(UPDATED) Finally first Olympus 75mm tests!
Finally we can see the first real tests of that beast of an Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens! Visit Four Thirds User, ePhotozine, Gabrielle Motola, Techradar, Photographyblog, Snappydiablog and ThisIsTanaka to see them! I will updated this post as soon as I find more links to tests.
FourThirdsUser writes: “Clearly, the 75mm lens beats the 45mm for sheer quality of background blur and bokeh, but the sharpness of in-focus areas at f/1.8 remains pretty much as good as the 45mm. You certainly don’t need to stop either lens down in order to get tack-sharp images.”
P.S.: The lens should be in Stock starting from this week. Here are some direct preorder and price check links: Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Amazon Germany and Amazon UK.
BLI
11 months ago |I just love the google (?) translation of ThisIsTanaka’s review:
“…careful because I might happen if an unexpected quarrels and shooting a woman does not choose the people have cosmetic skin Yohodo beautiful horse”
BLI
11 months ago |… see also http://www.gabriellemotola.com/photoblog/olympus-75mm-1-8/
Bronica
11 months ago |As expectetd: overall a super lens. Should be a little bit cheaper – 700 Euro. And in black please!
Btw: The 1,8 / 45 is a realy super lens – best price/value of all lenses I know. It’s a gift from Olympus to their customers. Please more of them!
Yun
11 months ago |How could the in focus area remain as well as 45mm ? This is expensive lens therefore should edge it .
Anyway it still consider a must buy lens in my shopping list .
Confused
11 months ago |The 45 is pretty darn sharp.
kesztio
11 months ago |I think the 45/1.8 (even the silver version for black cameras – LOL) is a much better deal unless you don’t need desparately this focal length and dream for an all metal lens.
Ulli
11 months ago |ofcourse there is no question about the 45 bein the better deal, but for the ones who need better subject seperation/isolation the 75mm is superior in that aspect.
Nuno Cruz
11 months ago |Wonderful shots, a fine addition to the m43 lens catalog
jacek
11 months ago |very poor photos, why testers never know how to shot?
Bob B.
11 months ago |+100 (I think you explained it in your post) The are testers. Not photographers.
rrr_hhh
11 months ago |I’m not impressed by the pictures shown in theses links. The lighting is atrocious. I wonder whether t s related to the photographers’ skills or to the lens which is a little too contrasty for outdoors.
The focal length is really long, probably too long for me.
Bronica
11 months ago |I don’t think a lens can be “too contrasty”. For portraits is postprocessing in most times needed. And this is not a lens only for this. In my respect a lens can never be too sharp or too contrasty.
Focal lenght: I agree, for potraits it should be shorter. I never used my Emarit 180 for this on FF very often. But again: it’s not only a portrait lens – it’s usabale also for Sports, Animals in the Zoo etc.
One other advantage of the lens is, that it’s quiet light. 300g is equivalent to a Summicron R 2/50 Standard Lens.
But still: it’s little bit expensive….
holl
11 months ago |I usually don’t comment on others comments/discussion, but too many people live in the internet.
Do you even know what you’re talking about? Lighting is normal daylight. I think you need new stronger glassess.
For all the nay sayers this is real world situation. Unless you bring studio lights on your back while you’re walking.
Atrocious is absolutely the wrong word to this test, but that’s your opinion and one persons opinion…
nicwalmsley
11 months ago |I’m ignorant of these things. Can someone explain why the 75mm is so much more expensive than the 45?
Bronica
11 months ago |All metal-finish, bigger glass-elements, new coating…
But your right: I think, it could be cheaper…
Bob B.
11 months ago |Its made of metal, and has much more glass real estate than the 45mm. The 45 is a plastic lens and so is the shade. It may have more elements and some that are special low dispersion,etc. I am not sure. I own the 12mm (all metal with optional metal shade) and the 45mm. both lenses perform VERY well. …but if you hold the two of them in your hand the quality of the construction of the 12mm is MORE than apparent over the 45mm. The coloration is different as well. I have no idea what Olympus has in mind as they actually are producing lenses that look like they were made from different camera systems. There is no consistency in the look at all, like say Panasonic. Their quiver looks consistent.
