Daily Archives: June 20, 2019

If you’ve made the switch from DSLR to mirrorless, like with Panasonic’s Micro Four Thirds GH5, you’re likely also in the process of replacing all of your old DSLR lenses. Many companies offer converters that allow you to use your old lenses with your new mirrorless camera bodies. However, they will not perform as reliably or sharply. Their weight will unbalance your smaller, lighter mirrorless camera body. Panasonic has been creating lenses longer than Nikon or Canon has. That means there are more options to sift through when making your selection. In some cases, like with the Tokina lenses, there are three levels of videographer lenses. They are best for budget videographers, professionals and those in between. To try to make the search easier, we’ve created a list of our six favorite lenses for photographers and videographers shooting with Panasonic’s GH5. These lenses span a range of price points and applications. There should be something for everyone! 6 Best Panasonic GH5 Lenses Best Overall: Panasonic Lumix G 12 – 35 mm I f/2.8 A Close Second: Panasonic 35 – 100 mm F/2.8 II Best Video Lens: Tokina Cinema 11 – 16 mm f/3.0 – f/22 Best Budget Lens: Rokinon 35mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC Cine Best Landscape Lens: Panasonic Lumix Professional 12 – 60 mm f/2.8 – 4.0 Best Telephoto Lens: Panasonic Lumix G II 100 – 300 mm F/4.5 - 5.6 Power OIS Best Overall: Panasonic Lumix G 12 – 35 mm I f/2.8 Focal Length: 12 – 35mm Minimum Focus Distance: 9.8 inches Weight: 10.8 ounces Filter Thread: 58mm Image Stabilization: Yes Pros: Silent fast autofocus, sharp images, versatile focal length range, image stabilization included Cons: Focus ring isn’t rubberized, expensive What Makes this Lens Our Top Pick? A 24 - 70mm is a must in almost every photographer’s bag. It is versatile enough to be used in a range of scenarios. Those range from landscape and architecture photography to everyday street photography and wedding coverage. Even though this lens is technically 12 – 35mm, on the Panasonic Micro Four Thirds’ system it delivers the equivalent of 24 – 70mm focal length. This lens is lightweight to balance well with the industry's best mirrorless camera bodies. It is also affordable and delivers consistently sharp, high quality images. The autofocus is fast and almost entirely silent. The front filter ring doesn’t rotate when zooming or focusing, either. That is great if you like to use polarizers or other filters. There is no zoom lock. However, this lens doesn’t seem to struggle with zoom creep. It changes focal lengths smoothly and easily. There are 14 elements arranged in 9 groups. The aperture has 7 curved blades to create decent bokeh. There is also Nano surface coating to help cut down on flare and ghosting. The lens comes with front and rear caps and a carrying bag, although it lacks an included lens hood. What Do Reviewers Say? Overall, reviewers liked this lens for its quality performance and reasonably affordable price tag. Complaints were generally small and most of the issues that this lens faces can be easily corrected in post-processing. The lens has versatile applications, is sturdily built and has robust weather sealing to hold up in extreme environments. The autofocus motor is one of the most impressive elements of this lens, as it is amazingly fast and precise even in lower light situations. The lens also has image stabilization built in, which is nice for reducing camera shake and blur. The maximum aperture coupled with the OSS enable photographers to hand hold this lens even in low light situations. There is some large ghosting when facing a bright light source, but overall flare and ghosting are handled well. There is also very minimal color fringing and no visible comas when photographing stars. Distortion is low in JPEGs but more noticeable in RAW where it is also easier to correct. Features and Considerations Again, distortion can be an issue at wider open focal lengths, particularly when shooting in RAW. Photographers also have the ability to correct this more easily in RAW, though, which makes it less of a concern. While this lens is very versatile, the price tag of around $1,000 can be a bit expensive for some. Photographers should consider if this lens will meet a majority of their needs or is worth the price for their situation before purchasing. Click to See Price A Close Second: Panasonic 35 – 100 mm F/2.8 II Focal Length: 35 – 100mm Minimum Focus Distance: 2 feet 9.5 inches Weight: 12.6 ounces Filter Thread: 58mm Image Stabilization: Yes Pros: Weather-sealed, lightweight, compact design, handles chromatic aberration well, can shoot HD video Cons: Fixed wide aperture can be less versatile, expensive What Makes this Lens Special? This compact telephoto lens delivers a 70 – 200mm equivalent on the Panasonic Micro Four Thirds system at an affordable price that comes in under $1,000. At the shorter focal length side this lens is ideal for portraits, while the longer focal lengths works well for sports or detail shots. Given the relative light weight and the versatile focal length, this is also a good candidate for travel photography, though photographers may want to carry a shorter length lens in their bag, so they don’t have to get so far away from subjects to capture a scene. The first thing photographers notice is how amazingly compact this lens is, measuring just under 10 centimeters in length, or 4 