In summary
The M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens is designed for purists who want a high-quality standard prime lens that is as versatile as possible.
The wide maximum aperture enables it to be used in very low light levels without requiring a tripod and also provides scope for shooting close-ups with a much shallower depth of field than slower lenses will provide with the 17.3 x 13.0 mm sensor in a M4/3 camera.
Featuring an advanced MSC (Movie and Still Compatible) autofocus mechanism, this lens works equally well for taking still shots or movie clips. Its dustproof and splashproof construction enables it to be used in challenging conditions. It will also tolerate temperatures as low as -10 °C.
A very fast, professional quality standard prime lens for M4/3 cameras that features weatherproof sealing plus quick and quiet autofocusing.
Full review
Announced just before Photokina in September, the M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens is one of three lenses that were showcased with the ‘Development Announcement’ for the new OM-D E-M1 Mark II camera. Covering an angle of view equivalent to 50mm in 35mm format and with dustproof, splashproof and freezeproof construction to match the E-M1 Mark II camera, it boasts a large maximum aperture that enables it to be used in dim lighting and produces attractive bokeh.
The new M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens, shown without lens hood and end caps. (Source: Olympus.)
This isn’t the first 25mm prime lens Olympus has produced for its Micro Four Thirds (M4/3) cameras but it’s the fastest by a full f-stop. A 25mm f/1.8 lens was released in early 2014 and reviewed in March that year.
The ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens design is more complex and aimed at achieving smooth defocusing transitions. Comprising 19 elements in 14 groups, it includes eight special elements (among them Super ED lens and ED lenses plus E-HR and HR elements) that suppress all types of aberrations.
The diagram above shows the positions of the exotic elements in the optical design of the M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens. (Source: Olympus.)
The Super ED lens and two ED lenses combine to suppress on-axis chromatic aberration and combine with the colour-cancelling effects of the E-HR (special high refractive index) lens and HR (high refractive index) lens to minimise peripheral colour bleeding (magnification chromatic aberration). Z Coating Nano lens coating suppresses ghosting and flare and maintains image clarity.
Autofocusing is driven by a MSC mechanism that is optimised to provide silent and smooth focusing and aperture performance for capturing still images and movies. It features a single thin lens element that is quick and easy to move for fast and accurate focus point acquisition.
A cutaway view of the M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens, showing the single focusing element (1). (Source: Olympus.)
A Manual Focus Clutch mechanism makes switching to manual focus quick and easy and the L-Fn button on the lens barrel allows you to pause autofocus and assign other camera body custom settings. This lens will focus to 30 cm with a working distance of 19.5 cm. It has a maximum shooting magnification of 0.11x (35mm equivalent: 0.22x).
No stabilisation is built into the lens mechanism but the in-body 5-Axis Sync Image Stabilisation system in the Olympus OM-D and PEN cameras can provide up to 5.5 f-stops of shake compensation. The lens is supplied with a LH-66B lens hood, LC-62F lens cap, LR-2 rear cap, LSC-0811 lens case, instruction manual and warranty card. (No lens hood was provided with the review sample.)
Who’s it For?
The M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens is designed for purists who want a high-quality standard prime lens that is as versatile as possible. The wide maximum aperture enables it to be used in very low light levels without requiring a tripod and also provides scope for shooting close-ups with a much shallower depth of field than slower lenses will provide with the 17.3 x 13.0 mm sensor in a M4/3 camera.
Featuring an advanced MSC (Movie and Still Compatible) autofocus mechanism, this lens works equally well for taking still shots or movie clips. Its dustproof and splashproof construction enables it to be used in challenging conditions. It will also tolerate temperatures as low as -10 °C.
Build and Ergonomics
The dimensions and weight of this lens provide a guide to its build quality and maximum aperture. At 410 grams and with a length of 87 mm it’s relatively large and heavy for an M4/3 prime lens. Like other PRO lenses, it’s weather-sealed and you can expect a high percentage of metal in the barrel plus some fairly large glass elements.
There’s only one control surface: a 27 mm wide focusing ring that is located 22 mm behind the front of the lens. It carries three rows of finely-moulded ribbing to provide a secure and comfortable grip. As well as adjusting manual focus, this ring controls the clutch mechanism for AF/MF switching. Push it forward for autofocusing; pull it back to engage manual focus.
The focusing ring rotates through 360 degrees in the AF position but turns through about 90 degrees in the MF position, with hard stops at each end of the range. Autofocusing is electronically controlled in Olympus cameras, which means there’s not much tactile feedback in the MF mode.
A depth-of-field scale is stamped on the barrel just in front of the focusing ring and visible in both AF and MF modes. Pulling the ring back to engage manual focus reveals a distance scale on the lens barrel.
A Lens-Function (L-Fn) button is partially inset into the barrel behind the focusing ring. It can be programmed via the camera to control a single function, making it instantly available when the button is pressed.
The mounting plate is solid metal and chromed for durability. A line of 11 gold-plated contacts enables signals to pass between the camera and lens. The front of the lens is threaded to accept 62 mm filters and, because the lens doesn’t rotate during focusing, angle-critical filters can be used without requiring readjustment.
We didn’t receive a lens hood with the review lens but it’s roughly 38 mm long and cylindrical in shape with fine ribbing on its inner surface. It reverses onto the lens for storage.
