New M.Zuiko high-end Micro Four Thirds lens mockup!
Olympus announced they will show the mockup of a “high-end” M.Zuiko Micro Four Thirds prime lens at the CP+ 2011 show (which starts today). That’s the way Oly wants to celebrate the 75 years of Zuiko-branded lenses! There are no details about the lens focal length or aperture but they said it will be available in 2011.
This is part of the press release:
ABOUT THE ZUIKO BRAND
It was in 1936 that the Takachiho Corporation, forerunner of today’s Olympus Optical Co., Ltd., introduced its first camera, the Semi-Olympus I. The camera’s lens was given the name Zuiko, a Japanese word that means “light of the gods.” It was an auspicious name, chosen partially because the lens had been developed at the Mizuho Optical Research Laboratory and partially because the corporate name, Takachiho, is a Japanese word that means “mountain of the gods.” But more than the name, it was the quality of the lens that sparked conversation at the time. Ever since, Zuiko lenses have been featured on succeeding generations of Olympus cameras. The Zuiko lenses are widely acclaimed for their remarkable imaging power, and have become one of the world’s most respected high-performance lens brands.
Semi-Olympus I (1936)
Launched in 1936, the Semi-Olympus I was the first Olympus camera fitted with the newly developed Zuiko lens, which was mounted on a Semi-Proud body supplied by Proud.
The lens looks nice but I want it for now! 
Via Dpreview
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Recent comments
Comment from Jim Ramsey Khoury: Doesn't seem like a macro to me. I think...
Comment from Ulli: bokeh is a subjective aspect...not every...
Comment from cL: Unlikely. Nikkor 24mm f1.4 costs $2,000...
Comment from Rik: Yes, it is clearly a prime. To me, looks...
Joseph
2 years ago |We really need a E-5 in a M43 body to go with HG & SHG M43 lenses
Jonathan
2 years ago |An E-50 will do nicely too.
cL
2 years ago |Well, that sounds nice, but a m4/3 cannot have mirror…. That’s how it become so small. Or you mean you want a mirrorless camera that has 4/3 mount?
But in any case, you can’t effectively use 4/3 lenses on a m4/3 body, because m4/3 has extra two connectors for better CDAF performance. So there is no difference between that and using an adapter to hook your SHG to a m4/3…. None of SHG has High Speed Imager AF like Zuiko 14-54mm II has, which is why it works okay on a m4/3. If you don’t mind AF speed, then your existing SHG can still find home with m4/3… with an adapter.
Hmmmm....
2 years ago |Lens looks… interesting… but I don’t recall ever seeing an E-P2 in silver with a tan handgrip – did I miss something???
shutterwill
2 years ago |looks like champagne colour to me.
probably one of those ‘limited edition’ thing, just like the ‘steel black’ ep-2 they released a while ago.
napalm
2 years ago |there was a silver E-P2 with brown handle only for japan market.
cL
2 years ago |E-P2 with tan handgrip is strictly for Japanese market only. It’s silver.
Gene
2 years ago |Doesn’t look like a mock up, looks real. It looks like it will be released soon.
Have you read the news about that Nikon P&S with f/1.8? What a loser.
Edgaras Anisimenko
2 years ago |I think its 50mm f2…
sneye
2 years ago |According to the curvature of the front element it’s quite wide. Definitely no pancake, which is excellent (probably optically-corrected). 12mm f/2.0?
kai
2 years ago |agreed, looks wide.
Joseph
2 years ago |I wish that is going to be telecentric design
Miroslav
2 years ago |Yes, a wide or a large aperture ( sub F2.0 ) normal. 12mm F2.0 would be very nice …
getta2
2 years ago |vote for 12mm +1
KG
2 years ago |I attended an Olympus E-PL2 hands-on session in Singapore 2 weeks ago and the Olympus rep hinted that Olympus will give us “pleasant” surprises with regards to pro lenses. He added that after the pro lenses are available, the pro body will be launched. He claimed that the AF on this pro body will be “better” than current DSLRs! That sounds very exciting and I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing the pro body in question!
Joseph
2 years ago |I think the auto-focus of GH2 is already better than a lot of DSLR. I hope that the Pro-body of M43 will have some E-3 and E-5 DNA, like weather-sealed, flipping screen and a top panel.
cL
2 years ago |Highly doubt the weather-sealed part, as that ultimately means bulky bodies and m4/3 users don’t like that if you haven’t observed.
But the rest of your list is nice. I want those features, too. Only if they could come up with a hybrid viewfinder like Fuji did, then it’s a sold for me. I don’t need top LCD panel. I find that really redundant. It’s an artifact of film era.
Ryan
2 years ago |This lens look great!
