More fun with Fungi - Olympus OM-D E-M1

Last weekend I went out with a Sony a-99 and 50mm macro lens and took some fungi photos at a local forest (see last post). I had a lot of fun, and was very happy with the photos once I got the hang of the macro lens. But I also said I didn't enjoy the weight of the kit, and would like to try taking similar photos with my lighter Olympus OM-D E-M1. I was also keen to try out the 'macro' function on my 12-50mm f3.5/6.3 EZ lens.

This weekend I got the chance to go out again for a couple of hours on Saturday morning, so I headed to the same spot, expecting to be able to take the same photos. What a difference a week makes to fungi in the forest!

First setup with OM-D E-M1 & Lumix 45-150mm f4/5.6 lens

Overnight on the Friday we had some very wet and wild weather conditions, but I knew the area I wanted to shoot in was fairly sheltered from the elements. Even so, when I got there I found that practically all of the fungi I had seen the previous weekend were totally destroyed! Bummer.

Luckily, there were one or two in the area remaining, so I choose my first subject and set up the first composition.

Because the E-M1 is a lighter rig than the full-frame a-99, I was able to bring my smaller, lighter tripod and still have a very stable support for the camera. In fact, I brought two tripods along with me on the shoot. My Manfrotto travel tripod (seen in the first setup image) as well as my Manfrotto 'Pixi' tripod that I normally use for vlogging. It's a very small, yet stable table-top style tripod, with a solid ball head and slightly extendable legs, that I hoped I could use to set the camera up closer to the fungi. As it turned out, for my first image I decided to use my longer telephoto lens, the Panasonic Lumix 45-150 f4/5.6, and shoot from a distance using the long telephoto end of the range.

Yellow fungi. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with Lumix 45-150mm lens. 1/13th sec @ f/11, ISO 1600

I had tried to set up the 12-50mm EZ lens in macro mode, on the steep bank that the fungi was growing out of, but I just couldn't get the balance right with the camera attached to the small 'Pixi' tripod. So I opted to pull back instead and use the larger tripod on the track, with the longer lens. The image still has the effect I was after, with the fungi filling the frame and placed in context with its surroundings. 

Second setup with E-M1 & 12-50mm EZ 

For the second fungi, growing out of a drainage ditch on the side of the track, I knew I could get down low and use the macro function on the 12-50mm EZ lens. It also meant that I could use the 'Pixi' tripod, since it fit perfectly into the width of the ditch.

As you can see from the second setup image on the right, the articulating flip-up screen of the E-M1 came in very handy. With the camera on a small tripod, placed into a ditch, getting down to see through a normal viewfinder to take a photo would have meant lying down on the forest floor and getting very dirty. Not to mention extremely uncomfortable.

But with the screen articulation found on most modern cameras, shooting from these crazy low-angles is actually a breeze. When cameras first started appearing with flippy-out screens I honestly thought they were a fad. Now I wouldn't have a camera that didn't have one. Times, they are a changing...

Macro mode on the M Zuiko 12-50mm f3.5/6.3 EZ lens is available only at the 50mm end of the lens (which makes sense) and is accessed by holding down the 'macro' button on the lens and moving the lens barrel forwards to engage macro mode. This then allows a close-focusing distance of 20cms, with a maximum magnification of 4.2X. I'm not a big macro guy, so all the facts and figures start to sound all a bit Greek to me.

OM-D E-M1 on the Pixi-pod, in the drainage ditch

What I care about are results. And the results with the 12-50mm f3.5/6.3 in macro mode are (to me at least) fantastic. For the fungi images I wanted to capture, the M Zuiko lens in macro mode gave me just as good an image as the dedicated 50mm macro gave me using the Sony a-99. I do stress, again, that I'm not a macro shooter, so take all this with a grain of salt. 

But with the lens engaged in macro mode, and placed around 20 cms from the small fungi I was using as my subject, it was easily able to fill the frame and give me a sharp, close-up, fungi photo.

And speaking of sharpness, there were a few settings I changed on the camera from my normal shooting style to help facilitate a nice macro image.

Cute as a button. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with M Zuiko 12-50mm EZ. 1/200th @ f/8, ISO 1600

First, because the camera was on a tripod, I turned image stabilisation off. Not needed when on a tripod. However, since macro requires reasonably small apertures, which in turn gives somewhat slower shutter speeds, I also set the 2 second self-timer on the camera, to give it time to settle before taking the shot. Even though it balanced ok, the Pixi-pod isn't the sturdiest tripod (nor is it meant to be), so I gave it a helping hand with the 2 second timer.

I also switched the camera into manual focus, and turned 'peaking' on - just like I had when using the a-99 the week prior. This made it super easy to see the in-focus areas when manually focusing. It was also a very helpful visual aid to see how deep the depth of field was when changing the aperture. You can see at f8 above, that the in-focus area just covers the fungi. The moss it clings to is sharp just before it, and falls away quickly directly behind it. Stopping down to f/16 or f/22 would have increased the area of sharpness, but by using the peaking function I could choose the exact aperture necessary to just cover the fungi, giving me the result I was after. The fungi head 'pops' as the background blurs out.

