Panasonic 20mm 1.7 ii on epl-5

It has to be camera dependent.  Check out DPreview's review of the EM1.  They test the 20mm on the EM5 and the EM1 at high ISOs.  There is definite banding in the shot by the EM5, but almost no banding in the shot from the EM1.  Same lens, different cameras, different results.  They must have figured out something and made a fix.

My EPL5 also demonstrates banding at higher ISOs.  I'm looking forward to testing it out on the EM1.

Verbatimium wrote:

Just watch out at higher ISOs...

I had the 20mm (older version) on my PL5 and I had the notorious horrible banding issue with it at higher ISOs of 1000+. Ruined too many pictures for me so I got rid of it for the Oly 17mm and never looked back. The problem was never fixed with the newer version of the lens.

If you use this combo in decent light environments and do not shoot above 1000 ISO, it is a great set. If you like low light photography, then forget it.

My experience is that the banding can happen at any ISO setting. The net result is a huge reduction in useable dynamic range, because the way to avoid the banding is to drown it. I.e, where you would otherwise get noise in the shadows, you get banding long before the noise becomes an issue.

The banding can occur on any body using a particular, otherwise excellent, Sony sensor: Olympus E-M5, E-PL5, E-PM2, E-P5 and Panasonic GH3.

Just to back up the debate about banding: the shots below are taken with the epl5 and new 20mm 1.7 and show banding at ISO 1600 & 3200.

Iso1600 banding top right quarter of PIC.

ISO3200 banding example.

AngelicBeaver wrote:

It has to be camera dependent. Check out DPreview's review of the EM1. They test the 20mm on the EM5 and the EM1 at high ISOs. There is definite banding in the shot by the EM5, but almost no banding in the shot from the EM1. Same lens, different cameras, different results. They must have figured out something and made a fix.

My EPL5 also demonstrates banding at higher ISOs. I'm looking forward to testing it out on the EM1.

It's a known issue with the E-M5, E-PL5, E-PM2, E-P5, and GH3. However, the very latest top-level cameras, the E-M1 and GX7, are both unaffected according to DPR testing:

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/52184609

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/52355175

Ulric wrote:

Verbatimium wrote:

Just watch out at higher ISOs...

I had the 20mm (older version) on my PL5 and I had the notorious horrible banding issue with it at higher ISOs of 1000+. Ruined too many pictures for me so I got rid of it for the Oly 17mm and never looked back. The problem was never fixed with the newer version of the lens.

If you use this combo in decent light environments and do not shoot above 1000 ISO, it is a great set. If you like low light photography, then forget it.

My experience is that the banding can happen at any ISO setting. The net result is a huge reduction in useable dynamic range, because the way to avoid the banding is to drown it. I.e, where you would otherwise get noise in the shadows, you get banding long before the noise becomes an issue.

Yes, the banding is latent even at lower ISOs but you'd be hard pressed to see it at those ISOs unless you start pushing the shadows.

Some ideas about how to reduce if not completely eliminate the banding at the stage of shooting here

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/50092818

and some ideas about how to reduce its visibility in PP in this thread

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3532757#forum-post-52061838

Note, with regard to the first link, that it appears to be the lens rather than the camera that benefits from being "warmed up" before shooting and that you don't actually need to shoot images to do so. Exercising the AF mechanism a bit (some 5 to 10 AF cycles) appears to do the trick. I should also mention that I am still uncertain about how well this method generalizes to other copies of the lens and body than my own. So YMMV. Furthermore, it is clear to me by now that it doesn't remove the banding completely. However, it tends to reduce its visibility by reducing the likelihood that you get broad, low-frequency banding of the kind illustrated in the post I link to.

The banding can occur on any body using a particular, otherwise excellent, Sony sensor: Olympus E-M5, E-PL5, E-PM2, E-P5 and Panasonic GH3.

agc73 wrote:

Just to back up the debate about banding: the shots below are taken with the epl5 and new 20mm 1.7 and show banding at ISO 1600 & 3200.

Iso1600 banding top right quarter of PIC.

ISO3200 banding example.

This pictures are bad first and foremost because the ISO is too high, the banding is secondary, without the banding they would still be bad. In low light with M43 you can shoot decent picture until ISO1600 max, anything above that is bad. At ISO 1600 there is no banding unless you spend 5 mins in LR to artificially show it, so no issue. In good light you can shoot up to ISO3200 or 6400. In good light there is no banding, so no issue in this case as well.

There are very rare occasions where banding ruins a good picture. Nothing that should prevent people from buying and using this lens. furthermore the newest sensors (EM1 and GX7) don't show any banding. Bodies come and go, a lens is for the long term