Tag: standard lens

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Three revised lenses from OM System

6AM GMT, 6th February 2025

OM System has made some welcome updates to three of its existing lenses; the 17mm f/1.8, 25mm f/1.8, and 100-400mm f/5-6.3, and all now sport the ‘II’ suffix. For anyone reading this who is unfamiliar with the comparable focal lengths in ‘full frame’ terms, these are 34mm, 50mm, and 200-800mm, respectively.

Although not 100% confirmed, we don’t think there are any changes to the optical designs of these lenses. They all appear to share the same optical element construction configurations with their predecessors.

Neither the original 17mm, nor 25mm, were dust and splash-proofed. They have, now, both acquired environmental sealing and an IPX rating.

The 100-400 did have environmental sealing but Olympus did not state what the IP rating was, but it is now confirmed to be IPX, too.

Subtle external differences are discernible with the new 17mm and 25mm lenses. The focusing rings look wider, for example. We assume the 17mm retains its sliding focus ring clutch arrangement, for instant manual focus access, though in the pictures we’ve seen so far, it’s not clear. The original 25mm lens was always a budget design and didn’t feature a focus clutch ring; it would be nice if it acquired this feature.

There is little external difference to the 100-400mm f/5-6.3 Mark II compared to it predecessor. However, this new edition of the lens now supports 5-axis Sync IS, which enables the moving sensor image stabilisation in the camera body (selected models) to work in tandem with the optical image stabilisation of the lens. This improves maximum stabilisation headroom from 3 stops to 7 stops.

In the UK the new lenses are officially priced:

m.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8 II – £499

m.Zuiko 25mm f/1.8 II – £399

m.Zuiko 100-400mm f/5-6.3 II – £1299.99

Availability for all three lenses is slated to commence from 27th February.

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Venus Optics introduces its Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO

Venus Optics Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO

Chinese lens maker, Venus Optics, has unveiled a $399 superfast f/0.95 prime 25mm ‘standard lens’ for Micro Four Thirds cameras, the Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO.

Venus Optics Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO
Venus Optics Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO

Classic standard lens

A 25mm focal length on Micro Four Thirds offers the same classic field of view as a traditional, 35mm or ‘full frame’, 50mm lens.

The Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 is a sophisticated 14 elements in 8 groups apochromatic design and the body is mostly metal. One aspherical element is use, plus one ED and 3 UHR (ultra high refractive index) elements.

For such an ambitious specification – f/0.95 is two thirds of stop brighter than f/1.2 – the $399 price tag seems remarkable. However, this is because it’s a manual focus lens.

As there is no electronic communication between the lens and the camera body this also means the aperture mechanism is manual. A 9-blade aperture iris combined with its very wide aperture design should mean great bokeh.

Venus Optics Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO product shot gallery:

For video and stills

Venus Optics mentions that the lens design minimises focus ‘breathing’, which suggests the lens has been designed with videographers in mind. The focus ring has a long 300 degree throw to facilitate precise adjustment, which is just as well because depth of field at f/0.95 is very narrow.

The aperture ranges to f/11 only, which is interesting because Micro Four Thirds lenses often offer settings as low as f/16 and f/22. On the other hand it’s recommended not to go much below f/5.6 in order to avoid diffraction softening.

Minimum focus distance is 25cm (9.8 inches). The lens weighs 570g and is 86mm long and 71mm wide. The filter thread is 62mm. There is no mention of environmental sealing.

Sample images

Venus Optics have kindly supplied some sample images taken by a variety of photographers, using Olympus and Panasonic bodies. Presumably, they were all taken at f/0.95. There is a gallery of selected images below.

For more information, the Laowa brand website can be found here. The UK distributor’s website is here.

Below is a gallery of sample images provided by Venus Optics: