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| Sunday, 14 June 2026 | Dereel | Images for 14 June 2026 |
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Still more 150-600 investigations
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Topic: photography, technology, opinion | Link here |
I'm still agonizing about the OM System M.Zuiko Digital 150-600 mm. About the only thing that's clear is that I won't buy a second-hand one from Japan. But is it worth it? How much does it cost per photo? I have this Zuiko Digital ED 35-100 mm f/2.0 lens that I bought on a whim over 10 years ago for $1,500. It's big and heavy, almost as heavy as the 150-600, and I have barely used it.
Nothing for it. Finally write what I had been intending to write for years: a database collection of my Exif data. Oh, look, it's there, and it has been for nearly 13 years, though I didn't note it in this diary:
revision 1.244
date: 2013/09/25 01:53:57; author: grog; state: Exp; lines: +325 -237
exposuredetails: First cut at MySQL output.
It needed a lot of work, of course, but in the end I was able to
=== grog@hydra (/dev/pts/21) ~/Photos/20260613 190 -> exifx Amanita-muscaria-3.jpeg
File Amanita-muscaria-3.jpeg
Date taken: Saturday, 13 June 2026, 9:55:11
Exposure: 1/80 sec, f/4.5 (EV 10.7), 200/24° ISO
Camera: OM System OM-1 Mark II, serial BJRA15001
Lens: Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100 mm f/4 IS PRO
Focal length: 57.0 mm (full frame equivalent: 114 mm)
Focus: MF; C-AF, MF, Imager AF 2.055 m (1.97 - 2.14 m)
Field of view: 17.3° horizontal, 13.0° vertical, 21.5° diagonal
Meter mode: Center-weighted average Program AE
Stabilization: On, S-IS Auto
Size: 5184 x 3888 pixels (20.16 megapixels, 1:1.33)
Copyright: Greg Lehey=== grog@hydra (/dev/pts/21) ~/Photos/20260613 191 -> exifx -m Amanita-muscaria-3.jpeg
replace into photos values ("/Photos/grog/20260613", "Amanita-muscaria-3.jpeg", "2026:06:13", "09:55:11", "OM System OM-1 Mark II", "BJRA15001", "Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100 mm f/4 IS PRO", "ACC214354", "57.0", "2.055", "1.97 - 2.14 m", "MF; C-AF, MF, Imager AF", "4.5", "1/80", "200", "Normal saturation", "Center-weighted average", "Program AE", "0 EV", "", "Fill-in", "", "+0", "", "Bounce or Off", "", "2.0", "None", "3888", "5184", "3888", "5184", "", "0", "0", "Greg Lehey", "Greg Lehey");
With that, I was able to fill the database:
=== grog@eureka (/dev/pts/10) ~/Photos 77 -> find 202* -name '*.ORF' | xargs exifx -m | mysql photos
That ran for ever, and at the end I had my confirmation: for $1,500 I had used the lens 26 times! That's nearly $58 per photo!
But that wasn't the end of it. That's just the last 6½ years. Continued with the years 2000-2009 and 2010-2019, which took an eternity. Finally I was through, and things looked a little better:
mysql> SELECT lens, lens_serial, count(lens_serial)
FROM photos
GROUP BY lens_serial
ORDER BY count(lens_serial);
+--------------------------------------------------------+--------------+--------------------+
| lens | lens_serial | count(lens_serial) |
+--------------------------------------------------------+--------------+--------------------+
| Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4 Asph. | 14111100346 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro | AC5205389 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 45mm f/1.2 Pro | 349000062 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 17mm f/1.2 Pro | ACDA00469 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R | ABIP10006 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100 mm f/4 IS PRO | ACC217283 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 45mm f/1.8 | ABM290456 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100 mm f/4 IS PRO | ACC251771 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R | ABG200241 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12mm f/2.0 | ABD001175 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R | ABK200167 | 1 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12mm f/2.0 | ABF000015 | 1 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 | 102421030 | 2 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R | ABK235877 | 2 |
| Leica DG Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 Asph. Power OIS | 13111500260 | 2 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-200 mm f/3.5-6.3 | 350000254 | 2 |
| Leica DG Vario-Elmar 100-400 mm f/4.0-6.3 | 06AIF21G038P | 2 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-35 mm f/2.0 SWD | 180001188 | 2 |
| Olympus Body cap lens | H694154 | 2 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 150-400mm f/4.5 TC1.25x IS Pro | 34B00006400 | 3 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 45mm f/1.8 | ABSA06173 | 3 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50mm f/2.0 Macro | 010002018 | 4 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150 mm f/4.0-5.6 | AAK211247 | 5 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 7-14mm f/4.0 | 110002240 | 7 |
| Panasonic Lumix G 20 mm f/1.7 Asph. | 19JG3043144 | 8 |
| Asahi Optical Co Super-Takumar 50 mm f/1.4 | 3077746 | 10 |
| Lumix G Vario 45-150mm f/4.0-5.6 Asph. Mega OIS | 04GX1144426A | 10 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 150-400mm f/4.5 TC1.25x IS Pro | 34B00006401 | 18 |
