Petroglyph National Monument, New Mexico

One final post of images from my recent trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Very close to my hotel, Petroglyph National Monument offered a unique early morning walk before my business meetings started.

 

Petroglyphs are images by native people of the area, made by chipping away at the surface of the basalt rock in the area. The basalt stones were created about 200,000 years ago, when lava flowed 5-50 feet thick over a series of six separate eruptions. These boulders have a thin dark patina layer on their surface, caused by water, sun, temperature extremes, and microbes. It was by chipping away at the outer layer and exposing the lighter stone color underneath that native Americans made the petroglyph images.

 

Petroglyph on the Mesa Top, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7, Bower 7.5mm f3.5 Fisheye Lens

iso 400, f-stop unrecorded, 1/250 sec.

 

Most of these petroglyphs were made 400-700 years ago. Those from that period ("Rio Grande" style) include human figures, masks, hands, feet, as well as animal shapes and tracks, and geometric designs. Others date back as far as 3,000 years.

 

Various Petroglyphs, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1, Pana-Leica Macro-Elmarit 45mm f2.8 Lens

 

As I've written in other posts, I found the Bower fisheye lens to be very useful on this trip. This was a bit of a surprise for me, as I've always thought of fisheye lenses as gimmicks, for special effects only. On this walk, I carried the GX7 with the fisheye attached, and my backup Micro 4/3 body, the GX1, with the Macro-Elmarit. This made for a very good combination in this particular setting.

 

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Japanese Kyu Do Archery

 

Click to See the Series (Five Shots)

Panasonic DMC-G1

 

Here are the individual shots in order:

 

Kyu Do, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1, Pana-Leica Macro-Elmarit 45mm f2.8 Lens

 

I was recently going through old images, looking for something I could share at the Glen Echo Photoworks monthly critique. I came across these five images of a Japanese Kyu Do master, which I took in Japan a couple of years back.

 

The exposure for these was really rough, since the archer was in shade, and the target area was in bright sunlight. This time, I decided to stop fighting the high contrast, and go ahead and push it. In post-processing, using SilverEfex Pro, I chose a "Noir" style. It's stark, very strong contrast, but I like it.

 

The critique was pretty, well, critical. Most people who saw the five prints did not pick up that it was a series. Some didn't even see it as archery, one person saying they thought he was holding a fishing pole. This is one of thos examples where my own experience of being there influenced how I feel about the images. To me, it's quite obvious; not to anyone else, apparently. I can even see the arrow in flight (white streak in the fourth image); no one else saw it.

 

So, this is why we have critiques. Not to see if people "like" our work or not, but do they get it? In this case, no. So, I'll keep working on it.

 

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The "Sketchbook" Concept

User jl-lb.ms on Rangefinder Forum has put a name to the concept of exploring a subject or concept with a camera, simply documenting a scene, or exploring a thought. He calls it a "sketchbook."

 

(Click Here) to read the post on Rangefinder Forum, and see a couple of examples posted in the comments.

 

I think I do this regularly. Below is an example of my exploration of some raindrops on a tree in the dreary winter of Virginia.

 

"Sketchbook" Raindrops, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica DG Macro-Elmarit 45mm f2.8 Lens

 

Little glimpses like this are interesting. I remember well the day I took these. I was out for a late January walk, cabin fever having set in. I also remember lamenting the barren scene of winter, with very little interesting to look at or shoot. White sky, no leaves on the trees, lots of gray. Even in these times, if you look hard enough, something is interesting. One approach is to simply go with the lack of color and shoot monochrome. Look for structure. Another is always to shoot closeups.

 

What works in these shots, if anything at all, is the glowing dots of out-of-focus raindrops. The final shot shows these best, in my opinion. Even though the overall outdoor light was very dull, even, low contrast, the drops against a relatively dark shadow background lends at least a little drama. No masterpiece here, these are still worthy of the "sketchbook." They bring back the day for me now, 18 months later.

 

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Joshua Tree National Park - Lumix In The Desert

 

Prickly, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 20mm f1.7 Lens

iso 160, f4.5, 1/500 sec

 

Desolate, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 20mm f1.7 Lens

iso 160, f5.6, 1/250 sec

 

The detail in the twisted tree in the foreground contrasts nicely with the smooth, weather-worn cliffs. The dry riverbed gives the eye something to follow.

Namesake Joshua Trees, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6 Lens at 162mm

iso 200, f8, 1/160 sec

 

The space between features at Joshua Tree makes composition a challenge. In this case, I decided to shoot from afar with the 100-300mm, to compress the Joshua Trees a little closer together in perspective.

