for Nikon or Canon cameras are dedicated to those mounts.

They are good lenses - I think in particular that the wide-ranging lenses of the 18-270 variety are the most useful. They are stabilised and solidly built with good metal mounts.The 24-70 is no slouch and the 90 macro is wonderfully light. It is actually piece of unsung hero glass...

60 days - you get less than that for poaching. Worthwhile thinking about...

2 New From Nikon - Who Knew - Woo Hoo

Looks like the Nikon people ( All three of them - it is a big factory, after all...) have come out with two new bits of gear. Not here in the shop yet, so stop reaching for the phone, but they will be coming. Here's as much as I can glean:

1. New Camera - D5300.

This is the update of the D5200 with added features; 24 megapixel sensor, no AA filter, larger LCD screen and viewfinder. Seems to have built-in GPS and WiFi, as well as 1080/60 video recording.

They will be available as bodies, natch, and also kitted up with the new 18-140 lens. This is exactly what I predicted...

Apparently there will also be an increase in battery life - up to 600 shots in a charge. As I do not know how they set themselves up for this measurement in relation to screen use or flash use, I can only wait and see. The shutter will go at 5 fps in the continuous mode.

2. New Lens - 58mm f:1.4G

Those of you who used 35mm cameras in the olden dayes may remember the 58mm focal length - it was seen on some Topcon, Zenit, and Minolta cameras. Generally with a wide aperture, it was long as a standard but good in low light.

Now Nikon are putting out a new double-aspherical lens in their G range with this focal lenght. It is intended for the most precise work in low light  - very well corrected for coma and aberrations. Good bokeh.

The literature mentions use for night cityscapes and astrophotography - it also mentions a projected price that is above other Nikon standard-length lenses. The cutting edge, it would seem.

As usual - when they throw some of these products in through the front door, we'll tell you.

Elementary, My Dear Watson - With Fuji

Ah, Watson, you're here. I hope your in-laws enjoyed their visit.

What? You are astounded that I know of it? But you told me the whole story as you walked up the street. The slightly bent posture and the way you held your hand told me that you had recently handled a heavy object on one side of your body - a valise. The fact that you have a spot of Vicker's steam-oil on your right boot speaks of a visit to a railway station - specifically Paddington as the only railway company in the Great Britain that uses Vickers is the Great Western Railway. Your posture and fatigue exactly coincides with the departure of the 5:12 for Taunton - where your Bother-in-Law and Sister-in-law live. And the look of relief on your face is indescribable...It is so simple when we observe and deduce.

Now, while Mrs. Hudson busies herself with the tea things, have a look at these two cameras from the Japanese firm of Fujifilm and see what you can tell me.

Precisely. They are designed to steal the plans of the Hamilton-Fyshe lighter-than-air mortar emplacement. We must speed to Portsmouth and alert the authorities once the crumpets are done.

What first alerted you? For me it was the weight. The same as the ordinary cameras. And then it was the controls. Just the same as the ordinary cameras. And the settings...just the same as...

But look closely - the entire body in each case is a casting made of plastic. The lenses have plastic fronts and plastic plates on the back. Even the screws holding them together are engravings...Models - wonderfully detailed 1:1 models.

Obviously the nefarious agent of destruction - Professor Justin - will be placing these in the hands of minions who will decoy the sentries away from the Hamilton-Fyshe emplacement while the real Fuji X-E1 cameras are used to record the details. We can only hint at which Foreign Power will be paying for this espionage but I think that we can safely say that Professor Justin never does anything foolishly. A dangerous adversary.

So, grasp your teacup and your Adams revolver - we must away to save the Empire!

Bargain of the Century

Looks like I wuz wrong about the price of the new Zeiss 55mm f:1.4 lens for ZE and ZF mounts. I initially calculated it to be $ 6000 based upon UK reports...

Turns out it will be available for $ 4695. What a snip! When we see it, if we see it, I will do a feature on it.