Puffball. OM-D E-M1 and Lumix 45-150mm lens. 1/25th @ f/10. ISO 1600

I used the peaking technique on this top-down image of the fungi as well, to ensure that the ball itself was in sharp focus. f/10 did the trick, this time with the Panasonic Lumix 45-150mm lens, zoomed all the way out to 150mm.

I quickly got used to the macro 'manual focusing using peaking' technique. Setting up different shots was quick and easy, and the hour flew by. I did, however, make one rookie mistake - which the observant among you may have already picked up on. I shot everything at ISO 1600!

I only realised this as I was packing up to head home, and was re-setting my camera back to its normal (for me) settings. I kicked myself for making such a stupid mistake. But, then again, have a look at the images in this post, and tell me you would have picked that they were shot at ISO 1600 on micro four thirds if I hadn't 'fessed-up' and told you? Photographers who say that you can't go past ISO 400 with micro four thirds are talking through the proverbial hole in their heads. Yes, of course, I would have preferred to have shot these at ISO 200. But ISO 1600 is far from un-useable as some would have you believe. I certainly wouldn't hesitate to crank the ISO up to 1600 on the E-M1 if I needed to for the lighting conditions. 

 

Stand tall. OM-D E-M1 with Lumix 45-150mm lens. 1/6th sec @ f/16. ISO 1600

I've said at several stages in this post that I'm not a macro photographer. And I'm not. I appreciate that these aren't 'true' macro images, and that a 'real' macro photographer would have made a lot more of these subjects than I have.

But, having said that, for someone who just wants to have the occasional 'play' with some close-focusing, and who has no intention of owning a dedicated macro lens, then the M Zuiko 12-50mm f3.5/6.3 EZ with macro function is the bees knees 😃

In Memoriam of the Sony A-mount

Alas, poor Sony A-mount, I knew you well (kind of). 

Sony has recently discontinued all of their A-mount products, quietly deleting them from their website. This includes their SLT line of cameras (a-99, a-77 etc), as well as all A-mount lenses. It's a shame, but also no great surprise, since their interest in the A-mount had waned considerably over recent years.

And let's face it, Sony aren't the only culprits. The world has 'gone mirrorless'. All SLR technology is going the way of the Dodo, and I wouldn't be surprised if Nikon, and then Canon, quickly follow Sony's lead and officially end production of all DSLR's. Nikon have the new 'Z' mount for their mirrorless system, and Canon are concentrating on boosting their RF lens lineup - so their can't be much (if any) R&D being put into their 'traditional' DSLR systems anymore? Canon have already stated that there will be no 5D MkV - putting an end to their incredibly popular 5-series full frame DLSR line. Surely that does not bode well for their other DSLR products either? 

I'm not lamenting the fact, other than for pure nostalgic reasons. I've been an advocate for mirrorless systems for a long time, and am thrilled that both Nikon and Canon have finally 'got in the game' seriously. It is the future, and always was the future. We can look forward with great excitement - whilst also shedding a small tear for the past.

Not that the past is going anywhere in a hurry. The used market will remain buoyant for another 20 years at least, with DLSR cameras and lenses that photographers will be more than happy to trade, collect and use. We may even see something similar with what happened to film cameras? There may be a ten year (or so) period where, because of the new technology,  DLSR's will be seen as largely worthless and available at ridiculously low prices. Followed by a resurgence in popularity (and price) as those who were raised on mirrorless 'discover' these old gems and start using them again. Maybe? Just a thought.

Surmising aside, when I heard that Sony had discontinued their A-mount products, I did come over all nostalgic-like. I have owned, and used, several Sony A-mount cameras over the years, and they were always very solid - and in some cases outstanding - performers. Case-in-point, the flagship full frame Sony a-99, which I just happen to have 'on loan' from a friend at the moment. An amazingly capable full frame DLSR - built like a tank and a joy to use.

And then, of course, there's the extra nostalgic tug of Sony's association with Minolta - a camera company that I truly loved. The A-mount was, of course, actually a re-branded Minolta M-mount, with all of Minolta's AF lenses being fully compatible with Sony DSLR's. With Sony's discontinuation of all things A-mount, all vestiges of the old Minolta camera company are now truly dead. And that really does sadden me.

Yet as I said earlier, I have moved on to mirrorless, currently with the Olympus OM-D EM1. But since I had the Sony a-99 kicking around, and with my thoughts freshly on the news of the A-mount demise, I decided to pay homage to the A-mount (and Minolta) and take the a-99 out for one final spin.

Coal Creek Falls. Sony a-99 with Minolta 17-35mm. 1/5th sec @ f8, ISO 64. Polarising filter

It was a very dull, overcast morning, so I decided to once again head out to my local waterfall. It's Autumn here in NZ as I write this, and the fungi are out in full force. Since I had a Minolta 17-35mm ultra-wide, and a Minolta 50mm macro as my two lenses, what better place to visit than the native bush.

