Schneider Jumps into the Micro 4/3 Market

Jos. Schneider Optische Werke GmbH, based in Bad Kreuznach, Germany, has announced they will now be building lenses for the Micro 4/3 platform. The first one to come to market will be a Super Angulon 14mm f/2 wide angle lens. It will feature autofocus and auto aperture control, and will sell in the US for around $2000.00. Schneider Kreuznach is one of photography's oldest and most respected optical manufacturers and the fact that are building lenses to fit Panasonic and Olympus cameras is really interesting and encouraging for the format. That price puts it out of reach for most photographers, but I think it's a positive development overall. Interesting times, indeed.

Pacific Grove, part 2

Here are some black-and-white images from my trip to Pacific Grove, California.

photo by Hermon Joyner

photo by Hermon Joyner

photo by Hermon Joyner

photo by Hermon Joyner

photo by Hermon Joyner

Photos from Pacific Grove, part 1

A few weeks ago, my wife and I traveled to the LA area to see our daughter graduate from CalArts. On the way back, we stopped in Pacific Grove, which is on the Monterey Peninsula just south of the city of Monterey. The city and the coastline there are beautiful. I don't think I've ever been to a prettier place. So here are a few pics I made there. These are more snapshots than anything else. Today, I post the color images and tomorrow I'll put up some black-and-white images. Enjoy.

 photo by Hermon Joyner

 photo by Hermon Joyner

 photo by Hermon Joyner

 photo by Hermon Joyner

 photo by Hermon Joyner

New Tasty Canon Lens!

Canon has done something unexpected and announced a new lens. It's not that they don't bring out new lenses, they do that all the time, but this lens is something they've never done before; a pancake lens. The EF 40mm f/2.8 STM lens is very small--less than an inch long--and is designed for maximum portability. Perfect for street shooting, photojournalism, and casual snapshots. The "STM" designation refers to new Stepper Motors used for autofocus which allow for continuous and silent autofocus, even during video capture.

The EF 40mm f/2.8 STM has six elements in a modified classic planar formula of six elements/four groups and will focus down to 0.3 meters or around one foot, which is pretty close. It also includes one aspherical element. It will work on both full-frame cameras and APS-C models. Pancake lenses are called that because of their flat profile. I'm hoping that the introduction of this lens signals Canon intentions for stepping up their game. Right now, they are the biggest camera manufacturer in the world, but they are lagging behind companies like Sony and Panasonic in terms of innovative products. Maybe this is when they change their approach.

Also, Canon announced a new Rebel, the 4Ti, with features an 18 MP sensor, continuous AF during video shooting mode, and touch screen control.