Best tele zoom lens for E-PL6?

Hi all, I am looking around for the best tele zoom lens I can get for my E-PL6 that can do tight birding shots as well as take pics of Saturn's rings and Jupiter's bands.  I have a Fuji HS50 with a manual zoom lens that performs well but doesn't get me as close as I need to get even though it has a 1000mm equiv. lens. I got a 1.7x Sony TC for it (HGD1758) but the images are a bit soft with that so I would like a long tele for my E-PL6 that still opens up to f/5.6 at max even at full tele.  Any ideas on what would be a suitable lens?  I already have the 14-42 and 40-150 lens.  I want something longer than that.

E-PL6 is not the best camera for wildlife.

You should have an camera with EVF.

The best tele which you can get is 300mm F/4.0, second - Panasonic 100-400mm.

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Hi all, I am looking around for the best tele zoom lens I can get for my E-PL6 that can do tight birding shots as well as take pics of Saturn's rings and Jupiter's bands. I have a Fuji HS50 with a manual zoom lens that performs well but doesn't get me as close as I need to get even though it has a 1000mm equiv. lens. I got a 1.7x Sony TC for it (HGD1758) but the images are a bit soft with that so I would like a long tele for my E-PL6 that still opens up to f/5.6 at max even at full tele. Any ideas on what would be a suitable lens? I already have the 14-42 and 40-150 lens. I want something longer than that.

So I have run a EPL6 with a Panasonic 100-300 sometimes, the hard parts though on that setup are

1.  Handling.  Its very much a case of the tail wagging the dog, you hold the lens, and the body is just along for the ride.  You can render quite nice results, but while doing it you cant help but feel its just the wrong tool for the job.

2.  Shutter shock.  It takes some serious effort to not get blurry shots due to shutter shock on that setup.  The shutter in the EPL6 feels like a hammer blow when it triggers on the 100-300 at full extension, and you have to work hard on your technique to not have it mess up your pics.

This was shot, about 40 yards away, straight out of camera

f/5.6@300MM

iso 800 and 1/25s shutter speed

this was approaching sunset and was the best of the batch I got.

If you want to do astronomy stuff with your EPL6, I would suggest a telescope and adapter for m43, I don't have much experience in that field, but I think you'd be better suited than your native lenses, for wildlife, you certainly can, but its hard to do so and not find yourself thinking "This is the wrong tool for this job".  Personally I find I get better results with a Panasonic G7 and the electronic shutter.

I don't shoot a lot of wildlife, so no input for you there.  But when it comes to astro work, I think you'll find that even the Oly 300/4.0 with the 1.4x adapter will fall short of your expectations.  That combo will give you 420mm/f5.6 (or 840mm in 35mm terms).  With that FOV you'd be able to distinguish the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter, but they would be a very, very small part of the frame.  Also, that's a very expensive setup and, as the prior poster mentioned, a very unwieldy combo.  For astro work for anything but the moon I suggest a telescope and a t-adapter.  But again, a body with an e-shutter is better suited for that work.

Good luck.

Toni Genes wrote:

E-PL6 is not the best camera for wildlife.

You should have an camera with EVF.

The best tele which you can get is 300mm F/4.0, second - Panasonic 100-400mm.

I can get an EVF for it.  How heavy is the m. Zuiko 300mm f/4 lens?  Thanks!

burritosandbeer wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Hi all, I am looking around for the best tele zoom lens I can get for my E-PL6 that can do tight birding shots as well as take pics of Saturn's rings and Jupiter's bands. I have a Fuji HS50 with a manual zoom lens that performs well but doesn't get me as close as I need to get even though it has a 1000mm equiv. lens. I got a 1.7x Sony TC for it (HGD1758) but the images are a bit soft with that so I would like a long tele for my E-PL6 that still opens up to f/5.6 at max even at full tele. Any ideas on what would be a suitable lens? I already have the 14-42 and 40-150 lens. I want something longer than that.

So I have run a EPL6 with a Panasonic 100-300 sometimes, the hard parts though on that setup are

1. Handling. Its very much a case of the tail wagging the dog, you hold the lens, and the body is just along for the ride. You can render quite nice results, but while doing it you cant help but feel its just the wrong tool for the job.

2. Shutter shock. It takes some serious effort to not get blurry shots due to shutter shock on that setup. The shutter in the EPL6 feels like a hammer blow when it triggers on the 100-300 at full extension, and you have to work hard on your technique to not have it mess up your pics.

This was shot, about 40 yards away, straight out of camera

f/5.6@300MM

iso 800 and 1/25s shutter speed

this was approaching sunset and was the best of the batch I got.