I don’t understand the mentality at Oly…but the 12mm, and 45mm are both great. The 45mm is a real bargain for how it performs.
I will own the 75mm as soon as it is available in the US. A cheaper price would be nice, though!
rrr_hhh
11 months ago |Panasonic lenses may all have the same look, but they are all ugly. I prefer the Olympus design. The 12mm is not that different of the 45mm, only the color and weight is different, the shape is similar. may be they wanted to test what the are’t wanted : expensive and better Built quality, or cheaper and low price. The 45mm is a winner in term of IQ and value for the price. I like both, but they will surely sell more 45mm than 12mm.
Bob B.
11 months ago |Panasonic makes some great lenses, too! Lenses that surpass the Oly offerings in given areas. I think both manufacturers are very capable when they decide to be.
Nico Foto
11 months ago |Ha, couldn’t disagree more. FOR ME, silver = awful. I’d take the oly primes in panasonic finish in a heartbeat.
Mr. Reeee
11 months ago |The 45mm, 12mm and 75mm lenses are beautiful. Yeah, Panasonic lenses are utilitarian, not very exciting. But the rest of the Oly lenses, especially the zooms have been vigorously beaten with the ugly stick. All the extra ridges and lines and dividers just make them cluttery, fussy and ugly looking. They use 4 different styles, with another being added for the weatherproof lenses! http://goo.gl/4aeBA
Say what you will about the Nikon 1 series, pink and red aside, but the lenses are beautiful! The circular dots on the zoom rings are brilliantly simple and the lenses themselves all very modern looking. They started with a clean slate and it shows. http://goo.gl/psRJM
I agree with Bob B. on the color issue. Silver is fine, black is fine, but WHY are there so many different shades of silver? It looks tacky. The lack of visual consistency is unacceptable, especially at premium prices! It’s as if there were separate groups working on the different lenses and never met.
Aesthetics as far as gear goes may not be of critical importance, but these are tools for a VISUAL medium and tools that you physically handle and use. There tends to be a certain passion surrounding the tools we use regularly. Cameras and lenses usually have a consistent, recognizable industrial design style. It’s part of the branding. Nikon AI-S lenses, Canon, Olympus OM, Pentax Takumars, Leicas… if you know them, you can tell at a glance what they are. Oly seems to have lost that sense of visual continuity. Hopefully the trend they’ve set with the premium primes will spread to the lower end as well.
rrr_hhh
11 months ago |I agree with you, that the Nikon V1 lenses ar very beautiful, very smart in their sobriety. The Schneder Kreuznach too look very good. I like the German look (they ar still influenced by the Bauhaus guide lines, I think).
As for the Olympus zooms, the very last version like the 14-42mm II R look better than the previous versions from which I ddn’t like the longitudinal lines.
http://www.fr.olympus.ch/consumer/pen-camera_pen_21693_accessory_m_zuiko_digital_ed_40-150mm_1_4_0-5_6_r_24720.htm
Against that :
http://www.fr.olympus.ch/consumer/pen-camera_pen_21693_23446.htm
TheVoiceoverman
11 months ago |+1
Bob B.
11 months ago |“It’s as if there were separate groups working on the different lenses and never met.”.
Good point…may just be the visual reflection of a company in upheaval. Also…the coloration could also be indicative of varying plant, country locations of manufacture. Not sure….Like say a lens manufactured in China will never look like a lens manufactured in Japan. (plus the Chinese lenses would also be loaded with melamine which I think effects colorization!).
Kylberg
11 months ago |It has lots more glass inside + maybe Oly needs earn more money
I think they regret the affordable price ov the 45/1.8 considering it being so well recieved by reviewers and customers.
Looking at the price for Pana 12-35, I think also Pana realised that there are many m43 users out there who are “high end” and willing to pay for quality. Many, who f.i. participate in discussions at this site, has asked for HQ lenses.