| Asahi Optical Co SMC Macro-Takumar 50 mm f/4 | 4417365 | 26 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150 mm f/4.0-5.6 | AAK208277 | 26 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 | 212721917 | 27 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 17mm f/2.8 Pancake | AB9202060 | 43 |
| Lumix G Vario 14-140 mm f/4.0-5.8 | 09042052629 | 89 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 75mm f/1.8 | 344018628 | 170 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital 35mm f/3.5 Macro | 192054704 | 178 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 EZ | AC4B13531 | 252 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 45mm f/1.8 | ABSA46896 | 277 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 7-14mm f/2.8 Pro | AC8A22385 | 425 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R | ABH956018 | 529 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 | 212197195 | 758 |
| | | 960 |
| Panasonic Lumix G 20 mm f/1.7 Asph. | 09LG3074803 | 1117 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital Pro ED 35-100mm f/2.0 | 170001015 | 1169 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 | 256006812 | 1293 |
| Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4 Asph. | 13091100310 | 1503 |
| Leica DG Vario-Elmar 100-400 mm f/4.0-6.3 | 27CIF16G019P | 1935 |
| Leica DG Summilux 15 mm f/1.7 | 75SIC307120N | 2087 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-35 mm f/2.0 SWD | 180002977 | 2666 |
| Leica DG Vario-Elmarit 12-60mm f/2.8-4 Asph. Power OIS | 07DX6132475D | 3110 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 30 mm f/3.5 Macro | ACBA04378 | 3439 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro | AC5218267 | 4605 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50mm f/2.0 Macro | 010110933 | 6242 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-200 mm f/3.5-6.3 | 350104535 | 7384 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 60 mm f/2.8 Macro | ABQ227050 | 8196 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150 mm f/4.0-5.6 | AAK263738 | 9243 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 12-60 mm f/2.8-4.0 SWD | 230033616 | 14379 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100 mm f/4 IS PRO | ACC214354 | 20552 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 8mm f/3.5 Fisheye | 000000000 | 21215 |
| Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 8 mm f/1.8 Fisheye PRO | 347009963 | 45482 |
| Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 9-18 mm f/4.0-5.6 | 300102323 | 60005 |
+--------------------------------------------------------+--------------+--------------------+
60 rows in set (1.94 sec)
Still some points of interest:
Why only one image taken with the Leica Summilux 25 mm f/1.4? I use it relatively frequently, including a number of shots taken with it today. But that's the advantage of the table: there are two different 25/1.4 Summiluxes (Summiluces?) there, and the query goes by serial number. This one was used for a test shot that I downloaded somewhere. I have used my Summilux 1,503 times. This also explains most of the “only once” entries, including lenses I have never even seen.
To my surprise, I used the 35-100 more than I expected, a total of 1,169 times, still a price of $1.28 per shot. By comparison, I have used the current Leica DG Vario-Elmar 100-400 mm f/4.0-6.3 1,935 times, still 85¢ per shot.
Still, the numbers are interesting. It seems that I used the 35-100 a fair amount in the first 4 years that I had it, but then stopped. I need to think out more queries.
The lens that I used the most was the Zuiko Digital ED 9-18 mm f/4.0-5.6, which I barely use at all any more. The explanation here is that I used to use it for my house photos in Kleins Road with the E-30. Each panorama took up to 24 views, and because of the limitations of the camera I needed 5 exposures for HDR, a total of 120 images for a single view. By contrast, I now only take 18 (6 views, 3 exposures per view). And still I have taken more, but with two different 8 mm fisheye lenses, which come in at place 2 and 3, which I used to replace the 9-18.
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digiDirect web site
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Topic: technology, photography, opinion | Link here |
What was the problem with digiDirect's varnish yesterday? Who knows? In any case, the varnish is now dry, and yes, they really do have the lowest price, $3,490.95.
But how much is the shipping? Asked their “AI bot”, which seems to be stuck at the intelligence of a moron. It didn't understand the question. Google Gemini did: $8.95, making the total price $3,499.90. That's quite reasonable shipping, but it makes the total 90¢ more than Camera House.
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Bloody VicRoads again!
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Topic: general, opinion | Link here |
Mail from VicRoads today, with license renewal invoice for the Commodore—without our senior's discount! We had been told 8 months ago that things had been sorted, though even then I had my doubts.
How I hate these things! The issue is that both cars are registered in Yvonne's name, and I have none in my name. But we have a „Zugewinngemeinschaft“. Oh. That's a German word, of course, and a legal term—but there's no English equivalent. Still, there must be something similar for married people who don't have a marriage contract, so the name on the registration should be relatively unimportant.
How I'm looking forward to fixing this!