If you want to do astronomy stuff with your EPL6, I would suggest a telescope and adapter for m43, I don't have much experience in that field, but I think you'd be better suited than your native lenses, for wildlife, you certainly can, but its hard to do so and not find yourself thinking "This is the wrong tool for this job". Personally I find I get better results with a Panasonic G7 and the electronic shutter.

Thanks!  Shutter shock and weight of the system have been issues for me too!  With what shutter speeds did you find that you didn't have to deal with shutter shock on the EPL-6?  Does setting a shutter delay help?  I have it set to 1/4 sec.

Rich K wrote:

I don't shoot a lot of wildlife, so no input for you there. But when it comes to astro work, I think you'll find that even the Oly 300/4.0 with the 1.4x adapter will fall short of your expectations. That combo will give you 420mm/f5.6 (or 840mm in 35mm terms). With that FOV you'd be able to distinguish the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter, but they would be a very, very small part of the frame. Also, that's a very expensive setup and, as the prior poster mentioned, a very unwieldy combo. For astro work for anything but the moon I suggest a telescope and a t-adapter. But again, a body with an e-shutter is better suited for that work.

Good luck.

Thanks, I was wondering about the weight of the set up and the shutter speed I need to set in order to avoid shutter shock.  For taking wide angle images of the constellations I've found no issues with shutter shock between 2s to 15s exposures.

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I don't shoot a lot of wildlife, so no input for you there. But when it comes to astro work, I think you'll find that even the Oly 300/4.0 with the 1.4x adapter will fall short of your expectations. That combo will give you 420mm/f5.6 (or 840mm in 35mm terms). With that FOV you'd be able to distinguish the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter, but they would be a very, very small part of the frame. Also, that's a very expensive setup and, as the prior poster mentioned, a very unwieldy combo. For astro work for anything but the moon I suggest a telescope and a t-adapter. But again, a body with an e-shutter is better suited for that work.

Good luck.

Thanks, I was wondering about the weight of the set up and the shutter speed I need to set in order to avoid shutter shock. For taking wide angle images of the constellations I've found no issues with shutter shock between 2s to 15s exposures.

I use my em5.2 and the Oly 12.2 or the Oly 17/1.8 for milky way shots.  no problem with shutter shock, although I'm on a tripod with a 2 sec delay on the shutter.  Here's a recent shot from Massacre Rim in northern Nevada.

Rich K wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I don't shoot a lot of wildlife, so no input for you there. But when it comes to astro work, I think you'll find that even the Oly 300/4.0 with the 1.4x adapter will fall short of your expectations. That combo will give you 420mm/f5.6 (or 840mm in 35mm terms). With that FOV you'd be able to distinguish the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter, but they would be a very, very small part of the frame. Also, that's a very expensive setup and, as the prior poster mentioned, a very unwieldy combo. For astro work for anything but the moon I suggest a telescope and a t-adapter. But again, a body with an e-shutter is better suited for that work.

Good luck.

Thanks, I was wondering about the weight of the set up and the shutter speed I need to set in order to avoid shutter shock. For taking wide angle images of the constellations I've found no issues with shutter shock between 2s to 15s exposures.

I use my em5.2 and the Oly 12.2 or the Oly 17/1.8 for milky way shots. no problem with shutter shock, although I'm on a tripod with a 2 sec delay on the shutter. Here's a recent shot from Massacre Rim in northern Nevada.

Wow thats very nice! I was also wondering if shutter shock isn't an issue when coupling the camera to a telescope because of the weight of the scope. If I couple my EPL-6 to my Celestron 8 SE, the 8 SE OTA weighs 24 pounds and combined with the tripod, the total weight is 40 pounds. Would shutter shock not be an issue in that situation?

burritosandbeer wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Hi all, I am looking around for the best tele zoom lens I can get for my E-PL6 that can do tight birding shots as well as take pics of Saturn's rings and Jupiter's bands. I have a Fuji HS50 with a manual zoom lens that performs well but doesn't get me as close as I need to get even though it has a 1000mm equiv. lens. I got a 1.7x Sony TC for it (HGD1758) but the images are a bit soft with that so I would like a long tele for my E-PL6 that still opens up to f/5.6 at max even at full tele. Any ideas on what would be a suitable lens? I already have the 14-42 and 40-150 lens. I want something longer than that.

So I have run a EPL6 with a Panasonic 100-300 sometimes, the hard parts though on that setup are

1. Handling. Its very much a case of the tail wagging the dog, you hold the lens, and the body is just along for the ride. You can render quite nice results, but while doing it you cant help but feel its just the wrong tool for the job.