MikeS
11 months ago |The longer focal length is the main factor, as moving past ‘normal’ (35-50mm equiv) focal lengths while maintaining aperture simply requires more glass. Besides that, according to Olympus’ MTFs, the 75mm is sharper across the frame, and should have smoother bokeh, particularly in the corners. Of course, since the 45mm is already a sharp lens, it will likely be hard to distinguish the two without controlled tests and pixel peeping.
Marcelo Guarini
11 months ago |I have 5 last generation Leica M lenses, they are much more expensive and not better than this one.
Regards.
Kylberg
11 months ago |Would have been more interesting with results from one of the more independent and reliable lens testers.
I agree with rrr_hhh about the pictures. -But not 100% concerning the long focal length: This lens has a perspective that can be useful creativity-wise. I have used the Nikon 85mm on Pana G3 with very nice results. Not as contrasty as on the pictures linked to above. (Not similar circomstances though.)
el_diablo
11 months ago |Great quality!
Any word from Olympus on the black barrel?
Scott
11 months ago |I dont understand why so many of you care more about the color of a lens.
el_diablo
11 months ago |@ Scott
“I dont understand why so many of you care more about the color of a lens.”
First of all, personally I do not care more as you cleverly inserted into your response. Yes I care, but it is one of many things that I consider when looking at this lens. Clearly by your statement above, this is not something that concerns you, I suppose a hypercolour green would be just as satisfactory as silver or black for you. Good for you!
Personally the colour of the barrel is a concern to me, it is not a deal breaker, but if I had a choice between black and silver I would prefer black to match my black OMD.
Is it some sort of crime that I have different needs or wants from you? Maybe you were brought up in a repressive community where being different or having different views is seen as a bad thing – if that is the case my heart goes out to you. I pray that you may receive a broader mind.
Colin
11 months ago |Wow…awfully defensive, are we?
Nico Foto
11 months ago |You started it
We’ve seen way too many of those comments. And it has been said way too many times that for some shooters black makes more sense, not because it looks cooler, but because:
1) Black is always going to be more understated. For travel/street and any genre where you don’t want to call attention to you as a photog, black helps. I’m not saying that it makes you stealthy, but it is certainly better than silver.
2) Silver lenses tend to age quite awfully, at least that is the case for the oly 45mm. I have it, and even though i’m reasonably careful with my gear it already has scratches all over the place. And those scratches are fugly.
Thanks.
DonParrot
11 months ago |“Black is always going to be more understated. For travel/street and any genre where you don’t want to call attention to you as a photog, black helps. I’m not saying that it makes you stealthy, but it is certainly better than silver.”
—-
Well, I have to seriously contradict, here. With my red E-PL3, people tend to regard me as one of those tourists with a compact camera and don’t mind what or who I am shooting – no matter if I’m using a black or silver lens and even if I use the 75-300.
With my all black FT gear (E-5 plus FT Zuikos), things look completely different.
So, from my experiences I’d say that a more striking colour even helps to increase your stealthiness as you don’t look so professional.
Esa Tuunanen
11 months ago |> With my red E-PL3, people tend to regard me as one of those tourists…
Well, functionally E-PL3 isn’t really much different from Canon IXUS except for bigger sensor and lens mount so is it any wonder people consider it as tourist camera?
> With my all black FT gear (E-5 plus FT Zuikos), things look completely different.
And what if it all were red or shiny silver?
Now that would be an attraction!
Gino
11 months ago |“Well, functionally E-PL3 isn’t really much different from Canon IXUS”
- LOL! You obviously never got a hold of single EPL3
))
It may beat even EP3 if tilt screen (just great for street shooting) and size are top preferences and you don’t care about touchscreen and orientation sensor.
teroll
11 months ago |an asinine remark like the OP deserves that response…people are getting sick of those immature comments.
don’t like it, then don’t post.
Don Pope
11 months ago |For the same reason people care about the color of their car.
Rasmus
11 months ago |A black lens is said to be more useful for street shooting. On the other hand I guess that mostly makes sense for shorter focal lengths. When street shooting with a 75mm, the subjects are probably quite far away, so the photographer might go unnoticed because of the distance.
That said, I can cetrtainly see myself street shooting with the 75/1.8.
