300mm with EE-1 red dot sight review by Mirrorlessons (and new test by Wasabi, Dobas, Lazagabaster)

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Image courtesy: Mirrorlessons

Mirrorlessons posted the 300mm with EE-1 red dot sight review:

The most difficult thing when using a long telephoto lens is to quickly compose your frame after spotting your flying subject. The first few times I couldn’t track anything because as soon as I looked through the viewfinder, I couldn’t find my subject anymore. All my reference points were lost. One solution is to keep your camera very close to your eye with the lens aimed at the same thing you are looking at. If you see a bird flying, you start following it before moving your eye to the viewfinder. Practice and experience also help.
With the EE-1 you can take pictures while putting some distance between yourself and the camera and keeping an eye on what’s happening around your frame, something an EVF won’t allow you to do. This is also important because you can observe how the birds behave in the air, how they change direction and where they go. Once you know how to use it, it can either help you enhance your tracking abilities (meaning one day you won’t need the EE-1 anymore) or become an inseparable companion for your wildlife photography.

Marcin Dobas also reviewed the new lens and writes:

Once again I was pleased with image stabilization (it’s not easy to keep the camera steady when you are winded after constant running).I definitely appreciated the fact that a lens, with focal length equivalent of 600mm even with the converter 840mmm, can be quite comfortably held in your hands while cross-country running. That’s a big plus. It won’t come as a surprise to many readers that I don’t particularly enjoy running after deer with a full frame 600 f4. Whatever you’re into I guess. Yet again I appreciated small size of the equipment, especially compared to a SLR. However, comparing it to 400mm f / 4  APSC, while it is smaller and lighter the advantage would not be as pronounced as in the case of FF.

First sample images of a M.Zuiko 300mm F4 taken by Photographer Ángel Lazagabaster at NamenColor.
Wasabi Bob has posted some full size photos taken with the prototype Panasonic 100-400mm lens on Flickr.

Preorder links to the two new MFT lenses:
Panasonic-Leica 100-400mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Panasonic. In EU at WexUK. ParkCameras.
Olympus 300mm f/4.0 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, GetOlympus. In EU at Amazon DE. WexUK. ParkCameras.

300mm PRO lens test (with Dot Sight)

300mmDOT

DC.watch (google translation here) reviewed the new 300mm PRO lens. And they also show us the first 300mm PRO tested with the Dot Sight accessory. DC.watch made a full sharpness, stabilization, vignetting, teleconverter test and the lens performs exceptionally good. They also tested the stabilization system with the Panasonic GX8 and also hear the results are very good.

The only real “complain” can be the high price compared to comparable APS-C telephoto lenses. But you get what you pay for: Superb quality and world’s best in class stabilization.

Preorder links to the two new MFT lenses:
Panasonic-Leica 100-400mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Panasonic. In EU at WexUK. ParkCameras.
Olympus 300mm f/4.0 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, GetOlympus. In EU at Amazon DE. WexUK. ParkCameras.

 

This is the impressive Olympus 300mm PRO lens box! And new test by Pen And Tell.

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The huge 300mm PRO lens box image by PenAndTell.

The German blog Pen And Tell posted the first unboxing pictures. He also shared his first impressions on that post (google translation here). He compared the new lens with the [shoplink 22405 ebay]”older” 300mm f/2.8 FT lens[/shoplink]:

The old Zwo-Eight’s is allowed to sit comfortable on his throne. The new f/4.0 lens is indeed superior on mobile shots, but when it comes to high-end and plastic reproduction, the f/2.8 FT can comfortably is still superior. Glass is simply irreplaceable.
The new f/4.0 MFT is a high-tech product that pushes the limits. The f/2.8 FT is a lens for the soul. And the biceps.

In summary: Reinhard thinks the new lens strong selling points are the quality of shot handheld. It’s a way more mobile lens than the FT version. But for ultimate quality and bokeh the FT lens is still slightly superior.

Preorder links to the two new MFT lenses:
Panasonic-Leica 100-400mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Panasonic. In EU at WexUK. ParkCameras.
Olympus 300mm f/4.0 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, GetOlympus. In EU at Amazon DE. WexUK. ParkCameras.

Olympus and Panasonic new lens tests and videos roundup!