 

I decided to put the 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit on and shoot some macros:

 

Wood Detail, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f5.6, 1/25 sec

 

 

Monarch's Demise, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f5.6, 1/30 sec

 

Radial, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f4, 1/320 sec

 

Miniature Flower, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f4, 1/200 sec

 

Skeleton, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f11, 1/60 sec

 

Wherever there is water, life abounds. These are fan palms at a small spring.

Fan Palms, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6 Lens at 300mm

iso 200, f5.6, 1/200 sec

 

Ocotillo, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso 200, f4.5, 1/800 sec

My trip was a little early in the year for the short-lived desert bloom. The ocotillo (above) was well on its way, though.

 

The desert is an amazing place to shoot. It's challenging. You really have to tune in to see what to photograph. I find it stimulating. It stretches me beyond my normal shooting situations, which is always a good thing.

 

 

Earth's Spine, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5 Lens

iso 200, f5.6, 1/640 sec

Split Rock, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5 Lens

iso 200, f11, 1/320 sec

 

Window To The Horizon, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5 Lens

iso 200, f11, 1/200 sec

Wispy Clouds, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5 Lens

iso 200, f8, 1/320 sec

 

 

This little guy is called a side-blotched lizard:

Side-Blotched Lizard (Uta stansburiana), by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6 Lens at 300mm

iso 200, f8, 1/1600 sec

 

Even though it was only about 75 degrees fahrenheit on this day, as the sun rose directly overhead at mid-day, it was brutal. I got sunburned much more quickly than I expected. I also stepped off the trail, and got myself into a walk several miles longer than planned. The desert is no place to mess around. Stay on the trail. Period.

 

Mid-day Shadows, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5 Lens

iso 160, f16, 1/200 sec

 

I hope you enjoyed this little tour of the desert. I will take any opportunity to go back and shoot here again.

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Gecko - Not An Insurance Ad! - Shot With Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro Elmarit

 

Hawaiian Gecko, by member foxtail1 on mu-43.com

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

Image Source: http://www.mu-43.com/f54/colorful-hawaiian-gecko-30228/

 
foxtail1 on mu-43.com posted a series of pics of this cool little gecko from Hawaii. The image above isn't the best one; it's the only one I could link to for some reason.
 
(Click Here) to see them all.
 
That is one great lens. I use mine as a short telephoto / portrait lens a lot. I need to do some macro work with it. The serious competition for the Pana-Leica 45mm in Micro 4/3 mount is the Olympus 45mm f1.8. The Oly lens is faster and smaller. It offers great results. The only things the Oly lens doesn't provide is image stabilization (because Olympus builds that into their bodies), and macro capability. I love the Pana-Leica lens, personally.
 
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m43photo Blog Reviews the Sigma 30mm f2.8 for Micro 4/3

 

Panasonic Lumix 20mm f1.7 Next to Sigma 30mm f2.8

Image Source: http://m43photo.blogspot.com/2012/07/sigma-30mm-f28.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Micro4%2F3rdsPhotography+%28Micro+4%2F3rds+Photography%29

 
m43photo has issued a review of the features of the Sigma 30mm f2.8 prime lens for Micro 4/3 cameras.
 
(Click Here) to read the review on m43photo.blogspot.com
 
A quick summary of the pluses and minuses are:
 
Plus:

• Simple lens design (no extreme wide angle, super fast aperture, small size) allows decent results in inexpensive lens.
• Price - currently $199 on Amazon

 

• Bokeh at f2.8 (close to subject) looks okay to me. At 60mm equivalent, it could be useful for environmental portraits and the like.
• Autofocus is fast

Minus:

• Size - not large, but certainly not a pancake lens (see above)
• It rattles when it's not powered up
• Time delay on powering up the camera
• No hood supplied with it (this is true of the Lumix 20mm as well)

I have not tried this lens myself, and merely share m43photo's thoughts on it, and my suppositions based on what I see.

 
 
The focal length reminds me of the effective focal length of a 50mm normal lens on the Leica M8, which has a crop factor of 1.33, making the 50mm have the field of view of a 65mm lens (this 30mm has the field of view of a 60mm full frame lens). I have never been pleased with a 50mm lens on the M8. So, I don't think this is the focal length for me on Micro 4/3. I prefer a little longer lens for portraits (like the 45mm f2.8 Pana-Leica Macro Elmarit), and a little shorter one for general use (the Pana-Leica Summilux 25mm f1.4 is a super lens, as is the Panasonic Lumix 20mm f1.7). For reference, the Lumix 20mm is about $300 now.
 
If I were shopping for an inexpensive prime lens, I would give this lens a try. By the way, $199 is not that cheap, when you compare it to say a Nikon AF-D 50mm f1.8, which is faster, offers great image quality, and goes for $135 on Amazon (I've seen it for under $100). Of course, Nikon gets the economy of scale from selling many more units.
 