Mr. Reeee
11 months ago |I use my Voigtländer 75mm f2.5 for street shooting regularly. I can shoot from across the street and not be noticed. It’s black…
Brod1er
11 months ago |Four thirds user review demonstrates well the benefits of increased focal length on isolation. DOF tables do not reflect this (and neither do the endless sensor size equivalence fretters!)
avds
11 months ago |Why, it would take a 150mm at f/3.6 to render exact same image on an eight thirds sensor (aka full frame
). No tables needed.
That said, the change of perspective does improve background isolation a lot indeed. It looks very beneficial to this lens combined with strong OOF blurring.
BLI
11 months ago |Yeah. 83 FF
compositor20
11 months ago |Why any of the review has´nt full body shots?
Its the full body shots that will convince the advanced and pro level photographers from FF that we need to convince to get a “richer” and more mature system.
If someone knows of full body shots at f1.8 please post them.
at half body I already know that m43 has very good amounts of background blur… the longer the lens the more it seems to have since they look more blurred than the 45mm f1.8 despite the same dof.
The 75mm f1.8 has more resolution and maybe a tad less contrast just look at the forehead of the model in both shots.
Napilopez
11 months ago |I don’t have images, but I do know avideo with full body shots or equivalent.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwAsgpebIWc&hd=1
at about 0:57, there is a half-body shot that shows beautiful shallow DoF rendering. However, if you imagine this shot having been shot at the same distance with a portrait orientation, you could have fit a full body in there and gotten the same blur.
At 1:20, there is a shot that covers more than full-body. At 2:50 as well. Mind you, I don’t know if all of these are shot wide open or not, but the ones at 0:57 and 1:20 seem to show DoF that is plenty shallow enough(and would indeed be better with greater background distance)
Brod1er
11 months ago |I wouldn’t worry about trying to convince anyone. FF is surely very different from MFT.
compositor20
11 months ago |well maybe convince was wrong word I just wanted that those photos can show that its good enough! if FF people even knowing that background blur would never be the same think that m43 has enough they may can buy m43 cameras… strenghtning the system..
I prefer that m43 has more advanced users than point and shoot upgraders because the pro and advanced are usually the ones that produce better pictures and it works as pull up for the system.
I have invested in m43 and I don´t want to have lens that from 6 or 7 years from now would be in the way 4/3 is !
We are already at diffraction limit for kit zoms the maximum we can get is 18megapixels before we need f5.0 instead of f5.6
That is why fast lenses are important for subject isolation and for extending the megapixel count in the future (even though I would prefer that it stopped at 16mp).
bli
11 months ago |Why on earth does Amazon Germany charge €1087 for the lens?? They have even added €6 for shipping since this morning. I thought the price was supposed to be €899…
Bronica
11 months ago |Beacause: We have here no crisis…
and we are used to pay more than others… 
Your right – it’s a pitty!
...
11 months ago |They do not. Price is still 949€ and of course no shipping.
Amazon != Amazon Marketplace
BLI
11 months ago |Based on the US price (which is without VAT), the € price should be €719 + VAT, and the UK price should be £577 + VAT. Assuming 20% VAT, this translates to €862 and £692.
Amazon UK charges £799 — which is £100 or so “too much”, but Amazon Germany!! Charging €200 “too much”!!
E-1
11 months ago |You have to add customs fees to the price, and on top of that calculate the VAT (or the other way around, but not independently).
$899 is 718,79 EUR. Adding e.g. 7% customs and 19% VAT the price results in 916,63 EUR – or 40 EUR below what Amazon DE (949 EUR) charges.
Not sure where you get your EUR 200 “too much” from, still using 1087 EUR as the “Amazon price”? But as you seem to be reading challenged (949 vs. your 1087 Amazon price), you also seem to be mathematically challenged. I’m sorry for that.
E-1
11 months ago |Like some Germans say: “Wer lesen kann ist klar im Vorteil” – Those who can read do clearly benefit from reading. Amazon charges 949, no p&p, ZAR Systems charges 1087, 6 p&p. +
So yes Amazon charges more than 899, but no, your quoted price is not from Amazon.
BLI
11 months ago |Ok — I see now that this is Amazon selling on behalf of ZAR.