Agent00soul
2 years ago |Hmmm… the mount part, that looks wide in the picture, is actually less wide than the 20/1,7. So the rest of the lens must be quite a bit narrower than current m4/3 lenses. I wonder where they found place for the AF motor. Maybe they have developed a new ring-type AF motor that takes less space? Someting similar to the SWD but optimized for contrast detect AF?
Joseph
2 years ago |Well, it is just a conceptual mock-up I think. Like a lot of concept cars that never enter production will have some of their features integrated into more practical/ordinary design, the original Olympus conceptual mock-up for the M43 body is a typical example.
Agent00soul
2 years ago |Yes, but a conceptual mock-up must be possible to produce. Otherwise it can’t demonstrate the concept. So they must have thought about where to fit the AF motor. Unless they’re planning to release MF lenses of course. But how likely is that when the pro-grade body is rumoured to have much improved AF?
napalm
2 years ago |the orange mirrorless mock-up did turn out to be the E-P1 and the XZ-1 mockup was almost exactly the same. so it’s safe to say this one will be like that also.
RT
2 years ago |High-end?
Well the existing low-end lenses cost a fortune compared to DSLR. Eg the wide angle zoom costs MORE than canon, L 17-40 Which is pro grade.
So Olys High end will cost even more!!! Who’s going to pay £1000 for a prime for a m4/3?
Joseph
2 years ago |Canon’s Pro-Grade wide-zoom is 16-35 or 16-35 II F/2.8, 17-40 is just an economical FF lens using film-age technology and rebranded as a L lens.
shutterwill
2 years ago |FWD: more photos of the mock up and horseman products:
http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20110209_425865.html
Dummy00001
2 years ago |Looks good.
Esp ZX-1 on chain: http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/img/dcw/docs/425/865/html/013.jpg.html
P.S. They still show off the 43 lenses: http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/img/dcw/docs/425/865/html/032.jpg.html – Crossing my fingers that is not a “past/out-of-production lenses booth”…
dCap
2 years ago |that lens … can it be a 21mm f1.4 (please)
or a 40/2 portrait lens with 1/4 macro
dCap
2 years ago |wouldn’t it be cool if that fat mount was like the XZ1 (a place to change aperture in A mode)
and even though we think this is an E-P2 (and it probably is) …. does the LCD look a bit too proud, a bit too sticky outy? cow.d that be a E-P3 with a free angle screen? (hopeful, wishful, thinking)
TR
2 years ago |That would be cool!
dCap
2 years ago |and while I’m dreaming
… I’m looking forward to seeing the 75th anniversary special edition E-P3 with 21mm f1.0
tutejszy
2 years ago |That’s a wet dream, man
scarka
2 years ago |Portrait lens?
plzzz!!!!!!!!!!!!!
TR
2 years ago |Some time soon olympus will have to come out with something very close to 25mm and people are going to want it to be fast.
Agent00soul
2 years ago |Yes, a 25 mm seems likely. The front element isn’t very large and quite curved so a fast 50 mm seems less likely. A 50/2 or faster would probably require a larger front lens diameter.
sneye
2 years ago |I thought Panasonic was going to release a 25/1.4. Another one would be redundant.
Luis
2 years ago |To my non-trained eyes it also looks like a wide angle. Valentín Sama, DSLR Magazine editor and expert in optics, thinks it will be a very fast lens with focal length close to 35mm… Admin, we wait for your sources to confirm the specs!
admin
2 years ago |What I know is that they shoudl release two primes. A 12mm and a 50mm. The 50mm will be very fast. The 12mm should be arounf f/2.0. Don’t know yet what that lens will be…
Luis
2 years ago |Thanks, both options are nice! Personally I would have prefered a slower wide angle (though smaller and cheaper) but the system definitely needs a pro fixed wide angle lens and we already have the Panny 14mm, so this is welcome. And about a fast 50mm, it’s just a must.
Agent00soul
2 years ago |Wow, this is the first time I hear about a 12/2.0! They have a patent for a 12/3.5 so that’s what I thought they would release.
This lens could very well be a 12/2.0. You can see from the shadings in the glass that it has a powerful negative lens element at the front. This is typical for wide angle lenses.
Greg
2 years ago |Rats… why did I buy this stupid 14/2.8… biggest mistake in my m43 shopping history…
BBernhardt
2 years ago |How fast admin?, even a guess will ease our curiosity
BBernhardt
2 years ago |Hello, I think Admin just let slip that the expected 50mm 2.0 could be faster than we originally forecast. The portrait lens we’ve been waiting for???
