Nifty 45

It's still a lazy time to hang around the house and do all those house chores, inside and out, that have accumulated of late because of work and my bum knee. The knee is actually healing, and I'm able to get out and Do Something Useful, like raking up bag after bag of leaves that have fallen and continue to fall as our extended fall season continues. We really don't have a real winter in central Florida, we just have a very short spring, a long hot summer, and a mild fall that runs from November to March. I've actually gotten some of my best fall foliage photos in early December up in Tallahassee.

Max and Ruby like to hang with me in the back yard while I work; it's a dog thing. I've had Labs do that since I've had Labs going all the way back to when my wife and I first married nearly 30 years ago. So in between filling trash bags with leaves I grabbed the E-P2, quickly mounted the M.Z 45mm, and went back out to grab a few shots of the Old Man watching over his little domain. The mandevilla was a nice bonus with the sun behind the trees and the fence, but the still bright enough to cast a nice soft light over everything.

I closed the 45mm down a stop to f/2.5 because I think it's nuts to shoot wide open with any lens unless you have to or you're just playing around for the effect. One stop down is quite reasonable and helps produce a nice balance between subject sharpness and subject separation from the background. It also helps to make sure that enough of the subject is in reasonable focus.

All taken with the M.Zuiko 45mm 1:1.8. At f/2.5, ISO 200, camera chosen shutter speed. Post processed in Light Room and Silver Efex Pro 2.

Love this lens.