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Size comparison between the two new lenses by CameraSize.

Let’s catch up with some news, tests and unboxing videos of the new lenses:

Panasonic 100-400mm:


CES interview (vidoe above)
Lens presentation video at Jessops.
Hands-on by Camerahoarders.

Olympus 300mm PRO:


Olympus 300mm f4 Unboxing by Damian McGillicuddy
Sample images taken with the 300mm f/4 and MC-14 by Mirrorlessons. The performance is still very good even with the teleconverter attached.
Olympus 300mm video by Jessops.
Olympus Sweden will show 300mm F4 for the first time in Europe at Arvika Fotofestival February 6 2016.

Preorder links to the two new MFT lenses:
Panasonic-Leica 100-400mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Panasonic. In EU at WexUK. ParkCameras.
Olympus 300mm f/4.0 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, GetOlympus. In EU at Amazon DE. WexUK. ParkCameras.

Olympus 300mm PRO lens review at SLRgear: “thoroughly impressive on all fronts”.

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Preorder links to the two new MFT lenses:
Panasonic-Leica 100-400mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Panasonic. In EU at WexUK.
Olympus 300mm f/4.0 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, GetOlympus. In EU at Amazon DE. WexUK.

SLRgear posted the full review of the new Olympus 300mm PRO lens and writes:

The Olympus 300mm ƒ/4 Pro is one heck of a lens. Simply put. After a long time in development — it was announced as “in-development” back at CP+ in 2014 — the biggest, brightest supertelephoto lens of the Micro Four Thirds system is, well, not so “big” after all, physically at least. An impressive feat of engineering, the folks at Olympus have managed to shrink down a 600mm-equivalent supertelephoto lens, with a constant, relatively bright ƒ/4 aperture and image stabilization into a remarkably small, comfortable, hand-holdable, weather-sealed lens.
Like Olympus’ other Zuiko Pro lenses, image quality from the 300mm ƒ/4 is thoroughly impressive on all fronts: excellent sharpness and all-around wonderful optical qualities with little to no distortion, aberrations or vignetting. What’s even more impressive is the lens’ stunning image stabilization. Combining lens-based and body-based I.S., the Olympus 300mm ƒ/4 Pro lets you capture handheld images down to shockingly slow shutter speeds. All this, plus impressive close-focusing capabilities, make the Olympus 300mm ƒ/4 Pro a stunning lens for the professional and advanced photographer looking for a top-notch wildlife, sports, stage performance and close-up lens no matter the weather or lighting conditions. It may be pricey, but this is one of the best lenses Olympus has made thus far.

MTF

Olympus 7-14mm review at SLRgear: “great build quality, as well as excellent image quality.”

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SLRgear posted the full Olympus 7-14mm PRO lens review:

Though it’s still a small collection of lenses at this point, Olympus’ Zuiko Pro line continues to impress with high quality performance and excellent build quality. The new Olympus 7-14mm ƒ/2.8 Pro lens steps in as the premiere ultra-wide zoom lens for the Micro Four Thirds system, offering performance and quality for advanced and professional shooters alike. The high cost of the lens — at around $1,300 — is certainly a discouraging factor for budget-conscious MFT shooters, but this is, at this point in time, a unique lens that offers a versatile ultra-wide focal length range, a bright ƒ/2.8 aperture, weather-sealing, great build quality, as well as excellent image quality.

7-14mm store links to Amazon US  and Adorama (Click here).

Kinoptik 150mm f/2.9 test on the GH4.

Annie Barton tested the [shoplink 56800 ebay]Kinoptik 150mm f/2.9 lens (here on eBay)[/shoplink] on the Panasonic GH4:

We think this copy we have could be a faulty lens, or a fake Kinoptik. It eats up quite a bit of light, so it flares a lot making the image less sharp. Maybe a longer lens hood might help?
Stay tuned for the upcoming Kinoptik 100mm. We like the 100mm much better than this 150 !!
This Kinoptik Focale is modified into a Nikon mount. The focusing barrel makes the lens fairly huge. The 150mm in Micro Four Thirds system makes the focal length even longer, and together with its size, this lens is not easy to use.

[shoplink 56800 ebay]kinoptik[/shoplink]