Equipment Update and Lens Test

Since we last discussed hardware in the MFT Lenses post, I've had a few changes in my equipment. I sold the GM5 (and with it the 12-32mm collapsible lens). Also, I gave the 35-100mm f4 compact lens to my grandson. I also sold my GX7 along with the 14-42mm lens. On the plus side, I bought a GX8 because I coveted the 20 mega-pixel sensor. And I also acquired the new Panasonic Leica 100-400mm super-telephoto lens.

After a few months with the GX8, I miss the GX7. Here are some of the reasons. It's as large as my GH4 (minus the hump),  I really liked the tilt-up LCD on the GX7 though I know most people prefer the fully articulating screen of the GX8. The thumb pad of my hand constantly pushes buttons on the back of the camera; to the extent that I have had to assign Fn13 to toggle the cursor button lock feature. Beyond 4K video, the HD options are not very interesting. And I'd like a pop-up flash.

An then, along comes Panasonic with the GX85. It has a tilting LCD, is back to the size of a GX7, and no anti-aliasing filter on the sensor. It also has a pop-up flash. Of course, I bought one. Luckily, it is quite a bit less expensive than a GX8; under $800 with a kit lens (the 12-32mm again). I haven't sent the GX8 to eBay quite yet, but I probably will.

I am pausing this post for a short rant about Panasonic camera naming. GX85? And in Europe, it is the GX80. Why? In Japan, it is called a GX7 Mk II. The Mk II name is probably the most accurate because that is about where the camera falls, feature-wise. A good alternate might have been GX75. But GX85/GX80? C'mon, Panasonic. Also, why can't we buy the camera sans lens?

Speaking of the kit lens, it is the collapsible 12-32mm f3.5-5.6 zoom lens, first seen on the GM1. It looks good on the GX85 but it is all downhill from there. No focusing ring makes this lens a nightmare to use in manual focus mode. When manual focusing, you must first select the focus magnification zone on the LCD screen and then change the focus using either a slider on the screen or the left and right cursor keys. Good luck trying to manually focus on anything but a very stationary object. Lens stabilization also must be turned on and off in the camera, though that is a lesser offense.

So I was thinking: do I want to take the 12-32mm lens when traveling. It is small and light. It is also slow and difficult to operate in manual focus. I might be interested in traveling with it if it is sharp. So I decided to test the lens for sharpness. Not contrast, color, distortion - just sharpness. The test included three lenses: the Lumix 12-32mm f3.5-5.6, Lumix G 14-140mm II f3.5-5.6 (this is my normal travel lens), and Lumix GX 12-35mm f2.8 (my premier and most often used lens except for travel) and three cameras: GX85, GX8, GH4 (I wanted to see if the removal of the anti-aliasing filter was an improvement).

The test was outside in shaded natural light. I photographed a little display of items with a couple I would pay close attention to: the hedgehog and my pet baby cactus. All images were captured at a focal length of 23 mm (+ or - 1 mm), ISO 200, f5.6 (usually near the sweet spot of many lenses), with a shutter speed of about 100. The cameras were on a tripod and focusing was manual. Here's a picture of the layout.

Overall test view: Lumix GX85 and 12-35mm f2.8 - ISO 200 f5.6 1/100 sec.

After capturing the image with all of the combinations, I examined the jpgs and raw files in Lightroom. Since they were about the same in sharpness, I used the jpgs because they had better color than the flatter raw files. By the way, the text in the middle of the frame was easily readable in all lens/camera combinations.

The bottom line: the 16 MP sensor without an anti-aliasing filter in GX85 produced images that were virtually the same as those produced by the 20 MP sensor in the GX8. As for the lenses, the 12-35mm was the clear winner and both the 14-140mm and the 12-32mm were roughly the same as each other. So, the 12-32mm lens will go the eBay route and will not travel with me. The 14-140mm will go in the closet for now and I will experiment with traveling with the 12-35mm f2.8 and the 35-100mm f2.8 as a combined substitute for the 14-140mm. I have a couple of short trips coming up to help me decide between sharpness and versatility.

In these samples, first off is the 12-32mm. Not bad, but not near as sharp as the 12-35mm (not surprising, given the 4 to 1 price differential).

12-32mm f3.5-5.6 1:1 crop

Below is the 14-140mm version, very slightly softer than the 12-32mm version. This is somewhat disappointing to me as this is a versatile travel lens and now I may decide to leave it at home.

14-140mm f3.5-5.6 1:1 crop

Below is the 12-35mm version, easily the sharpest hedgehog in the lot. Look at the grey-black hair on the right and the two stray hairs near the eye.

12-35mm f2.8 1:1 crop

Looking at the cactus will show similar results. The needles on the top of the cactus almost look out of focus in this 12-32mm version.

12-32mm f3.5-5.6 1:1 crop

Here is the 14-140mm version, even softer than the 12-32mm version.

14-140mm f3.5-5.6 1:1 crop

Finally, the superb 12-35mm version. Look at how sharp the needles are (no pun intended) and look at the texture on the surface of the cactus - a world of difference.

