which GH2 kit?

[froody]

I've all but decided I'm going to get a GH2. I don't really care for video but after several years with an LX3 I crave fast autofocus and nicer controls while trying to stay smaller than the Canon 10D I used to have.
So I need to decide which kit to get. I'll mainly be taking pictures (indoors) of our pet rats, and landscapes while hiking. That means I require relatively wide as well as telephoto coverage.
So I could
1. buy the kit that includes the 14-42 and supplement, likely with the 45-200
2. buy the kit that comes with the 14-140
Option 1 is a few hundred dollars cheaper than 2, but I'm wondering if there isn't some benefit to the 14-140 that I'm missing. I realize it's great for video but I don't care about video that much.

Is #2 noticeably sharper than #1 combo?
How about focus speed?

I'd love any insight you have.

Tim

 

[Amin]

It's not sharper. It may focus a bit faster, but we don't know that for sure. The main advantage is that you can use the entire wide angle to telephoto range without changing lenses, which can be handy in some situations. If that and video don't matter to you, may as well go for the two lens option.

 

[Jerry_R]

It's a lot sharper, like day and night. At least 14-42mm which I received together with G2. I immediately sold it, it was not only less sharper, but least contrast lens I saw in my life - even colors of clothes were like washed out.

I had all three mentioned by you lenses. Without hesitation I would recommend you one lens covering all focals.

I can imagine reason to buy 14-45mm and 45-200mm (lighter 14-45mm for some ocasions, cheaper, 200mm), but never 14-42mm and 45-200mm. When you buy GH2 with 14-140mm as kit - I believe price will be better than you would buy it separately.

All kits focus very quickly: 14-42mm, 14-45mm, 7-14mm, 14-140mm - with one remark - @140mm it slows down visibly.

 

[bilzmale]

I sold my 45-200 and kit lens for the 14-140 (one lens solution) and don't regret it one bit. Your shooting style may differ so follow that line of decision making.

 

[addieleman]

My experience with the 14-140mm is a little less favourable. In the end I preferred the 14-45mm + 45-200mm combo because the 14-140mm's highlights tend to bleed into darker areas, which can give a distinct impression of unsharpness; apart from that my sample was quite sharp. In fact, I sold it, also because it didn't balance too well for me on the G1, it's front-heavy and tiring to have on the camera for a long time.

Now I preordered the GH2 with 14-140mm because I'd like to see what video does for me with a good camera, but I won't use that lens for stills I guess.

 

[froody]

Thanks so much for everybody's input. I was originally leaning to the 2-lens cheaper option, but I'm leaning a bit towards the 14-140 now. Too bad there isn't a 14-45 kit option.
Maybe I should buy 14-42 plus 45-200, with the plan of selling the 14-42 and buying a 14-45 later. Decisions, decisions...

Tim

 

[carpandean]

Thanks so much for everybody's input. I was originally leaning to the 2-lens cheaper option, but I'm leaning a bit towards the 14-140 now. Too bad there isn't a 14-45 kit option.
Maybe I should buy 14-42 plus 45-200, with the plan of selling the 14-42 and buying a 14-45 later. Decisions, decisions...

Tim

There should be enough people who buy the pancake kit and want to add a zoom lens. The 14-42mm is considerably less expensive (less than 2/3 of the 14-45mm retail), so you'd probably end up paying half the price net (about $160) to upgrade to the 14-45mm.

 

[oldracer]

Decisions, decisions...

Yes. I started with the 14-45 and the 45-200, but using the camera primarily as a tourist camera I found that I was changing lenses way too much. The focal length breakpoint was just not right. Many outdoor shots want something longer than 90 mm equivalent, but many want something much less. So, lots of swapping. Also, the 14 (28 effective) is really not wide enough for good interior shots.

So I sold those two and now have an Oly 9-18 and the Panny 14-140. This is a much better setup for me. Kind of an "indoor" and an "outdoor" lens, though the tiny 9-18 is great when walking a market or narrow streets.

One thing: The 14-140 is considerably heavier than the 45-200. On a neck strap it could be a burden. I have it on a "Y-strap" and don't notice the weight. It's bigger, too, but that's not a big deal.

I'll probably add the new Panny 100-300 (on a second body) to my kit for a planned trip to South Africa in the fall of 2011.