I got a full size Lumix S5, but I haven’t been able to operate it much. Frankly speaking, I am still not comfortable with the full-size camera, and I hesitate a little when I take it out and end up picking up another camera. That’s not good.
I will soon have a chance to shoot at night in a lit-up scene, and this is when the full-size S5 will come into its own. I don’t have any bright lenses on hand, so I’ll probably have to use some K-mount single focal length lenses with an adapter. I have tried this before, but I need to break in the S5 + adapter + K-mount lenses so that I can shoot smoothly with them.
So, this is a forced break-in. I was informed that the “Bunkyo Azalea Festival” was going well, so one mid-April morning, I set off for the main venue, the azalea garden at Nezu Shrine.
As I approached the site at 10:30 a.m., I noticed a disturbing crowd of people.
The line to enter the Bunkyo Azalea Festival overflowed from the Nezu Shrine grounds and reached Shinobazu-dori Avenue at the end of the line, and there were even organizers on hand. From here, it was a two-hour wait for admission, and when I started, I was almost killed.
I made my decision in two seconds.
I’m moving on to the other front.
So we changed our plans and came to Rikugien, another famous azalea viewing spot in the same Bunkyo Ward, about 3 km away.
It is rare for this gate near JR Komagome Station to be open. The point is that it must be high season, when the flowers are in full bloom and many people enter the park. Still, it was not as crowded as Nezu Shrine, which was a relief.
From here on, I started taking pictures of azaleas while changing K-mount lenses with a mount adapter.
I remember learning that the azaleas in Rikugien are characterized by the large number of old varieties, or traditional varieties that have been planted since the Edo period (1603-1868). Unfortunately, however, it is not at all easy to recognize each and every variety of azalea in front of the flowers.
While struggling with MF focusing (especially the shallow depth of field when the aperture is open!) The three FA limited sisters, the pride of the K-mount, are old design lenses, but they are all very good at shooting and the bokeh is beautiful….
smc FA77mm limited smc FA43mm limited
smc FA31mm limited
・・・・ Hmm?
The 31mm has vignetting in the corners?
Check again with an overhead view of the park to be sure.
Oh no. The corners are barely visible, but there’s a huge drop in vignetting.
The lens has always had vignetting near the maximum aperture, but in this photo, the lens is stopped down quite a bit and the four corners are blacked out to a level that is not a problem in the first place.
As I have mentioned in past articles, my FA31mm, which I usually use with an APSC camera, has been carefully weaponized to prevent backlighting. I had inadvertently made the Weaponized parts.
Incidentally, if you remove the weaponized parts and use only the bare FA31mm lens, you can take good pictures. Is it obvious?
…Hmmm, it should be obvious that the picture is taken properly, but it seems a little suspicious. No, it must be my imagination (smiles).
I wonder if the 43mm is also suspicious? This FA43mm uses the small type hood of the DA40mm, so it might be affected by the full size.
smc FA43mm limited Another picture.
…This also seems to have a degree of vignetting that is not just my imagination…. I still think I should go back to the stock hood…the FA43mm stock screw-on hood is a pain to carry around…bump.
In case you are wondering, here is an azalea taken with the stock LUMIX S 20-60mm.
Of course, the four corners are perfect. Compared to the FA limited of the old era, it seems to take more modern pictures (not just different apertures) with the same body. In terms of the performance of taking a crisp, kitchy picture, this latest lens is probably better.
Anyway, I was reminded that the FA31mm/FA43mm needs to be returned to its bare bones when used with the S5. I am glad I had a chance to break it in.
Rikugien is famous for its maple trees. In addition to azaleas, the garden is also a place where visitors can fully enjoy fresh greenery and blue maples. Finally, here are three extra photos of fresh greenery taken with the LUMIX S 20-60mm, regardless of the break-in period.
The above is the volume of the familiarization drive + fresh green walk at Rikugien, which we turned from Nezu Shrine.
