Olympus Introduces 3 Unique Micro Four-Thirds Lenses

2016.09.19

Olympus started off Photokina 2016 with the launch of a new mirrorless digital camera and three unique lenses for its Micro Four-Thirds system. They also announced that they are developing a successor to their flagship mirrorless digital camera. The new Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II will feature a new imaging pipeline capable of shooting 20 megapixels images at a whopping 18 FPS even in full-resolution RAW mode. Its sensor will feature 121 cross-type Phase-Detect points to complement the Contrast-Detect AF system used for native lenses.

Cinema 4K and Ultra-HD video at up to 236 Mbps and dual SDXC memory card slots are new to the system. The E-M1 Mark II will keep the best of its predecessor: a 5-axis in-body stabilization in a dustproof, weatherproof and freezeproof body. A new EVF with Eye-Start sensor and 120 FPS refresh rate is said to further improve usability.

The Olympus PEN E-PL8 is a redesign of the E-PL7. Featuring a revised, more classic, body, the new E-PL8 offers a slightly faster 8.5 FPS drive instead of 8 FPS. Everything else remains the same with a 16 megapixels Four-Thirds sensor capable of full 1080p HD video at 30 FPS.

Olympus unveiled 3 new Micro Four-Thirds lenses, the most impressing being their M.Zuiko 12-100mm F/4 IS PRO. This unique lens has no equivalent in any other system, regardless of sensor-size. It is equivalent a a 24-200mm constant-aperture ultra-wide to telephoto zoom! This lens offers built-in image-stabilization designed to work in combination with 5-axis in-body image-stabilization for an unprecedented 6.5 stops of total stabilization! This would be absolutely amazing, allowing 12mm ultra-wide shots to be taken at lower than 2 seconds! 100mm shots would only need 1/6s to come out sharp!

As part of the PRO series, the new M.Zuiko 12-100mm F/4 IS PRO is fully weathersealed and freezeproof. It features a Manual-Focus clutch system to switch between fly-by-wire and mechanical focus. This lens also offers a 0.3X magnification which gives it one of the highest magnification of any interchangeable zoom lens. All these features makes one of the most versatile lens ever made.

The Olympus M.Zuiko 12-100mm F/4 IS PRO is expected in early November for a price of $1299 USD. Amazon, Adorama and B&H Photo are already accepting pre-orders. Pre-order quickly using these links to be one of the first to get this unique lens.

A second unique lens becomes the second Olympus macro lens for Micro Four-Thirds. The new M.Zuiko 30mm F/3.5 Macro is a short prime which offers 1.25X of magnification. It is the only lens with higher than 1:1 magnification that can focus to infinity. It can focus down to 9.5cm which is a mere 1.5cm from the lens.

The M.Zuiko 30mm F/3.5 Macro is expected to be priced at an affordable $299 USD and will ship later this year. Amazon, Adorama and B&H Photo are all ready to take pre-orders.

A new M.Zuiko 25mm F/1.2 PRO becomes the brightest Olympus lens to date. While a handful of other lenses for Micro Four-Thirds have a F/1.2 maximum aperture, the M.Zuiko 25mm F/1.2 PRO is the widest and the only weatherproof one. This PRO lens is built to withstand adverse weather with cold temperatures down to -10°C. Like the other PRO-series lens, it offers a nice clutch to switch from fly-by-wire to mechanical Manual-Focus. This is particularly crucial for such a bright lens which produces an extremely thin depth-of-field.

The M.Zuiko 25mm F/1.2 PRO is expected to ship the first week of October, that's within 3 weeks. Those who have been waiting for such a bright professional lens should pre-order from Amazon, Adorama or B&H Photo using any of these links.

• Digital Camera
• Photokina
• Lens