Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12 mm F2.0 Lens, Fast Fixed Focal Length, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G Series), Black

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I recently bought a 12mm F2 as well (used on Panasonic GH2), and it seems to me that the distortion is not as well corrected as it is with the 7-14mm F4 Panasonic (when also shooting at 12mm). Although both the M.Zuiko 12mm and Leica 12mm are very enjoyable lenses to use, I would personally recommend the Olympus lens for a number of reasons.

Olympus M.Zuiko 12mm f/2 vs 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO – Apples vs Olympus M.Zuiko 12mm f/2 vs 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO – Apples vs

In June 2011, Olympus made a flurry of lens announcements, revealing a total of four lenses, but only two truly new designs. Two of the lenses were newer revised models of previous zoom lenses (14-42mm and 40-150mm), while the two that excited more serious photographers were the M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 and the M.Zuiko 12mm f/2. These were small, attractive prime lenses with fast apertures, and they finally looked to help fulfill some of the promise of Micro 4/3 as a high quality lightweight camera system. Both lenses have been wildly popular. I reviewed the 45mm f/1.8 about a month ago, and have found it to be an astoundingly good lens. Can it’s wide-angle brother keep pace? Build Quality and Ergonomics Distortion is about what you'd expect for a 24mm-equivalent lens - +0.5% barrel distortion in the corners, and easily correctable in post-processing if you like your straight lines straight. Since the JPGs and RAW files of MFT cameras contain lens correction data, distortion doesn’t pose a problem with either of these wide-angle primes. I did notice that the Olympus lens suffers from a little more barrel distortion than the Panasonic but it isn’t a cause for concern.

The Leica DG 15mm has an odd angle of view of 72˚ but the optical quality is stunning. In fact I would say it is one of the very best on this list. Auto focus performance with both lenses is very impressive. Even in low light, each lens snaps into focus in less than a second. One thing that aids in the speed of these lenses is there are no external moving parts meaning the front element does not move. The Panasonic 20mm f/1.7’s front element does move which means slower AF speed when compared to the 14mm. In addition to slower AF speeds, moving front elements make lenses more prone to dust and gunk into your lens. The 12mm f2 is the first lens we bought when we started reviewing mirrorless cameras in 2013 (along with the 45mm 1.8 and the OM-D E-M5). It served us well for many years thanks to its compact design, good metal build, fast AF motor and very good optical performance. The corners are a tad softer than the centre but once you stop down to f2.8 or f4, there is no cause for complaint. Flare resistance is good and there is some mild vignetting at the fastest aperture but nothing to be concerned about.

The Best Micro Four Thirds Wide-Angle Lenses for landscapes

In use, this lens proved itself highly resistant t

I'm a wide angle snob but I must say this lens does meet my expectations. Low distortion, and fantastic image quality out of this lens. One of my favourite shots out of this lens is this one:

Used Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12mm f/2 | MPB

Panasonic 8mm f3.5 Fisheye: another one we haven’t tried is the first fisheye designed for the system (if my memory serves me well). It’s almost double the price of the Samyang, but you get autofocus. Look-up shot from the entrance to Sogetsuryu school of flower arrangement located in Akasaka, Tokyo.Laowa 4mm f2.8 Fisheye: recently announced, it offers a circular perspective with a 210˚ angle of view. Not yet tested, and I admit I’m not keen on circular fisheyes (but that’s just me). It’s cheap though. Over the past two to three years, the Micro Four Thirds (M43) system has morphed from an uncertain new category into a serious alternative to consumer DSLRs. As this segment grows, manufactures, mainly Olympus and Panasonic, have started to provide users with more lens options, but more importantly, they are producing higher quality lenses. Because of the relatively small sensors size, M43 systems have to deal with a 2x crop factor. Because of this, Olympus and Panasonic have to produce very wide lenses to provide users with a field of view that is similar to what their used to using with SLRs (e.g. 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, etc.). In this review, we are going to compare two M43 wide angle primes, the Olympus 12mm f/2 and the Panasonic 14mm f/2.5. Specs Pure RAW score:This table shows the performance of this lens if the file is saved in the camera as a RAW file. This score approaches the intrinsic quality of the combination of lens and test camera. If you make use of Photoshop, Lightroom or DxO Optics for the conversion of RAW files, then the RAW scores are the same as the jpg scores. Both lenses feature a solid metal construction but only the Leica lens is dust and splash proof. We have also noticed that, with extensive use, the paint on the Olympus lens tends to scratch more than that of the Leica.

Review: Olympus M.Zuiko 12mm f/2 - Admiring Light Review: Olympus M.Zuiko 12mm f/2 - Admiring Light

Beyond f/5.6, the playing field becomes much more even. Diffraction really starts to show at f/11 but only causes noticeable softness at f/16 on the Leica or f/16 and f/22 on the Olympus. I almost didn’t include this lens on the list, but that would have been a bit unfair given the unique characteristics this Nokton has to offer. Like the 10.5mm, the 0.95 aperture coupled with Voigtländer’s distinctive colour rendering and bokeh gives your images a different look. It is not as sharp, contrasty or precise as modern digital lenses, but this might be exactly what you are looking for. It helps that there is a depth-of-field scale engraved alongside the focusing collar but the absence of an externally-visible aperture setting means the camera cannot be used to its full potential in this respect. The manual focusing mechanism is silky smooth and feels just like a classic metal-bodied rangefinder lens. The Olympus 12mm ƒ/2 M.Zuiko looks and feels like a premium offering, with an old-school aesthetic and all-metal construction. Being a micro-four thirds lens, it's not big, and not particularly heavy, either (4.6 oz), and it mates well to the PEN series of cameras. The size of the lens belies its complexity - its optical architecture is made up of a concoction of 11 elements in 8 groups, including DSA (Dual Super Aspherical), Aspherical, ED (Extra-low Dispersion), and Super HR (Super High Refractive index) lens elements. The diaphragm is made up of 7 rounded elements to provide pleasing out-of-focus results.

The Olympus 12mm ƒ/2 uses Olympus' MSC (Move-Still-Compatible) technology, making the lens fast and near-silent to autofocus; the lens focuses between close-focus and infinity in less than a second. Autofocus results can be overridden at any time by simply turning the focusing ring. The 12mm f/2 ED is the first Olympus lens featuring "ZERO" (ZUIKO Extra-low Reflection Optical) coating which is supposed to produce 50% less internal reflection than previous coating technologies and based on our field tests we'd concur that it is quite resistant against flare. Focus is very fast on the E-P3, still quite good on the older models. The focus system is MSC (Movie/Still Compatible), so the lens itself is quiet in focus, but not silent. Sell the kit you’re not using to MPB. Trade in for the kit you need to create. Buy used, spend less and get more. Buy. Sell. Trade. Create.