Buying Kit Lenses

[jbot]

Do kit lenses consistently go down in price?

The thing is, I've got an Oly OM-D (body only) on order and I've already got the 14 and 20mm pancakes from panasonic. I was thinking that I may be interested in picking up the 12-50 kit lens though at some point. I figure though, because I don't need it right now, I may as well wait a few months for them to start popping up on craigslist, see if I can find one for half price or so.

What do you guys think? It seems to me that kit lenses tend to drop in price after the camera buzz dumbs down.

 

[traveler_101]

Do kit lenses consistently go down in price?

The thing is, I've got an Oly OM-D (body only) on order and I've already got the 14 and 20mm pancakes from panasonic. I was thinking that I may be interested in picking up the 12-50 kit lens though at some point. I figure though, because I don't need it right now, I may as well wait a few months for them to start popping up on craigslist, see if I can find one for half price or so.

What do you guys think? It seems to me that kit lenses tend to drop in price after the camera buzz dumbs down.

Yes, generally kit zooms begin popping up for sale after a camera has been released--and their price starts dropping. But have you ever asked yourself why?

I don't mean to be rough on you, so I hope you don't take it the wrong way when I get a little agitated: Why oh why do you want to bother with kit zooms when you have the 20/1.7--and the 14/2.5 to boot? 75% of your shooting is within a normal frame anyway and the 20/1.7 is a great little lens. (I shoot it with my E-P1). And you have the 14mm to cover the wide end. Rather than the kit zoom, I would get myself one other prime: the Olympus 45/1.8. Here is a review
http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2011/10/01/the-olympus-45-1-8-micro-43-lens-review-by-steve-huff/
It will set you back some serious money, but then you will have a first class set of lenses.

 

[jbot]

Yes, generally kit zooms begin popping up for sale after a camera has been released--and their price starts dropping. But have you ever asked yourself why?

I don't mean to be rough on you, so I hope you don't take it the wrong way when I get a little agitated: Why oh why do you want to bother with kit zooms when you have the 20/1.7--and the 14/2.5 to boot? 75% of your shooting is within a normal frame anyway and the 20/1.7 is a great little lens. (I shoot it with my E-P1). And you have the 14mm to cover the wide end. Rather than the kit zoom, I would get myself one other prime: the Olympus 45/1.8. Here is a review
http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2011/10/01/the-olympus-45-1-8-micro-43-lens-review-by-steve-huff/
It will set you back some serious money, but then you will have a first class set of lenses.

I'm actually thinking I may not buy anything at all. You've got a point about the zooms. I'm more of a prime person myself. I have the 35mm f/1.4 nokton classic which is an excellent portrait lens when using an adapter, so I'll probably just stick with that rather than the 45.

Thanks for the response.

 

[traveler_101]

I'm actually thinking I may not buy anything at all. You've got a point about the zooms. I'm more of a prime person myself. I have the 35mm f/1.4 nokton classic which is an excellent portrait lens when using an adapter, so I'll probably just stick with that rather than the 45.

Thanks for the response.

Hi Jbot,

Good--no need to spend money for the sake of spending money. I shoot RF film cameras also and I envy you the VC 35/1.4 (I have the Color Skopar 35/2.5). Let us know how the Nokton 35 works on the E-M5--which has a much improved sensor. On the Pens, the general advice was that in order to get the best results with the sensor, you should not adapt lenses shorter than 40mm. A number of people used the Nokton 40/1.4 with the E-P1 to good effect, I recall.

 

[texchappy]

I'm thinking the same question as Jbot asked. The one reason I'm considering the 12-50 is the weather proofing. Does it produce good enough results to make the weather proofing worth the money for it?

 

[jbot]

Hi Jbot,

Good--no need to spend money for the sake of spending money. I shoot RF film cameras also and I envy you the VC 35/1.4 (I have the Color Skopar 35/2.5). Let us know how the Nokton 35 works on the E-M5--which has a much improved sensor. On the Pens, the general advice was that in order to get the best results with the sensor, you should not adapt lenses shorter than 40mm. A number of people used the Nokton 40/1.4 with the E-P1 to good effect, I recall.

I've tested out the 35, 1.4 and it's a gorgeous portrait lens. Very sharp, focusing is quick.

Here's a sample image. Here is the original unedited file: http://i.imgur.com/0xBsh.jpg


I plan to take it out tonight and shoot it at an event I'm going to, I'll post some more shots later. 😀

Color corrected, cropped and sharpened:

 

[jbot]

As promised, here are a few shots from the Olympus OM-D + Voigtlander 35mm f/1.4 Nokton Classic.

The link to the photos!

We attended a local poetry slam in Toronto this evening. Manually focusing this lens with the OM-D is a joy, super quick, very easy to use. And the shots are super clean.