Ivan S
Ive meandered around buying this f1.7 version and the f1.2, but settled on 1.7 as I thought that I could also use it on another m4/3 camera in the arsenal if I really wanted the f1.2 later. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this lens, though by now I probably should not be. Ive worked with the Panasonic 15mm f1.7, 25 f1.4, and the 20mm f1.7, all of which deliver a great deal of quality in their images. It has a very minimalist style to it with almost nothing except the focal range and lens hood alignment dots written on the lens body. The front of the lens body flange can be removed and in its place the lens hood can be attached. This is similar to the Panasonic 15mm 1.7 lens does, but without the 15mms aperture ring in the way (if you have large fingers) Im surprised that this tiny lens delivers optical OIS in the lens body, but the images from the lens are very good. A wee bit soft at f1.7, but still quite nice. It has a minimal focal distance at around 12 inches which makes it decent for "macro" inspired shots. The part that Im really concerned about is the attachment of the lens to the camera. While it is indeed a micro four thirds attachment, the issue that I have is that the lenss mount seems to "grate" against the camera mount, seemingly rubbing the metal points of both -- giving me the feeling I get when my own nails are scratching a blackboard. I find myself wondering if this is an issue of quality in the lens build itself-- which does not have the Leica logo on it and is mostly a durable plastic. I also wonder whether or not the eventuality will be that metal bits from the lens mount might fall into the sensor. This compares unfavorably then to the attachment of the 20mm f1.7, which does not have this grating/attachment issue (and is also not Leica logo-ed). Unlike the 20mm 1.7 though, the lens is virtually noise less. The 42.5mm does not have the AF focusing noise of the 20mm and is much faster at focusing on the subject than the 20mm. All-in-all the experience is good and the lens is a fine addition to the m4/3arsenal. The small stature I feel lends it very well to the smaller bodies of the m4/3 lineup, though still works very well on larger bodies like the GX-8. I dont have the 42.5 f1.2, but I could imagine that the body of the f1.2 would be much hardier and probably metallic. This smaller f1.7 is quite lite, void of menacing doodads on the actual lens body and stylish enough to just throw onto your camera and head out the door.