Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

This lens is amazing for portrait work. It is fast and has excellent (tight) depth of field. The bokeh has a very nice character to it. Unfortunately, it is very rough to focus more than about 30-40 feet away. It just doesn't have the mechanical resolution on the focus motor. So as long as you keep the subject within 30-40 feet this is great low light lens. Note that I am shooting with an Olympus E-510.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I bought this lens with the same reason as anyone else - F1.4 for low light environment such as wedding, concert, or indoor party.

The reason I save one star for myself is that both lens (exchange one for the same issue) I tried has the front focus issue on both E520 and E30 which have no any issue for all of my 5 prime and zoom lens. You will take a risk you have older model of body without the feature to adjust AF. It will be find if you always use live view but not OVF to take pictures. However, it produces unpleasant quacking sound during focusing through live view. It is normal form the forum discussion.

For the weight and size it depends how you look at it. To me the quality is more than everything. It looks perfert on my E30, E520, and even EPL1.

In addition, it takes times for focusing at the less contrast area doesn't matter the light condition. For comparison, 50mm F2.0 does a better job than it. As long as you have a clear contrast area to focus it works great even in extreme low light on my E30!

After all, as long as you get the correct focused picture and it will surprise your eyes. Nice sharpness since F1.4, bokeh, color, low light availability when comparing with 50mm F1.4. Even though it cost a lot (but cost much much less than those new 35mm F1.4 lenses from Canon or Nikon) it is still a good investiment for FT or MFT system. Unfortunately, they make this lens no more! The cost will arise soon! I should bought 10 at that time. :-)

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

What a tragedy that this lens is going out of production. In fact, the whole 4/3rds story is a tragedy. [...] since I got the 25 Pana/Leica I got the shallow DOF I wanted, bought another 4/3 body and now I'm sorted until my camera's give up the ghost... then I would, with a heavy heart, dump Oly the way they dumped us. This lens is a joy to use, sharp as a tack, especially on the wide side, a unique piece of kit. Within a week of ownership I new it's worth the high price I paid for it!

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Solid construction, great in low light, a joy to use. On my 4/3's mount, this is the normal prime your daddy told you about.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Low-light performance compensates for the biggest weakness of the 4/3 system. Will still struggle with auto-focus in some conditions, but I've learned so much about how to be a true photographer by using this lens to figure out how to focus and judge light in all conditions.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

It is a huge step up from the sigma, and is very useful at 1.4, resolution is amazing. However, do not buy if your camera does not have focus adjustment. I needed to add plus 17 to fix front focus issues. and at 1.4 the DOF is very small, so focus issues are very important. But all good with focus adjustment, and has now given me great low light capabilities

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

This lens truly deserves the Leica designation, as well as Lumix's. I have Leica M lenses, as well as pro Nikon lenses, and this 25mm f1.4 out-performs them all. Sharpness, contrast and resolution are outstanding at f1.4. In terms of clarity, shooting at f1.4 gives the illusion of f2.8, but adds the superb bokeh of an f1.4.
I use the lens on the micro four thirds Lumix GH-1 camera. This requires use of the Lumix Mount Adapter for the G Series, which provides full and fast AF for still pictures, but no AF in the GH-1 video mode. With the adapter, I find AF noisy, therefore I shoot in manual which is silent. The lens is so contrasty wide-open that I find it a snap to focus quickly and sharply, especially given the GH-1's auto magnification feature.
I'm grateful that the adapter allows me to use this rare lens -- perhaps the best normal lens ever made, regardless of the adapter's limitations.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

i recently bought GH1 and using this for micro 4/3 so its actually 50mm f/1.4 its great product and low light performance is great!! Awesome BOKEH!! i love the creamy background exactly what i wanted for my camera. i cant use stock lenses of GH1 after i saw this =)

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Images produced with this little beauty of a lens are quite superb. I can usually crop 2x-3x without problem due to its great sharpness; its colors are rich and true, good AF - really magnificently performing glass all around. I shoot with E-30/E-520 bodies and for macro (particularly with the E-30) it is stellar. I have also been using the Leica with an EC-1.4 teleconverter, to give more versatility in reach/magnification. I have not found this combo to sacrifice IQ any and like it a great deal, although it is surprisingly heavy. My primary reason for purchasing this lens is its speed/low light performance, where it has met or exceeded my hopes - the lens totally shows why you might want to shoot with primes! In an earlier post someone pointed out that as this Leica only pops up occasionally, one should jump on it when it does. I followed this advice when it appeared in early January and it's now out of stock once more. I am really pleased with it and very, very glad I didn't hesitate.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Since buying this lens about two weeks ago, I've had opportunity to test it in a variety of conditions: low light interiors, bright snow scenes, soft light candids. Bottom line: The PL 25 is as good as people say it is.

I wanted a fast prime "normal" lens for the Olympus E-5. The PL 25 was recommended almost unanimously as the one to get. True enough.