Performance
All our test shots and most of our sample images were taken with the lens on our OM-D E-M1 camera body. Subjective assessments of test shots showed them to be very sharp, even at the maximum f/1.2 aperture. The fast MSC autofocusing system and effective stabilisation in the E-MI enabled us to use the lens hand-held at very slow shutter speeds ““ as low as 1/3 second ““ and obtain a high percentage of sharp pictures.
Our Imatest tests showed the lens able to exceed expectations for the 16-megapixel resolution sensor in the E-MI with measurements taken near the centre of the frame. The highest resolution was obtained at f/2.5, which is 1.3 f-stops down from maximum aperture.
Some edge softening was measured at all aperture settings and depth-of-field was very shallow at wider apertures. Diffraction began to limit sharpness at f/11, as shown in the graph of our Imatest result below.
Lateral chromatic aberration remained well within the ‘negligible’ band for all aperture settings, as shown in the graph of our test results below. The red line marks the boundary between ‘negligible’ and ‘low’ CA.
Because in-camera corrections are applied for both vignetting and rectilinear distortion, we had to use ORF.RAW files to see whether they were present. We found vignetting was negligible at the widest aperture settings and distortion was limited to very slight pincushioning.
The lens also handled backlit subjects very well. Although some flare and ghosting were present in shots where a bright light source was within the image frame, we found no loss of contrast or colour saturation in normal shots with relatively strong backlighting .
With a minimum focusing distance of 30 cm, this lens is not capable of macro photography but can be used for taking close-ups of objects that measure more than 10 cm in length. The 9-bladed iris diaphragm produced attractive bokeh at wider apertures, including a ‘creamy’ appearance at f/1.2. Bokeh quality remained pleasing through to about f/5.6, where background details began to intrude on overall smoothness.
Conclusion
The AU$1999 price tag puts the M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens squarely into the ‘premium’ product category.
If you can’t afford the f/1.2 PRO lens, the M.Zuiko Digital 25mm f/1.8 remains part of the M.Zuiko Premium line-up and typically sells for less than AU$500. It’s less complex optically as well as smaller (57.8 x 42 mm) and weighs only 137 grams. Its optical performance isn’t as good as the 25mm f/1.2 PRO lens but if you utilise the in-camera corrections provided by recent Olympus cameras and take advantage of unsharp masking in post-capture editing, this lens should not disappoint. The closest focusing distance of 25 cm provides a slight advantage over the PRO lens and bokeh quality at f/1.8 will be very similar to the f/1.2 lens at the same aperture setting.
It’s early days for buying this lens and some online re-sellers (both local and offshore) still have it listed for pre-ordering. Consequently, it’s unreasonable to expect significant discounts at this stage. Nevertheless, you can expect to save somewhere around AU$200 at some local re-sellers and maybe a bit more if you take shopping around seriously.
While greater discounts may be offered by a few off-shore re-sellers, once you take shipping and insurance costs into account, potential savings soon become less attractive. And you lose the benefits of warranty support and local consumer protection laws if you buy offshore.
SPECS
Picture angle: 47 degrees
Minimum aperture: f/16
Lens construction: 19 elements in 14 groups (including 1 Super ED lenses, 2 ED lenses, 1 E-HR lenses, 3 HR lenses and 1 aspherical lens element)
Lens mounts: Micro Four Thirds
Weatherproofing: Dustproof and splashproof construction
Diaphragm Blades: 9 (circular aperture)
Focus drive: High-speed Imager AF (MSC)
Stabilisation: No
Minimum focus: 30 cm
Maximum magnification: 0.11x (0.22x at 35mm equivalent)
Filter size: 62 mm
Dimensions (Diameter x L): 70 x 87 mm
Weight: 410 grams
Standard Accessories: LH-66B Lens Hood, LC-62F Lens Cap, LR-2 Lens Rear Cap, LSC-0811 Lens Case
Distributor: Olympus Imaging Australia; 1300 659 678, www.olympus.com.au
TESTS
Based on JPEG files taken with the OM-D E-M1 camera:
SAMPLES
Vignetting at f/3.5.
Rectilinear distortion.
Close-up at f/1.2; ISO 100, 1/60 second at f/3.5.
Close-up at f/1.8;
Close-up at f/2.5;
Close-up at f/8;
Normal photograph taken at f/1.2 to show shallow depth of field; ISO 100, 1/8000 second.
Hand-held shot taken at ISO 6400, 1/3 second at f/9.
Hand-held shot taken at ISO 6400, 1/8 second at f/10.
Flare and ghosting in a shot taken with a bright light source inside the image frame; ISO 200, 1/400 second at f/9.
Normally backlit subject; ISO 200, 1/125 second at f/13.
Normally backlit subject; ISO 200, 1/400 second at f/9.
ISO 200, 1/250 second at f/11.
Crop from the above image magnified to 100% showing the absence of visible coloured fringing.
ISO 200, 1/200 second at f/9.
ISO 200, 1/2160 second at f/16.
ISO 200, 1/100 second at f/11.
ISO 200, 1/800 second at f/5.
ISO 200, 1/160 second at f/7.1.
ISO 200, 1/100 second at f/5.6.
ISO 500, 1/60 second at f/5.6.
ISO 200, 1/500 second at f/3.2.
ISO 200, 1/500 second at f/6.3.
ISO 200, 1/1250 second at f/5.6.
Rating
RRP: AU$1999; US$1200
- Build: 9.0
- Handling: 9.0
- Image quality: 8.8
- Versatility: 8.5