Lens/Adapters for Micro Four Thirds

Today’s Post by Mark Toal

Panasonic and Olympus Micro Four-thirds cameras both have kit lenses whose focal lengths start at 14mm (28mm equivalent.) Both companies also make and expensive wide angle zooms but I wanted an inexpensive, small fixed wide angle, which the Panasonic 14mm f/2.5 pancake lens fit perfectly. Olympus came out with a beautifully sharp 12mm f/2.0 (24mm equivalent) lens that, at $800, was a little out of my price range but still a stunning compact lens.

Panasonic offers an inexpensive conversion lens that turns their 14mm into a little less than a 12mm. For about a $120, the size and image quality are hard to beat. Olympus has a wide-angle conversion lens for their kit zoom that also has great optical quality and an affordable price ($99.)

To take it one step further both companies also have inexpensive or moderately priced fish-eye conversion lenses for select Micro Four-thirds lenses. The Panasonic Fisheye and Olympus Fisheye adapters each cover a 120-degree angle-of-view that is not a circular fisheye but more of a slightly distorted 10mm equivalent as you can see in my sample images.

Tip: Check each companies web site to make sure that these convertors fit your lens.