Sweepstakes Book Now Open - Zeiss Standard Lens

We have opened the staff sweepstakes book in regard to the new Zeiss Otus 55mm lens. It is an f:1.4 design and is going to be available in a ZF ( Nikon) or ZE (Canon) mount. Currently the only sight of it has been through the internet - a number of websites including DP Review have mentioned it.

From the posting in the DP site, the lens is as perfect as a copywriter can make it. Ken Rockwell does not approve of it, but then he may not have been offered one...so far I have not received one either.

As a standard lens for either of these two cameras, it should be particularly useful for considered work - landscapes or still life subjects. Reasonably good low-light performance too - after all it is f:1.4.

Of course the price may restrict the possession of it to a select class - it looks to be about the $ 6000 mark. A little more than the standard 50mm f:1.4...

But as I say, the sweepstakes book is open - we have already had the enquiry about whether we have it in stock - but I am still accepting bets as to when the first call asking us to price-match it at $ 1238 will come in. I've got $ 5 on tomorrow morning at 8:31. I reckon the guy who got tomorrow at noon is just wasting his money...

Lens Hood Envy

I was a little taken aback when a client asked for a lens hood recently. It was a good idea, of course, as it would shield the lens from stray light and tree branches. But the lady was most indignant when I showed her the one that was recommended by her camera's manufacturer. It was the straight barrel variety, and she had seen petal-shaped ones on her friend's camera. She wanted the petal shape.

It took a little demonstrating with her lens to show her that the front part of her lens rotates when it focuses. That means that the hood does as well...and if she were to attach a petal-shaped hood to it there would be various degrees of vignetting and light cutoff as she focused the lens. It is only with the lenses that do not rotate that you can use the petal-shapes.

In the end she accepted the manufacturer's recommendation...but I can't help thinking she was disappointed that she didn't get to use the pretty one.

Shinier Than A 1958 Cadillac...And Heavier Too

I am always amazed by what the manufacturers will do to catch a niche market. We have seen orange Leica MP cameras, green Voigtländer Bessa T's, and Pentax DSLRs in very colour of the rainbow. Now it is the turn for a lens design that harks back to Russian Chrome Days.

Or maybe they are channelling the Swiss - or a minor German manufacturer in 1954. Whatever started it, the end result is an M-mount lens for Leica and Voigtländer bodies that has more shiny bling than anything that has been seen since Konrad Adenauer was Chancellor.

It is a Nokton f:1.5 and focusses as close as .7 of a metre and can shoot in very dim circumstances. If course as soon as the first ray of light hits it, there will be no dim circumstances. This is a rare and exotic bird and wold suit the retro-camera scene to a tee. It is metal, heavy, and bright.

We Are Delighted To Announce - The New Nikon Lens

If you have enthusiasm for any of the following:

Air Shows
Surfing
Football
Tennis
Hoss racing
Wildlife
Birds
Safaris
Motor Racing
Surveillance Work

...you may be very interested in a carton of lenses that have just arrived in our shop. They are the new Nikon 80-400 VR lenses - the AF-S G lenses - that I reported in a previous blog. Here. Now. For sale.

I had the privilege of using one of the demo models of this a month or so back and was vastly impressed by the handling and speed of the lens - it is everything that we expect from the modern electronic Nikon lens. It should find its way to hundreds of camera bags and as fast as possible - this is the Nikon lens that answers the question Canon raised with their 100-400 lens in the past. It will remain to be seen whether this poses a new question.

I daresay a number of prospective buyers will now start the long process of reading every internet rumour and review for this lens - I expect them to arrive with Officeworks looseleaf binders full of printout from their investigations...( Complete with impossible prices from faraway places with strange-sounding names. Calling, calling, to meeeee...)

Sorry about that. Little burp of cynicism. Better now.