As it is, there are better alternatives in the "normal" focal length for Micro 4/3, and 30mm is not really in that range, anyway.
 
I generally don't pass judgment on lenses I haven't tried, and realize it's not totally fair or well-informed. However, based solely on specifications, let alone what the post above adds to that, I am sure this is not a lens for me.
 
That said, I'm sure some skillful photographers will make absolutely beautiful images with it.
 
In fact, you can look at some images in a flickr group dedicated to this lens (seems to include other mounts as well, but all Sigma 30mm f2.8 lenses).
(Click Here) to go to the flickr group page.
 

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Fun Little Article About Wildlife in Tokyo

 

Mandarin Ducks (Oshidori in Japanese)

Image Source:

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/ek20120430a1.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+japantimes+%28The+Japan+Times%3A+All+Stories%29

The Japan Times recently ran a bilingual piece about wildlife in Tokyo. It explains the Japanese concept of an annual awakening day for wildlife (keichitsu in Japanese), which usually occurs around March 4 or 5. It is surprising how much wildlife really does exist in Tokyo, with its heavily developed land and industry-lined waterways.

(Click Here) to read the full story.

Of course, there are typical pests in the city, including the ubiquitous crows (karasu in Japanese), but the parks do still harbor many species of waterfowl, and at least three species of turtles are found within the city limits.

 
Here are a couple of wildlife shots I took on my recent trip to Tokyo:
 
 

Tokyo Turtles, by Reed A. George

Taken at Kiyosumi Garden Park

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5, iso80, f3.5, 1/400 sec

Waterfowl, Ueno Park, Tokyo, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso400, f2.8, 1/2500 sec

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Raindrops and Bokeh - Panasonic-Leica 45mm Macro-Elmarit

A heavy overnight rain left these raindrops on the trees.  I love how the out of focus ones form an abstract curtain of light areas in the background.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Panasonic-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso160, f5.6, 1/60 sec

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Panasonic-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso160, f5.6, 1/40 sec

 Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Panasonic-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

iso160, f5.6, 1/30 sec

DMC-365.blogspot.com

Water Droplets With Lumix DMC-GX1 On Admiring Light Blog

 

 Water Dropletsby Jordan Steele, Admiring Light

Lumix DMC-GX1, Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro-Elmarit

Image Source: http://admiringlight.com/blog/blue-droplets-frozen-in-time/

Jordan Steele, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the blog "Admiring Light" shared some images of water droplets:

(Click Here) to see the article and more images.

I have done a little bit of this type of photography myself, using light triggers and delays to get the timing right.  As a matter of fact, I was setting the rig up again last night, after a very long hiatus.  I thinkndroplets have been overdone.  But, maybe they are like flowers, meaning that they've been photographed to death, but you still see new incredible images all the time.  Regardless, I am trying to get my trigger circuits back in order, and think of some new applications.

Now here's the incredible thing about what Jordan produce - he did it manually!  That's right, he just took a lot of images, triggering the shutter as he saw a droplet exit the eyedropper he was holding with his other hand.  I'd say he should be proud of these images.

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Winter's Dream - One of My Shots

 Winter's Dream, Bristoe Station, Virginia

Lumix DMC-G1, Pana-Leica 45mm Macro-Elmarit f2.8

iso100, f5.6, 1/100 sec

I took this shot on a cool winter morning, while visiting the Bristoe Station Civil War battlesite.  For some reason, this image made me think of what those confederate soldiers, far from home, many from Alabama, thought as they camped here soon after the first battle at Manassas.  Many of them died from disease, which was rampant throughout the encampment.  

This view could be anywhere.  I wonder if any of them saw something similar, which made them think of home.

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This Report Makes Me More Comfortable With My Pana-Leica 45mm f2.8 Macro Elmarit

I will start by saying that I've been very happy with my Panasonic Leica 45mm f2.8 for Micro 4/3.  I find it to be a very good lens for people pictures.  This is one example of a shot I made with it:

Japanese Kyudo Archery Practitioner

Panasonic Macro Elmarit 45mm f2.8, 

Lumix DMC-G1, iso 400, f2.8, 1/50 sec

That said, I must say I am intrigued by the faster, more compact Olympus 45mm f1.8 that has recently arrived.  This comparison over at the Micro 4/3 Photography Blog (m43photo.blogspot.com) is a quick and informative read (click here).

Here is an image that shows the size of both lenses:

Image source:  m43photo.blogspot.com

After reading that excellent article, and thinking about the utility of both the Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and macro capabilities of the Panasonic lens, I'm pretty sure I'll stick with Panasonic on this one.  

I know the Olympus lens is also getting great reviews.

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