inches. The lens is similarly slim, and weighs well under a pound, making it easy to handhold or carry for longer distances as well. To keep the weight down, most of the casing is made from lightweight, high-quality plastic instead of metal. With the fixed aperture of f/2.8, images come out bright and well contrasted, with accurately rendered colors and lots of details in shadows and highlights. The lens is also weatherproof, and can withstand freezing temperatures, dust and moisture. What Do Reviewers Say? Reviewers consistently praise this lens for being versatile, affordable, lightweight and compact, which are mostly novel features for telephoto zoom lenses. The weight and size work particularly nicely with the Panasonic GH5 as they won’t unbalance the smaller mirrorless camera body. The autofocus system is lightning fast and precise, with the linear micromotor focusing almost silently as well. While the first version of this lens also included image stabilization, it has been improved for this iteration. With Dual IS 2 in newer Panasonic camera bodies and 5-axis optical image stabilization, the technology included in the lenses like this one has also been upgraded and can reduce blur and camera shake even in low light situations. The lens has uniform sharpness across almost all focal lengths, with images that are crystal clear with minimum distortion and chromatic aberration. The optical design is impeccable, with a good amount of glass elements to help cut down on ghosting, flare and chromatic aberrations as well. Features and Considerations Having a fixed aperture can be nice when it is wide open and you want to shoot in lower light, but this can be a hindrance during the day if you don’t want a blurry background. Photographers who want more versatility should find a lens that will allow them to change the aperture as they shoot. Also, while this lens is more expensive than many others, it still comes in at under $1,000 and is definitely a good value for the price. Photographers would be hard-pressed to find a similar focal length lens at that price point that performed as well. Click to See Price Best Video Lens: Tokina Cinema 11 – 16 mm f/3.0 – f/22 Focal Length: 11 – 16mm Minimum Focus Distance: 1 foot 1 inch Weight: 2 lb. 6 ounces Filter Thread: 77mm Image Stabilization: No Pros: Multi-Layer Coating to cut down on flares and ghosting, internal silent autofocus motor Cons: No image stabilization, heavy, expensive What Makes this Lens Special? This lens takes consistently sharp, well-rendered images, but really shines when it comes to video. Not only can it take 4k quality video, but the 22 – 32mm equivalent focal length is versatile and the silent autofocus motor means you won’t pick up any pesky refocusing noises when you’re shooting. This lens comes with two aspherical elements and two super-low dispersion elements to cut down on flares, ghosting and chromatic aberration. There is also a multi-layer coating on the glass element to help with this as well, enabling this lens to handle direct or bright light decently. This lens is set above Tokina’s DX lens, which is ideal for videographers on a budget, and their middle of the road DX V lens, and can offer professional quality to videographers who want to shoot a range of commercial, wedding or creative projects. The price is a little more expensive, but the technology justifies this. What Do Reviewers Say? Reviewers still praise this lens for its video performance and appreciated the upgraded technology in this version from previous DX and DX V versions of the lens. The added aspherical glass elements and coatings help cut down on ghosting and flare, and the silent autofocus motor is a must for videographers. The all-metal casing is also nice for those shooting in a variety of situations, as it protects the lens slightly better than plastic. It also adds to the weight, unfortunately, and is a large part of why this lens is so heavy. While it can feel unbalanced on the smaller Panasonic micro four thirds mirrorless system at first, photographers generally agreed they were able to get used to the weight distribution in a short period of time. Features and Considerations This lens is super high performance and definitely has a versatile wide angle zoom focal length range, but it is also pretty specialized for videographers. If you don’t tend to shoot video, then your money might be better spent on a lens that excels at taking still shots and either costs less or costs a similar price because of features that will be useful to still shooters. Click to See Price Best Budget Lens: Rokinon 35mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC Cine Focal Length: 35mm Minimum Focus Distance: 1 foot Weight: 1 lb. 9.6 ounces Filter Thread: 77mm Image Stabilization: Yes Pros: High performance for video, versatile focal length, affordable Cons: Heavy, specialized purpose What Makes this Lens Special? This is another lens that was developed with video in mind, and it performs similarly well for videographers to the lens listed above. It is also the ideal focal length for portrait photographers, however, and produces images that are sharp with a pleasantly blurred background. The optical construction of the lens interior is high-quality, with two high refractive index elements, one aspherical element and UMC coating to help reduce lens flare and ghosting. These elements also help produce images that are richly contrasted with