Super fast standard prime with beautiful rendering

[Denis 007]

The build quality is like most of the other Pro line lenses; excellent. It's dust, splash and freeze proof. It looks good, the big manual focus ring makes precise focusing easy. Everything looks and feels great. For a super fast 25mm, it certainly is compact and lightweight.

The 25mm f/1.2 has a programmable function button. It also has the famous and much-praised clutch mechanism, which I practically never use. Focusing is super fast, silent and accurate. No surprises here.

The lens hood is made of plastic and it has a locking mechanism. You have to unlock the hood with a button. You can reverse the lens hood for easy storage if you like.

Before I decided to give this M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 Pro a try, I checked several reviews, including the ones posted here. I learned that this 25mm would probably not be as fantastically sharp wide open as its siblings are (the 17 and 45mm f/1.2) and I think that's true.

At the widest aperture there seems to be some sort of very mild haze or glow that makes the image look a tad softer than I'd hoped for. Stopping down improves the situation significantly. It can easily be fixed with some sharpening in post processing though. Then suddenly details are strongly enhanced. Again, this makes me think that it's not just a lack of detail, but the presence of a very mild haze or glow. I don't know the technical term for it. I'm not sure if it's visible or matters at all in the average print. There's some serious pixel peeping going on here.

Maybe you don't want to sharpen the images at all, because the overall rendering of this 25mm at f/1.2 is beautiful. Detailed, but not clinically sharp. Natural with very soft and creamy bokeh. It has real character I think, just like the Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 has. When you stop down, it does become very sharp very fast, but that's probably not the only reason you get this lens for.

Another great super fast Olympus Pro prime. It renders beautifully and has a lots of character. Detail wide open is good, not excellent, like for instance with the 45mm. That's why I give the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm f/1.2 Pro a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

 

[Bobapingu]

There's that mystical term "beautiful rendering" again. What is it really? Is it contrast or something else? I sure would like to see side-by-side comparisons.

 

[Dino Anderson]

It is the non-quantifiable quality of making a scene appear more beautiful than it actually is.

The OP is right that the 25/1.4 has that quality. My previously owned Voigtlander 25/0.95 had it too.

 

[imrryr38]

yes a wondefull lens....

i've got the 25 1.8 and the 1.2 Pro because i'm a fan of nifty/fifty focal lengh..

the 1.8 is compact, very sharp too ( but the pro is better at 1.8 than the 1.8 ) but prone to purple fringing wide open and give nervous bokeh . You can achieve good bokeh but if the background is "simple" .... by the way, i prefer the bokeh-balls rendering of the 1.8

the 1.2 is bigger and heavier, but weather sealing is so welcome when i travel, and the main point over the 1.8 is the possibility of a much smoother bokeh and no purple fringing wide open.

be carefull, it's more a "tool" rather than the easier Zuiko1.8 !!!

you need to prefectly made the focus point... 1.2 aperture don't forgive any aproximation ...

1 sample to give an idea:


me at 1.2 magic

 

[Bobapingu]

yes a wondefull lens....

i've got the 25 1.8 and the 1.2 Pro because i'm a fan of nifty/fifty focal lengh..

the 1.8 is compact, very sharp too ( but the pro is better at 1.8 than the 1.8 ) but prone to purple fringing wide open and give nervous bokeh . You can achieve good bokeh but if the background is "simple" .... by the way, i prefer the bokeh-balls rendering of the 1.8

the 1.2 is bigger and heavier, but weather sealing is so welcome when i travel, and the main point over the 1.8 is the possibility of a much smoother bokeh and no purple fringing wide open.

be carefull, it's more a "tool" rather than the easier Zuiko1.8 !!!

you need to prefectly made the focus point... 1.2 aperture don't forgive any aproximation ...

1 sample to give an idea:


me at 1.2 magic

Indeed, a shallow DOF. A really nice photo but it would be good to see side-by-side images with a 25/1.8. Of course the blur will be quite different, but it may give us a feel for that mystical "beautiful rendering".

