Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150mm F4.0-5.6 II Lens, for Micro Four Thirds Cameras (Black)

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After going through MANY different cameras and zoom lenses (e.g., Pentax K-3 w/18-135; Canon 60D; Nikon 7100; Panasonic FZ1000; Panasonic G-7, etc.), in my opinion this lens beats all combinations hands down. I am using an Olympus OM-D E-M5II. I live by the beach and waterproofing was an additional, if not mandatory, requirement. I am including a couple of pics as examples of the lens. Revisited review. After taking MANY pictures with this lens, I am puzzled when I see reviewers having difficulty in low light situations. I have added some additional pics to show my experience [fireworks, stage play, midnight flight]. In addition, after having the 14-150mm I also purchased the highly regarded 12-40mm PRO lens. In retrospect, while I enjoy the 12-40, I am not sure it is worth the extra $$ if you already have the 14-150mm. The 14-150 will be my go-to mounted lens for most of my shooting from now on. Revisit #2. [March2017] I just completed a reasonably good test of the new 12-100mm under a variety of conditions. Result: the 14-150 is still king-of-the-hill. While the 12-100 exhibited excellent pictures, it was too big and heavy (e.g., for street photography), lacked the extra 50mm, and is much more expensive than the 14-150. I even installed a Fotodiox Pro hand grip and the 12-100 still felt top-heavy. So... the 14-150 stays and the 12-100 goes back. As a side note, the Fotodiox Pro gets my complete endorsement for the EM5 Mark II.

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I wanted a good walk around lens for my OM-D E-M1 and since this lens was fairly new on the market, I couldnt find any reviews on this lens. Well, I took a gamble and purchased it. I was not disappointed. I took many pictures with this lens now and found it to be a much better lens than the 40-150mm. Pictures taken at all the focal length are all very good, and I was really surprised about the excellent results at the 150mm focal length. Maybe I should have waited a little longer with acquiring the new version of this lens since the price dropped already. Otherwise I am very pleased with the Olympus 14-150mm f/4.0-5.6 II.

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This lightweight lens has a remarkable range, starting at 14mm, which is certainly more than wide enough for most people under normal shooting conditions, all the way to a long 150mm, which is quite a very impressive zoom level. (This is about 28mm to 300mm in 35mm-equivalent terms; note that, too, when you go beyond 150mm, you start getting into territory where getting a non-blurred image due to camera shake is more difficult without the use of a tripod.) This lens zoom range alone is pretty amazing, but more so is that the lens reaches it while remaining light and moderately small. In fact, most lenses that even get close to this range are multiple times the weight of this lens. Oh, and did I mention: this lens takes very good images! It does not have optical image stabilization, but if you are shooting with one of Olympus newer cameras, you likely have image stabilization built into the camera itself, making that fact irrelevant. This lens sits in the middle of Olympus lens offerings, being nicer than their most inexpensive lenses, but not up to the PRO or M.Zuiko levels. Those high-end lenses come with even more sophisticated optical elements, lens coatings, smoother zoom operation, and a price to match (the Olympus 12-100mm M.Zuiko lens, for example, admittedly an amazing lens, is an eye-watering $1,300, and is much physically heavier than this lens). This lens, therefore, sits in a sweet spot because of its excellent performance, light weight, and reasonable price. Get it on sale, and it is even harder to beat. For many people who are using an Olympus micro 4/3 camera as a second, lighter camera, this lens may stay on the camera all the time. Actually, for most people, whether it be a first or second camera, the lens may stay on the camera almost all the time because of its light weight and great image quality. Images are sharp, with good, but neutral, color. Image sharpness doesnt seem to decrease much across the zoom range, which is pretty remarkable. It has no marked vignetting that I can see, and many of the pictures really "pop," even if you are shooting in standard color mode. I get very few missed shots, and the zoom ring, while not as silky smooth as a Fuji XF lens, is perfectly fine for a lens of its price, and the pictures themselves are your reward! (I am using the lens with an Olympus OM-D M10-Mark 2 camera). A great choice for an all-around lens (perhaps most for travel), the lens certainly deserves a five-star rating. Its well built, light, has a terrific range, takes very good pictures, and is reasonably priced. In fact, I was surprised at just how good the images are! Dont overlook it if you are shooting with the micro 4/3 system, and definitely consider it before you purchase the 12-100mm M.Zuiko lens The 12-100 M.Zuiko is without question a superior lens by every metric, but costs nearly three times as much, and is MUCH heavier. This lens gets you 80% of the way to the amazing M.Zuiko lens, and may be satisfactory to you, depending on what you are looking for. In a sense, then, that makes THIS lens "amazing," too! PLUSSES ++ Extremely wide zoom range, from 14mm (which is pretty wide) all the way to 150mm (which is pretty long!) ++ Yields optically neutral color shots, so you get realistic images ++ Good image sharpness ++ Lightweight, and even more so when considering its zoom range ++ Inexpensive, particularly when on sale (and compared to its zoom range) ++ Lens cap actually stays on well (dont underestimate this! Some of the most expensive lenses you can purchase have lens caps that drop off all the time) MINUSES -- No optical image stabilization (but your Olympus camera may have OIS built in, so it doesnt matter) -- Aperture only opens to F/4.0, so its not ideal for low lighting shots (but a wide aperture would make the lens twice as expensive and physically larger, so you have to consider which is more important to you; photography is always a series of trade-offs) -- Mechanical zoom ring not as smooth as the more expensive Olympus lenses (but is smooth enough) -- Optical coatings on lens elements not like those of the much more advanced M.ZUIKO or PRO lenses (but the lens still yields a good, neutral color palette in its images; use a high-quality polarizing filter, like a B+W Kaesemann filter, and that may address any issues with lens coatings. I recommend the https://www.amazon.com/Kaesemann-Circular-Polarizer-Multi-Resistant-Coating/dp/B00PH4QNE6/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_421_bs_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=JGQH848X5A7WAZAQFJ55&th=1) --