12-35mm f2.8 1:1 crop

Both the hedgehog and the cactus were near the edge of the frame which probably exacerbated the softness in the 12-32mm and 14-140mm images. Edge softness might be perfectly fine in portrait photography; but, oftentimes in a travel photo, the most interesting part is near the edge.

This little test was enlightening to me, I hope you found it useful as well.

Micro Four Thirds Lenses

This is a survey of Micro Four Thirds (MFT) lenses that I own or have owned. These descriptions are not in-depth reviews but merely observations about the usefulness of the lenses as I see it. MFT has, by far, the best assortment of lenses available of any mirrorless camera system; at least 70 including about 40 from Panasonic and Olympus. I currently own nine of these lenses and previously had six others.

Prime Lenses

First, we will start with primes. Personally, I am partial to quality zoom lenses. With that statement, a certain amount of laziness is on display. With so many excellent zoom lenses available for MFT, prime lenses become niche players where special characteristics make them invaluable like extra speed or macro capability. Since I now only use Panasonic cameras, in-lens stabilization is important. As a result, only shorter Olympus primes are candidates for my collection. That said, all of my prime lenses thus far have been Olympus.

Olympus M.Zuiko 12mm f2.0

This was the first MFT prime lens that I purchased. I no longer have this lens but it was a favorite while it was in my arsenal. One of the best pictures I have ever taken was with this lens. Wide and fast, it works well in low light. Miniscule in size but sturdily built and edge-to-edge sharp, it is a little pricey at $800 but is high-quality all the way. The manual focus ring snaps forward and back between manual and auto-focus. If you need a wide-angle prime, this is the one to get.

Olympus M.Zuiko 45mm f1.8

At $400, this lens is a bargain in the MFT world. It is sharp, fast, compact, and lightweight. Part of the lightness is because this lens has a plastic body rather than metal like the 12mm. I used to shoot portraits with a full-frame 85mm lens so this equivalent 90mm feels perfect to me. If you need this focal length, then this is a great prime lens to have; probably why I kept mine. The manual focus ring doesn't slide back and forth like the 12mm but is is large and easy to turn. Like most Olympus lenses, the lens hood is an extra cost item and no case is included.


Olympus M.Zuiko ED 60mm f2.8 Macro

This is another Oly lens that I really like. The 120mm full frame equivalent focal length works well for macro so you don't have to get right on top of your subject. It can do 1:1 magnification and has distance presets that make the autofocus very fast, particularly for a macro lens. In non-macro mode, this lens can also work as a portrait lens or general short telephoto. At f2.8, it is fast enough to be versatile in low light situations. Again, this is a sharp lens and at $500 is less expensive than the Panasonic 45mm Macro which clocks in at $900 (and some say is not as sharp as the Oly). The extra cost lens hood is unique in that it slides up and down the barrel of the lens for quick activation/deactivation.

Zoom Lenses

The bulk of my lenses are zoom lenses, covering a range from 7mm to 300mm (14mm to 600mm in full frame). I am not a studio photographer and much of my photography isn't much more than semi-planned, so I need the versatility of variable focal length lenses. A couple of my zoom lenses were Olympus but I only used them on Olympus bodies. Now that my Olympus cameras are gone, along with in-body image stabilization, my Olympus zooms are gone, too.


Panasonic Lumix G VARIO 7-14mm f4.0 ASPH.

I call this my "museum" lens. Not because it is old but because it is so useful in tight spaces (like in a museum). Ultra wide angle and sharp but not very fast at a constant f4. There is surprisingly little distortion in this lens, probably justifying the big price. It lists for $1200 but can be found online in the mid $900 range. There is no image stabilization in this lens but that shouldn't be much of a problem at these wide angles. This is one of two lenses I always take when I am traveling. It doesn't get used a lot but when it does, it is indispensable. The lens hood is permanently attached so as to protect the bulging front lens element. A soft plastic lens cover is provided that slides over the outside of the lens hood. You can't use an on-camera flash with this lens because the lens hood will block a large part of the flash, so crank up the ISO. I really like this lens.



Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f3.5-5.6 ASPH.

The above picture makes this lens look larger than it is. This is the smallest lens that I own. It is the collapsible kit lens for the GM1 and GM5 While is is not the best lens in the world, it is adequate for everyday shooting, particularly on the tiny GM series of cameras. It is not the most convenient lens to use; to activate the lens, you first have to turn the zoom ring to pop the lens out of it's collapsed state. There is no manual focus ring (no room). Manual focus has to be done on the touch screen of the camera which is not very fast or accurate. Stabilization has to be turned on and off in the camera, as well. That said, it is still a handy lens to have if you want to carry your GMx around in your pocket. It doesn't have a lens hood, again, no place to attach one. If I didn't have a GM5, I would not have this lens. But I do, so I do. By itself, it lists for about $350.

Panasonic Lumix G X VARIO 12-35mm f2.8 ASPH.

