Voigtlander:

Leica:

Leica Lenses (English) from leica camera on Vimeo.

I have a friend who has been asked me about my experience with the Nokton 25mm on the M43rds system and how it compares to the Switar 26mm f1.1. Or specifically, given the choice which of these two lenses would I recommend? I started to reply and decided it’d be just as easy to write the response up on here in case others were interested.
This won’t be a review – just a short intro / initial thoughts. For a quick conclusion – I believe this lens, coupled with the G3 …

I can’t believe i nearly sold this lens… it’s the Switar 26mm f1.1 that was designed for 16mm cinema film. I bought it about a year back to mount on an Olympus E-P1 (micro four thirds).
I just bought a Panasonic G3 and put this on it today. I have Akuri to thank for talking me out of selling it – so glad now as I forgot what a unique look it has. Looking at these test shots below (ISO 1600 under regular tungsten lighting), i’d never guess this is with …

(as you can tell, i’m starting to clean up this blog and am starting to post again).
I recently received this email and figured it would be more useful to answer it here;
“Lawrence,
I have a question about a lens that you reviewed. I noticed that you didn’t post any blog since July 2010. Hence, I am sending an email to you instead of posting on your blog.
My question is based on your lens review http://lawrenceripsher.com/blog/2009/12/switar-26mm-f1-1-f1-1-review.html
The review is detailed and excellent. In that review, you have some landscape photos, for …

Took Friday off work for a much needed mini break down the Oregon coast. Only made it to the Northern tip and we hung out there for a couple of days. For those who are amused by others [near] misfortune (i am), you’ll be glad to know we got into a bit of a pickle when I left the car ignition on while sitting reading for an hour or so. Had my phone connected over bluetooth, mp3′s playing, heated seats on… within what felt like no time, the car electronics …

I purchased an Olympus OM 21mm f/2.0 lens for my OM-4 a few months back and have loved it on the film camera. This lens is special (in my opinion) as its a) tiny b) great quality and c) the fastest super wide you can get this side of a $5k Leica.
Last night was the first time I mounted it on a Canon (5D Mark II) and thought I’d test a Zuiko lens characteristic of close focusing…
Attack of the sea monster.

A few test shots from my first roll of tri-x 400… developed in DD-X for 8 mins with ilford fixer. 100% scans show very fine grain for a 400 film. Sharpness doesn’t compare to say Fuji Acros (100) but when I got it right, it looked v good. I read that the DDX development is a similar effect to xtol (fine grain effect). I printed the last shot at 19″x13″ tonight (via scanning) and was blown away. I’m constantly amazed at the resolving power of medium format. Makes going back …

I’ve been hearing increasingly loud and frequent rumours that fuji is changing their film line up. those rumours seem true now. this shows the changes:
http://fujifilm.jp/information/articlead_0029.html
I think the net is that Neopan 100 Acros in 120 will only be available in packs of 5 and Neopan 400 is effectively discontinued. can’t seem to get a straight answer on whether it’ll be continued in other countries somehow. anyway, unpleasant news as this is my favourite BW.
I posted this originally over in lost in focus, looking for suggestions as I was about to …

As I mentioned yesterday, I recently took ownership of a Pentax 67ii and the one thing that had me worried was the mirror bounce…. this was largely down to reviews which speak of the difficulty in handholding the camera. The Luminous Landscape writes about how ghosting is possible even on a tripod with long lenses / slow shutter speeds while a seller on Craigslist offered 50lbs worth of sandbags free with his 67ii gear… Given I don’t even own a tripod (and have never shot with one), this was obviously …

My long struggle to find the right MF system for 2010 may be over. About a week ago, after much research, deliberation and procrastination, I finally decided to order a Pentax 67ii… This is a relatively new medium format camera, built on a 30+ year old system. It was recently continued but my MF standards this is a new body with modern lenses. I started with just a 67ii body and metered viewfinder (purchased from KEH at a premium but at least I knew what I was getting) and a …