 

[James Stirling]

yes a wondefull lens....

i've got the 25 1.8 and the 1.2 Pro because i'm a fan of nifty/fifty focal lengh..

the 1.8 is compact, very sharp too ( but the pro is better at 1.8 than the 1.8 ) but prone to purple fringing wide open and give nervous bokeh . You can achieve good bokeh but if the background is "simple" .... by the way, i prefer the bokeh-balls rendering of the 1.8

the 1.2 is bigger and heavier, but weather sealing is so welcome when i travel, and the main point over the 1.8 is the possibility of a much smoother bokeh and no purple fringing wide open.

be carefull, it's more a "tool" rather than the easier Zuiko1.8 !!!

you need to prefectly made the focus point... 1.2 aperture don't forgive any aproximation ...

1 sample to give an idea:


me at 1.2 magic

Indeed, a shallow DOF. A really nice photo but it would be good to see side-by-side images with a 25/1.8. Of course the blur will be quite different, but it may give us a feel for that mystical "beautiful rendering".

Though still early access the lens blur tool in ACR can be fun this is a 25mm F/1.7 Dpreview sample after a bit of a tinker I think this is just about the cheapest m43 lens



--
Jim Stirling:
“It is one thing to show a man that he is in error, and another to put him in possession of truth.” Locke
Feel free to tinker with any photos I post

 

[imrryr38]

i never took the 1.2 & 1.8 at the same time, but i want to say that the 1.8 premium is a very good lens too, and i love is compactness.

but just once in my photographic life, i want to buy the top of the line-up in this focal lengh just for my own pleasure, without any other consideration

1.8 sample




sorry it's not at 1.8 but F2.0 sharpness is totally okay ( no addition in DxO )




here at 1.8




and last at 2.2 to have the eyes in focus the most as possible without climbing too much in high isos territory .... some magic too ;-)

the 1.2 is very tought, i drop my Em5MkIII with the 1.2 on the ground (60/70cm) and zero dammage.... call me Lucky :-D

 

[Bobapingu]

i never took the 1.2 & 1.8 at the same time, but i want to say that the 1.8 premium is a very good lens too, and i love is compactness.

but just once in my photographic life, i want to buy the top of the line-up in this focal lengh just for my own pleasure, without any other consideration

1.8 sample


sorry it's not at 1.8 but F2.0 sharpness is totally okay ( no addition in DxO )


here at 1.8


and last at 2.2 to have the eyes in focus the most as possible without climbing too much in high isos territory .... some magic too ;-)

the 1.2 is very tought, i drop my Em5MkIII with the 1.2 on the ground (60/70cm) and zero dammage.... call me Lucky :-D

Thanks! All very nice. I think I see what you mean. Maybe it's the softer boheh balls with the 1.2 that does it.
On another track, how did you light the lovely ladies?

 

[imrryr38]

...sometimes a simple phone help a lot with the torch mode, but in this case, it's the multiple light sources of the city , a neon of a shop etc....

move you're subject one step forward or backward and that's it , you've got the shot ;-)

that's why i'm not worry about general low-light performance of M4/3 system....

i don't understand all those criticism (i do not do sports photography ) about high isos...

modern cities are FULL of lights, sometimes too much...

spot metering can be very usefull too, pair with a good prime

and thanks for my lovely wife ;-) a patient model who always understand my passion

 

[bluevellet]

yes a wondefull lens....

i've got the 25 1.8 and the 1.2 Pro because i'm a fan of nifty/fifty focal lengh..

the 1.8 is compact, very sharp too ( but the pro is better at 1.8 than the 1.8 ) but prone to purple fringing wide open and give nervous bokeh . You can achieve good bokeh but if the background is "simple" .... by the way, i prefer the bokeh-balls rendering of the 1.8

the 1.2 is bigger and heavier, but weather sealing is so welcome when i travel, and the main point over the 1.8 is the possibility of a much smoother bokeh and no purple fringing wide open.

be carefull, it's more a "tool" rather than the easier Zuiko1.8 !!!

you need to prefectly made the focus point... 1.2 aperture don't forgive any aproximation ...

1 sample to give an idea:


me at 1.2 magic

... Tokyo or Kyoto?

Or maybe I have just played the Yakuza video game series too much.

