Olympus launches M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZ power zoom

Nooohh! 6.3 Aperture @ 50  

 

I was really hoping for a 12-60mm.

F6.3? You might as well just carry a point and shoot.

This is only really useful as a 12mm f3.5 lens. The price is reasonable.

 

It's kind of too large for a slow 12mm lens. Almost the same size as 14-150.

 

The other nice thing about it is the macro mode. Olympus calls it 0.72x, which is really 0.36x, but that's actually pretty good. It seems like a decent jack of all trades lens, honestly.

 

It's even worse than that. That lens, which I have, is actually f2.8-3.5, so the f6.3 is just horrible!

 

I love it when new kit gets announced and I have little interest - it makes the decision way easier!

 

do we have enough kits lenses already for m43?

 

These lens choices are just starting to baffle me from Olympus. I sort of got it with their 70-300mm - F6.3 on a telephoto ain't great, but it was understandable considering they were going for a compact size as well.

F6.3 on a 50mm lens is just a joke. Coming from a company that previously made zoom lenses faster than anybody else, I just don't get it! Not to mention the powerzoom, macro coupling ring and zoom disable buttons making the lens unnecessarily complex as well. Did they give the guys who are financially destroying the company new jobs in the R&D department too?

Edit: the only saving grace is the weather sealing being incorporated, as that would be pointless without a future sealed body...

 

Their 75-300mm lens is actually f/6.7 at the long end.  

 

Nope,we need a new one every year. From both companies.

 

Guys... I think you're missing something very important here.

This lens is WEATHER SEALED! What do you think this means for the system....?

 

There is a point where it doesn't really matter, does it? hahaha.

The other strange part of making such slow lenses is that the 4/3 sensor, though gaining ground, isn't exactly considered the low light king of larger sensor cameras. If it were something faster like F4.5 on the long end you'd at least be competing with the higher end kit lenses that are available for aps-c cameras.

 

Olympus going to provide a scotch taped version of EPs, cause of its financial issues?
 

 

"D" model. Disposable.

 

Scotch tape? More like teflon tape. How many of us would love an E-P3 with weather sealing (granted, we need a weather sealed MMF-3 as well, as this one lens won't cover our needs)?

 

I think this is a logical evolution of the kit lens, but it's the one that should have been released about 2 iterations ago ... At least this one has some real value - close focusing, weather sealing, wider wide end ...

 

Bad weather -> not much light -> f/6.3 is gonna be a major limitation.

Given that the Panny 12-35 looks to be about the same size (at least-lengthwise) and 2-3 stops faster, I think I'll keep saving my pennies...

DH