Growth. Sony a-99 with Minolta 50mm macro. 1/5th sec @ f5.6, ISO 64

I'm not all that used to using a macro lens, so it took a while to figure out the process.. Eventually I realised that if I set the camera up on the tripod, and then manually focused, I could get better results than using the AF. Manually focus was a breeze, since the a-99 has a 'peaking' feature which automatically activates when you switch to manual focus. The 'in-focus' areas are indicated with a bright red outline so you can clearly and confidently set your focus. This feature isn't unique to the Sony's (it's also available on my Olympus EM1), but it's still nice to see it on the a-99.

 

Fungus stack. Sony a-99 with 50mm macro. 1 sec @ f22, ISO 800 

I said earlier that the fungus would be out in force this time of year, and I wasn't disappointed. They were everywhere, in all shapes and sizes, and I could have spent all day photographing them. It was a lot of fun, and not my normal subject matter. I enjoyed using the macro lens, and as already stated, the a-99 made this process very easy. 

Not only was peaking for sharpness helpful, but the fully articulating 3" screen was also greatly appreciated. It's one of the best designs I've ever used for screen articulation - being able to be positioned at almost any angle. It meant that I could place the camera and tripod very low to the ground, but raise and angle the LCD screen so that I could easily compose the shot without having to lie down on the wet forest floor. If I did a lot of forest fungi photography, I would seriously consider the Sony a-99 as my main camera for its articulated screen alone.

Button Fungi. Sony a-99 with Minolta 50mm macro. 1/2sec @ f16. ISO 800

While I appreciated many of the features available on the a-99, and did thoroughly enjoy my morning out with it, there was one thing I was very aware of that I didn't enjoy - the size (and weight). I know people harp on about this as the main factor many switch from a DLSR to Mirrorless - but I guess there's a reason for this. In the end, it's true. And it's not just the camera body, it's all the other associated products like lenses and tripods, that go together to add on the weight.

As a fully professional DLSR, you would expect the full frame a-99 to be built like a tank. And it is. The fully magnesium alloy body weighs in at around 733 grams, which is actually one of the lighter full-frame body weights. The Canon 5D MkIV, for example, weighs 890 grams, while the Nikon D850 is a whopping 915 grams. And this is without battery and lenses mounted. In comparison, my Olympus OM-D EM1 weighs 497 grams, including the battery. And the lenses offer even a greater weight saving.

Between two ferns. Sony a-99 with Minolta 50mm macro. 1/5th sec @ f/16. ISO 800

Since I was taking the a-99, and knew I would have to position it in some fairly precarious angles, I also decided I needed my largest (and most heaviest) tripod. After a morning of lugging the camera and tripod and lenses around the forest, I must admit I was wishing I had my Olympus gear instead. And I do plan to go back and take some more fungi images with my Olympus gear. Next time to try out the 'psuedo' macro on the 12-50mm f3.5/6.3 EZ lens.

Depth of field test. Sony a-99 with Minolta 50mm macro. Left: f/11. Right f/4

For most of the morning, since I was shooting with a macro lens, I set a fairly small aperture so I could get as much depth of field as possible. Around f/11 to f/16 was the norm, and sometimes even going up to f/22. This helped to keep most things in the image in sharp focus.

But there were also times when I played around with a narrower depth of field for a little more creative effect. The above example shows how aperture value can greatly effect the look and feel of an image when you are close-focusing with a macro lens.

Fly Agaric (amanita muscaria). Sony a-99 with Minolta 50mm macro. 1/13th sec @ f/5.6. ISO 400

Despite what I said earlier in regards to the weight of the a-99, plus lenses, plus tripod, I did enjoy my morning out shooting fungi in the forest with the camera. It has several features that make it ideal for this type of photography - not to mention the beautiful 24mp images that it produces. But then again, even that feels a little 'overkill' for me - though I realise that's almost blasphemous to say in this age of full-frame high-megapixel camera worship.

But for me, at least, it's true. I've said so on this blog over and over again. I don't need 20+ megapixels, and I strongly suspect you don't either. 12mp is probably more than enough for most use-cases, and yes, that includes large billboards.

So as I said right at the beginning of this post, I'm not lamenting the demise of Sony's A-mount. Although I realise that maybe some will. But probably not many. Most have probably already moved on to Sony E-mount, or Nikon Z, or Canon RF, or (perish the thought) micro four thirds.

And for those who do still want to stay with A-mount, maybe it's actually good news? Maybe the prices on the secondhand market will come down as people sell off their 'outdated' gear - just as they did in the days of film switching to digital?

Whatever happens, I'm glad we have the Sony/Minolta A-mount equipment that we can use for many, many years to come. No, there won't be any new releases. But that a-99, or a-77, or a-300 and associated lenses that you have will still work for the foreseeable future, and may even be serviceable by the right camera technician. So enjoy them while you can. And thanks, Sony, for the great products that bear the A-mount name. It was/is a great system.