Bread and Butter Workhorse Lens: Pan 12-35 f/2.8

Philip Scott wrote:

This was the first lens I bought when I went MF3 from Nikon full frame this year. It seemed quite a bargain compared to the Nikon 24-70 f/2.8 I had always coveted and it mated well with the first body I bought, a GX8.

I've added the Pen-F and an OMD M5 MK II and it's a little big on the Pen-F even when I add a grip, at least as a walkaround option.

I do like my results with it very much...if I had to pick one downside or complaint....I don't like that it's........PURPLE! Come on, couldn't it be black...all my gear is black vs. silver. I don;t love the color but it's a goto lens for me.

As a walkaround / eveready lens on the Pen-F I have gone to the little Olympus 14-42 f/4-5.6 electric zoom lens. At $199 US it was a deal and that I can zoom it over Wi-Fi for video is wild.

Thanks for the good review of the 12-35!

Philip, thanks for the comment

Yes, that purple finish on this lens lolll, I duct-taped my lens all black, so now it no longer becomes an issue for me. Plus the lens now looks like it's been beaten pretty bad and with the duct tape it somehow gives the impression of the lens barely holding itself together, hopefully making it less of a stealing target.

Enjoy your 12-35, seems like you have a collection of nice bodies there

Bill Wallace wrote:

My standard lens too. Bought it when it first came out along with the 35-100 f2.8 and use them exclusively on my Em1. Wanted faster better glass than was avaiable so took the leap since Olympus had nothing to offer then. Would have bought the Olympus lenses if they were available then I might add, I am a long time Oly user and love their glass. With that said I just don't see a need for me to swap the Pannys for Oly's right now. If I stay with u4/3 longer term I may down the road I may add some of the Oly pro lenses.

I am on that FF fence, waiting patiently for the next gen gh and Em flagship cameras.....waiting patiently......

Bill

Bill, thank you for the comment

Yes, the 12-40 wasn't available yet in mid 2014 if I recall correctly, and this is the only option for such fast zoom lens for MFT.

I'm also curious on what the next Pan GH and Oly E-M will be. Full frame is not yet an option for me unfortunately(or should I say "fortunately"? hehe ). At least with the current size and weight of the 2.8 zoom lenses on either DSLR or mirrorless, it's a no no for me.

richj20 wrote:

Nice write up, Gary, and excellent photographs to demonstrate.

I haven't experienced the hood problem you and others mention. The hood snaps securely in place and doesn't change position.

I purchased the 12-35 mm lens to use primarily as a companion to my 100-400 mm. I think they go well together!

When I'm out photographing with the 100-400mm, I carry the 12-35 mm on a second body for landscape scenes, especially to give context to a particular wildlife.

An example:

Great Egret perched on a flotation dock in a local lake.

View from the shoreline.

A few more landscapes:

Kern River, California

South Creek Falls, Sequoia National Forest

Small canal, Sequoia National Forest

I use the lens for other things.

Recent environmental portrait: Secretary and her cluttered desk.

The f/2.8 is handy for helping to isolate the subject from the background. Common thistle.

All in all, a wonderful photographic tool.

- Richard

Richard, thanks for adding more observation and thoughts into the review

First of all, love that 100-400! I would love to be able to own one someday, right now I'll have to be happy with my 100-300. And I also love the pictures that you produced with the 12-35, those are really nice

Your strategy to pair the 100-400 with 12-35 is a very brilliant thinking. Your pictures really show how the 12-35 should perform as a sidekick lens when being paired with the 100-400, and I think it's one of the best ways to utilize the 12-35. I particularly love the waterfall picture, it sould give a really meaningful context to a wildlife picture that you take there.

Cheers!

curiosifly wrote:

Thanks. I can't find a GX8 in store near me. But I did hold the GX85 a couple days ago. The grip feels too small for me to hold comfortably. I'm wondering if I can add a larger grip. I always have a dilemma. For example, G7 actually feels really good in my hand. But I'm afraid I won't want to carry it all the time due to size.

ciao

Curiosifly, I agree with the GX85, it too feels uncomfortable in my hand. It is the same size as my GX7, but somehow has a smaller grip than the GX7, so it isn't as easy to hold especially with larger lens like the 12-35. The G7 feels almost like a GH4, and I quite like it, but I still prefer the GX8 because of its rangefinder profile and superior electronic shutter.

The GX8's handling is somewhere between G7 and GX85. More toward the G7 I must say. The front-positioned shutter button really matters.

Cheers

NCV wrote:

I agree with what you have said 100%.

The lens hood is a problem, It became displaced during a recent hike and I lost a couple of shots before I saw it was twisted.

I like the size of this lens compares to the 12- 40 which is just to big for me.

Hi NCV, thank you for the comment, awesome landscape picture as well, love it!

I agree about the 12-40 being a bit too big, I feel the same too! The 12-35 is already on the verge of almost being a big lens in my consideration, but then a Canon's standard kit lens for their low range DSLRs, the 18-55mm, is as big as the 12-35 and doesn't have the large f/2.8 aperture. So I can't really complain, can't I? hehe

Cheers!

richj20 wrote:

A better comparison, Gary, is with the Canon 24-70 mm f/2.8, if you want to really feel good about the 12-35mm (size/weight)!

Comparison

- Richard

Ha! That lens makes the 12-35 looks and feels like a miniature!   A miniature that can actually perform at the same level as the 24-70mm f/2.8 to be exact.

wiryawan wrote:

curiosifly wrote:

Thanks. I can't find a GX8 in store near me. But I did hold the GX85 a couple days ago. The grip feels too small for me to hold comfortably. I'm wondering if I can add a larger grip. I always have a dilemma. For example, G7 actually feels really good in my hand. But I'm afraid I won't want to carry it all the time due to size.

ciao

Curiosifly, I agree with the GX85, it too feels uncomfortable in my hand. It is the same size as my GX7, but somehow has a smaller grip than the GX7, so it isn't as easy to hold especially with larger lens like the 12-35. The G7 feels almost like a GH4, and I quite like it, but I still prefer the GX8 because of its rangefinder profile and superior electronic shutter.

The GX8's handling is somewhere between G7 and GX85. More toward the G7 I must say. The front-positioned shutter button really matters.

I used nothing but the G6 for a year and a bit -- feeling from Day 1 very much at home with it. While it did give the impression of being a bigger camera, in fact it occupied much the same hole in space that my E-OL3+VF2 did once you added a lens.

The grip is terrific (the E-PL3 effectively had no grip).

Then I bought a GX7 as back up and gradually it began to take over so now it is my go-to camera. It's grip is different but also very "hand filling" for want of a better term.

BUT recently I did a few days with the G6 exclusively, and at the end of that time, I was in love with it again. Yes, it is bigger, but it is much the same weight with lens fitted.

One of the areas where it really is superior: the EVF.

Looking at he G7, I see a superior camera in virtually every respect. It was a remarkable upgrade from the G6.