 

[Bobapingu]

...sometimes a simple phone help a lot with the torch mode, but in this case, it's the multiple light sources of the city , a neon of a shop etc....

move you're subject one step forward or backward and that's it , you've got the shot ;-)

that's why i'm not worry about general low-light performance of M4/3 system....

i don't understand all those criticism (i do not do sports photography ) about high isos...

modern cities are FULL of lights, sometimes too much...

spot metering can be very usefull too, pair with a good prime

and thanks for my lovely wife ;-) a patient model who always understand my passion

Thanks! And there I was thinking you were walking about with a huge soft box :-D Necessity is the mother of invention.

 

[imrryr38]

yes a wondefull lens....

i've got the 25 1.8 and the 1.2 Pro because i'm a fan of nifty/fifty focal lengh..

the 1.8 is compact, very sharp too ( but the pro is better at 1.8 than the 1.8 ) but prone to purple fringing wide open and give nervous bokeh . You can achieve good bokeh but if the background is "simple" .... by the way, i prefer the bokeh-balls rendering of the 1.8

the 1.2 is bigger and heavier, but weather sealing is so welcome when i travel, and the main point over the 1.8 is the possibility of a much smoother bokeh and no purple fringing wide open.

be carefull, it's more a "tool" rather than the easier Zuiko1.8 !!!

you need to prefectly made the focus point... 1.2 aperture don't forgive any aproximation ...

1 sample to give an idea:


me at 1.2 magic

... Tokyo or Kyoto?

Or maybe I have just played the Yakuza video game series too much.

you're partially right, it's Japan, but Osaka




and no worry to shoot at night time (i've got a GRIIIx too, excellent, but AF is too poor at night, so...)

 

[Denis 007]

i never took the 1.2 & 1.8 at the same time, but i want to say that the 1.8 premium is a very good lens too, and i love is compactness.

but just once in my photographic life, i want to buy the top of the line-up in this focal lengh just for my own pleasure, without any other consideration

1.8 sample


sorry it's not at 1.8 but F2.0 sharpness is totally okay ( no addition in DxO )


here at 1.8


and last at 2.2 to have the eyes in focus the most as possible without climbing too much in high isos territory .... some magic too ;-)

the 1.2 is very tought, i drop my Em5MkIII with the 1.2 on the ground (60/70cm) and zero dammage.... call me Lucky :-D

The sharpness and bokeh of both the f/1.8 and f/1.2 are great. Nothing wrong with it. Most people probably never notice any difference at all in real life anyway. Even wide open both these lenses are sharp. We often compare to lenses that are exceedingly sharp and then 'complain' a bit, but it's all just extreme pixel peeping.

 

[Denis 007]

i never took the 1.2 & 1.8 at the same time, but i want to say that the 1.8 premium is a very good lens too, and i love is compactness.

but just once in my photographic life, i want to buy the top of the line-up in this focal lengh just for my own pleasure, without any other consideration

1.8 sample


sorry it's not at 1.8 but F2.0 sharpness is totally okay ( no addition in DxO )


here at 1.8


and last at 2.2 to have the eyes in focus the most as possible without climbing too much in high isos territory .... some magic too ;-)

the 1.2 is very tought, i drop my Em5MkIII with the 1.2 on the ground (60/70cm) and zero dammage.... call me Lucky :-D

Thanks! All very nice. I think I see what you mean. Maybe it's the softer boheh balls with the 1.2 that does it.
On another track, how did you light the lovely ladies?

That probably attributes to the pleasant rendering, but it's not just softness and roundness of highlights in the background. Maybe the the character of the transition(s) between sharp and unsharp, contrast and colors are also important. Some mild vignetting can be nice too I think. Sometimes it's the optical 'flaws' that make the rendering of a scene interesting and give it a certain mood or feel. It's how the overall image looks with a certain lens. Sorry if it's still a little vague.

 

[Bobapingu]

Sometimes it's the optical 'flaws' that make the rendering of a scene interesting and give it a certain mood or feel. It's how the overall image looks with a certain lens. Sorry if it's still a little vague.

I understand what you are saying. It's an occupational hazard of us engineers that if it can't be measured, it doesn't really exist and belongs to the realm of the artists. So, I know I like it but don't know what I'm looking at. I wonder if there is an element of the Stradivarius effect in this. Knowing that the music is played with a rare $10m Strad makes it sound better and knowing that one is playing with a Strad make one play better. Not that it matters, so long as it's enjoyable. Just me rambling

 

[Denis 007]

Just because the 25mm isn't as super sharp as the 45mm, I don't think it's fair to say it's soft wide open. It's sharp. The background however, is nice and smooth.

