My Lens Of The Year; The Olympus 12-100mm f/4 PRO

38mm; 1/1600th sec. @ f/4.5; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

Lenses have gotten so good in the past 15 or so years that is hard to find a lens that doesn't give you better than acceptable image quality.  I believe the kit lenses of today will rival some of the best lenses available when I started seriously photographing in 1970.  

When I started in photography, almost no photographer, who took his or her work seriously, would use a zoom lens.  Primes, or single focal length lenses, were the only ones that performed at high levels.  The few zooms which were in the market, frankly, were terrible, in my opinion.  They had pincushion distortion at the shorter focal lengths and barrel distortion at the longer focal lengths.  The edges and corners of your images were visibly soft.  Some early ones were even soft at some focal lengths and kind of sharp at others.  No need to do the film equivalent of "pixel peeping" by using a magnifier with your negatives or slides then.  Just make an enlargement and you would easily see how the lenses underperformed.  All in all, I would say that zooms were disappointing.  Of course, sharpness and image quality is very subjective, but the universal opinions were pretty much in agreement that zooms weren't good enough for professional work in the 1970s.  But that time in history was the infancy of zooms and things have changed.  Boy have they changed.  

Not quite a 100% crop of a portion of the above image.  Look at the detail in the foot, for example. (click to enlarge)

Fifty years ago there weren't computer designed lenses for any lenses but, I suspect, lenses used by the military or the scientific community where the highest image quality was essential.  After all, they can't read your automobile's license plate from space with poor optics!  LOL  

Back then and in previous decades and centuries, mathematicians and engineers had to manually calculate ray traces across the entire surface of each lens element.  Think about this for a second.  They had to manually calculate the actual path of various wavelengths of light as they traveled through each of the lens elements, both individually as well as when placed in groups together in lenses—across the entire surface.  In zoom lenses they also had to conduct ray tracing at several focal lengths of the lens as well.  I consider that amazing feat!  Glass had to be made specifically according to its light transmission characteristics then cut and ground by hand or, by today's standards, by primitive non-computer controlled machines.  Lens grinding technicians were highly valued.  

Today, almost all lenses are designed on computers and lens elements that are glass are ground in CNC machines and plastic elements are molded.  No wonder the complex zooms of yesterday weren't very good.

My first zooms were the highly rated (at the time) Vivitar Series 1 35-85mm f/2.8 and the Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 zoom lenses.  They were better than the Nikon or Canon zooms available at that time.  Acutally, the 35-85mm was not a true zoom but a varifocal lens.  That meant that each time you changed focal lengths, you have to refocus the lens.  These two lenses were "pretty good,"  as I would call it today, but the versatility!  Back then, to me, it was worth having okay zoom lenses when photographing events and other fast moving subjects where it was easier to zoom than carry three camera bodies with three different primes attached.  My third zoom was the Vivitar Series 1 90-180mm macro lens.  Very, very sharp.

47mm; 1/200th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

Today's zoom lenses are marvels of technology.  The drumbeat of quality and versatility continues to beat faster which means we all benefit.  Today's zooms seem to have almost no restrictions for zoom ratios and speed.  In the 1970s we used to kid about having a 28-200mm zoom lens.  Never happen, we thought.  Fantasy.  Now, 28-200 is not even considered a super zoom today.  Quality of the best of zoom lenses today is excellent and, for all but the most persnickety, pretty much equal primes.

Enough. Let's get to it.  My personal lens of the year is an easy choice for me.  A zoom, if you couldn't guess by now.  Let me first say that I can't choose a lens that I don't own and haven't used.  My choice comes from my arsenal of lenses and I have way too many!  Also, this is my opinion and casts no dispersion on any other lens or manufacturer.

100mm; 1/500th sec. @ f/5.6; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

This particular lens provides me with a single, "do almost everything I need to do" lens, in a highly engineered, professionally constructed package.  The lens is relatively compact, lightweight, reasonable in cost, has excellent image stabilization built-in which also works in conjunction with the manufacturer's IBIS, is sharp and contrasty at all focal lengths and every aperture from wide open to f/11 (beyond f/11 diffraction sets in as does with almost all lenses with this format).  It also focuses very fast and accurately.  It stays on one of my cameras almost constantly.  If I could only keep one lens and have to sell all of the rest of the ones I own, this would be the one.  This lens is a marvel of modern science.  I hold this lens in very high regard.

