All images and video - Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 X Zoom
I managed to get a few shots yesterday before the very wet weather in the distance arrived. I also shot some hand-held video to see what the OIS was like. All of this was with a panasonic G3.
As you can see the OIS, in combination with iMovie stabilisation, works well for this and produces smooth footage.
CONCLUSION.
While I will be using this lens a lot in the future and posting about it here is a temporary conclusion.
While its not perfect, there is some vignetting at f2.8 and its ludicrously expensive, this is an incredibly useful lens for me. It handles a series of my most used focal lengths with no problem. Its sharp, its virtually fault-free, its a fixed (and fast) maximum aperture, it focuses like lighting on my Olympus and Panasonic cameras and its superbly made. I really like it a lot. For some it will be too heavy and too large, but then there are lots of alternatives. For me it makes the 14-42mm feel like a plastic toy and in terms of build quality and "gravitas" its easily the nicest m4/3 lens I've used. It makes both of the cameras I'm currently using it on feel very classy indeed.
I, personally, would have no hesitation in replacing all my primes up to 70mm with it (if I still had any primes up to 70mm that is!) Is it better than the 25mm f/1.4? No its not, but its close. Is it better than the 20mm f/1.7, 12mm f/2 and 45mm f/1.8? No its not but its VERY close.
Repeating myself yet again, its just so damn useful. I can't wait to see if the 35-100 f/2.8 is this good, and reasonably sized. If so, then this is going to provide an incredible pair of lenses and may well tip me over into working with m4/3 exclusively.
Finally, going back to how this started, its a really gorgeous lens. If you are wondering whether to get it and don't like the price much, don't under any circumstances try one out. If, like me, you love well designed, engineered and manufactured lenses that have a real solid presence to them and feel like they will last for years then you may well submit to its charms. If you like pancake lenses, then you probably won't.
I love using it and when I described using it as comparable to working with a Zeiss lens I wasn't joking and / or exaggerating. Its unlike any other m4/3 lens I've used and, as far as I'm concerned, pushes the m4/3 system even further ahead in the CSC / Mirrorless / E.V.I.L. marketplace. Now if only Sony could come up with something like this for their NEX cameras.
N.B. to see more on the cameras and lenses featured in this post click on the relevant labels (tags and keywords) below.
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