How do you compare lens magnification? HELP......

[Gumby232]

I had been using an Olympus C-5050 for years and had loved it, except for the 3X optical zoom which didn't ever get me anywhere near close enough when I shot outdoors as I often try to shoot distant subjects. If it was easier to manual focus and had a 10X or more lens, I probably would have kept it forever.

I've decided to replace it with a DSLR, however I don't want to get a camera that has only a slightly longer zoom (or magnification). I have to keep it the Olympus, so I've been looking at the E-510 2 lens kit; however I do not want to get a lens that is pretty much the same magnification I had on the C-5050. I've tried to compare focal length of cameras however each camera that I look at seems to be measured differently, and I can't seem to translate it into any meaningful number to compare VS the C-5050.

The Olympus C-5050 has a 7.1-21.3 1:1.8-2.6 lens, the E-510 comes with two lenses that are ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42mmF3.5-5.6 lens + ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 40-150mmF4.0-5.6 lens

Can anyone help me! I do a lot of outdoor photography and I really want the ability to manually focus, and a decent amount of magnification for distant objects.

[AlexMonro]

Probably the easiest way to compare "magnification" or angle of view is to use the "35mm equivalent focal length". The actual angle of view you get is dependent on the physical sensor dimensions and the actual focal length of the lens, (basic school geometry) but since many photographers are familiar with 35mm film cameras, they've picked up an intuitive grasp of things like "50mm - standard field of view" or "28mm - medium wide angle". Because of the complications of the many different sizes of sensors in use, most manufacturers quote a "35mm equivalent" focal length, which for your C-5050 is 35-105mm (corresponding to the actual FL you quoted of 7.1 - 21.3mm, its sensor is about 1/5 the size of a 35mm film frame)

DSLRs have interchangeable lenses, and sometimes allow the same lens to be mounted on bodies with different sized sensors, so it's not possible to quote the 35mm equivalent directly for a given lens. Instead, manufacturers qoute the actual FL of the lens, and a "crop factor" or "focal length multiplier" for the body - multiplying the two together allows you to easily calculate the 35mm equiv for that particular lens / body combination.

In the case of the E-510, the crop factor is 2.0, so the 14-42 is equivalent to a 28-82mm on 35mm, slightly wider than your C-5050. The 40-150 is equivalent to 80-300, giving you approximately 3 times the magnification to the C5050 at maximum zoom.

To give you an idea of the field of view for various focal lengths, Tamron have an interactive comparison display here (http://www.tamron.de/Focal-Length-Comparison.238.0.html?&L=2). Unfortunately, since they don't make lenses for Olympus 4/3 mount, their "digital" option is only appropriate for the 1.5 crop factor of Nikon, Pentax & Sony, so you're best sticking to the "film" option & using 35mm equivalents.

[eman]

I think this will help

http://www.tamron.com/lenses/learning_center/tools/focal-length-comparison.php

[Gumby232]

I can't get my hands on one to try before I buy, and that is exactly what I was looking for!

Thanks!