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Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150 mm F2.8 PRO Lens, Telephoto Zoom, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G Series), Black

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It’s fair to say this has been a highly anticipated lens, seamlessly continuing where the 12-40mm stops, and delivering an 80-300mm equivalent range that’s desired by close-range action as well as street and portrait shooters. Now with two lenses, Olympus can take you from an equivalent of 24mm all the way to 300mm with a constant f2.8 focal ratio throughout, and while the 40-150mm is obviously one of the larger lenses in the catalogue, it remains compact for a lens for its class. As well as superior optics and performance, the Pro tag denotes high quality construction with an all metal body that is dust, splash and freeze-proof. The lens also comes with a removable lens collar for tripod mounting, as well as a collapsible lens hood. But if you tend to shoot moving subjects in good light or static subjects in any light – the larger F2.8 aperture counts for little. As a result, you might as well save some weight and money and go for the cheaper and smaller Olympus 40-150mm F4 Pro. Staying with optics, another important difference between the lenses is the presence of optical stabilisation on the Leica, which in my tests delivered up to six stops of compensation at 200mm. In contrast, the Olympus lens is unstabilised, instead relying on body-based stabilisation in your camera. If you have an unstabilised body, then the Leica is much more attractive thanks to its optical compensation. The focusing was swift and quiet, the optical stabilisation achieved up to six stops in my tests, and like all of Panasonic and Leica’s collaborations, the build quality is excellent with smooth mechanics and a weather-sealed body; and once again, that relatively compact barrel means it’ll squeeze into bags or pouches that other telephotos may struggle with. Mobility that comes from a fixed-length compact body outfitted with fast aperture lens and splash & dust proof construction

Zooming to 70mm results in a reduction in sharpness in the centre at maximum aperture to excellent levels, although performance towards the edges is improved to very good levels of clarity. Peak performance across the frame is achieved at f/5.6 where sharpness is excellent in the centre and falls just short of this towards the edges. Unfortunately, the 50-200mm is starting to be harder to zoom and feels a little gritty so I might have to replace it and I know what will be the replacement---another 50-200mm. Image: The Olympus 40-150mm’s fast autofocus allows for capture of split-second moments. Olympus 40-150mm First Look – What’s it like in use? With the lens set to its maximum aperture, you can see some light fall-off in the corners but it will not be overly noticeable in your real-life photos. I’ve included this second image really just to show the shallowness of the depth of field with a reasonably close subject and the pleasant bokeh produced by the 40-150mm’s circular aperture diaphragm. This time the AF has nailed it with good sharp detail in the face.I can recommend the LEICA 12-60mm / F2.8-4.0 ASPH, it doesn't say Panasonic on it, says LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT on the barrel and around the front element, and doesn't feel like other Panasonic zooms. It's tightly engineered, all metal construction, even the zoom/focus rings are finely machined metal (not rubber grips). Place both of the telephoto zooms side-by-side and there’s significant physical differences to literally weigh-up. The Leica is noticeably more compact, shorter and lighter. I could squeeze it into my bag standing up whereas the Olympus always had to lay down and occupied much more space. That said, the Olympus enjoys the benefits of internal zooming (less chance of dust or moisture entering the barrel) and a tripod foot for greater stability (which also sports an Arca Swiss dovetail base). Both lenses may feature lens hoods that can fold over the end of the barrel for transportation, but the Leica hood must be reversed and re-mounted, whereas the Olympus hood simply pulls-out. There’s no doubt the Olympus feels more confident and has more physical features (including a programmable function button for Olympus bodies), but again it’s much larger. But if you’re photographing portraits or landscapes, speed hardly matters. Therefore, you might as well save some money and carry a lighter more compact lens.

The Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/2.8 Pro lens accepts 72mm screw-in filters. The thread does not rotate on focus, making the use of polarisers that much easier. The all-metal construction of the lens oozes strength and rigidity, as you’d expect. Just like the M.ZUIKO Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8, it’s a lens that compliments the build quality of the E-M1 and manages to feel at one with the camera. While buttons on the barrel aren’t anything new, the lens has a function button that allows you to control the way you setup the camera’s function buttons. It’s positioned on the left side of the barrel just behind the zoom ring for control with your thumb when the lens is supported in the left hand. Overall, the Olympus 40-150mm F4 Pro is better by every measure except price and weight. And if you’re outdoors, you might feel more confident using the IP53-rated F4 Pro. That said, you could write off the cheaper lens 4-times over for the price of one Olympus 40-150 F4 Pro. OM-S 40-150mm F4 Pro vs Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Corner-to-corner sharpness is also tremendously good, with almost no change in sharpness from center softness at every focal length. The blur characteristics are very flat. For all intents and purposes, this lens is sharp, everywhere, all the time from ƒ/2.8 to around ƒ/11-ƒ/16, where we see minor diffraction softness coming into play.

The Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Pro is an optically excellent, high-performance, metal-cased beast of a lens and perhaps the best telephoto zoom I’ve ever used. OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Of course, size is not everything (not always). If you’re looking to shoot moving subjects in light conditions – the larger and brighter Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Pro will get the better shot more often. The Panny 35-100 F2.8 ii would, for many, get you the range 12-100 F2.8 in a smaller combo, but, since you only want to buy Oly lenses, the two Oly Pro zooms would be my recommendation. When it gets it right the 40-150mm f2.8 produces stunningly sharp detail. This time set to S-AF mode with the light fading, but still bright enough to shoot wide open at 200 ISO with the stabilisation enabled.

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