2. Shutter shock. It takes some serious effort to not get blurry shots due to shutter shock on that setup. The shutter in the EPL6 feels like a hammer blow when it triggers on the 100-300 at full extension, and you have to work hard on your technique to not have it mess up your pics.

This was shot, about 40 yards away, straight out of camera

f/5.6@300MM

iso 800 and 1/25s shutter speed

this was approaching sunset and was the best of the batch I got.

If you want to do astronomy stuff with your EPL6, I would suggest a telescope and adapter for m43, I don't have much experience in that field, but I think you'd be better suited than your native lenses, for wildlife, you certainly can, but its hard to do so and not find yourself thinking "This is the wrong tool for this job". Personally I find I get better results with a Panasonic G7 and the electronic shutter.

Question about coupling my EPL-6 to my Celestron 8 SE, because of the weight of the OTA, would that negate the effects of shutter shock and would that not be an issue when coupling the camera to that scope?

Also, can you AF effectively with that Panasonic lens on the EPL-6?  And is it a heavy combo (like over 3 pounds total?)  And have you found a range of shutter speeds with that lens that do not give shutter shock?

Thanks!

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Thanks! Shutter shock and weight of the system have been issues for me too! With what shutter speeds did you find that you didn't have to deal with shutter shock on the EPL-6? Does setting a shutter delay help? I have it set to 1/4 sec.

I tried it, but it seems to only isolate you from the button press itself, not the shutter.  In my case how you hold the lens made the difference much more.  I grew to greatly dislike the shutter delay, as it felt less connected to the act of taking the pic, and hand held through a long lens, you really dont want to feel disconnected in my book.

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Question about coupling my EPL-6 to my Celestron 8 SE, because of the weight of the OTA, would that negate the effects of shutter shock and would that not be an issue when coupling the camera to that scope?

Also, can you AF effectively with that Panasonic lens on the EPL-6? And is it a heavy combo (like over 3 pounds total?) And have you found a range of shutter speeds with that lens that do not give shutter shock?

Thanks!

On the Celestron I have no idea.

As far as the 100-300 setup, I tried but found that once again holding technique was more influential than shutter speed.  I tried to do some shots with a tripod and remote release, but the balance was so bad I was worried about torquing the lens mount.

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

Lenses like that have a tripod mount either built-in or as an attachment, with the camera hanging off the end, unsupported itself.

Just as well, in the case of that example??!!

Peter

Isola Verde wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

Lenses like that have a tripod mount either built-in or as an attachment, with the camera hanging off the end, unsupported itself.

Just as well, in the case of that example??!!

Peter

Ah, so that should work with any mirrorless body, even one as light as an E-PL6?

Looks like it has 5 axis IS built in, much better than what the body itself has, too!

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Isola Verde wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

Lenses like that have a tripod mount either built-in or as an attachment, with the camera hanging off the end, unsupported itself.

Just as well, in the case of that example??!!

Peter

Ah, so that should work with any mirrorless body, even one as light as an E-PL6?

Looks like it has 5 axis IS built in, much better than what the body itself has, too!

That lens when its available will have a tripod mount which the Panasonic 100-300 doesn't. That would help with the balance issue, and the mass of that beast is probably enough to help counter the shutter shock of the E-PL6, but why are you putting the Bentley of carts behind a tiny pony like the E-PL6?

Its sorta silly to spend that much $$$ on a lens just to hang a low end outdated body on the back half. Don't get me wrong I love my E-PL6, but I love it for what it is, not what it isnt.  It is a tiny body that I can tuck into a pocket, and have a camera in hand that is far away and above my cell phone for real photography.  What it isnt is a high end body ideally suited to that size of a lens.  That shutter is a major weak point in the camera, the overall resolution isnt as good as what else is out there, and its form factor is awfully difficult to handle with a lens of decent size.

lastly that 150-400 with built in tele-converter isnt even price announced yet, but will probably be in the 5k range.  Get a less expensive Pan-Leica 100-400, and a nicer body (G9 maybe?) for less.

burritosandbeer wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Isola Verde wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

Lenses like that have a tripod mount either built-in or as an attachment, with the camera hanging off the end, unsupported itself.

Just as well, in the case of that example??!!

Peter

Ah, so that should work with any mirrorless body, even one as light as an E-PL6?

Looks like it has 5 axis IS built in, much better than what the body itself has, too!

