The Weird & Wonky Bokeh from a 4-Blade Aperture

The Schneider-Kreuznach Componar 50mm f4.5 enlarging lens is very, very cheap.  I got it from the old Henry's Outlet store a few years ago.  Very tiny lens and very sharp, but very cheap.  It has one very unusual feature - a 4-bladed aperture which gives a squarish, rather than the normal round aperture shape.  Before I even took any pictures with it, I knew the pictures would come out unusual in the out of focus area, but it's worse.

Maple Seeds -- NEX-5N & Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f4.5 Componar Enlarging Lens. @f5.6. Note weird squarish highlights.

The out of focus area from this lens are the most uncomfortable and unnatural I have seen.  If you think the Rollei 3-bladed Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 HFT is weird, this is far worse.  I have seen some interesting bokeh from the Rollei Distagon 35mm f1.4 HFT and they actually looked pretty nice. Bokeh from this 4-blade lens reminds me of very pixelated pictures with ultra-high jpeg compression.  But, it's interesting, I must admit, and there are good things about this lens - it has nice colours and it's extremely sharp.

Pixels Everywhere - NEX-5N & Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f4.5 Componar Enlarging Lens. @f5.6.

The small maximum aperture of f4.5 is a bit of a downer, but I guess this lens was built to be cheap and small, so it make sense.  I have another version of this lens, but has circular apertures, and far better made.  Perhaps I should try that one and compare it to the 4-blade version and see how they stuck up.

Can't hide beauty - NEX-5N & Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f4.5 Componar Enlarging Lens. @f5.6.

Golden Ricksaw - NEX-5N & Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f4.5 Componar Enlarging Lens. @f5.6.

Shadows - NEX-5N & Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f4.5 Componar Enlarging Lens. @f5.6.

Sony 16mm f2.8 Pancake Lens - Sample Pictures

So that Sony 16mm f2.8 E-mount lens is not the greatest lens ever made, but it is one of the cheapest, and the ONLY auto focus E-mount lens at 16mm or wider.  If you need auto focus wide angle lens wider than the kit lens, your options are pretty limited.  It's been more than two years since the introduction of the NEX system, and yet, the number of good lenses from Sony is pathetically few, especially small primes.  But, back to the 16mm pan cake.

The weakest part of the Sony 16mm f2.8 lens is its edges.  Although I think it's acceptable between f8-f11 for most casual use, there are clearly lenses that can do better than this.  For me, I won't hesitate to use it and I find that it is good value for the money.

New Building Rising -- NEX-5N & Sony 16mm f2.8 Pancake

The Red Rocket -- NEX-5N & Sony 16mm f2.8 Pancake

Feverish Construction -- NEX-5N & Sony 16mm f2.8 Pancake

The Hyatt Hotel -- NEX-5N & Sony 16mm f2.8 Pancake

Play Me, I'm Yours

One of the 41 Pianos -- NEX-5N & Pentacon 29mm f2.8

The piano above is one of 41 pianos that represents the 41 countries participating in the upcoming 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto.  This particular one is one of the six that CIBC (CIBC is a big sponsor) places in or around its branches that anyone can play.  Every time I walked by, except early in the morning when this picture was taken, there was someone playing on it.

Great idea!

Canon's Upcoming EVIL Camera

The rumor mill is in full swing regarding the new Canon EVIL camera that's coming on the 23rd of this month.  The good news is that instead of the M4/3 sized sensor used on the G1X, Canon will be using the APS-C (presumably same 1.6x size as all the Canon crop cameras use, except the 1D series).  Specs are still sketchy, but I really hope the flange focal distance will be short like the 20mm of the M4/3 mount, otherwise the wonderful M lenses will not be usable, and that will be a huge disappointment to many.

For some reason, I am not as excited as I thought I would be.  Sure, the camera will probably be good, but the EVIL camera market has matured to a point where most EVIL cameras are already excellent, especially since the OM-D EM-5, which is a benchmark of a camera for M4/3.  It would be tough for Canon to surpass it in terms of image quality (judging from their current 1.6x sensors) and usability.  I didn't notice it before, but lately when I look at the images I shot with the Canon 1D III, they clearly lack the dynamic range that the pictures from the NEX-5N have in high contrast situations.  I prefer (or maybe I am used to) the Sony image.

Regardless, I am eager to find out what Canon has to offer.  Will it be another me-too camera, or something that causes a paradigm shift in the EVIL camera industry?  Somehow I am not holding my breathe for the latter, but I will be more than happy to be proven wrong.

Red Leaf -- NEX-5N & Zeiss Ikon Ernostar 110mm f1.9 Projection Lens.

