M.Zuiko 40-150mm F/2,8 lens + M.Zuiko MC-14 Teleconverter for Close-up Photography

Weegee wrote:

Si tu veux, tu peut me repondre en Francais.

Thanks but I’ll give my answer in English to be sure that everyone can be part of the discussion.

On your personal list of lenses, you state that you have both the 40-150 f/4-5.6 and the newer 40-150 f/2.8 lens. You give the f/4-5.6 five stars yet the f/2.8 only gets 4.5. I would have thought that it would be the other way around.

That’s a very good question. The M.Zuiko 40-150mm R and the M.Zuiko 40-150mm F/2,8 are both very sharp lenses. If there is a difference about sharpness, it’s very small.

Beside price, weight, size, and being splashproof or not, the main difference is the fact that one is four times brighter at 150mm (F/2,8 vs F/5,6).

In bright daylight, both lenses do the job perfectly well. But under low-light situation, the Pro version is clearly the winner.

Then why did I’ve given a 4,5-star rating to the Pro version? It’s because I hate to carry that lens for a long period of time. A couple of hours, that’s OK. Over that, no.

Contrary to what I thought at the beginning, it’s not because of its weight. It’s because of its diameter near the mount. Why?

My favourite way to carry that lens is to hold it like I’d carry an hammer (by the wooden shaft). My hands are larger than the smallest part of the Pro lens.

With the MC-40 Teleconverter, the latter stretches the smaller diameter by 1 cm: that’s just enough to let me have a good grip on that lens with the thumb and middle finger.

That’s why I’ll probably always use the combo (M.Zuiko 40-150mm + MC-14) hereafter.

Also, did you try the f/4-5.6 with the MC-14?

The MC-14 Teleconverter expands inside a lens at its mount. The teleconverter can be used with the Pro version because a cavity exists at its base. I don't know if the one at the back of the R version is deep enough.

Officially, the MC-14 can be used with just two lenses: the M.Zuiko 40-150mm F/2,8 and the M.Zuiko 300mm F/4.

Unofficially, it can be used with any legacy lenses that need a thick adapter. This Summer, I'll have fun trying it with some of the legacy lenses that I have.