At 03:15 PM 2/19/98 -0500, *- DORIS FANG -* wrote:
>On Thu, 19 Feb 1998, Gene Mayeda wrote:
>
>> The Zuiko 24mm F/2.8 is a much better lens than that old Nikkor.
>
> In the standard sense of "better" (more lpm's, contrast, field
>curvature, streaking, flare, distortion, fall-off, etc. ), absolutely, but
>that is exactly what I am calling into question: Are the standards used by
>optical engineers what photographers should base their decisions on ?
I agree with this. I use some lenses that are definitely considered
"sub-standard" by current "objective" testing yet they do exactly what I
want. I find that modern lenses optimized for sharpness and contrast may
not yield attractive images for some types of photography. The recent
concern about "bokeh" is indicative of this - in the quest for best results
on standardized tests, certain qualities have been lost by most lens makers
that are valued by some photographers.
I find the results of my Olympus 35RD (1970s) and Rollei TLR (1961) to be
far more to my liking than more modern lenses (including Zuiko) that I have
used. My favorite Zuiko lens is the 55/1.2 that generally gets bad
ratings. Probably the "best" lens in terms of modern testing that I have
is on my Fuji 6x9, and I don't really like the out-of-focus ("bokeh") look,
so I always stop it all the way down, something I don't feel any need to do
with the two earlier referenced cameras. But I think it goes beyond
out-of-focus areas - the in-focus areas look *different* too in a way that
goes beyond being sharper or more contrastier.
Jeff Spirer
B&W Photos: http://www.pomegranates.com
Color and B&W Photos: http://www.hyperreal.org/~jeffs/gallery.html
Axiom/Material: http://www.hyperreal.org/axiom/
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