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This isnt the place for a long photo review. Suffice to say that Im getting excellent quality pictures using it in bright light. It is too slow to use in low light, but I knew that before I bought it. This is a great lens for any outdoor photograph. It is smooth, sharp, fast focusing, lightweight (for its size) and the kind of quality you expect from Olympus. I wish it were a couple of f-stops faster, but the 14-150 (28-300 in 35 mm terms) is a very convenient range when youre going out and dont know what you may encounter. Good price, good quality.

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I absolutely love this lens. I use it with my E-M1, and its what stays on most of the time, which isnt really saying much since all my other lenses are adapted EF mount lenses lol. Im not a fan of the small aperture but my primary purpose for this lens is daylight shooting so it doesnt cramp my shooting style too much. The wide focal range is a boon when walking around with the family and not having enough time to move around looking for the best composition or changing lenses. The bokeh is quite busy and not, what I consider, one of its stronger points, but it sufficiently blurs out the background when zoomed in to the longer focal lengths. Focusing is quite snappy and highly accurate. The build feels solid and is advertised as weather resistant when combined with the E-M1, though I havent tested this, nor do I intend to, but it is a nice backup feature to have when caught out in bad weather and no cover in sight. The zoom and focus rings turn smoothly. Full time manual is a nice feature, specially when shooting macro and portraits, if the camera chooses a focus point other than what you have in mind. I havent found low light focusing to be a problem, contrary to expectations considering how small the max aperture is, but the IQ tends to be on the noisy side probably due to the cameras small sensor and the high ISOs needed to compensate for the apertures shortcomings. Overall, Id say this lens is geared more towards shooters who value the convenience of a wide focal range over that of a wide max aperture.

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I used the kit 14-42 and 40-150 lenses on my E-620 and never any complaints optically or mechanically. However at an event I attended annually I found that I need to change focal lengths from 14mm to 150 mm in less time than I could change lenses. When I purchased the E-M1.2 I bought this lens to solve that problem. It solves the problem very nicely. While some reviewers have criticized the optical performance of the lens I have examined a number of my photos at 100% (pixel peeped) and found that eyelashes could be counted and the texture of the subjects skin was accurately portrayed. 100% magnification is equivalent to a 13x17 print at 300 dpi. The focus is quick and silent as well making it a good video lens.

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A great all purpose lens. Sharp pictures, fast focus all for a reasonable price. This lens is the equivalent to my 28-300mm Nikon, that I use on my full frame cameras. I am using this on an OMD EM1. I would buy this lens again.

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This lens is a good general purpose lens with a wide zoom range (28-300mm 35mm equivalent). It is weather proof, a major plus. Its focus speed is pretty fast, it focusses very close (even at 150mm) and it is not very large or heavy. Optically my copy is pretty good, a little softer in the corners at the wide end until stopped down a bit, but very good in the mid and telephoto range. I gave it four stars because it is a little slow at F5.6 at 150mm but very usable in most light conditions. A very good travel lens for someone who wants to carry minimum equipment on a trip.

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Brought only one lens with me on a two week trip, this 14-150 and it was perfect. Used on an Olympus OMDEM5 Mark II. Still getting used to all the features and even some of the basic photography. Bottom line, great camera if you dont want to lug around a large DSLR and this one lens worked great for all photos.

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Such an amazing and perfect lens for all around use. It lets me shoot close up and zoom for far away. I never take the lens off and when i want to shoot macro , i just put on an adapter. This lens is relativelty cheap and its not too large. Its by far one of the most all in one lenses you will have for your 4/3rds camera. Build is great and quality too. If you only had one lens, let this be it. I recommend this product 100%

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