Sharp wide open and stopped down, very nice color rendition, excellent bokeh, no distortion at all. Not sure why some people think it's heavy: To me, it feels very nicely balanced on the E-5, easy to work with. Autofocus is fast and reliable in good light, perhaps a little slower in low light but just as reliable.

The Olympus Zuiko 12-60 has almost always been on my E-3 and now E-5 -- a very fine lens. But around town and especially inside, the PL 25 is more and more the lens I'll turn to for sharp images when lighting is less than optimal. I can see how the PL 25 could easily become the lens that stays on the camera most of the time.

Yeah, it's pricey -- but it's oh so worth it for serious 4/3s shooters.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I got this lens to compliment the kit lens that came with my GH2. For the time being, it is my primary lens for photography. It deserves to carry the Leica label, having very sharp optics. In addition, it couples beautifully with my GH2, making it fully automatic with the camera. The greater weight of the lens and camera combination is a small issue, but balance is very good. A slightly greater annoyance is the need for an adapter. Perhaps, panasonic will come out with a micro size version.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

The center quality of this lesna beats everything I have seen in 4/3 lens. It is highly recommended for low light and large aperture photography.
Since Panasonic is not overly fortune in thier 4/3 venture, this lens may not be there for long. My advice is despite it is not a budgeted item but buy one while you still can

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

This is an amazing lens that is great in low-light conditions. It has great color sharpness and gives photos a special "look" that says Leica. Worth every penny.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I use several Olympus DZ High Grade lenses and this was a perfect compliment for wider/closer portraits, low light/night and street photography. Very sharp, quick and accurate to focus on the E-3, and not heavy at all compared to what I already have. The bokeh is delightful with smooth gradients and transitions, and I love how color and contrast is rendered with this glass. It has a tiny bit of CA (compared to the DZ 12-60) with high contrast subjects but no more and maybe less that the DZ 50mm. Also, it is not weather sealed. This is a lens I wish I had bought a few years ago and am thoroughly enjoying now!

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Razor. Diamond. Tack. Whichever adjective is your pleasure, this glass puts the S in SHARP. Simply stunning output, and, trust me, I am very picky about image quality. This lens, at every aperture, is the sharpest edge-to-edge fixed focal length lens I've ever used. Bokeh is rich and smooth. I use it on an Olympus E-P2 with the Panasonic adapter; AF is fast and accurate, and I'm pretty sure this lens out-resolves the image sensor. If you can find this lens, get it - it is worth it. If you are a pro, this lens will be revenue-positive in a very short period of time.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I bought this lense for my Oly E-510. Generally I'm happy with the performance in low light condition and the IQ. Basically f1.4 plus iso 800 u can shoot almost anything in low light condition. There is some AF problem with Oly E510 in extreme low light. However, you can get away with flash gun's AF illumination beam. I've heard Pana's DSLR & higher end Oly E30 & E3 focus very fast with this lense in low light. If so, I may consider getting one to spare this lense.
This lense has been constantly out-of-stock in BHPhoto. If you are looking for a fast lense for low light photography, street shots, grab this while it is available.

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I purchased this lens to go on my GF1 w/Adapter and L1 though i plan on using it on the GF1 more so than the L1. The result as others have said is nothing short of amazing even wide open. At f/2 - f/4 and beyond, i have no words to describe the IQ coming from this glass on either of the bodies. Just completed an interior project for one of my clients, sat the GF1 combo on a tripod with a few shots handheld at f/4 and loaded images through Aperture 3, wow!If you have a GF1, try it, and i can guarantee it will simply blow your mind!!! It is a bit awkward holding the lens with the GF1 body though, i have managed to get used to it so far... For casual shooting, i keep the kit lens 20mm 1.7 pancake on the GF1. BTW, the 4/3 Adapter to m4/3 body autofocuses on the GF1 and its nicely fast.If you need spectacular glass for a 4/3 or m4/3 body this is it and as others have said, it only pops up every now and then. Lucky to find one, so if you find one here at B&H grab it quick[...]

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

Amazing lens paired with Panasonic's DMC-GF1. [...]

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I have used this lens every time I have been out photographing. The only time it has left the camera is to change camera. together with the 8mm fisheye from olympus the lens has totally replaced my standard zoom (14-45). The lens is very suitable for moody black and whites and I have also used it to photograph models. All in all a great lens!

Comments about Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica D Lens for Four Thirds System:

I got this lens for a vacation with family and love it. The 1.4 aperture is amazing, especially on a 4/3rds body that has such large depth of field anyway. I finally got the great bokeh you expect on a DSLR.

Construction seems great, and size and weight is actually well balanced on my E520. Wide open sharpness and contrast across the image is good, stopped down it's excellent. Some portrait shooters would prefer 40-50mm, but I find 25mm is the best balance for candid/family shots.

My only comment (not a complaint) is that at 1.4 achieving proper focus on a 520 is tough! Manual focus is little good with such a small viewfinder and autofocus really likes to focus ahead of the subject unless you have lots of contrast. When DoF is only a few cm though, this is to be expected. Be patient.