Photo Essay: Pan Am Games 2015 Kick Off

The city of Toronto kicked off a 3-year count down to the Pan Am Games 2015 that will be hosted in Toronto.  My kids participated in part of the events with their music school.  Their performance was on 41 pianos which represents 41 countries.  Each piano has a unique design that pays homage to the culture of that country.  All of them marked "Play Me, I Am Yours". All of these pianos will be placed around Toronto and anyone can play on them.  In addition to the 41 pianos, there are many other musical performances.  Drums, electric string quartet and many others.

41-Pianos -- Canon 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II. Click for larger.

William -- 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II. Click for larger.

The Audience -- 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II. Click for larger.

Drums -- 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II. Click for larger.

Megan -- 1D III & EF 135mm f2 @ f2. Click for larger.

Electric String Quartet - 1D Mark III & EF 200mm f1.8. Click for larger.

Dillon & Alex -- 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II.

Colourful Dominican Piano -- 1D Mark III & EF 16-35mm f2.8L II.

Girl on bench -- 1D Mark III & EF 85mm f1.2L @ f1.2.

Voigtlander Nokton 40mm f1.4 as a Carry-Around Lens

Battle Zone on Spadina & Queen -- NEX-5N & Voigtlander Nokton 40mm f1.4. click for larger.

I am now somewhat attached to the Voigtlander Nokton Classic 40mm f1.4 lens on the NEX-5N.  The small size, relatively light weight, and fast maximum aperture makes for a perfect candidate as a walk-around lens on my NEX-5N.  The image quality is excellent and for the money, especially when compared to the Leica 50mm f1.4 Lux, it's an unbeatable value.  I haven't had many chances of using the lens in low light, but for those occasions that I did, the lens did well, though focusing is always an issue at maximum aperture in low light.  In all, I find find the lens to be very enjoyable to use, and it renders pictures that are sharp with nice colours. 

Vivitar Series-1 28mm f1.9 - Another Sample

Bokeh -- NEX-5N & Vivitar Series-1 28mm f1.9

I like shooting the Vivitar Series-1 28mm f1.9, because it has such an interesting bokeh.  In fact, I don't know of any other lens that has similar rendering.  Can't say it's nice in a classic sense, but it's definitely unique.

A Rare Beauty

Ford GT - NEX-5N & Voigtlander Nokton Classic 40mm f1.4. Click for larger.

This was the second Ford GT I saw in Toronto.  When I saw one the first time, in blue & white, it was beautiful.  I am not a car nut and never knew Ford made a super sport car like this, until my colleague Ian told me about it.  One would easily mistake it for an Italian car.

Zoomar Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8 - A Set of Pictures

The Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8 is one of those lenses that while not used often, but is the lens I would grab when I want to shoot some macro pictures, or pictures in the portrait focal length.  Sure, the Contax Carl Zeiss S-Planar 60mm f2.8 Makro is sharp as a blade, and I also like it lots, but it doesn't have quite the same kind of characteristics that I find attractive with the Kilfitt 90mm f2.8 Makro.

Butterfly - NEX-5N & Zoomar Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Cyclist - NEX-5N & Zoomar Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Streetcar - NEX-5N & Zoomar Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Sunflower - NEX-5N & Zoomar Kilfitt Makro Kilar 90mm f2.8. Click for larger.

Biking From Toronto To Niagara Falls

On Canada Day (July 1st), seven of us rode our bicycles from Toronto to Niagara Falls, to test our endurance.  We started at 6am and arrived at Niagara Falls at 7pm, for a total of 13 hours, covering more than 170KM of distance.  My 13-year-old son Ryan, who rode more slowly, hence the longer time it took.

Dillon, Kevin, Lens Bubbles, Ryan, Quang and Ivan. My friend Cliff would join us later in Mississauga. Click for larger.

The event didn't start out smoothly.  I had a fall just a few kilometers from where we started, and had  a scraped knee.  Luckily, it was only the skin and nothing serious, except a sore shoulder.  We pressed on and at around Mississauga, two flat tires from Dillon's front wheel.  Fortunately, after this, no more flats.

Scraped knee.

I am very proud of Ryan, who didn't have much bike riding experience and made it to Niagara Falls, despite the initial rough start.  And also for Dillon, who's a year older than Ryan.  He also rode back the next day.  For me, about 2/3 of the way there, my right knee joint started to hurt and it got worse as I rode.  By the time we were near our destination, I was practically peddling only with my left leg, and was limping my way to the hotel.

Taking a break at Grimsby.

There were seven of us riding to the Falls, but only three were riding back (Quang, Kevin and Dillon).  The rest of use either was driven or took the train home.  It took roughly 12 hours for the three to ride back.  The trip was very challenging for all of us.  The hot weather and humidity made it worse.  We consumed large amount of water and sugary drinks on the way there.  It was truly a great experience.

Lens Bubbles and Ryan arriving at the Niagara  Falls.