Advice for New G1 Owner

[LeeOsenton]

I just ordered a new G1, a spare battery, and a Nissin Di466 flash. I am transitioning from a DSLR and am excited to join the micro 4/3rds crowd. My favorite lenses have always been fast primes, so I am gravitating towards the 20mm, but it seems rather pricey for a non stabilized normal prime. Any recommendations? I almost bought the 4/3rds adapter but read that AF may not work. Is there a way to tell which lenses are compatible with AF on a u43 body?
Can't wait for my little red G1!

Thanks,
Lee

 

[gorilla]

Just get the 20mm and let your legs do the walking, you will never look back!

 

[Hector]

I would agree with gorilla - I love the prime 20mm. However, the kit 14-45 is pretty darn good too. The kit 14-45 seems to have a nice balanced feel on the G1 whereas the 20mm feels nicely balanced on the GF1 IMHO.

 

[Bokeh Diem]

Start with the 20mm/1.7 pancake as advised if it's a fast prime you are looking for. From there you will find out what to do... I just got a 4/3rds lens ( a whopper) 25mm LeicaD /1.4 a few nights ago. It's unreal. And, it has an aperture ring.

Read this:
Compatibilities of DMC-GF1, DMC-GH1 and DMC-G1 | Compatibility | Digital Camera | Product Support | Support | Panasonic Global

.. and try a few manual primes for fun, like the Konica Hexanons, or so some even more exotic stuff. It's a blast working in manual on this system.

Check out the adapted lenses forum on our mu-43 Site.

Bokeh

50/2 Helios 44-4 lens, focused only on the eyes

Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)

 

[chuckgoolsbee]

Agreed with all others. The 20mm Panasonic is a wonderful lens. You'll love it.

 

[oldnikkor]

For the price of the Panny 20mm you can get a whole bag of cool classic prime lenses to play with! M42, Nikon, even Zeiss and Leitz!

My Red G1 looks great in all of them.

 

[LeeOsenton]

Thanks to all for the excellent advice. I ended up getting the Panasonic 45-200 first because I do enjoy nature and birding also. Due to the strong recommendations from here, I think the 20 is next now that I have fairly good focal length coverage. The zoom lens isn't quite as exciting to me as a fast prime, I knew I would be frustrated when I hit the stop at 45mm and had nothing else to shoot with.
BTW, I got a red G1 from Amazon for $499 shipped, and the total was a bit over $1000 with the long zoom, Nissin flash, an extended warranty, and a spare battery. Now I am out of cash and need to start saving for the pancake, thanks again for the advice. It wasn't unheeded, I just have seen so many good pics from the kit lens I decided to "suffer" for a bit so I will appreciate the 20 later.

Lee

 

[LeeOsenton]

Nice Pic

@Bokeh Diem Nice shot, I think I could flip that image horizontally and read the comics! Now I have serious lens envy... Too bad I blew my camera budget

Lee