Discussion on the Olympus Lens Offer

How does the above two lenses fit into this “great lenses” reputation Olympus build over the years? Before I start, allow me to say that I am no lens specialist and this discussion is general and the opinion of a typical SLR owner.I have mixed feelings about these two lenses. It is clear when you handle them that these two lenses are manufactured to be cost effective. Personally I think they were designed to enable Olympus to have a very competitive offer from 28 mm up to 300 mm. They good but not very durable because they for example does not have a metal fitting plate.

The following are a few of their key attributes, they small, they light, they have good reach, from wide to a reasonably good zoom range and they have good ED lens elements build in. They also have a good macro ability. Combined with something like the E-410 and they are the best walk around offer on the market today.There is a “but” also, for example they are really slow, The standard lens start at a slow f3,5 and the zoom at a slower f4,0. They both end a full stop later at f5,6 at the zoom end of the lens.

If I had to give a brief summary on each of them based on my experience then it will be as follows:

The 14 - 42 mm, f3,5 - f5,6 kit lens:

The lens is very small, light and makes the E-410 the smallest SLR on the market today. Its not a high performance top quality lens and one notice it when working with the lens. It benefits from in-camera adjustments plus careful post processing. Knowing that and practicing the post processing side of using this lens and the results can be very good.

The 40 - 150 mm, f4,0 - f5,6 kit lens:

This is an amazing lens, never have I seen such a small lens in this reach. Surprisingly the pictures delivered by this lens is also amazingly good, they clear, sharp and with good color. Its a keeper and something that deserves a space in my bag. Its important to understand its limitation, for example its not good in a school concert environment..... This lens combined with the 25 mm extension tube of Olympus also makes for a very interesting macro lens. Yes its slow, but fitted to the E-410 or the E-510, and mounted on a tripod and this becomes a very interesting solution. I like using this combo with the E-410’s live view and manual focussing, great macro combo.

Interestingly I hardly ever use this lens. I used it a few times doing macro shots and it was good. The challenge is its slow aperture size, Fitted to the E520 with IS and its OK. I eventually sold this lens in favor of the 18 - 180mm lens.

The two kit lenses does have a plastic feel to them and for example the fitting to the camera is made of a type of plastic. I can only think that with much use these lenses will wear faster than a lens with a metal fitting arrangement. I was not 100% happy with the 14 - 42 mm lens and knew that the E-410 could give better pictures than what I was getting. I therefor kept my eyes opened for the older version kit lenses.

It did not take long to find both the 14 - 45 mm and the 40 - 150 mm older version kit lens. What makes it even more interesting is the price you pay for these 2nd hand. It is possible to get them for approximately 120 USD each. I will not be surprised if that will change because when you see these lenses then you will appreciate why Olympus has a name for building high quality kit lenses. They both have metal fitting plates and in general the two lenses have a good quality feel to them.

What should one do with all these kit lenses, should one keep all or should one sell them all. Its difficult to say, for example there are only minor differences in picture quality I found, things to consider are the metal fitting to the camera, size, macro ability and lens speed. When you make a list for each and when you start to compare then its difficult to make a clear choice. Each of these four lenses has a unique strength. Although I said there are no major differences, I do feel that the older kit lenses has the edge for my style of photography.

Is it better to buy new equipment?

While writing this page, many thoughts crossed my mind and one off them was the question, are new equipment better than the older stuff. I think one should specify how old, when asking this question. When you refer to old analog or 35 mm equipment then you need to be careful. For example in most cases old flash units does not work well with modern digital equipment.

If you refer to older digital camera equipment, then my answer is, absolutely have a good look at older digital equipment. The problem buying new is that your camera can reduce more than 50% of its value in the first view months. Today you can find outstanding digital camera equipment at a fraction of its original price and more than often the technology or the ability of these older equipment are better than the newer counterparts.

Recently I noticed that the prices do not fall as much as they did. One also need to be careful when buying on ebay, prices can easily increase above the level were it’s beneficial to by secondhand.

There are a few exceptions like Leica or typically your top or pro level equipment that can be expensive 2nd hand.

I decided to add this paragraph as its another view months later. My experience or opinion of the quality aspects of the different lenses did not change. What did change is my appreciation for the two new kit lenses. They are without any doubt the absolute best travel partners available. Together with the E-420 the photographer has the best possible travel kit. Its light, its really good and its small....the total package..

Should I keep my kit lens when getting the 14 - 54 mm lens?

Again the answer is a loud yes. The reason is simple, the 14 - 54 is a heavy and a physically large piece of glass. Its not something you will walk around with everyday, especially hanging round your neck. In addition look at the lens speed of the two different lenses. Alone that place them in different categories and its worth having both. Then the last reason for keeping the 14 - 42 or the 14 - 45 is their aperture mechanism. Its referred to as a circular type aperture blade and this type of aperture construction results in a beautiful bokeh when doing portrait work.That said, the 14 - 54 will give you that edge in picture sharpness, detail and quality when needed. It is a great performer in low light conditions and its great for blue hour photography or night time photography.

Its all true and correct what I said about the aperture mechanism on the kit lens and yes it will give a different background blur. To be frank its also a little sounding like the textbook pro’s lurking on the large forums. To be frank, I sold all my kit lenses and never regretted not having the great “bokeh” I had from my kit lens....

Just a thought on the Oly lens offer...

Olympus makes it clear that they have three groups of lenses, the standard, the high grade and the super high grade.These three groups do overlap with each other and that should be the case. If you therefor have two lenses with a similar focal range but in different groups, then you will have a overlap.

What I find excellent with the Oly range of lenses is that each and every lens are well considered and thought through. One can see this when you consider to buy one more.My advice will be to really study the different lenses from Olympus and to then select your lens based on your needs.

During my 350D Canon days, I also bought a few lenses, lucky my son later used them. I can remember that with the available offer, one could apply to the 350D, one never had such a well though through “range” as what I have seen with Olympus.

I read a interesting comment and like to pass it on. The person said Olympus applies the same careful building techniques and glass quality across the entire range of lenses. For example they do not build a purposely lower quality kit lens just to keep prices down. In terms of the optics they basically all perform to the same high standards.

The difference between the different category lenses are aperture size, weather sealing, the type of focus motors and focus speed of a lens. For example the 14 -54 and the 12 - 60 are both pro grade lenses. The real difference is the superior focus ability of the 12 - 60 and the extended range. In terms of picture quality they very similar and on the wide ends the 14 - 54 could even be better. On the other hand when used in continues focus mode to follow a subject then the 12 - 60 will be the better performer.

New 9 - 18 mm Wide Angle Zoom Lens

To read more about my current lens line-up, please see the page talking about my current camera bag. I am sure you will enjoy the read. With that I now close this page.

Siegfried