What is it?  The Olympus 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens, of course.

I have come to believe this is the best all around zoom lens I've ever owned.  I've owned many zoom lenses over the years and I can't think of a one that is better or more versatile than this particular lens.  I think I read an interview with one of Olympus' managers and he said the quality of this lens surpassed even their expectations.

75mm; 1/125th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

Besides versatility and image quality, three other aspects stand out for me.  First, the ability of the focusing ring to slide backward to change to manual focus from autofocus is quick, sure and solid.  I use that feature regularly.  Often times, we don't need autofocus and switching to manual focus in most camera/lens combinations requires at least moving your hand to turn a switch or lever.  On others the change requires much more effort.  With a short "pull" of the focusing ring toward me, I'm in manual focus with mechanically coupled focusing ability.  Nice.

The second aspect that is amazing is the image stabilization (IS).  Coupling the IS in the lens with the in-body-image-stabilization (IBIS) in my camera gives astounding stability.  Olympus claims 5.5 stops of extra stability.  As we know, subject movement won't be stopped by image stabilization, but on those occasions when you just need a bit slower shutter speed to get your shot, you can do it with this lens.  At almost age 66, I can handhold this lens on my E-M1 Mark II at 1 full second and consistently get sharp images.  Maybe even slower!  But I haven't tried it at slower shutter speeds.  To me, as an old timer, that is truly remarkable.

24mm; 4/10 sec. @ f/5.6; ISO 400 (click to enlarge)

The third bonus about this lens.  It can focus very close, down to 1/3 life size.  If you don't need true macro magnifications (1:1), this lens may well substitute for a macro lens for you.  It can focus to just shy of 6 inches (15cm) at 100mm and at 12mm almost to the front of the front lens element.  With a bit of cropping, you can have a final image that is even larger.  Again, the versatility of this lens is remarkable.

What about the "slow" maximum aperture of only f/4?  Not a problem for me and the kind of work I do.  Specific apertures allow me to control three things: depth of field, shutter speeds and ISOs.  In my work, more depth of field is more often desirable rather than shallower depth of field.  So, f/4 is really not an issue for me.  In those rare cases when I need shallower depth of field, and I can't get it through strategically using distance and focal length, I can achieve it in my editing software.  It is not hard to achieve and is almost indistinguishable from natural bokeh in most cases.  As far as ISOs and having to  use a bit slower maximum aperture, not an issue.  The files with the Olympus E-M1 Mark II are really clean and I can easily raise the ISO by one stop to achieve the same total light gathering as if I had an f/2.8 lens.  If there is a bit of noise that is bothersome, again, the editing software programs I use can easily knock that down to where it is not noticeable.  

"Ain't technology great?" 

100mm; 1/40th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

As far as any complaints or criticism?  None from me.  I can't think of a single thing I would ask Olympus engineers to change or improve.  If this lens was faster, it would be much larger, heavier and much more expensive.  If it focused closer, it may lose some of its optical excellence at a distance.  Again, this lens is a marvel of modern science.

I picked a bunch of random images I made this year with this lens just as a demonstration of its versatility and characteristics.  None of this are spectacular, but I normally don't make spectacular images.

34mm; 1/6th sec. @ f/5.6; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

100mm; 1/400th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

12mm; 1/6th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

100mm; 1/2000th sec. @ f/5.6; ISO 200 (click to enlarge)

100mm; 1/80th sec. @ f/5.6; ISO 4000

100mm; 1/200th sec. @ f/4; ISO 6400 (click to enlarge)

If you are in the market for a single camera and lens combination which you can pick up as you leave the house or take when traveling if space and weight are a restriction, and want the combination to be either as simple as can be or as complex as you want it to be, I can highly recommend an Olympus E-M1 Mark II with the 12-100mm f/4 lens.  This combination will cover almost all of your needs from action to low light, to close-up, all with an excellent user experience and excellent image quality.  I don't think you would be disappointed.  (Of course, feel free to substitute almost any M4/3 camera for the Mark II)

Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

Dennis A. Mook 

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