That lens when its available will have a tripod mount which the Panasonic 100-300 doesn't. That would help with the balance issue, and the mass of that beast is probably enough to help counter the shutter shock of the E-PL6, but why are you putting the Bentley of carts behind a tiny pony like the E-PL6?

Its sorta silly to spend that much $$$ on a lens just to hang a low end outdated body on the back half. Don't get me wrong I love my E-PL6, but I love it for what it is, not what it isnt. It is a tiny body that I can tuck into a pocket, and have a camera in hand that is far away and above my cell phone for real photography. What it isnt is a high end body ideally suited to that size of a lens. That shutter is a major weak point in the camera, the overall resolution isnt as good as what else is out there, and its form factor is awfully difficult to handle with a lens of decent size.

lastly that 150-400 with built in tele-converter isnt even price announced yet, but will probably be in the 5k range. Get a less expensive Pan-Leica 100-400, and a nicer body (G9 maybe?) for less.

Wow, you're right- a good lens plus a better body would cost significantly less.  Does the shutter on this camera not last as long as the one on other mirrorless bodies?  Or did you mean shutter shock when you said the shutter is its major weakness?

I was trying to maximize what's possible with this body, but I suppose the 40-150 I already have is the heaviest that should reasonably be used with it?  I'll look into the lens and camera you recommended, though I was also considering the E-M1 or E-M10.

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

burritosandbeer wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Isola Verde wrote:

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Rich K wrote:

I wouldn't think so, but I'm no expert.

Think this lens combo would work with this body on a tripod? Or is it too heavy even on a tripod?

https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2019/01/24/handheld-at-2000mm-olympus-announces-150-400mm-f-4.5-tc1.25x-pro-lens

Lenses like that have a tripod mount either built-in or as an attachment, with the camera hanging off the end, unsupported itself.

Just as well, in the case of that example??!!

Peter

Ah, so that should work with any mirrorless body, even one as light as an E-PL6?

Looks like it has 5 axis IS built in, much better than what the body itself has, too!

That lens when its available will have a tripod mount which the Panasonic 100-300 doesn't. That would help with the balance issue, and the mass of that beast is probably enough to help counter the shutter shock of the E-PL6, but why are you putting the Bentley of carts behind a tiny pony like the E-PL6?

Its sorta silly to spend that much $$$ on a lens just to hang a low end outdated body on the back half. Don't get me wrong I love my E-PL6, but I love it for what it is, not what it isnt. It is a tiny body that I can tuck into a pocket, and have a camera in hand that is far away and above my cell phone for real photography. What it isnt is a high end body ideally suited to that size of a lens. That shutter is a major weak point in the camera, the overall resolution isnt as good as what else is out there, and its form factor is awfully difficult to handle with a lens of decent size.

lastly that 150-400 with built in tele-converter isnt even price announced yet, but will probably be in the 5k range. Get a less expensive Pan-Leica 100-400, and a nicer body (G9 maybe?) for less.

Wow, you're right- a good lens plus a better body would cost significantly less. Does the shutter on this camera not last as long as the one on other mirrorless bodies? Or did you mean shutter shock when you said the shutter is its major weakness?

I was trying to maximize what's possible with this body, but I suppose the 40-150 I already have is the heaviest that should reasonably be used with it? I'll look into the lens and camera you recommended, though I was also considering the E-M1 or E-M10.

Or do you think one of the 300 or 400 mm lenses would also work fine?

OutsideTheMatrix wrote:

Wow, you're right- a good lens plus a better body would cost significantly less. Does the shutter on this camera not last as long as the one on other mirrorless bodies? Or did you mean shutter shock when you said the shutter is its major weakness?

I was trying to maximize what's possible with this body, but I suppose the 40-150 I already have is the heaviest that should reasonably be used with it? I'll look into the lens and camera you recommended, though I was also considering the E-M1 or E-M10.

Or do you think one of the 300 or 400 mm lenses would also work fine?

I totally get trying to do the most with the least.  I really do.

When I am saying the shutter is the weak point I mean for shutter shock, I have no idea the expected life of a shutter on an E-PL6 except to say I am sure it has SOME limitation.  I know people have killed EM1-Mk1 shutters, so I suspect its in that ball park or less.

I shoot with a 150MM Lumix lens and I do see some shutter shock on that as well.  I would say that if you want to do much extreme telephoto the least shutter shock possible is the best.  My G7 has an electronic shutter, and hence zero shock, the G85 and newer have the electro-magnetic shutter that can keep a mechanical with negligible shock.

As far as the features of the olympus cameras I'm no authority, I generally look at panasonic myself as usually place a I have a priority on video.