a lot of detail in the shadows and highlights with accurately rendered colors. Rokinon lenses measure aperture in T-stops instead of F-stops, with T1.5 indicating that the aperture is wide open and can create pleasant smooth bokeh and nicely blurred backgrounds, as well as that the lens performs well in low light. The aperture ring doesn’t have clicks, so it works smoothly and quietly. The focus and aperture scales are also located on the side of the lens so that videographers can access them easily when they are shooting and can’t afford to turn the camera to check. What Do Reviewers Say? Reviewers again praise this lens for its video performance, and also noted it was particularly strong when it came to portraiture given its 70mm equivalent focal length and wide open aperture. This is a great alternative to Panasonic’s more expensive lenses and is affordable enough for almost any photographer to add it to their snazzy camera bag. Some reviewers were not a fan of the fact that this lens is entirely manual and doesn’t have an autofocus motor, but many said they prefer this when shooting video so the autofocus motor doesn’t try to refocus constantly while filming. This may be more of a concern for portrait photographers and other still photographers who want the option to shoot in either manual or autofocus mode. Generally, reviewers agreed it was a great option for videographers on a budget, but photographers may prefer to look elsewhere for lenses with abilities better suited to photography. Features and Considerations Again, this lens was designed with videographers in mind, which means photographers may be frustrated at the lack of an autofocus motor and other elements. Unlike the previous lens, however, this lens costs under $500 and is incredibly affordable. If you shoot videography or want the option to play around with video and try to break into the space, this is a great budget option to get started and expand your lens repertoire. Photographers who don’t shoot a lot of video and aren’t particularly interested in experimenting should potentially look elsewhere for lenses that are geared more towards taking stills. Click to See Price Best Landscape Lens: Panasonic Lumix Professional 12 – 60 mm f/2.8 – 4.0 Focal Length: 12 – 60mm Minimum Focus Distance: 7.9 inches Weight: 11.3 ounces Filter Thread: 58mm Image Stabilization: Yes Pros: Weather sealing, durable metal body casing, advanced optical image stabilization, high speed autofocus, Nano surface coating Cons: Expensive, slightly heavy What Makes this Lens Special? With an equivalent zoom range of 24 – 120mm, this lens is versatile and relatively inexpensive compared to other similar lenses. It handles light issues well, from low lighting to flares and chromatic aberration, and renders colors accurately and brightly in final images. The Dual image Stabilization system between the camera body and the lens is also amazing at reducing camera shake and blur and can be indispensable in low light situations or when shooting indoors. This lens has 14 elements arranged in 12 groups, with 4 being aspherical lens elements and 2 being extra low dispersion elements to cut down on flare and ghosting. The Nano surface coating further helps with this and reduces chromatic aberrations as well, and the robust weather sealing helps protect the lens in all sorts of weather and temperatures. The linear autofocus motor allows the lens to focus accurately, quickly and almost entirely silently, and this version of the lens boasts improved focus tracking as well. While the aperture range isn’t large, spanning only F/2.8 – F/4.0, it is slightly more versatile than a fixed aperture lens. What Do Reviewers Say? Reviewers love how this lens performs. They particularly liked using it for capturing landscapes and other scenes while traveling. The weight is light enough to make it easy to carry over long distances. The weatherproof body means you can use it in a number of situations without worrying about dust or moisture ruining your setup. The metal body lends protection to regular use and travel as well. One of the biggest things that reviewers praised was the Power Optical Image stabilization. The lens and the camera body work together to make it difficult to capture blur. Many photographers reported getting tripod sharp images even when shooting indoors in less than ideal lighting. Features and Considerations This lens is slightly more expensive than some other lenses on this list. However, the versatile focal length range and high performance made it difficult to find significant features to criticize here. Click to See Price Best Telephoto Lens: Panasonic Lumix G II 100 – 300 mm F/4.5 - 5.6 Power OIS Focal Length: 100 – 300mm Minimum Focus Distance: 4 feet 11 inches Weight: 1 lb. 2.4 ounces Filter Thread: 67mm Image Stabilization: Yes Pros: Fast autofocus motor, built in image stabilization, compact design, affordable Cons: Photos could be brighter, autofocus isn’t as fast when shooting 4K video What Makes this Lens Special? This lens has an amazing telephoto zoom range, with an equivalent range of 200 – 600mm. It has a compact design and an affordable price tag. It’s hard to believe Panasonic managed to pack so much utility into a lens that weighs just over one pound and costs a little more than $500. However, action and sports photographers can be thrilled that they seem to have pulled this off. The fast autofocus motor and built in