Best 14mm option

The sharpest zoom lens by far is the expensive and hard to find PanLeica 14-150 for 4/3. It is an uncorrected lens so will have some distortion and CA and the same focus speed problems of most 4/3 lenses. Boyzo (member here) uses one.

 

Amazon has this lens in stock right now.

 

Either the Panny 7-14 or Oly 9-18 would be better choices if you are into wide angle photography. There is also the new 14 mm prime

 

The 14 prime is a killer lens.

 

Well, I sold my 17 & 14-45 tonight because I realized that the 14 would be a great street companion to the 20.
I didn't do a test of the 14 against the 14-45 because it is a good lens and I don't like comparing things like that.
Ya either like something ya have or ya don't have it anymore.
I still have the 14.

 

New to the m-ft, just ordered a GF1 with the 20mm kit lens. You guys mention the 14mm prime. What is it? Thanks

 

All the reports I've read lead me to believe the 14/2.5 won't really improve on the 14-45 either

 

I think that speaks more to how good the 14-45 is than how poor the prime is ...

(oh, and to be clear, I'm referring to the m43 14-45 "kit" lens)

 

The 14mm f/2.5 pancake was clearly designed, first and foremost, to be small. It is the smallest, lightest lens in the :43: system. The restriction in size meant that it would not have quite the same IQ and speed of the 20mm f/1.7. However, it does take very good pictures and is still at least full stop faster than any other native 14mm option. The 14-45mm's OIS may make up for (some of) this in terms of low light performance, but it will not be able to achieve as narrow a depth of field as the 14mm.

If you are considering only image quality and nothing else, then the 14mm is probably not worth its price to you. If size and speed are also concerns, then it is definitely an amazing little lens. As with all lenses, it depends on what you want to do with it.

 

Agreed! The more I'm using it, the more I love it!

 

What I'm missing in the discussion so far is any reference to the aperture you use. Wide open my 14-45mm is not completely sharp in the edges at 14mm, stopping down to f/5.6 cures this problem. The 14-45mm is one lens I won't let go because it's so good, provided you stop down a bit, to f/5.6 everywhere and to f/8 at 45mm for good edge sharpness. So far I haven't seen complaints about sample variability of the 14-45mm, but of course you may have a worse than average sample.

I don't own the 14mm pancake. Judging from a number of reviews and sample pictures it won't offer much improvement on the 14-45mm; especially edge sharpness doesn't seem better if not worse at comparable apertures, so you only really gain an extra stop of low-light performance and smaller size.

 

The 14-45 is a great lens but....the 14mm is soooo small and unobtrusive, quiet and fast. That's what makes it work for me. I'll bet that means something to more than a few shooters.

 

Any zoom will be better within its range than at the end.

Hopefully, the new m43 12-50 comes out soon!