BLI
11 months ago |B&H:
* zuiko 75-300 — US$ 899
* zuiko 75/1.8 — US$ 899
“€-land”:
* zuiko 75-300, seen for € 865
* zuiko 75/1.8 — € 949, I’m told (maybe because of being new…)
Mathias
11 months ago |Hand’s on review:
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/camera-lenses/olympus-75mm-f-1-8-lens-1086843/review
Dr. Phil
11 months ago |I pre-ordered this lens yesterday. The biggest photo dealer in my country have a nice price on it, approx. 1036USD. Olympus 12mm costs 970USD.
The 12mm f/2 is an expensive lens, the 45mm f/1.8 is a very cheap lens and the 75mm f/1.8 is okay(maybe a little cheaper would be nice).
Oly should have priced them like this:
12mm – 599USD
45mm – 499USD
75mm – 799USD
Silver or black? I don’t care so lang as my pic’s don’t get silver or black color casts :-p
Anonymous
11 months ago |IDK to me the lens isnt rendering as sharp an image as the 45… details are kind of muddy at 1.8
Perry Wilson
11 months ago |IDK to me the 45 is a sharper lens, the 75 details seem a bit muddy to me at 1.8
Jordan S.
11 months ago |If you download the RAWs you can get a little more detail out of them. Looking at them, it looks comparable.
Napilopez
11 months ago |The jpegs don’t do it justice. At F1.8, it’s slightly sharper than the 45mm to my eyes. But that doesn’t matter anyway, because at worst it’s just as sharp, and the 45mm was already incredibly sharp. This is a portrait lens. Do you really need more sharpness wide open?
More importantly, I don’t see any signs of the fringing you can often get with the 45mm when shooting wide open in mid-day sun or other harsh lighting. Corner sharpness also seems to be better.
uth
11 months ago |http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/camera-lenses/olympus-75mm-f-1-8-lens-1086843/review/page:2#articleContent
another one from techradar (the same model)
Brod1er
11 months ago |75f1.8, 45f1.8, 45f2.8 macro, 30f2.8, 25f1.4, 20f1.7, 14f2.5, 12f2, 8f3.5 FE- we now have an embarrassment of high quality AF primes!! Sweet.
compositor20
11 months ago |the 75mm is slighlty sharper which means it has more resolution wide open… but the 45mm looks to have more contrast and a warmer color tint which people usually like
Sven
11 months ago |How come they all shot the same girls?
BLI
11 months ago |There seems to have been an event in London June 21…
avds
11 months ago |No, they only look the same. These clones come included with the lens as models. Very convenient! But no lens shade still.
BLI
11 months ago |A few shots at Amateur Photographer: http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/photo-news/538871/test-shots-from-the-new-olympus-75mm-f-1-8-lens
Keith
11 months ago |Hmmm and a Canon 85mm f1.8 of the same size and more or less the same weight is £305 vs £800 for the Oly. Something wrong there!!!
OneQuarterSensor
11 months ago |What are you saying, Canon and Nikon are toys, this is what real pros shoot
Keith
11 months ago |Yea right.
uth
11 months ago |you only judge lenses with “Focus length” and “Max. Aperture”. oh… learn more
AndyS
11 months ago |Well the 135mm f2 is £850 on Amazon … And it’s list price is a lot higher than that
Bart
11 months ago |And a Leitz lens in that focal length and aperture range costs?
If all you look at is focal length and aperture, then you clearly don’t know enough.
WhatALoadOfBollox
11 months ago |With the same money I can get a Canon 35/2, 50/1.8 and 85/1.8.
And by the way, those “test shots” were taken by some colour blind moles it seems. Is this the average level of M43 shooters or is this system just that crappy?
uth
11 months ago |most of these reviews are from well-known review websites. it means they are not 4/3 users and basically they test and review every brand.
please open your mind. and if you wanna find the fantastic pictures from 4/3 users you can go to flickr and search for them
Napilopez
11 months ago |I really don’t understand the point of people like you coming to this website. FYI, there were apparently only two lenses at this event for people to even use in the first place, so it doesn’t exactly seem like people could set up things perfectly. Also lets see how well you do in harsh mid-day light and indoor fluorescent lighting with short time and no PP whatsoever. >_>
Nikku
11 months ago |So what’s your point? With the same money I could buy a bicyle.
