IN CONCLUSION, I think this is definitely a significant upgrade from the 17/2.8. I hate to admit it but this lens is noticeably less sharp than the 20/1.7 and 25/1.4. For me it matters when I need to push up the ISO to >1600 because with de-noising the loss of sharpness is noticeable unlike with the 20/1.7 and 25/1.4. Where this lens succeeds though is in the AF (compared to the 20/1.7), size (relative to the bulky 25/1.4) and classic 35mm FOV departments. I've owned all 3 lenses and among the 3, would still choose this for my personal needs (20/1.7 - hunts in low light, not good for event photography [e.g. parties], 25/1.4 - perfect for event photography but bigger and I find the normal FOV too normal at times compared to the more versatile [also normal FOV, good for street shots] 17/1.8)
I wasn't going to post these since I posted the first 2 on a separate dedicated image thread but just to oblige, here are a few samples from my recent trip to the Grand Canyon. Faux HDR with shadow recovery plus heightened contrast and saturation in parts because of the atmosphere haze.
949Thanks
Olympus 17mm f/1.8 Image Thread