Never mind the reviews. Bring your body down here - together with your camera body - and clap our demo lens on it and take some pictures outside in Stirling Street. We have arranged for the BHP company to erect a test target on St. Georges Terrace for your convenience. You will be impressed by the new Nikon lens.

Uncle Dick

My New Lens Doesn't Focus...

" Here! What is all this! I bought a new lens three weeks ago and it don't focus proper! My brass is as good as anybody's and I paid to have perfect focus! "

Stepped up from the kit lens, eh? Decided to get the fancy glass that all the internet forums rave about? Maybe you've ditched the old DSLR that you had for 5 years and bought the top of the range new one that has the quintuple processor and in-built beer engine. And you've gone out to take pictures at the soccer with the new fast lens under the lights and about half of them are slightly out of focus?

It's a conspiracy! It's an outrage! It's all the fault of George Bush! Of course it is. George Bush and the makers of the lens and the scientists over the years that have formulated the laws of optics. All in cahoots.

The rotters have fixed it so that f:8 has more depth of field at a focal length of 55 mm than at a focal length of 300mm. Then they have sneaked in the optical law that says that f:8 has more depth of field than f:1.2 anyway, no matter what the focal length. And they have arranged for soccer games to be held under lights rather than out in bright sunlight...forcing you to use those wider-open lenses....Appalling.

Worse - the manufacturers have put more resolution into the new sensors and screens so you can see when it is out of focus - never had that problem peering into the old 1-inch screen. It is almost as if they are taunting us.

Well, there is only one thing to do. Fight back. Go all old-school on them. Raise the ISO until you start to get coloured sparkles, then back it off a touch. Use your telephoto lens to focus manually on the grass where the action is going to be. Leave the lens focussed manually right there. Set the aperture at f:8. Set the shutter speed at 1/250 of a second if there is enough light to do it. Or 1/125 if not. When the players run over the grass bit that is in focus press the shutter button.

That'll teach 'em.

A New Canon Lens With A New Feature - In-Built

The Canon rumours have finally ground through the Canon mincer and we are to see the actual new product. Quite when remains problematical, but we will be told. Betting is end of May but remember what happens to people who depend on betting...

The lens is the new Canon EF 200- 400mm f:4L IS USM Extender 1.4x. It will replace the current 100-400 zoom lens. There are cosmetic differences to be seen in the illustration of the new lens - a deeper tripod foot for one and a circular zoom motion. There is a bulge on the left hand side of the lens just in front of the mount. Therein lies the real secret of the lens.

The bulge conceals an in-built 1.4x tele-extender element. If needed, it can be rotated into the light path, extending the focal length range to 280 to 560mm. It does cost one stop of light but remember that the subsequent downshift of the shutter speed can be adequately compensated for with the new IS mechanism in the lesn. You won't notice any inconvenience and you'll have a lot longer reach for animal shots.

They have reduced the weight of the lens through use of magnesium castings.

The convenience of this innovation will be at once evident to those people who have been faced in the past with demounting the old 100-400 and trying to prevent ingress of dust and moisture - not the thing does not have to be broken in the field and most of this dust will never get a chance to get in there.

This will be the lens for Africa and Alaska. And if they can get enough lions and rhinoceroses to emigrate to Anchorage, you can do it all in one trip...

The Optical Marsupial

Anyone who owns two lenses and one camera has a problem - at some stage of the game they are going to have to change whatever is on the camera for whatever they are carrying in their camera bag. If they do not have a camera bag they have two problems, and if they are trying to do it in a hurry on in the twilight in the deepest part of the bush surrounded by tiger snakes...well they have more than two problems.

Here are a few suggestions to ease the situation:

1. Do not go into the bush at twilight in snake season, or if you do, ask for someone to drop a daisy-cutter bomb about 5 minutes before you enter the area.

2. Get yourself a lens-changing pouch. This will save you from dropping one or both of your lenses into the dirt.

The two smaller pouches seen in this post are made by Think Tank and Lowepro. They are both equipped with a belt loop to fix them to your off-side. The Lowepro has an additional shoulder strap.

