Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 17mm f/1.8 Lens (Black)
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A great 35mm equiv lens for MFT
I recently bought an EPL-5, my first MFT camera. I've been using Canon FF gear for a few years and whilst I love the Canon IQ and ergonomics, I wanted something smaller and lighter for when I travel but which still delivers excellent IQ. The EPL-5 meets this requirement perfectly - it's an incredible camera for its size and price with IQ getting close to the 5dii. I wanted a nice medium-wide to standard prime to go with it though, so I took a clo... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great indoors still camera
To test how this lens worked, I used this lens at a Quinceaera I was invited to. The festivities consisted of an indoor service inside a fairly dark church, followed by a reception at a nearby indoor hall. In order to not disrupt the service or the festivities, and since I'm a natural light photographer whenever possible, I elected to not use a flash (Also, the ceilings were too high to take bounce flash pictures). I used this lens on my Panasoni... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Not very sharp, not contrasty enough.
I bought this as an attempt at a fast 35mm equivalent lens for m43 but never fell in love with it. In fact, I can't wait to get rid of it. Yes, it's a sexy looking lightweight little pancake of a lens and feels well constructed, and that's all fine and well, but it just didn't deliver the image quality I was looking for when mounted on my OM-D E-M1. I always felt this lens lacked sharpness wide open, and lacked contrast in general - especially in... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
A Controversial Prime Lens
All concerns about this lens go directly to the comparison between Panasonic 20mm f1.7. I have been using 20mm pancake lens for a long time, it's tack sharp even at wide open, but its AF performance on Olympus bodies is unbearable. Olympus doesn't apply in-body correction for purple fringing or CA, which is heavily needed by Panasonic lenses. These are two major factors that encourages me to get a 17mm f1.8. First of all, I would like to say the ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great Lens
I got this lens a couple weeks ago and I love it. This lens has gotten a pretty bad rep because it got a couple negative reviews, and everyone jumped on the bandwagon, but I can tell you it is an awesome lens. Its funny because nobody in the world, at the time, had the lens other then the reviewers had even tried the lens. The AF is silent and fast, nice fast aperture, very convenient MF clutch, awesome metal construction, delicious creamy bokeh,... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Walking on the Moon
You can read technical lens reviews and read about how some reviewers say this glass is good stuff but not great. Well, my sample delivers technical sharpness that rivals my best MFT glass and I have them all. Technical sharpness is actually third on my list of evaluation criteria behind color accuracy and lens speed, and this glass delivers even in terms of technical sharpness. But the real question we should all ask ourselves is this: If I ever... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
fast, light and well made
I've been eager to get this lens for some time now. I've had the OM-D since January of this year. I bought the body only and have been using two four thirds lenses. The Olympus f/2 50mm macro, and the 14-54mm Mk II zoom. Both are excellent but heavy lenses. The 17mm f1.8 is my first really light lens, making the OM-D into the easy to carry camera I had hoped for. Critics have suggested that it's not as sharp as one would like. I'm not so sure abo... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Solid lens
I quite like this lens. Like the other reviewer mentioned, it's received a few mixed reviews. I find the images are reasonably sharp, edge-to-edge with good microcontrast. Chromatic abberations are decently controlled. Build quality is impeccable with all-metal construction and a neat clutch focus mechanism. In terms of resolution, I would say it is quite similar to my Olympus 12/2, which is no slouch either. Not quite as sharp as say the Panason... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Gem of a lens
Purchased this for my daughter's Olympus OMD EM-10 to complement her 12-40 f2.8 Pro, also a great lens. I wanted her to experience shooting with a fast prime and a setup that would make the camera more grab it and go friendly. It has certainly delivered. Seems very sharp, fantastic bokeh and fast autofocus. I am used to shooting with a Canon full-frame but I have borrowed the EM-10 with this lens for a few outings when I didn't want to lug around... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
A worthy lens....
I waffled over purchasing this lens because my Olympus EP-2 that I purchased in 2010 from B&H came with the 17mm 2.8 lens and I've been pleased with it together with the other Olympus and Panasonic lenses I have for my camera. I questioned the other consumers on B&H's website about this lens and if it would be prudent to consider this lens knowing that I have the 17mm 2.8. The responses were mixed and some suggested I consider other Olympus lense... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great little lens!