Ulli
2 years ago |yes, i think he owes us an explanation about this, either in ft3,4 or 5 modus
Mike
2 years ago |Hm, should Olympus really brake the tradition and produce lenses faster then 2.0 (for digital)? I don’t care, the 12mm/2.0 would be a dream, 2.8 still enough (if it’s cheap&small), 3.5 is somehow boring…
Dummy00001
2 years ago |For portraits one needs shallow DOF.
I wouldn’t mind owning a good Zuiko lens – f/1.4 or faster – for available light photography. Sigma 30mm f/1.4 is kind of OK, but I would have loved it to allow shorter focusing distance (40cm is tooo loong). Well, but low light AF was never strong point of the Oly cameras so lens alone doesn’t help me much…
Miroslav
2 years ago |Olympus seems to have backtracked a bit on their roadmap. Seems to me that fisheye and macro will be covered by adapters, while new wide and ~50mm lenses will have higher specs and larger apertures. Very good development!
Whether 11, 12 or 14mm, I hope that new wide will be even faster than F2.0.
Agent00soul
2 years ago |>Whether 11, 12 or 14mm, I hope that new wide will be even faster than F2.0.
I don’t think that is realistic. It would probably make it too large for m4/3 cameras. And I don’t think many users would like to pay for such a lens. F/2.0 sounds perfect to me.
Miroslav
2 years ago |“It would probably make it too large for m4/3 cameras. And I don’t think many users would like to pay for such a lens.”
It wouldn’t be *too* large. A 12mm F1.7 wouldn’t be bigger than Nokton 25mm F0.95. I presume it would be around Leica 45mm F2.8 size … and price
. And if there’s a market for 1000 USD Leica 45mm, there’d be a market for 12mm F1.7. With so many lens makers in m4/3 now, I think it’s just a question of time before one makes a really fast wide lens.
cL
2 years ago |Unlikely. Nikkor 24mm f1.4 costs $2,000 on sale. A 12mm f2 would probably cost over $1,000.
Ulli
2 years ago |its time to build on a budget for the new stuff here!
carnage
2 years ago |It is 75th anniversery and it’s shown with Semi-Olympus I which has 75 f1.4 so maybe it’s that lens?
dCap
2 years ago |a 75mm top mark the 75th anniversary – nice one!
how about a 75/2 macro?
Joseph
2 years ago |In this case I don’t think I have a long enough lifespan to witness the 200mm M. Zuiko, hahaha
sneye
2 years ago |@admin, a guessing poll as per focal length and max aperture would be nice. Thanks.
thec
2 years ago |OMG !!! thats one sexy looking lens
Agent00soul
2 years ago |It looks collapsible. Remember that Olympus current m4/3 wide zoom (9-18) is collapsible too. So a collapsible 12/2.0 doesn’t seem impossible.
GreyOwl
2 years ago |Semi-Olympus 75mm f4, not f1.4 surely?
GreyOwl
2 years ago |Or should that be 75mm f4.5?
carnage
2 years ago |yes f 4.5
I looked at v.2
carnage
2 years ago |4.5 – my bad.
pisto
2 years ago |Could anyone please tell OLYMPUS that a mockup has a value if a technical sheet is also released?
They have actually released a mockup of nothing.
Zaph
2 years ago |Could we be looking at two things here? Attached to camera the teleconverter they patented, and the lens in front of that?
Chris k
2 years ago |That’s a wide of some sort. Look at the front element.
Collapsible 12mm?
Mumbly
2 years ago |This is ridiculous! Making a fast prime with a good optical quality is easy. If that could be achieved in the past, this is the more easier to do in times of computer-aided lens design, computer-aided lens grinding/polishing and modern optical manufacturing processes. What would really be impressive is a really fast, compact-sized zoom lens with real good optical quality at an affordable prize. But why should the manufacturers outperform themselves, if the consumers are stupid enough even to beg for primes (= simple/antiquitated lens designs)?!?
Voldenuit
2 years ago |You don’t want a lens. You want a plastic bag filled with water. Just hang it in front of the lens mount and poke at it with your finger until the image is in focus.
Good luck, and godspeed.
printposter
2 years ago |lmao!
Mumbly
2 years ago |I sincerely hope your photography is better than your rhetorical skills… *LOL*
Jules
2 years ago |speed and compactness are mutually exclusive. Specially in zooms. If somehow a lens designer archive that holly grail, they will remind it along with the price tag.
As for being easier with the aid of computer, please keep in mind that lens in the pixel peeping digital world are more complex than ever.
I hate to say this, but I think that Voldenuit’s rhetorical skills have been the best of the two. But that was round one
Medved
2 years ago |You mean so easy that’s the reason why on a charted test, no 50mm has obtained such good results as the ZD f/2,0 50 mm Macro…
That the Nikon f/1,4G needs to be stopped down to 2.5 to give a not as good but almost matching performance (on aps-c) and for a simplistic “standard lens” is sold at a retail price of £299 GPB ?
