Author Topic: The Leica branded m4/3 lenses (Read 2846 times)

candyspan6 · « **on:** January 26, 2011, 09:46:34 AM »

Anybody out there have the Panasonic Leica DG 45mm f2.8 lens, or the 14-50mm Elmarit f2.8-3.5 lens? Particularly anyone using them on the Pens? I'm looking for AF performance, and low light capabilities.

Thanks!

lisandra · « **Reply #1 on:** January 26, 2011, 09:50:06 AM »

Mark has the 45mm macro, he hasnt talked about AF speed, but he says its sharp as a tack

voyager · « **Reply #2 on:** January 26, 2011, 03:53:09 PM »

They're not Micro Four Thirds lenses though, at least not the second one. The first one is.

rogerml · « **Reply #3 on:** January 26, 2011, 08:06:17 PM »

I own and use the Pana/Leica DG Macro-Elmarit 45mm/f2.8 quite regularly, on both PEN (E-P1/2) and Pana (GF1). It's an eminent macro lens (1:1), and I find it very useful for both portrait and general use (short tele), as well. It is a true macro4/3 mount lens, weighs about half a pound, and balances very well with the cameras mentioned here. It is tack sharp, gives a very nice color rendition and, for my taste, nice bokeh. In every way, I'm very content with this lens. For macro shooting, f2.8 is rather standard fastness, - for other use it is not fast. It's AF-focusing ability is good, - ditto for manual focusing. The OIS is, of course, a pre (when used on my GF1). In US it is priced around $800, I believe.

Se my profile/postings for examples, - as well as a few in the forum media gallery. Also worth search flickr dot com for image quality examples, of course.

The Leica branded D Vario-Elmarit 14-50mm/f2.8-3.5 ASPH. MEGA O.I.S. Lens I have used (borrowed) for a couple of weeks. IQ very good, similar to the DG 45mm, exellent sharpness. Reason for not buying it: Felt big on my cameras (weighs abt. 500g/1 pound+) and doesn't balance well with my PENs or GF1, but would probably feel a lot better on a GH1/2?). It is NOT a micro4/3 lens, rather a FourThirds, and you would then need a converter. I believe the price in US to be more or less $1.000.

Panther · « **Reply #4 on:** March 12, 2011, 08:01:26 PM »

Well,
At a price of less than $800 USD, I broke down and got this lens.....I like the feel, function, etc...haven't had a chance to really shoot with it yet though...

Luckypenguin · « **Reply #5 on:** March 13, 2011, 01:24:27 AM »

The 4/3 Leica 14-50mm f2.8-3.5 is an amazing lens; very sharp and produces very smooth out-of-focus areas but the autofocus speed is terrible on an E-P1. This is not a CDAF optimised lens so there is a lot of hunting involved before it finally locks focus. It also looks huge on a Pen.

IMG_3370-PPR2 Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 Leica 14-50mm by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr

Leica 14-50mm f2.8-3.5 D Vario-Elmarit Images

voyager · « **Reply #6 on:** March 13, 2011, 02:28:48 AM »

I can only imagine how long it would take that thing to focus with the tiny motor on the PEN! Welcome to the forum!

Luckypenguin · « **Reply #7 on:** March 13, 2011, 03:05:50 AM »

Hi, thanks for the welcome! The AF speed of the Leica 14-50 on an E-P1 is sadly up there amongst the worst of the 4/3 lenses - about 2 seconds to confirm focus is about as good as it gets. Definitely for shooting still subjects only! Awesome lens though, IQ is about as good as any high-grade lens I've used on a Canon DSLR.

Panther · « **Reply #8 on:** March 13, 2011, 06:00:45 AM »

Hence why I will never use a 4/3 lens on my E-PL2...

rogerml · « **Reply #9 on:** March 13, 2011, 10:48:22 AM »

Hi folks,

I don't know about all and everyone of the Leica-branded FourThird lenses, - but if I read tests & ´grape wine´ correct, the 25mm Leica 4/3 is a great lens. Here's one review (amongst 50+) from B&H that praises this lens for many positive caracteristics, - sharpness, fast focusing (on m4/3 cameras, - mostly referred to G1), bokeh, etc.). My personal ´doubts´ about this lens is more on how it will ´balance´ on a E-P1/2 or GF1? It's quite big, - and heavy.

Read for yourself all of them on B&H dot com: Here's one, though:

By Tom from Central New York on 2/27/2011

Pros: Consistent Output, Durable, Easily Interchangeable, Fast / accurate auto-focus, Nice Bokeh
Best Uses: Indoors/Low Light, Macro Photography
Describe Yourself: Photo Enthusiast
Was this a gift?: No
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
This lens truly deserves the Leica designation, as well as Lumix's. I have Leica M lenses, as well as pro Nikon lenses, and this
25mm f1.4 out-performs them all. Sharpness, contrast and resolution are outstanding at f1.4. In terms of clarity, shooting at
f1.4 gives the illusion of f2.8, but adds the superb bokeh of an f1.4.
I use the lens on the micro four thirds Lumix GH-1 camera. This requires use of the Lumix Mount Adapter for the G Series, which provides full and fast AF for still pictures, but no AF in the GH-1 video mode. With
the adapter, I find AF noisy, therefore I shoot in manual which is silent. The lens is so contrasty wide-open that I find it a snap to focus quickly and sharply, especially given the GH-1's auto magnification feature.
I'm grateful that the adapter allows me to use this rare lens -- perhaps the best normal lens ever made, regardless of the adapter's limitations.

The Leica branded m4/3 lenses