City of Lights

It goes without saying, for Thais, that December is usually a month of celebration.  Not only it is a X-mas and holiday season, but it's also our King's birthday.  The city of Bangkok is always lit up during the month of December to celebrate the King's birthday, and later X-mas and New Year.  

As a Bangkok resident, I had never been out on the streets on our King's birthday, but there's a first time for everything.  This first time, however, is a little tricky.  Ask any taxis or Tuk-Tuk and they decline heading to the old part of Bangkok this evening, simply because the traffic is so bad with tons of people heading to the same location.  So a motorcycle taxi is the only choice.  

I decide to bring my 24 'Lux because I have not used it much, and the Noctilux because of the low light environment.  Strangely, I find it very difficult to shoot with 24 'Lux maybe because the crowd are always in the way, or maybe it's just too wide for the surrounding with so many people.  Somehow I feel that the 35'Lux would have been a perfect one-lens choice for the night.  The focus throw of the Noctilux does make it a little tricky to shoot quickly, and low light doesn't help.  

Fortunately, I also have another equipment with me, the Olympus EP-L1 with the latest Panasonic 14/2.5 (28mm equivalent).  The EP-L1 doesn't disappoint even with f2.5 (I wish it's 2.0) and is able to capture some good shots in a relatively dark environment.  I walk a lot and probably spend too much time looking around, taking in the experience (as it's my first), rather than shooting.  Anyway, I hope you like the photos.

Anantasamakhom Palace - Leica M9 + 24 Summilux

I spot a small area where visitors light the candles, wishing our King prosperity on his birthday.  Then I see a handicapped woman reaching down to set her candles on the street. 

Lighting the Candles - Leica M9 + 24 Summilux

Lighting the Candles II - Leica M9 + 24 Summilux

Flower Woman - Leica M9 + 24 Summilux

Balloon Woman - Leica M9 + 50 Noctilux

Electric Bows - Olympus EP-L1 + Panasonic 14/2.5

Lights @ Makhawan Bridge - Olympus EP-L1 + Panasonic 14/2.5

Night Singer - Olympus EP-L1 + Panasonic 14/2.5

Ride with Me - Olympus EP-L1 + Panasonic 14/2.5

Constitution Monument - Olympus EP-L1 + Panasonic 14/2.5

Enjoy,

Wisrute

PS:  I should also add that processing these photos was a bit tricky as the street lights cast a strong yellow/orange hue to all the photos.  I decided to customize the white balance to balance the mood (i.e. yellowness) and the natural color reproductions (a small degree).  

One Wedding and A Leica, Part III

As far as I know, this is the third (and the last for this year) wedding among our classmates this year.  What a year it's been with many great moments as well as sad ones where many of our friend's parents had passed away in the past 11 months.  


I bring the M9 along with the Noctilux and the 35 Summilux only to find a banquet room so densely arranged it's difficult to walk, let along taking pictures!  Other challenges for this shoot are the mixed indoor lighting, tall stage and high contrast stage lighting.  As a friend of the groom, and a lazy family man (after a long day), I only shoot as much as I could given the limitations.  The Noctilux works superbly at f2 and the Summilux is always handy for a wider angle, low-light shoot.  In a few shots below, you can see the "Leica glow" in the low light shots. This is what I love about M-lens!


The mighty D-Lux 4 also comes into its own on this trip especially when shot in RAW format.  Its f2 aperture and 24mm lens work like a charm!  Noise starts to get in the way at ISO400, but Noise Ninja does a fair job at smoothing them out.  I can't wait to get my hands on the D-Lux 5! 


Here are some of my favorites.

The Happiest Couple - Leica D-Lux 4

Classmates - Leica M9 + Noctilux

The Interviews - Leica M9 + Noctilux

Beer Boys - Leica M9 + Noctilux

The Groom's Gang - Leica D-Lux 4

Up - Leica M9 + 35 Summilux

Glow - Leica M9 + 35 Summilux

"Da Man" - Leica M9 + 35 Summilux

Night Tour - Leica D-Lux 4

(Raw @ ISO 400, Aperture + Noise Ninja)

Colors of the Night in Pattaya - Leica D-Lux 4

Wishing you all a good week ahead,

Wisrute

One Wedding and A Leica, Part III

This must be a great year.  I don't remember having so many close friends getting married in the same year like this.  It's also great because I can now bring a real camera (other than a compact) to the wedding and stand a  chance of getting a few good shots.  This wedding is slightly different than the one earlier few months ago.  There are three separate events from the traditional Thai engagement, the church ceremony, and the evening reception.  The major different, though, is the size of this wedding which includes all the big names in business.  This alone entails a rather large group of hired photographers and videographers throughout the three events.  Which means getting a few good shots can be a little tricky, to say the least.  

Going to the wedding, I want to keep the M9 light so I can also keep my kids in check and mingle with friends without having to worry about my equipment.  So after some thinking, I decide on the following: 

Engagement ceremony - (held in confined space without too many guests - and, boy, was I wrong about that one) M9 + Zeiss ZM 50/2.0

Church ceremony - M9 + Noctilux for that low-light, magical background rendering, making the most of the church environment

Evening reception - Lots of people, low-light, M9 + 35 Summilux to handle low light and group photos

The biggest challenge, for me, shooting this wedding was the videographer who frequently swoops around the couple with his Canon DSLR, trying to shoot video footage.  This is an additional video to the main video camera.  I'm sure the photographers (from a different studio) were equally frustrated with him. Sometimes I wonder if the wedding photos / videos are actually more important than the wedding itself.  