Yes it is possible to make a cheap, seemingly fast 50mm f/1.8 (especially when the T stop is actually f/2.1…), but talking about good optical and build quality I’m less sure…
Plus you’ll have to explain me if it is so easy, how come is a 24 mm f/1.4 G Nikkor, sold at a retail price of £1600 GPB…
Price of the Leica 25mm f/1.4 looking pretty good now, doesn’t it?
Jonathan
2 years ago |You should really compare the 50mm macro to a 90-100mm macro for FF, you would probably find that most are very good performers, if not stellar as the 50 macro is. In the same vain you should to compare the 25mm to a normal lens. I think it holds its own in this category.
The 4/3 system has wonderful optics. I would really like to see a micro 4/3rds body designed to work with them.
Medved
2 years ago |I think you did not get the hang of my post. Wich was, fast arpeture lenses with good optical quality being nikon canon olympus, be it macro application, standard lens, wide angle, are not that easy to manufacture and are highly priced. This was my 2 cent about the comment by Mumbly above, mocking primes.
cL
2 years ago |Actually that’s not true. 50mm is 100mm in four thirds because of crop factor, but for optical design, a 50mm is a 50mm.
Chez Wimpy
2 years ago |>but for optical design, a 50mm is a 50mm.
Tell that to the guys who would like to see 50mm lenses for 8×10 format cameras…
cL
2 years ago |Yeah, it’s so easy that optics engineers need to be top physics in order to do the job…. Sound easy to me….
Even Zuiko 50mm f2 has its flaw. I returned it because while it’s super sharp, its bokeh quality is terrible (green fringe of bokeh CA, complex pattern. Bokeh needs to be simple, buttery smooth and does not take attention away from the sharp subject). Some users mentioned it’s its only Achilles’s heel and I agree.
50mm is supposedly the easiest focal length to design, but even that doesn’t seem to be as easy as Mumbly would like us to believe.
Ulli
2 years ago |bokeh is a subjective aspect…not everyone likes supersmooth, some like the “crazy” bokeh. I have no problems with the zd 50 bokeh wide open. object isolation works fine, also thanks to the razor sharp performance at f/2
Dan
2 years ago |Munbly Wrote:
“What would really be impressive is a really fast, compact-sized zoom lens with real good optical quality at an affordable prize.”
Yeah… Good luck with that one.
Medved
2 years ago |(not a native speaker, apologies for the mistakes…)
juavel
2 years ago |I bet that it is in the 17-25 range.
Sandy
2 years ago |I asked an Olympus guy at CP+ yesterday, but all he could tell me was that it would be a prime lens, the first of a series of “high end” prime lenses for micro 4/3. (similar high end range that Olympus 4/3 has in ED)
I aksed him about the “modular” camera rumors, and he said that there is no plan to release such a camera.
He also had no info on a “Pro” micro 4/3 camera.
cL
2 years ago |ED is extra low-dispersion glass. It is used to control chromatic aberration. It doesn’t explain anything, as any grade of lenses can have one or more ED or even none depends on the focal length (some focal length doesn’t need ED as much as other. Many high end Nikon lenses have no ED lens. Also film lenses don’t need ED glass). I am thinking you mean to say high grade (HG) lens.
But thank you for asking the representative.
I am suspecting modular camera is just a rumor long times ago, since it makes more sense for larger format cameras and Oly’s priority is m4/3.
As for Pro m4/3, that probably is an unknown. It also depends on what you mean by pro. As far as I know, mirrorless = non-pro (unless they come up with some super EVF that can replace an OVF with stellar low light performance and since EVF is linked with sensor, CDAF must be improved before Oly can have any pro level EVF based camera).
Robin
2 years ago |I say the Len might be a 12-40mm f2.0 haha but it might be a 18 or 24mm
cL
2 years ago |It’s a prime. There is no zoom ring, you see. Most likely to be the rumored 12mm because of the pronounced front element. It has to be an ultra wide angle. I certainly hope it’s 12mm (24mm equiv.)…. If they did it right, it’s very possible I could get a m4/3 (if the body is also right. Everything must work as a team with no weakest link.
Rik
2 years ago |Yes, it is clearly a prime. To me, looks like the right length to be a 50mm (f/2.0? f/1.8?).
Nic
2 years ago |Very nice…looks like a Contax G lens!
Jim Ramsey Khoury
2 years ago |Doesn’t seem like a macro to me. I think it’s the 12mm with somewhat large aperture f2 or lower.