The Lowepro is a traditional flap-top design with thick padding inside. There is a secure zipper around the edge of the lid - it is fairly water-resistant.

The Think Tank design has a purse-top that closes with a draw string. There is a separate compartment under the pouch with a waterproof cover.

The idea of these is that you can carry your spare lens in it for your venture, but as you are gently juggling the camera and optics out there in the field, you have somewhere to literally drop the one you are changing while you attach the new one. Wise photographers will keep some sort of a strap on their camera to sling it round a neck or shoulder while they do this.

The same sort of idea appends to the Lowepro Passport Sling II bag - you can sling it over a shouldeer then rotate it forward around your waist to give the effect of a secure kangaroo pouch in the front. Open it, extract the new lens, drop the old one in there - all safe and sound and not too much of a war-dance to do it.

Remember - make it easy on yourself and take it easy when you shoot. No-one benefits from over-complexity - ever.

Vast Vistas With Half Vast Lenses

The season is nearly upon us. Winter is about to hit with all the fury it can manage - lashing gales, scudding clouds, massive gas bills. Now is the time to head on out to the coast or the forest or the desert with your digital camera and make yourself thoroughly miserable.*

Ahem, I'll amend that. Think of all those wonderful landscapes throughout Western Australia that are just waiting for your artistic vision...And what better way to express it than through a wide-angle lens. Here are four of the best.

Zeiss 21 Distagon, Nikon 20 Nikkor, Canon 20 EF, and Leica 18 Super Elmar-M. Wise photographers will pick the one that suits their camera body - and those that want to use the Zeiss can obtain a variant to fit either Canon or Nikon.

They are not zoom lenses - if you want to change the angle of view you walk further forward or further back. Because they are not zoom lenses the manufacturers have been able to optimise their resolution and reduce the various distortions that lenses are subject exhibit to the absolute minimum. These are the lenses for the big print.

As they are not zoom lenses, they do not carry extra elements and you do not carry extra weight. If you are capturing landscapes you need to go where the landscapes are, and this means stalking them through the bush. And up hills, and over rocks. Welcome the compact size and light weight.

They
will all take filter systems in front of them so you can mount ND grads, polarisers, star filters, diffusers, and heart-shaped masks for that special landscape - all at once. Don't laugh - eventually someone will, and if they are good at selling the idea, will get an arts grant for it. I refuse to accept responsibility for this suggestion...

Can you use them in a studio? Yes you can - I use a 20 Nikkor for toy car shots. Can you use them for architecture and interiors? Yes you can, and quite a few of the pros do.

Big crowd shots? Wedding parties? School groups? Custom street cars? Yep.

Put down that zoom and come in and try one of them - you cannot fail to be impressed.

* I'll be by the fire with the plate of muffins and the copy of "Handley Cross". Off you go.

Whole Lotta Pictures - New Nikon Lens Spy Photos

Hahahahaha. Got my hands on a pre-production model of the new Nikon 80mm - 400mm AS-S Nikkor f:4.5-5.6 G ED lens and ran out of the shop. The industry reps are at a meeting with one of our owners and this is my chance...

First, the studio pics of the lens itself. Note the new style of the barrel and the inclusion of a the 4 slider controls on the LHS of the lens. The bottom one is a lock to keep it from creeping open when you are transporting it. The barrel shape is a very elegant curve at the back there that leaves plenty of room for the fingers of your right hand.

The feel of the lens is very smooth and the results appear to be superb - the VR snaps in with authority and I was able to hand-hold all of the featured shots. It's a cool day out there with mild contrast and not a lot of atmospherics so we got a pretty neutral look at things.

The tripod foot is greatly redesigned in comparison to the previous model - much neater.

I cannot say how much this is going to cost, nor when we are going to have them in store. We'll announce it when we know.