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Woolworths obfuscation
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Topic: food and drink, language, opinion | Link here |
Decades ago I grumbled about Woolworths obfuscatory description of the fat we use for our deep fryer:
But it's not oil at all! As they themselves wrote on the back,
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That really annoyed me. Many people have restrictions on what kind of animal fat they can use, if any at all. But time has moved on, and finally, it seems, they have given up this stupid claim of “oil”. Here two different packages. The one on top is a few months old, and the one on the bottom was bought last week:
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So it's “beef tallow”, something that I know as dripping. But it doesn't taste that much of beef. Hindus beware.
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Mona in the dark
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Topic: animals | Link here |
I've been trying for some time to get a picture of Mona outside the window in the dark. She appears there and is almost invisible. But this time she was much more visible:
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| Monday, 15 June 2026 | Dereel | Images for 15 June 2026 |
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More photo software comparisons
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Topic: photography, technology, opinion | Link here |
One of my background projects is to reprocess old scanned-in photos of the 1960s and 1970s. Currently I have free trial offers and greatly reduced prices from ON1 software and ACDSee Gemstone 16. I've tried both at the end of last year and decided against.
But now there's a new version of each. I re-gave up on ON1 relatively quickly, but I've
been trying to make sense of ACDSee Gemstone
16. Once again it's hindered by inappropriate documetation. The ACDSee For Beginners (their
capitalization) starts with a comparison with previous versions and with non-essential
details. It doesn't show how to take a photo and process “develop” it. And what
it did show was so different from what I had that I gave up, sending appropriate feedback.
But I don't like giving up. Today I went searching the entire menu tree for what they showed. I drew almost a blank. Only “Help/About” showed me something interesting: I was running Gemstone 12, which I got for free 2 years ago. Now wouldn't it be nice if they had made that clearer?
OK, try the correct version. “Your trial period has expired”. I wonder if they would
reinstate it under the circumstances. But for now, there's always PhotoGlory, which I bought a year ago. There's a free
upgrade waiting! But it wants my license key, and when I entered it, I got an error 734.
With far too much searching I found this page, which told me
that I was trying to activat the demo version of the current release, which couldn't be
activated. So why did it prompt me to do so? I had not only to remove it, but to remove
entire directoriesfolders before reinstalling what I already had. And the next
download apparently installed the same version again! No Glory.
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More VicRoads fun
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Topic: general, opinion | Link here |
I've been dreading calling VicRoads about the registration concession for the Commodore, but it had to be done.
But how? There's lots of stuff on the home page, but no “contact us”. Somewhere I found one, but it led to a page with no contacts. Google Gemini to the rescue: the number is 13 11 71. Called that, fought my way through their voice non-recognition system, and was connected to Sharon, who was in fact quite helpful, but had to speak to Yvonne, since the car is registered in her name. What happened then I don't know, and Yvonne didn't understand, but she was transferred and put in a hold for over 30 minutes.
Just as I was beginning to wonder whether it wouldn't be easier just to transfer the vehicle into my name, Tony answered and said that, with my permission, I could transfer my concession to Yvonne's (second) car. Only the computers were problematic, and they weren't answering. There! Yes, he could do it, and he did. No reference number, just his name and the time (15:10). He will send email.
And my feedback? For that, I first had to log in on the web site. And it had forgotten my password! OK, reset password. Wait for PIN to come by mail. None came. Oh:
Jun 15 05:21:36 lax postfix/smtpd[93544]: NOQUEUE: reject: RCPT from unknown[54.240.27.61]: 450 4.7.25 Client host rejected: cannot find your hostname, [54.240.27.61]; from=<0101019ec9ba0a8c-1a1ef6aa-1b05-4119-ab11-4766ce32b342-000000@us-west-2.amazonses.com> to=<drivers@lemis.com> proto=ESMTP helo=<a27-61.smtp-out.us-west-2.amazonses.com>
In other words, just for this function VicRoads have outsourced their password management to Amazon SES, and Amazon SES crowned themselves in glory by not having reverse lookup.
Or maybe it was a transient lookup failure. Quite some time later I received not one, but two PINs: I had tried retransmit, enabling me to try first with the wrong PIN. Finally left my feedback, which they had turned into a message.
Some time later I received mail from them:
We’ve received your enquiry, and your reference number is RLS00270736.
What enquiry? The request with Tony, or the feedback, now transformed into an enquiry? How can I find out? Do I want to?
| This page contains (roughly) yesterday's and today's entries. I have a horror of reverse chronological documents, so all my diary entries are chronological. This page normally contains the last two days, but if I fall behind it may contain more. You can find older entries in the archive. Note that I often update a diary entry a day or two after I write it. | Do you have a comment about something I have written? This is a diary, not a “blog”, and there is deliberately no provision for directly adding comments. It's also not a vehicle for third-party content. But I welcome feedback and try to reply to all messages I receive. See the diary overview for more details. If you do send me a message relating to something I have written, please indicate whether you'd prefer me not to mention your name. Otherwise I'll assume that it's OK to do so. |
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