This is now my second time owning this lens. I sold it because I had just gotten the 25mm and the two were similar in focal length. But I decided to purchase it again because of a couple of reasons. First of all I really like the focal length as my wide prime. The 12mm is too wide and I need a wide-normal for tight spots. Secondly, the AF speed is lightning quick. Snaps focus instantly. Thirdly, the image quality - color, skin tone rendering, etc... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Good lens, could be better with one minor fix
This lens works well. The wide aperture and 35mm equivalent focal length make this lens useful for a wide variety of situations. The lens has solid construction and the manual focus snap ring is convenient. The size is great and it focuses fast. I primarily use it for indoor photos. The only thing keeping me from loving this lens is a software bug. The manual focus ring behaves differently than it does on the 12-40 f/2.8 zoom. On the 12-40 pull... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Pleasant Surprise
Im a retired photojournalist and Ive started going out shooting street photos, mostly of people. I fondly remember shooting Nikon primes when I was a young photographer, but I didnt use the 35mm lens very often. I relied more frequently on the 24 and 20mm lenses. I have switched to micro four thirds and bought the Olympus 12, 17, 45 and 75mm lenses. Shooting on close-up scenes, in crowds, tight spaces or just standing near people, I find this 17m... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Olympus 17mm vs Panasonic 20mm
I've been using the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 as my standard lens for ages on my Olympus OM-D E-M5, but have been having major issues with banding at high ISOs and cripplingly slow AF. I primarily shoot concerts so these two issues combined are more than a little annoying to work around so I finally decided to bite the bullet and grab the Olympus 17mm. I'm now wondering why I waited so long. This lens is super zippy and crystal clear with nice, creamy... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
It is spending a lot of time on my camera
Put this on my camera and find I almost never take it off. I like the 35mm angle of view, and I love thie size and build of this lens, it makes a great walking around lens. I used to have the Pro 12-40 on all time, but the size of this lens has spoiled me. And I can have the 45mm in my pocket. I just leave the clutch pulled and shoot in manual focus, this lens is great for a that kind of engaged shooting. It doesn't automatically turn on the focu... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent wide prime lens.
I love this lens for street photography and shooting architecture. Great field of view, and tack sharp paired with the omd em1. Shockingly small too. I describe it as a little bigger than a golf ball. People usually look at me quizzically after hearing that, but then I take it out of the bag and the first response is usually something like oh ___, it really isn't that much bigger than a golf ball.Overall a great lens and if you want a classic 35m... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
better than expected
I bought with an E-M5 because Olympus offered a rebate. I thought it would be nice to add to lens collection. My daughter had a baby a couple of days ago. This lens has been invaluable. I would never use a flash on a newborn and the lighting in the room was low (for the baby) but the lens (coupled with the E-M5)worked superbly in the soft light. Additionally, my wife is not a camera person but there are times she wants photos of the grand kids. I... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent Starter
I recently purchased a MFT system. I bought this lens first so I had a fast, semi-wide angle, general purpose lens. The metal construction is pretty solid yet light. The fast aperture allows for acceptable bokeh and low-light performance. The bokeh and sharpness aren't worth drooling over but focus is quick and sharp. At under $500 this is perfectly acceptable and worth more I believe. Canon's competetion to this would be a heavier, larger, slowe... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Little Gem
This is a fantastic little lens. It is very compact, yet feels sturdy in my hand. All metal construction adds a feel of quality and durability. 1.8 aperture is very useful in low light conditions. This lens can be autofocus or manual focus. You can switch the modes by pulling the focus ring forwards or backwards. I found that out a few weeks in on owning this lens. It would have been nice to have discover it sooner. I hope you will. When you can ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Fine So Far
I just got this a few weeks ago for my Pen-F, and have only taken a couple of dozen pics with it, but no quarrel with the results. The build quality is excellent, but this is a "plain Jane" lens, and doesn't have some of the features Oly's other lenses have-but I wouldn't use those features anyway, so it doesn't really matter. Nowadays, I'm primarily a railroad photographer, and use a lens between 2.8-5.6. Resolution is more important to me than ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Showed my Canon primes who's boss ...
I'm brand new to this format. Less than a week into owning an Olympus OM-D EM-1, after many happy years with a Canon 7D and primes.I knew I needed a daily lens. Something that would live on the camera, be my walk about, and be flexible enough when I needed something a bit wider than the 45mm I already owned - and this was my choice.And I love it :)For comparison, I used to carry a 28mm f/1.8 Canon prime on my 7D - so the focal lengths are roughly... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent value, good match for Panasonic bodies....
This lens replaces my Lumix 20mm H-H020 on my GX-7. The Lumix lens never seemed to have accurate autofocus and sometimes hunted for focus, racking in and out for up to a second. This lens doesn't do that. The focal length is a little bit wider, closer to a 35mm full frame equivalent. The filter/hood treads don't move in and out and don't retract into the barrel of the Lumix, so you can use a cheapo rubber hood safely instead of the pricey Olympus... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent, but be aware of focus clutch limitation.
Purchased this for when I want to reduce weight and for the faster stop than the Olympus 12-40 f2.8 Pro Lens that I would normally use in this range. It is solidly built and optically it is excellent. Wide open it is sharp in the centre, very sharp by f4 from side to side. F8 still very good but diffraction is an issue at f11 and beyond as expected. f22 is unusable. Mechanically the lens focus ring is smooth to turn but the AF/Manual focus clutch... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Best lens for street photography
I've been using this lens on my Olympus Pen F for two weeks. It is now my favorite lens for this camera for several reasons. First and foremost: it is the ideal size and weight for micro 4/3 cameras. I can carry this all day long without any problem. Second: incredible resolution and color rendition. Third: great Bokeh for portraits. This is the best lens for street photography. Subjects find it less threatening than a zoom lens if they even notice it at all. I normally ask permission before photographing people but we all know there are situations when permission is not possible or advisable.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
