I picked up a copy of the new Olympus 25mm lens. My first impression was that it was a very solid feeling lens. It feels more dense than the PL25. Probably due to the compact size. The hood is nice and one that you could leave on the lens (reversed to store) so I would use it more.
Shooting with the lens is great. No focusing issues. It was very fast to focus for all the photos I took. I used the EP-5.
I took some test shots around the house at a range of f-stops up to f8. I found several subjects and took photos using the Panasonic 25mm, the Olympus 25mm, and in a few cases the P12-35mm at 25mm. I shot all lenses from the same point using autofocus, ISO 200 and took the photos as close together in time as I could. Sometimes I shot the PL25 first, other times I shot the Oly 25 first. I shot the way I normally shoot. If the lens works, it must work under these conditions for me.
I also shot some controlled tripod shots of a test chart with identical lighting and a 2 s shutter delay. All autofocused. I shot first all at the same distance and then I moved the tripod back for the PL25 and shot at the same FOV.
Here are my conclusions on the images (my opinion only)
1. I like the photos from the Olympus 25mm better for some reason. They have deeper colors in many cases and I find them sharper in many cases (unless you shoot test charts).
2. The Olympus lens is silent. The PL makes some focusing noise.
3. The Panasonic Lens seems sharper most of the time and in most locations (corners included) when looking at line pairs on a chart.
4. The Panasonic lens seems to create a lighter image (histogram shifted to right) compared to the Olympus when using the same f-stop. What little I looked into this I found that the Olympus had a shorter shutter speed in some of these cases and produced a richer (to my eye) looking photo.
5. bokeh of pl25@1.4 is not much more than Olympus at f1.8.
So my conclusion is that the Olympus is a great lens for making photographs (Unless your subject is a test chart) and that to my eye it produces nicer photos than the Panasonic in most cases.
That is just my opinion so I am attaching photos so you can judge for yourself.
Here are some sample photos, cropped to full scale. All image comparisons have three sections. These are (from left to right) PL25@f1.4 PL25@1.8 Oly25@1.8
In addition, there are some test charts on that page. Image notes provide the lens and f-stop values.
Image link is dead
Each Comparison Photo is PL 25@f1.4 - PL 25@1.8 - Oly 25@1.8 in that order left to right.
Shooting with the lens is great. No focusing issues. It was very fast to focus for all the photos I took. I used the EP-5.
I took some test shots around the house at a range of f-stops up to f8. I found several subjects and took photos using the Panasonic 25mm, the Olympus 25mm, and in a few cases the P12-35mm at 25mm. I shot all lenses from the same point using autofocus, ISO 200 and took the photos as close together in time as I could. Sometimes I shot the PL25 first, other times I shot the Oly 25 first. I shot the way I normally shoot. If the lens works, it must work under these conditions for me.
I also shot some controlled tripod shots of a test chart with identical lighting and a 2 s shutter delay. All autofocused. I shot first all at the same distance and then I moved the tripod back for the PL25 and shot at the same FOV.
Here are my conclusions on the images (my opinion only)
1. I like the photos from the Olympus 25mm better for some reason. They have deeper colors in many cases and I find them sharper in many cases (unless you shoot test charts).
2. The Olympus lens is silent. The PL makes some focusing noise.
3. The Panasonic Lens seems sharper most of the time and in most locations (corners included) when looking at line pairs on a chart.
4. The Panasonic lens seems to create a lighter image (histogram shifted to right) compared to the Olympus when using the same f-stop. What little I looked into this I found that the Olympus had a shorter shutter speed in some of these cases and produced a richer (to my eye) looking photo.
5. bokeh of pl25@1.4 is not much more than Olympus at f1.8.
So my conclusion is that the Olympus is a great lens for making photographs (Unless your subject is a test chart) and that to my eye it produces nicer photos than the Panasonic in most cases.
That is just my opinion so I am attaching photos so you can judge for yourself.
Here are some sample photos, cropped to full scale. All image comparisons have three sections. These are (from left to right) PL25@f1.4 PL25@1.8 Oly25@1.8
In addition, there are some test charts on that page. Image notes provide the lens and f-stop values.
Image link is dead
Each Comparison Photo is PL 25@f1.4 - PL 25@1.8 - Oly 25@1.8 in that order left to right.
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