What is a good 28 or 35mm Zuiko lens

I've got a 50mm f1.4 Zuiko, but I'm looking for a fast 28mm or 35mm

to use as a standard lens. Any suggestions backed up by experience

would be appreciated. Resulting pics taken with recommended lens

would be nice too, but not necessary. :o)

 

Thanks!

Last year I spent an afternoon shooting Velvia thru my OM-1 with 28/2.8 Zuiko and Provia 100F thru my F3HP with 28/3.5 PC-Nikkor. I duplicated several shots, trying whenever possible to duplicate apertures as well, changing shutter speeds to keep DOF the same and keeping both lenses within their sweet spots - around f/8 - using a tripod for both cameras.

 

Darned if I can tell them slides apart. Not only did the results confirm my opinion that in bright sunlight Provia is just about as saturated as Velvia, that resolution is very comparable, but the two lenses are also very comparable performers.

 

Of course, that could mean the PC-Nikkor is a mediocre lens. You'll have to take my word for it, tho' - it's an excellent lens. So is the 28/2.8 Zuiko.

I've got a 28mm F2, I do like - a lot!<p>

It's relatively compact for it's speed. Only prob is that they are expensive. I picked up mine cheap. It's a silver nose and had to go to an industrial optician to get soughted out. But, it's still good apart from that.<p>

IIRC there is one going cheap at one of the big NY stores - online - KEH 215$ *Bargin* grade...<p>

Bloody good optic.

Nicholas,

Any pics you can share? f2 sounds like my speed!

2.8 is smaller, cheaper, and all the lens you'll really need. f/2 looks better on paper but in real life why carry the weight handicap?

Regarding photos, all the test photos I did in my photo.net folder were done with this lens (the test was unrelated to lens performance but different b&w dev's). They are mainly enlargements of central piece of the neg. It's fairly difficult to see how decent a lens looks on a comp screen anyway :^))<p>

Regarding the size of the lens, if it were a Canon or a Nikon I might be more inclined to agree but the Oly is only a little more in size than a 50mm 1.4 and in real world use the size really does not hamper it in any way.

Kochanowski,<p>

Is it that much bigger? I like a fast lens, and so long as it isn't humungus(sp?) I tend to go fast.

Go for the f/2 one if you don't mind the cost and weight. I have one and it is very contrasty. Very bests in the Oly stable. If you want a compact 28, go for the f/3.5. It is known to be more reputable than the f/2.8 even though it is of earlier vintage. Actually I have both lenses and you can never be satisfied with just one 28s.

 

As for the 35s, again f/2 version is one to go for. Have you visited any Oly lens test sites?

 

http://members.aol.com/olympusom/lenstests/default.htm

 

is a very good starter.

 

Happy shopping.

Henry, only you can tell what you like. I went through a phase where I liked fast, faster and fastest lenses, but decided that I can always get that extra stop by using a faster film or pushing instead. With an Oly your real advantage is the small size which I don't like to negate with a large lens. The f/2 is about 1/2 inch longer. That doesn't sound like a lot but I feel it.I like the 2.8 a lot, have read that the f/2 is a great lens too. You probably won't go wrong either way.

I'd have to rescan a couple of the slides I mentioned to show a 1:1 section that would show off the sharpness, which is tough to do in a jpeg anyway.

 

However, I can attach one that shows how flare resistant the 28/2.8 Zuiko is, along with a few other attributes that may come across in a tiny jpeg: contrast, lack of coma, etc.

 

I *have* read one or two complaints about this lens so there may be some sample variations, but that's a fact of life with any lens from any manufacturer.<div></div>

I have all three Zuiko 28mm lenses. I vote for 28/2.8. My 28/3.5 is not multi-coated but it's is very good. My Zuiko 28/2.8 is a bit contrasted than 28/2 lens. I also like the smaller (short in lenth and weight) size of 28/2.8 and also the lightest of three. I only have Zuiko 35/2.8 lens and it produces similar result as my Zuiko 28/2.8 lens and very compareable to my Leica Summicrn-M 35mm Asph and with nice bokeh.

Thank you all for the insight. Yong, thanks for the link it's a keeper. I guess I'll start with a 28mm f2.8 and eventually get the f2. If they are inexpensive, it can't hurt to have both. Thanks again to all for the help.