viper opened this issue on Dec 15, 2006 · 10 posts
TerraDreamer posted Fri, 15 December 2006 at 11:24 PM
Welcome to the Olympus "No Sensor Dust" club! Ready to buy some nice Zuiko glass? Let me help you spend your money...
ZD11-22 $627 (higly recommended)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OM1122
ZD14-54 $399 (recommended)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OM1454
ZD50-200 $789 (highly recommended)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OM50200
ZD50 f/2 $399 (highly recommended)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OM502
ZD90-250 f/2.8 $4,899 (goes without saying, just threw this in for shock value)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OM90250
FL-36 $159 (if you can find the FL-50, it's a better flash)
http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=OMFL36
Don't forget your Lowepro bag, Bogen or Manfrotto tripod, monopod, heads, and quick release plates and a half-dozen 2-gig CF cards.
I highly recommend the 11-22, you can't go wrong, it's pin sharp. It's my favorite walk-around lens with an E-1. I also recommend the 14-54; I use that one on my E-500, it's sharp but not as sharp as the 11-22. And I also highly recommend the 50-200. I love that lens, it's sharp and light; I use it all the time. Your kit lenses include a 40-150, which for kit lenses is a rather nice lens. Dark, but nice. Your other lens is a 14-45. Some of these are reported as soft (mine is, I never use it) but some people have managed to get sharper ones, although I don't think you'll ever find a 14-45 that can be called sharp. The FL-36 is a good value now, but the FL-50 is far better at recycle times.
You'll enjoy your E-500. It's a very nice camera and you can carry your kit all day and not worry about a sore back. Read the manual ten or twelve times to familiarize yourself with the camera. Also, learn and understand White Balance. While the E-500 has a fairly decent auto WB, you'll want to experiment with it in different lighting conditions. Otherwise, get used to a lot of blue-ish tones...especially snow and water shots. The only Oly dSLR that has dependable auto WB is the E-1, at least in my humble opinion, and even then, I usually manually adjust WB. After you're comfortable with the camera in Program mode, start shooting in Aperture priority and then Shutter priority modes. Then get brave and go full manual :)
The world needs no stinking scene modes!
And I see you're already shooting RAW so I won't say anything about that, other than to say keep doing so, it's the American thing to do :)
You should also update the firmware on your camera and lenses. This can be a nightmare. If you struggle, go to the dpreview.com Oly SLR forum and ask for help. Others there have already felt your upcoming pain.
And finally, before you buy anything else, buy this book...
Everyone and his brother needs this book :)
See you in the gallery! I like your work :)