Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150 mm F4-5.6 Lens, Telephoto Zoom, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G Series), Black

Product Information

The lens hood, which can make the lens look bigger than it actually is, has a smart mechanism–it retracts without the need to unmount and reverse it like on other lenses. All you need to do is slightly turn the dedicated ring on the hood and retract it. While it is a very sensible mechanism, when you take it out of your bag you might find the hood has extended of its own accord. If there's a price to be paid for the excellent sharpness results we've just seen, it might be in below-average performance in handling chromatic aberration. The lens appears to be optimized for use in the telephoto spectrum (>70mm): from 40mm to 70mm, chromatic aberration is evident at all apertures. Further than 70mm however, chromatic aberration becomes less of an issue (the lens grouping focusing on the more central portions of the glass).

Anyway, welcome to µ4/3rds, and please don’t apologize for the “slights” that the full-frame crowd mistakenly throw at our preferred format! Explain them, don’t apologize for them! The 75-300mm was announced with the original PEN (E-P1), and while we haven't yet tested it, it definitely makes an interesting alternative if you're looking for a telephoto option for your micro-four-thirds body. The lens barrel is constructed from a combination of metal and high quality plastics, with a glossy finish and the bayonet is metal with a rubber gasket to prevent the ingress of dust and moisture into the camera body. Despite the robust build and the telephoto range covered this lens only weighs 760g. As far as size and handling are concerned, this lens is a perfect match Micro Four Thirds cameras with a deep grip, such as the Panasonic Lumix G6, but it can feel a little unwieldy on smaller bodies, such as the Olympus OM-D E-M5 used for testing, when used without the optional grip. The great build becomes especially noticeable when you start using the lens. First of all, the zoom and focus rings are both large, very smooth to turn and very precise to use. They are optimally placed on the lens body so that you can naturally reach one or the other with your hand. The focus ring is also great to use for manual focusing. Thanks to its clutch mechanism, you can instantaneously switch from auto to manual focus (like the 12-40mm f/2,8 and 12mm f/2). This features is very useful for shooting video. With stills, you might not find yourself using manual focus a lot because it can become difficult at the longest focal length, unless you are in an extreme low-light situation or using the lens in macro mode at its shortest focus distance. With video, while the AF works well on both Lumix and Olympus cameras, there are more situations where you might prefer to focus precisely with your hand, and to this end, the focus ring is very pleasant to use. The first thing a full-frame fanboy, like me, might say about the Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Pro is that it’s ‘only’ equivalent to an 80-300mm F5.6 lens on a full-frame camera. True enough. UniqueIn images produced with the 40-150mm lens, sharpness is better than expected from a kit lens. The lens performs well with its fastest aperture range from ƒ/4-5.6, with an odd deviation at 50mm. Whether it is typical in this lens model, or just specific to this sample, there is an odd corner softness that appears solely at 50mm, where performance is sharp across the frame at other focal lengths. At 150mm, some slight generalized image softness crops up, but even then it doesn't exceed 3 blur units on our scale from 1-12. Lens construction: 15 elements in 9 groups (2 ED lens, 1 super ED lens, 1 HR lens, 2 aspherical lens) The OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm F4.0 Pro is capable of producing quite nice sunstars when stopped-down to f/22, as shown below, although the lens is susceptible to flare when shooting directly into the sun, even with the supplied lens hood fitted. Olympus PEN-F + Olympus M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R (145mm, 1/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO200) (Image credit: James Artaius) Olympus M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R: Performance

But if you are ready to meet its price tag and willing to carry it, the Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Pro is a formidable lens and will help you get shots you might otherwise miss.

Olympus 40-150mm f2.8 Pro optics

The OM System OM-1 used for this test is a very good match for the lens, offering good balance, fast auto focus, and full environmental seals. Bokeh is a word used for the out-of-focus areas of a photograph, and is usually described in qualitative terms, such as smooth / creamy / harsh etc. In the M.ZUIKO Digital 40-150mm f/4-5.6 ED, Olympus employed an iris diaphragm with 7 rounded blades, which has resulted in a pretty decent bokeh for a zoom lens, at least in our opinion. However, recognising that bokeh evaluation is subjective, we have provided a few examples for your perusal. The 40-150mm f2.8 has a closest focus distance of 70cm. That’s constant regardless of the focal length so you can get close in at 150mm to produce very shallow depth of field shots. These figures just correspond to the focal lengths marked on the lens; in actual usage, the widest aperture adjusts quite precisely in conjunction with the focal length setting. As you zoom in and out at the widest aperture, you can see the aperture changing in one-tenth increments. While you're not going to get pro lens levels of detail, the 40-150mm R delivers good sharpness across almost the entire zoom range. As you'd expect, things get a bit soft at the long and wide ends, with peak performance reached in the mid-range –though there's some weakness in the corners throughout.

In response to both posts, good point re the size weight, although being at the photography show reminded me about just how small this lens is (without the width of the lens hood), although probably not for everyone.But when I say carry, I mean leave at home. In contrast, I was happy to carry the Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 all weekend. Teleconverter Whether this is a sensible trade-off depends on your photography. If you shoot moving subjects in poor light, the twice-as-bright F2.8 will give you more light at faster shutter speeds, ideal for avoiding motion blur and noisy high ISOs. And because it passes more light, autofocus tends to work better. Let’s start with the constant fast aperture of 2.8, which is certainly the main characteristic that will attract users in the first place. On a Micro Four Thirds camera, it becomes even more important because it is likely the aperture you will use 90% of the time to get more light and a shallow depth of field. On my Lumix 35-100mm f/2.8 I rarely use apertures like f/4 or 5.6, and the same went for the 40-150mm. So good performance at 2.8 is essential for a lens like this, starting with sharpness. I wish the zoom ring were a little lighter so I could rotate it with my outstretched index finger. It would be cool if the teleconverter were built in, but that’s asking a lot on a lens in this price range. Seriously, that’s all I can think of. Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 Compared The Olympus 40-150mm ƒ/4-5.6 M.Zuiko is very fast to autofocus, taking less than a second to go through its entire focusing range. The lens adopts the new MSC (Movie & Still Compatible) design, making it ideal for use in both still and video applications. The front element does not rotate when focusing, making life that much easier for polarizer users.