A fast wide for Micro Four Thirds that has quietly become the lens we hand to anyone shooting a venue.
Twenty-four millimeters equivalent, wide open at f/1.4, on a body that fits in a coat pocket. On paper that is a specialist lens. In practice it has spent more days in the bag this year than anything else we own.
Build
Metal barrel, weather sealing that has survived two rainy weddings, and a manual aperture ring with a clutch for the focus. It is heavier than the body it mounts to, which is the usual trade for this class of glass, and it balances better than the numbers suggest.
Optics
Wide open it is sharp across most of the frame and only softens in the extreme corners, which on a lens this fast is close to remarkable. Stopped to f/2 it is even. Flare is controlled but not absent — pointed at a hard source you get a small, well-behaved streak rather than a wash.
The three things that matter in use:
- Focus speed. Fast enough for a walking subject, not fast enough for a running one.
- Distortion. Present and corrected in profile, so it never reaches the file.
- Rendering. Out-of-focus areas are smooth without being mushy, which keeps a busy venue readable behind a subject.
Where it earns its place
Receptions, ceremonies and any room where you cannot use a flash and cannot back up. At f/1.4 you are shooting a dim hall at base ISO while everyone else is at 6400.
It is not a lens you reach for because the picture needs a wide angle. It is the lens you reach for because the room gave you no other option, and it makes that frame look deliberate.
Verdict
Expensive, heavy for the format, and the first thing we pack. If you shoot events on Micro Four Thirds, this is the lens the system was waiting for.