Learn
11 months ago |But you cannot buy a brain transplant, sadly.
Paulus
11 months ago |another link with sample pictures
http://www.gabriellemotola.com/photoblog/olympus-75mm-1-8/
SLOtographer
11 months ago |Oly should send a copy of the 75mm lens to Kirk Tuck for a full workout.
SLOtographer
11 months ago |Oly should send a copy of the 75mm lens to Kirk Tuck for a full workout. He’ll surely provide the portraits we want to see with this lens.
Adriaantie
11 months ago |Lol……. No i like m43 for its small size. But i really dont like THE picture quality especially controle of dof. So Lets buy à really expensive weird focal size big lens to compensate. Now i can have à little control over THE dof but THE camera is getting somewhat big. Lets hear it for m43……
mooboy
11 months ago |Please – sell all your m43 gear (if you really have any), buy the Nikon D600 when it comes out – then go over to Nikon Rumors and whine every chance you get that your camera is too big and heavy.
I’m sure you’ll be as loved there as you are here.
mert
11 months ago |@Adriaantie
Well if shallow dof is all you look for in a lens you have a very limited range of artistic expression.
Learn
11 months ago |He is right instead: what is the point of M43 beside small size? These hunks like the 75 1.8 make no sense and their price is a joke.
If you cannot see the value of shallow, you should get another hobby.
bart
11 months ago |even with a 75/1.8, a m4/3 camera + lens is still a lot smaller then an equivalent full frame camera and lens, so the point remains.
Additionally, in almost all cases too shallow dof is a bigger problem then too shallow dof, but, if you really MUST have ultimate shallow dof, full frame is crap compared to what medium format can do.
People like you (and adriaantje) seem in dire need of a clue: EVERY camera system is a compromise, and it is upto you to pick the best compromise for YOUR use. Your choice has zero relevance to what compromise works best for others, and by just limiting yourself to your own vert shallow point of view you will never be able to remotely understand the point of choicrs different then your own.
Bart
11 months ago |Eh, that should of course be ‘In almost all cases too shallow DOF is a bigger problem then too much DOF’.
elflord
11 months ago |you’re a bit off the mark there. FF offers very shallow dof. MF projects onto a larger sensor or film slide, but where are the f/1.2 MF lenses ? Most “fast” MF lenses are f/2.8. If you really did want to use shallow dof as your only compositional tool (and I’m not saying this is a good idea), FF would be the most practical (and probably effective) choice.
You can also get very shallow dof with m43, though it might take a little more work than with full frame.
I agree that people get way too hung up on it — m43 sensors are big enough to allow for very good image quality and plenty of control over dof.
Bart
11 months ago |@Elflord
Of course the argument about medium format is first of all a theoretical one. But, fast lenses do exist for mf, and due to the much larger film/sensor area, you don’t need as fast a lens as on a ‘full frame’ camera to achieve the same DOF with the same field of view. Given a medium with twice the diagonal of a 135 format medium, you’ll need an F1.4 lens on the smaller medium to get the same DOF as on the large medium (provided the same field of view). Not impossible, but quite telling.
Its really no different then the theoretical argument saying that ‘full frame’ offers better DOF control.
And no, it doesn’t take more work, it takes having a lens with the required field of view (on your medium of choice) and with a wide enough aperture. This is true for any format, and the comparison between medium format and 135 format is as valid as the comparison between 135 format and 4/3. Both are theoretical, and the only real world question is if a format gets you enough control with the available lenses.
bart
11 months ago |seems your pov is even more shallow then the dof you keep going on about. Go use a medium format camera with a fast lens, ‘ff’ is just crap in comparison.
Ep3zd50_ninja
11 months ago |Sharpness? Bokeh? All I noticed was the very pretty model in red.
protektor
11 months ago |I’m really impressed with your writing skills as well as with the layout on your blog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it yourself? Anyway keep up the nice quality writing, it is rare to see a nice blog like this one today.