Just got an E-M1 body... looking for a pancake "pocketable" zoom recommendation

After a week and a half of research and testing in a local camera store, I pulled the trigger on a gently used silver OM-D E-M1 in a great condition. It's a body-only with no lens. I'm going to probably get a 14-150mm Olympus zoom for travel purposes, as I see someone selling it for a very compelling price locally, but on the daily basis I'd love to have the camera with me. That means a lens as small as possible. I'd love to acquire some primes over time, but at this time it seems the most practical is to get a pancake zoom.

Here's what I've learned so far from reading--please correct me if I'm wrong:

• Olympus 14-42mm EZ : tiny, electronic zoom, okay image quality--not as good as full size kit lens of similar aperture range, narrow ring for zooming the lens, and there's another ring at the front for manual focusing? Lowest amount of distortion and vignetting.
• Panasonic 14-42mm PZ: slightly larger, toggle for zooming, toggle for focus, higher resolution than Olympus across the zoom range and aperture sizes, highest amount of distortion and vignetting. OIS doesn't really matter here with E-M1.
• Panasonic 12-32mm : smaller than PZ, ring for zooming, nothing for manual focus. Resolution close to Panasonic 14-42mm PZ but slightly worse. Vignetting between Olympus EZ and Panasonic PZ. Noticeable amount of distortion at the wide end, which I guess doesn't get automatically corrected in E-M1 JPEGs?

Does Olympus also not correct chromatic aberration with non-native lenses for JPEGs? Not a big deal either way, just curious.

I'm not really sure which to choose at the moment. On the one hand, Panasonic 12-32mm offers greater convenience of the wider field of view, but on the other hand, no manual focus in case there's trouble with AF, and the distortion at the wide end. Seems like Panasonic 14-42mm PZ is the safest bet? Or am I dismissing Oly's EZ too quickly?

I can only comment on the tiny panny zoom. It was sharp and wide. On my panny body, I didn't notice much if any CA or distortion. The OIS was great. Not having the manual focus option was a bummer. If manual focus is something that you find yourself using, you can cross that off your list. If you can live without manual focus then the potential CA and distortion on olympus bodies can be corrected in post very easily. If video is a deciding factor, I don't think I'd want the tiny panny either - the lack of PZ and manual focus would turn me away.

I dont think i'm the best person to talk to about this stuff though as I'm a prime guy. Although, I do want the panny 14-140 mk2 for the convenience factor. Wide- check. Tele - check.

Thank you!

Now I'm thinking of going for a Panasonic Lumix Summilux 25mm f/1.4 first... (along with that 14-150mm zoom, as it's only $200 locally). ~50mm full frame equivalent FoV is my favorite.

I just got the pancake Oly zoom today. Any particular kinds of shots you are interested in seeing? (I have an EM5)

Godfrey wrote:

OrdinarilyInordinate wrote:

Thank you!

Now I'm thinking of going for a Panasonic Lumix Summilux 25mm f/1.4 first... (along with that 14-150mm zoom, as it's only $200 locally). ~50mm full frame equivalent FoV is my favorite.

That was to be my recommendation ... I'd go with a small, fast prime first and then see if you really need/want a compact (slow) zoom.

My three most used lenses are the Summilux 25, Macro-Elmarit 45, and Lumix G 14 mm. The 14 is so tiny (it's almost the size of a lens back cap from a DSLR) you can always have it in the bag, and the Panasonic matched wide converter for it nets a remarkably good quality, compact 10.5mm f/2.5 lens for not a lot of money too. I much prefer to walk around with either the 14 or the 25 than with a slow zoom.

G

How flare-prone is the 25mm Summilux if I dont always put on the hood?  That hood is pretty huge!

True.  I was thinking of getting a step-up ring and trying a shorter generic circular hood.  It'd be more friendly to daily carrying.

OrdinarilyInordinate wrote:

Thank you!

Now I'm thinking of going for a Panasonic Lumix Summilux 25mm f/1.4 first... (along with that 14-150mm zoom, as it's only $200 locally). ~50mm full frame equivalent FoV is my favorite.

DO IT!!

My first time around building a m43, i didn't really click with anything. EM5 with a some olympus primes... eventually I sold it all. Now when I got the GM5, the 20mm was interesting, i feel like it had something different than the oly's- then once I got the PL25.... game over. It's EXACTLY what i was looking for in m43. Gorgeous files, you will not be disappointed. BTW - I'm a 50mm guy too

The EM1 is the first body that will correct Panasonic lens for CA.

OrdinarilyInordinate wrote:

True. I was thinking of getting a step-up ring and trying a shorter generic circular hood. It'd be more friendly to daily carrying.

I bought a couple 46mm hoods for my 20mm, and they swap over to the 25mm just fine. The 25mm hood is big. Sometimes I use it, sometimes I use the other hoods. i can't tell the difference between them honestly.

Hello,

Last Fall, I got E-P5 as a travel camera and purchased, specifically for travel, 14-42 EZ lens. Going in, I was somewhat reluctant about the quality, but compactness and practicality of the pancake pushed me in this direction.

Since then, having a compact lens and camera kit helped me get a number of shots that DSLR would have been to bulky to cary for, and image quality was definitely above what I expected. Few shots from a recent trip attached - the only post processing is a bit of noise removal (I tossed the original JPEGs camera produced).

Definitely would recommend these lens, good value for the money and they make for a very small camera kit, pocketable with EP-5.

Hope this helps,

Toni

M43 Dude wrote:

The EM1 is the first body that will correct Panasonic lens for CA.

Oh, does it... that's great news!

Toni S wrote:

Hello,

Last Fall, I got E-P5 as a travel camera and purchased, specifically for travel, 14-42 EZ lens. Going in, I was somewhat reluctant about the quality, but compactness and practicality of the pancake pushed me in this direction.

Since then, having a compact lens and camera kit helped me get a number of shots that DSLR would have been to bulky to cary for, and image quality was definitely above what I expected. Few shots from a recent trip attached - the only post processing is a bit of noise removal (I tossed the original JPEGs camera produced).

Definitely would recommend these lens, good value for the money and they make for a very small camera kit, pocketable with EP-5.

Hope this helps,

Toni

Thank you for the reply and for the samples.