Digital Camera News and Reviews

Cam

Photography Blog has reviewed a superzoom lens from Panasonic that should be interesting for many Micro Four Thirds users. The lens is very good for recording videos as it has high speed focusing and is very silent. You can buy the lens alone and it comes as a kit with the GH2 and GH1 cameras from Panasonic.

The website ends up giving the Panasonic lens a very good review with a “Highly Recommended” rating and an overall score of 4.5 stars out of 5 possible. The Lumix lens scores highest on ease of use, design and features, a little lower in image quality while it scores lowest on value for your money. The lens is pretty expensive and heavy compared to a similar Micro Four Thirds lens from Olympus, but if you own the GH1 or GH2 and are interested in recording videos this Panasonic lens should be your choice as it has incredibly fast focus and its optics are good.
Read the full review of the Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO HD 14-140mm F4.0-5.8 ASPH. MEGA O.I.S. lens here.

Panasonic LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm F3.5

The Micro Four Thirds system keeps expanding the number of available lenses. Panasonic has now released a fisheye lens called Panasonic LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm F3.5. The Lumix lens is able to focus as close as 10 cm and is built up of ten lenses in nine groups. The fisheye gives us a diagonal angle of view of 180 degrees giving your pictures the unique fisheye look. But it comes at a high price as it cost about $800 on the US market.

Photography Blog ends up giving the Panasonic lens a good review with a “Recommended” rating and an overall score of 4 out of 5 possible stars. The lens scores highest on design where it gets a perfect score, a little lower on image quality, ease of use and features while it scores lower on value for your money. The lens is very small and has a great build design. It is also able to capture awesome pictures and the focus system is fast. The biggest shortcoming for this Panasonic lens is the high price tag, but if you have the money and want a Micro Four Thirds fisheye this is a must have for you.
Read the full review of the Panasonic LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm F3.5 lens here.

Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO 100-300mm F4.0-5.6 MEGA O.I.S.

Photography Blog has tested a new micro Four Thirds lens from Panasonic. The lens, Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO 100-300mm F4.0-5.6 MEGA O.I.S., has optical image stabilization and in 35mm terms it covers 200-600mm. It weighs about 500g and is made up of 17 elements in 12 groups including an ED lens.

The blog ends up giving the Panasonic lens a “Recommended” rating with an overall score of 4 out of 5 possible stars. The lens scores highest on design, almost as high on image quality, value for your money and ease of use while it scores lowest on features. The lens seems like a really good offer for photographers needing a bit of zoom. It is able to produces sharp pictures and the price tag is not too high. As a micro Four Thirds user I am very happy to see that Panasonic keeps on releasing good lenses!
Read the full review of the Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO 100-300mm F4.0-5.6 MEGA O.I.S. lens here.

Sony E 16mm f/2.8 SEL16F28

SLRgear has tested a new prime lens from Sony that is used for their new E-mount cameras NEX-3 and NEX-5. The lens is called Sony E 16mm f/2.8 SEL16F28 and seems interesting as it is pretty wide starting at 16mm (24mm equivalent). The Sony prime lens uses 49mm filters and does not come with a lens hood.

SLRgear ends up giving the Sony E 16mm f/2.8 SEL16F28 a good review, but the Sony lens has a few shortcomings. If you are looking for a lens that makes NEX camera more pocketable this lens is your choice, but it comes with a pretty high price tag and it is a bit soft if you use it wide open at f/2.8. Hopefully Sony will produce more prime lenses for the NEX series in the future.
Read the full review of the Sony E 16mm f/2.8 SEL16F28 prime lens here.