optical image stabilization complete the package. The entire lens is weatherproof. That enables photographers to shoot football in the rain or outdoor sports like dirt bikes without having to worry about dust and mud getting into their lens or camera and ruining the entire setup. The 240 fps linear motor also enables photographers to use the lens’ fast focus ability to track subjects like wildlife or linebackers that move quickly. What Do Reviewers Say? Reviewers rave about this lens. They love its affordable price tag, low weight, and versatile focal length range. It is a must for any photographer who shoots sports, wildlife or action photography. It is even light enough that travel photographers can take it on trips and capture unique close-up shots without worrying about the massive extra weight typically associated with telephoto zoom lenses. The biggest criticisms came from those who aren’t a fan of superzoom lenses, since this lens does tend to struggle with a lot of the typical challenges faced by superzoom and telephoto lenses. Photos could be brighter and there is some quality lost in terms of color rendering because of the huge range. Prime images are certainly sharper, but it’s hard to justify a prime telephoto lens when subjects tend to move so much. Features and Considerations Images aren’t as bright as they are with other lenses on this list, and this lens doesn’t shoot video as well as the Tokina or Rokinon. This lens was built to capture telephoto action shots however, so photographers shouldn’t expect it to also be able to capture perfect video. Overall, this lens is an excellent, affordable option for photographers who need a telephoto lens. Click to See Price Back to Top Selection Criteria: How We Ranked Our Choices Versatility Value Video vs. Photo Weight Selecting lenses for mirrorless cameras comes with a whole different set of considerations and questions than selecting lenses for DSLR cameras. It can be difficult for photographers to adjust once they make the switch. The weight and size of the lens now become a much more considerable concern since the camera bodies are so much lighter and more compact. Lenses also tend to span the price range for different reasons. Some of the most expensive lenses are specifically for video instead of photo. More affordable lenses are some of the best available. Here are the main criteria we used in compiling this guide. Versatility Photographers always have to consider the situations where they will use a lens when making their selection. If you need a lens to take photos of small insects, you need a pretty specialized macro lens. A more versatile lens would compromise your image quality to an unsatisfactory extent. If you shoot weddings or travel photography, however, you likely need a lens that has a wider range of focal lengths or can be useful in multiple situations. With Panasonic’s Micro Four Thirds’ system on this camera body (as well as on the GX80 or GX85), you have the added step of having to convert the focal lengths to their equivalent value. That is double what is presented. Generally, we tried to select lenses that were high-performance and good value. From there, we only included lenses that were good for a specific purpose if they really excelled at that application. Lens Equivalent Focal Length Panasonic Lumix G 12 – 35 mm I f/2.8 24 – 70mm Panasonic 35 – 100 mm F/2.8 II 70 – 200mm Tokina Cinema 11 – 16 mm f/3.0 – f/22 22 – 32mm Rokinon 35mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC Cine 70mm Panasonic Lumix Professional 12 – 60 mm f/2.8 – 4.0 24 – 120mm Panasonic Lumix G II 100 – 300 mm F/4.5 - 5.6 Power OIS 200 – 600mm Value Whether the lens you are considering costs $100 or $10,000, you want to make sure the technology is a good value for the price, and it isn’t just inflated because there aren’t many options on the market, or it is a newer lens. We tried to select lenses that had modern technology or reliable elements that were worth the cost. Video vs. Photo Lenses created for the Panasonic GH5 and other Panasonic Micro Four Thirds mirrorless cameras tend to be created more for photo or video, with many third party manufacturers creating lenses that particularly excel at video. We found this to be a bigger consideration than with lenses created for Nikon, Canon or Sony, whether created by those companies or third parties. We included options for both but tried to note clearly where a lens was specifically designed to excel at video instead of stills. Make sure you double-check before making your purchase to be sure you don’t end up with a lens you can barely use. Lens Video or Photo Panasonic Lumix G 12 – 35 mm I f/2.8 Photo Panasonic 35 – 100 mm F/2.8 II Photo Tokina Cinema 11 – 16 mm f/3.0 – f/22 Video Rokinon 35mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC Cine Video Panasonic Lumix Professional 12 – 60 mm f/2.8 – 4.0 Photo Panasonic Lumix G II 100 – 300 mm F/4.5 - 5.6 Power OIS Photo Weight Once again, weight is a much bigger concern when shopping for lenses for mirrorless cameras since the camera bodies are smaller and considerably lighter. We generally try to choose lighter weight lenses, but sometimes metal casings or glass elements can increase the weight. See if you can test a lens first if it is noted as being heavier to make sure you can adjust to the added weight and imbalance. Back to Top

Daily Archives: June 20, 2019

Best Wide Angle Lenses For Panasonic GH5