Today we took a break from looking at chateaus, even one chateau per day can be too much at times so we headed out for the town of Orleans. With some 120,000 inhabitants, it's one of the bigger towns in the region and offers some great sights to see. It was the capital of medieaval France until the mid-18th Century. During the French Revolution it bacame stauchly Republican. The cathedral dominates the town (Cathedrale-Ste-Croix) and is an archtectural masterpiece. I don't visit all of these churches for religious reasons but because of my awe at how they were built centuries ago. A master builder was really a master builder.
Orleans was heavily damaged during the second world war but the quays have been largely restored and worth s stroll along the Loire. The house where Joan of Arc stayed at during her 10 day visit to Oreans in 1429 has been restored and is worth a visit. It was in Orleans that the English were driven out who were on the verge of capturing Orleans. This turned the tide during the Hundred Years War. All in all, a nice town to visit. Plan a day to see all the sites.
Photography
I decided to mount the Panasonic 42.5 f1.2 on the E-M1 but also took the Olympus 12-100 f4 with me too. Just in case, and I couldn't bring myself to leave it behind. After only a couple of shots I changed lenses to the 12-100 f4. Not that the images weren't ok, I suppose I just have to admit I'm a zoom kind of guy. I love prime lenses but sometimes they just don't work for me. I'll be keeping the primes for special occasions (because they do come around from time to time) but for general all-purpose shooting the zooms fit my type of photography better. I have to say it again, you can't always zoom with your feet.
I must admit today was a little disappointing and my shutter therapy wasn't going too well. Having had a little bit of a bad day with the Tamron earlier, and now my prime work doesn't seem to be going as well as expected I was starting to wonder in which direction my photography was going. I've had better days. Can't win them all I suppose.
Images from Orleans using different camera/lens combinations
Olympus E-M1 - Panasonic 42.5 f1.2
What impresses me about this lens is the clarity of the images.
After a few images with the Panasonic 42.5 f1.2 I realised it just wasn't going to work in this environment and quickly switched to the Olympus 12-100 f4.
Olympus E-M1 - Olympus 12-100 f4 Pro
Floating buttresses. To ensure the wall stays upright. Most large buildings inluded these buttresses especially churches, cathedrals etc because they were huge constructions. Good examples of this type of work can be seen in Cologne and Milan Cathedrals.
Not my image.
I had the feeling of being watched and as I was looking up I saw this. I swear, it didn't matter where I was this statue was following me around. 
A good example of a rose type stained glass window.
The Bishops Residence. Humble.
Joan of Arc is revered here in Orleans as in no other part of France and of course a road has to be there too.
This is called Rue Jeanne d'Arc.
Rue Jeanne d'Arc looking back towards Cathedrale-Ste-Croix.
The town holds some great architecture.
A statue of Joan of Arc, Place du Martroi
Saw this at an Optricians shop. There were several of them throughout the shop and I thought they looked great.
No getting away from Joan of Arc.
Joan of Arcs abode during her 10 day stay in Orleans. Restored of course.
Olympus E-M5 II - Panasonic 7-14 f4
Taken @10mm
Taken @7mm. It's only 3mm wider than the previous image but it goes to show that every millimeter at the wide end matters. At the long end of lenses not so much.
These modern wide-angle lenses can't be beaten for this type of shot.
The people in the background gives you an idea of the scale of this cathedral.
Even with distortion correction applied to this image, you can still see some curvature to the building. I quite like this image, even with it's faults so I left it the way it was.
Panasonic TZ101
The above three images show the restored quay area. Time for a nice stroll along the banks of the River Loire is always available.
Not having done a lot of photography today I went out in the evening with the GX7 mounting the Olympus 75 f1.8. I was determined to give these lovely primes I have another chance. There was lovely light and I went out determined to capture some detail shots. Judge for yourself.
These flying buttresses again.
We had to look twice at this one. What is that gargoyle holding in his left hand? And that on a church as well!!
Where ever you go in this area, Joan of Arc isn't far away.
Formation
A hot air balloon ride at the end of the day.
One more from the Panasonic 42.5 f1.2
Enjoying a drink at the end of the day.
