Stay away from Olympus 'test & wow' program

It's horrible.

The give you a fabulous lens you can't and won't afford. Ever.

They give it to you on loan, for free.  When you open the box it turns out it's full of spores of incurable GAS.

I just can't believe how amazing their Pro lenses are. If you've never tried one, make sure you keep it that way.

Stay away!

Agreed. That's how  I ended being forced, forced I tell you, to buy my M1i/12-40mm

techie takes pics wrote:

It's horrible.

The give you a fabulous lens you can't and won't afford. Ever.

They give it to you on loan, for free. When you open the box it turns out it's full of spores of incurable GAS.

I just can't believe how amazing their Pro lenses are. If you've never tried one, make sure you keep it that way.

Stay away!

LOL

which one did you test?

I must say I'm lusting over them all

I constantly am thinking about upgrading to the em1ii....or getting a pro lens.  Problem is I can at least sell my current body and recuperate some for a new body but the lens will be pure debt.

NovakM wrote:

which one did you test?

I must say I'm lusting over them all

I constantly am thinking about upgrading to the em1ii....or getting a pro lens. Problem is I can at least sell my current body and recuperate some for a new body but the lens will be pure debt.

I have the Pro 12-40 myself. It can be had relatively cheap second hand because the 12-100 now exists. I got mine for €500.

It is virtually the same range as my kitlens, it is a lot bigger and heavier... and I prefer it vastly over the (fine!) kit.

I now have the 40-150 Pro on loan.   I have quite a few nice vintage lenses in that range which I considered as fine lenses.
It's like the 40-150 box contained some magic which instantly degraded all my lenses to 'all right' or 'having character'.

I think I'll dissapoint Olympus though. Because of size I might go for the Panasonic 35-100 but definitely the 2.8 version.

I would love to try a couple of lenses, specially the one I think would be my next aquisition (the 45mm f/1.2).

I have subscribed the Olympus Test Program about a month ago, providing links to my page etc...
Until now nothing...
It's a shame that Olympus is not as much dynamic in my country (Portugal) as it is in other countries.
Most of the Olympus events and product promotions rely on materials and directives from Spain.

techie takes pics wrote:

NovakM wrote:

which one did you test?

I must say I'm lusting over them all

I constantly am thinking about upgrading to the em1ii....or getting a pro lens. Problem is I can at least sell my current body and recuperate some for a new body but the lens will be pure debt.

I have the Pro 12-40 myself. It can be had relatively cheap second hand because the 12-100 now exists. I got mine for €500.

It is virtually the same range as my kitlens, it is a lot bigger and heavier... and I prefer it vastly over the (fine!) kit.

I now have the 40-150 Pro on loan. I have quite a few nice vintage lenses in that range which I considered as fine lenses.
It's like the 40-150 box contained some magic which instantly degraded all my lenses to 'all right' or 'having character'.

I think I'll dissapoint Olympus though. Because of size I might go for the Panasonic 35-100 but definitely the 2.8 version.

I have the Panny 35-100 f/2.8 and the Oly 40-150Pro.  Both are quite good and the Panny is easier to carry around.  That said, the Oly is just plain a better lens, especially on an Oly body.  Like the 12-40Pro and other Pro lenses, it has the focus ring clutch that allows pretty much seamless switching between AF and MF. No fumbling to switch MF/AF. I started out in M43 an AF shooter but now use MF for the majority of non-action shots when shooting with Pro glass.

phil from seattle wrote:

might go for the Panasonic 35-100 but definitely the 2.8 version.

I have the Panny 35-100 f/2.8 and the Oly 40-150Pro. Both are quite good and the Panny is easier to carry around. That said, the Oly is just plain a better lens, especially on an Oly body. Like the 12-40Pro and other Pro lenses, it has the focus ring clutch that allows pretty much seamless switching between AF and MF. No fumbling to switch MF/AF. I started out in M43 an AF shooter but now use MF for the majority of non-action shots when shooting with Pro glass.

Thanks. Good info.
I used the 40-150 at an indoor sports event today and you're right, I could not have done it with a mere 100.  I used the 150 a lot.

Things are bad.

One week ago the 40-150 was 'I wonder if this lens can help me out'.
It has now progressed to 'I need this lens'.

It's like life is too short for bad coffee. I'm getting too old to skimp on glass.

Well let us see. I have the 7-14, 12-40, 12-100, 17, 40-150 and 300 lenses in the PRO group. While I do think that is more than enough, I am happy to have them.