Some examples of the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm F1.2 Pro with wide open aperture f/1.2.


f/1.2 1/80s ISO200 E-M 1 Mark II M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm F1.2 Pro

The same photo sharpened (nothing else) in RAWTherapee.


f/1.2 1/80s ISO200 E-M 1 Mark II M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm F1.2 Pro

There wasn't much light on the location below. Although this is just a test photo, the f/1.2 aperture can really help keeping the ISO low and you still get a fantastic result.


f/1.2 1/15s ISO200 E-M 1 Mark II M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm F1.2 Pro

The same photo sharpened (nothing else) in RAWTherapee.


f/1.2 1/15s ISO200 E-M 1 Mark II M.Zuiko Digital ED 25mm F1.2 Pro

And this is at f/1.2, it gets even better if you stop down.

 

[Denis 007]

Sometimes it's the optical 'flaws' that make the rendering of a scene interesting and give it a certain mood or feel. It's how the overall image looks with a certain lens. Sorry if it's still a little vague.

I understand what you are saying. It's an occupational hazard of us engineers that if it can't be measured, it doesn't really exist and belongs to the realm of the artists. So, I know I like it but don't know what I'm looking at.

Ha, ha, "belongs to the realm of the artists", wonderful! And I completely understand what you are saying too. I guess I'm some sort of mix. Many people are. Hence the full size photos too scrutinize.

I wonder if there is an element of the Stradivarius effect in this. Knowing that the music is played with a rare $10m Strad makes it sound better and knowing that one is playing with a Strad make one play better. Not that it matters, so long as it's enjoyable. Just me rambling

Maybe you're right and it's just me doing my best to justify the purchase of yet another expensive lens I really don't need. But hey, I like photography, I only live once (that's what I believe anyway, can't prove it) and I can't take my hard-earned cash to my grave. So FI and have some fun.

 

[Bobapingu]

Sometimes it's the optical 'flaws' that make the rendering of a scene interesting and give it a certain mood or feel. It's how the overall image looks with a certain lens. Sorry if it's still a little vague.

I understand what you are saying. It's an occupational hazard of us engineers that if it can't be measured, it doesn't really exist and belongs to the realm of the artists. So, I know I like it but don't know what I'm looking at.

Ha, ha, "belongs to the realm of the artists", wonderful! And I completely understand what you are saying too. I guess I'm some sort of mix. Many people are. Hence the full size photos too scrutinize.

I wonder if there is an element of the Stradivarius effect in this. Knowing that the music is played with a rare $10m Strad makes it sound better and knowing that one is playing with a Strad make one play better. Not that it matters, so long as it's enjoyable. Just me rambling

Maybe you're right and it's just me doing my best to justify the purchase of yet another expensive lens I really don't need. But hey, I like photography, I only live once (that's what I believe anyway, can't prove it) and I can't take my hard-earned cash to my grave. So FI and have some fun.

I think you've nailed it for many of us whether we realise it or not.

 

[Bobapingu]

Speaking of 1.8s, I got off on the wrong foot with the 17/1.8. Back in film, some of my best shots were with a 35mm FL. No AF so used zone focusing. Not a problem. I wanted to emulate that with the 17/1.8. Sharpness was most disappointing. One day I was playing with my granddaughter, used face/eye detect AF and was blown away with the sharpness. Softness on the edges, probably field curvature, added to the effect. So now, despite being 17mm, I'm careful to nail focus and am much happier with it.

 

[imrryr38]

Speaking of 1.8s, I got off on the wrong foot with the 17/1.8. Back in film, some of my best shots were with a 35mm FL. No AF so used zone focusing. Not a problem. I wanted to emulate that with the 17/1.8. Sharpness was most disappointing. One day I was playing with my granddaughter, used face/eye detect AF and was blown away with the sharpness. Softness on the edges, probably field curvature, added to the effect. So now, despite being 17mm, I'm careful to nail focus and am much happier with it.

yes it's the trick with te 17mm 1.8 known for it's field curvature, so you have to put the AF target on the subject and avoiding the old technique with only the center AF point and reframe after focusing.