This is the lens that I use more than all the others combined. It is part of the "X" series of Lumix lenses which is Panasonic's advanced set of lenses (maybe with exception of the 14-42 pancake lens). This is a super high quality lens with a constant f2.8 throughout the zoom range. It is very sharp with almost instant autofocus. It uses Mega-OIS for stabilization (better than Power-OIS), has nano-coated surface elements to reduce flare, and is environmentally sealed. This is probably the best zoom lens that Panasonic makes and it will set you back about $1,000.



Olympus M.Zuiko ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO

Olympus' recent competitor to the Lumix G X 12-35mm. Slightly longer with the same constant f2.8 aperture, this is an excellent lens. For me, it was as good as the Lumix but not better. It cost the same, $1,000. When my last Olympus camera went, so did this lens, as it was totally redundant to the Lumix version but without image stabilization. For an Olympus shooter, this is probably the best lens to have; sharp, fast, weather-proof. This is truly a Pro level lens.


Olympus M.Zuiko ED 12-50mm f3.5-6.3 EZ

This was the kit lens for my OM-D E-M5 and it is still available for about $500. This may be the best starter lens on the market. When most other MFT cameras were bundled with 14-42mm kit lenses, Olympus raised the bar with this great little lens; 12mm at wide angle, 4.2x zoom, macro capability, and weather-proof. That's a lot of features in a $500 lens. It is a little slow, particularly at the long end but if you are shooting outdoors in daylight, it isn't a problem. It is small enough to be at home on any size MFT body.


Panasonic Lumix G VARIO 14-42mm f3.5-5.6

This was a kit lens on my Lumix G3 camera and I am glad to be rid of it. This is not the current model 12-42mm lens but an earlier version that is still available for under $200. With so many better lenses on the market, I do not see any reason for this lens to exist. If you like the 14-42mm zoom range, look at the lens below as it is higher quality than this lens. Also, Panasonic makes an "X" series 14-42 lens that is a pancake style with an electronic zoom (no ring, just a button).


Panasonic Lumix G VARIO 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 II ASPH.

This lens is the second generation Lumix 14-42mm and a much better that the first generation (above) and only costs a few dollars more. It is quite a bit smaller than it's predecessor and the build quality is better. Optics are okay but not outstanding. It is small enough to look okay on smaller MFT bodies. This was the kit lens for my GX7 and I still have it so I can bundle it with the camera when next I upgrade. This lens has a street price of under $200.


Panasonic Lumix G Vario 14-140mm f/3.5-5.6

This is my other indispensable travel lens. This lens and my 7-14mm go into my travel camera bag along with my GX7. A very light and compact kit with a focal range from 7 to 140 mm (20 to 1 in just two lenses). This lens should not be confused with it's predecessor, the 14-140mm f4-5.8, which is an inferior lens. The latest 14-140mm is a fine lens, smaller than it's predecessor but better built with a wider aperture. And it is much sharper. This lens is promoted as a video lens and it works very well for that with the 10:1 zoom ratio. It is quiet, fast-focusing, and smooth in operation. Panasonic lists it for $700 (about what I paid for mine) but the street price has dropped to about $550, a real bargain. The older version sells for about $400, so watch out if you are buying.



Panasonic Lumix G Vario Ultra Compact Zoom 35-100mm f4.0-5.6
As the name implies, this is a tiny lens. It is the telephoto zoom companion to the 12-32mm and is meant for the GM1 and GM5 cameras. If you throw this into your bag (or large pocket) along with the 12-32mm and a GM1 or GM5, you have a mighty small kit capable of taking serious, 16 MP photos (or HD video). This lens is obviously more at home in daylight, outdoors. It comes with a tiny lens hood for about $350 street price ($400 list). I haven't had this lens very long so I can't comment on the IQ. We'll see if I like it after the novelty wears off.



Panasonic Lumix G X Vario 35-100mm f2.8 ASPH.

This is the most expensive lens I own and it lives up to it's price. It is another of the Lumix X series and is high quality all the way. Except for traveling, this lens always goes into my camera bag, particularly with the GH4. It is sharp, focuses fast, has the constant f2.8 aperture, and is weatherproof. Plus, it zooms internally (no tube zooming out the front); I wish all my lenses had this feature. It lists for $1,500 but recently, Amazon has been selling them for $1,100 (a hella good price). I use this lens a lot for video, particularly at events where I can get fairly close to the action (gymnastics and soccer).


Panasonic Lumix G Vario 45-200mm f4.0-5.6

This was the first individual MFT lens that I purchased (a 14-42mm came with my G3). I bought it because I wanted a longer telephoto zoom and I didn't want to pay much for it. I should have spent the extra money on a better lens. This lens is soft and slow. It was also the first MFT lens that I sold on eBay. It is just not worth the money, no matter how cheap (under $300 street price).

Panasonic Lumix G Vario 100-300mm f4.0-5.6 

Finally, the end of the line. This is my long ranger, used mostly for motorsports and the occasional bird or moon. It is not the sharpest lens in my quiver but it is much better than the 45-200mm. And with a 600mm full frame equivalent reach, it can capture images that I can't even see with the naked eye. Moderately priced at about $600, it is a niche player, but invaluable if you need the length. I'm waiting for Panasonic to come out with a 300mm f2.8 prime (ha!), until then, this is my distance lens.