Well, the final results are posted below.  Another confirmation that the M9 is truly a superb equipment that doesn't get in the way like big DSLR would. I hope you like them as much as I do.  

One of the better formality shots. My friend, the groom, seems tensed most of the time.

Just as the ceremony finishes, the couple is much more at ease.

The church exit fills with swooping videographer and other photographers.

I struggle with the Noctilux focusing here but the images are not too bad.

I like this candid shot of the groom.

The next couple to be married in November!

I pre-focus the 'Lux to shoot from my waist level. A fun shot of a friend of mine!

An evening formality on stage.  I love the contrast and how the backdrop is rendered.

A very happy couple cutting their wedding cake!

A small surprise from the groom who requested his cousin (a singer) to sing a special song for his wife.

Have a nice weekend,

Wisrute

M Lens on Micro Four Thirds

It is an attractive proposition to have high quality optics mounted on a small camera body like the recent MFT models such as Panasonic GF-1 or Olympus EP-L1.  But does it really work? Here, I test a few M-mount lenses that I have on the EP-L1 just to see how they work when used on an MFT body, at twice the intended focal length.  I choose the EP-L1 (rather than the EP-1) because it renders a little sharper JPGs than its bigger brother, EP-1.  It's also a little easier to operate the EP-L1 in manual focus than it does on the EP-1.  The two lens, ZM Planar 50/f2 and Noctilux f1, have been selected to compare their characteristics both on a MFT and a full frame bodies.  To be clear, I'm not looking at them from the price point, my only intention is to illustrate how they render the photos from different camera formats.  I will not do the 100% crop either because it's too much work for an amateur like me.  There's plenty of that already posted if you google a bit.  (Please excuse the changing lights as I don't own a studio!)

Noctilux on EP-L1 @ f1.0 (100mm Equiv.)

Noctilux on M9 @ f1.0 (50mm Equiv.)

At the widest aperture, the Noctilux f1 produces pleasing result on a MFT format.  Its softness, a well documented character of the Noct at f1.0, can be seen in both photos.  Only when used on a full frame, the Noctilux produces its signature swirly bokeh.

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Noctilux on EP-L1 @ f1.4

Noctilux on M9 @ f1.4

Stopping the Noctilux down one stop to f1.4, it sharpens up slightly but still maintains a pleasing soft background on a MFT format.  On a full frame, its bokeh remains creamy and unique.  

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Noctilux on EP-L1 @ f2.0

ZM Planar on EP-L1 @ f2.0

 

Noctilux on M9 @ f2.0

ZM Planar on M9 @f2.0

At f2.0, I also test the ZM Planar 50/f2.  On a MFT body, the Zeiss really excels in sharpness and it's not just in the center.  The Noctilux, sharpens up from f1.4, but it is still slightly softer compare to more modern lens.  Examining a shaded area of the two photos, the ZM Planar yields higher contrast than the Noctilux does.   For the bokeh, the ZM Planar isn't quite as soft as the Noctilux, but is still very pleasing.  But again, we're talking about a $700 lens versus a nice used car.  

On a full frame, both lens perform extremely well, producing sharp images with different bokeh renderings.  (I didn't quite nail the focus on the Noctilux, it seems.) Because the ZM Planar is shot at its maximum aperture, it still produces a slight swirl in the bokeh even at f2.0.  

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Noctilux on EP-L1 @ f2.8

ZM Planar on EP-L1 @ f2.8

Noctilux on M9 @ f2.8

ZM Planar on M9 @ f2.8

At f2.8 on a MFT body as 100mm, the ZM Planar appears to be slightly sharper than the Noctilux.  Using them at 50mm on a full frame, they're equally sharp.  At this aperture, the bokeh differs less between the two lenses.  Looking closely, the ZM Planar renders the bokeh a little more clinical than the Noctilux.  This is likely a result of a more modern lens and optics design.  They're both nice and pleasing.

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ZM Planar on EP-L1 @ f4

Noctilux on EP-L1 @ f4

Noctilux on M9 @ f4

ZM Planar on M9 @ f4

At f4.0 the Noctilux is extremely sharp, and so is the ZM Planar.  The bokeh are also equally pleasing.  Keep in mind that the ZM Planar is much smaller, lighter, and less expensive!  As a 50mm, both exhibit good sharpness and maintain dimensionality to their images well.  With a slightly higher contrast rendering, the ZM Planar seems to separate the subject from its background slightly better than the Noctilux here.  (More review of the ZM Planar is on its way.)

My final observations go to the fact that when an M lens is used at double its focal length, the only clear benefit to be had is its sharpness.  I'm not a fan of how the bokeh is rendered on a MFT body, but others may beg to differ.  It is clear that when these lenses are used at their intended focal length, they perform best in sharpness, bokeh rendering, and yielding that desirable dimensionality to the images.  The Zeiss ZM Planar 50/f2 also exhibits some very admirable qualities here.  It's such a small and compact lens, yet it performs well beyond my expectation.  


Wisrute