Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42 mm F3.5-5.6 EZ Lens, Standard Zoom, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G-Series), Black

Product Information

As you can see in the below image of the swan, the level of detail that can be captured is very impressive. When you factor in that this is a pancake zoom, and indeed 'just a kit lens', the quality becomes pretty mind blowing.

Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 II R Review | PCMag

I found the lens excellent in sharpness, beating the 1st gen. ED L lens with aperture f/6.3 --> f/11 at all focal lengths I tested (14, 18, 24, 35, 42mm). At 24mm with f/6.3 and 35mm with f/6.3 and f/7.1 the ED L lens was sharper--but only in the corners. At 14mm sharpness peaks at maximum aperture, producing very good clarity across the frame. Stopping down doesn't yield any increase in quality, as is often the case with MFT lenses that have a slow maximum aperture. I focused on window frame in the center. Center performance is fine but upper right corner is just mush. The shingles, and patio door on the right is soft. Railing on the right is soft too but I can forgive that because I shot it near wide open. I'm not looking at the steps in the foreground because that probably outside the DoF. Barrel distortion is annoying too. And there just is not bad lenses for m4/3 system. Like the much trashed 17mm f/2.8 performs better than many thrashers are capable to take photos.

Olympus 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 ED Zuiko Digital User Reviews

In the mid-range (18-35mm) results are somewhat similar. At the widest end of the lens' performance (ƒ/3.9-5.2) the lens produces a small central portion of sharpness, degrading to softness in one corner or another; these results suggest some light de-centering with our sample of this lens. At 18mm and 25mm, stopping down to ƒ/5.6 removes this softness significantly, while at 35mm you need to stop down to ƒ/8 to get the sharpest results at that focal length. Sample photos are available of two laboratory test targets to help in our readers' evaluation of the lenses we test. The VFA target should give you a good idea of sharpness in the center and corners, as well as some idea of the extent of barrel or pincushion distortion and chromatic aberration, while the Still Life subject may help in judging contrast and color. We shoot both images using the default JPEG settings and manual white balance of our test bodies, so the images should be quite consistent from lens to lens. Or like a new father and mother, when a baby crows 5mm every week in the first months, learns to emotionally communicate with the parents, learns to make jokes and observations etc. There is no time to wait a "perfect camera" or any reasons to spend money to "best lens" or "best body" because none of those matters. It's easy to say what this lens isn't. In truth, it's not a lot of things. But that's only because of the trade-off necessary for what it is. Olympus' second iteration of the kit lens was a marginal improvement: it felt more solid, and offered much better sharpness than previously. It's still not as sharp as the current lens, but it's on the same level for its other optical properties.

Olympus Pen 14-42mm MKI vs 14-42mm MKII | ePHOTOzine Olympus Pen 14-42mm MKI vs 14-42mm MKII | ePHOTOzine

Featuring an all plastic design, this is definitely a consumer grade lens, but can produce sharp, pro quality results if used correctly in the right situations. While size isn't the only thing that the Olympus M.Zuiko 14‑42mm f/3.5‑5.6 EZ has going for it, it's a pretty big deal. Well, a pretty small one. But there are plenty of reasons why this is the best pancake lens on the market –and why it has been included as a kit lens for years with the best Olympus cameras (OM System).The IIR version is physically longer. The EZ collapses into I guess what you call a pancake form (less than 7/8") when the camera is off but upon powering up immediately extends to twice the length (1-3/4"). The zoom ring is electronic (EZ) which means it does not rotate but turns a bit right or left to zoom electrically controlled. That may be an advantage for remote camera control under wifi or Bluetooth where I think there is a remote zoom control. Both the EVF and the rear touch-screen are very effective. The electronic viewfinder has a resolution of 2.36million dots, so although this is Olympus’s ‘base’ OM-D model, it hasn’t cut any corners here. This lens isn't a "constant" lens, in that as you increase the focal length, the maximum aperture size decreases. The following table reflects the change as you zoom: Focal length