Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 45 mm F1.8 Lens, Fast Fixed Focal Length, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G-Series), Silver

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Chromatic aberration is the lens' inability to focus on the sensor or film all colours of visible light at the same point. Severe chromatic aberration gives a noticeable fringing or a halo effect around sharp edges within the picture. It can be cured in software. A nice but purely cosmetic touch is the ability to choose the colour of the foremost part of the lens housing to match the colour of the host body. Equally cosmetic is what Olympus calls a metal-like exterior design. The previously-reviewed 12mm has a genuinely metal-bodied construction but the 45mm is merely matched for appearance. Similarly, there are no distance and depth-of-field markings on the 45mm lens. Sample images Flare is rarely an issue with this lens, except in exceptional circumstances. Shooting directly into bright sources of light will result in a loss of contrast, but no more so than similar lenses. An optional lens hood can be acquired and although this optic isn't overly prone to flare, it would've been nice for the hood to come included. A topic that cannot be forgotten is low-light performance. Since they both have a fast maximum aperture, they are incredibly useful for work in venues with poor lighting such as a church, wedding reception, concert hall or auditorium. Finally, I haven't stated that we believe the manufacturers have responded to our requests (I'm sure if we're requesting it, plenty of other people are too, and I'd hope any company would pay more attention to their broader market research than just making what we recommended).

The minimum focus distance of the two lenses is identical (50cm) while the maximum magnification is just a little higher on the 1.8 lens (0.1x vs. 0.11x). The Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 is yet another nice addition to the Micro Four Thirds system, even if it wasn’t a focal length that was missing in the lens line-up. The differences between it and the M.Zuiko 45mm are more related to the build quality and optical stabilisation than the optical quality. While it has an effective focal length of 90mm, this is still a 45mm optic –so you get the same depth of field as you would with a 45mm f/1.8 lens on a full frame camera (or, alternatively, you get the same effective depth as you would at 90mm f/3.6 –but note that this phenomenon only extends to depth of field; the lens still gathers f/1.8 of light, so you don't lose any transmission). In the past I never used lenses pouches with my larger lenses, but with these smaller rangefinder like lenses, I put all my lenses into pouches before they go into my bag. This is one disappointment I have with Olympus which Panasonic is one step ahead with even their Leica lenses. Hood and Pouch should be included in the price of this.Of course, the 45mm f/1.8 isn’t without its merits. Because it is so small and light, it is much easier to transport and can suit any Micro Four Thirds body in the range. It is also four times cheaper than the PRO lens, so unless you regularly shoot portraits and require the best quality Olympus has to offer, it (or its sibling within the Panasonic Lumix range) may prove a more tempting proposition. The Olympus 45mm f1.8 is a surprisingly compact lens even for the Micro Four Thirds standard. Measuring 56mm in diameter, 46mm in length and weighing just 116g, it’s beaten only by pancake lenses on size and weight. Indeed it’s only 56mm at the rear end to support the standard Micro Four Thirds lens mount. Beyond the mount, the barrel tapers down to a narrower diameter for the rest of the lens. This thing really is tiny. Corner shading isn't really a factor for this lens - the only point it is even noteworthy is when the lens is used wide open at ƒ/1.8, where we note extreme corners that are a third of a stop darker than the center. In any other setting, corner shading is negligible.

Focusing isn't simply fast - it's almost silent, too, courtesy of the Movie & Stills Compatible (MSC) technology employed. This is good news for videographers and anyone who's into unobtrusive and discreet photography. Speaking of which it’s worth talking about the Panasonic 45mm f2.8 in more detail as it’s a model many will compare to the Olympus 45mm f1.8. Both share the same mount and focal length, so the main differences in optical specifications concern their aperture, closest focusing distances and stabilization.

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With the lens wide open, you can see some light fall-off in the corners, but it is not very severe, and goes away almost completely upon stopping down to f/2.8. The M.Zuiko Digital 45mm f/1,8 may have a lot of plastic parts but the lens mount is, thankfully, made of metal. Olympus does not claim any sort of weather resistance for this lens, and indeed you cannot see a rubber seal around the mount (note that no current Micro Four Thirds camera is weather sealed anyway) The obvious difference in price, size and design may already be enough to convince you one way or the other but we cannot help but ask ourselves: how big a difference is there between the latest optical wonder and the first portrait prime for the system released six years ago? Let’s find out! All important things to weigh-up, but arguably the most obvious difference between the two 45mm lenses is when you place them next to each other, as seen in the photo below. When it was released, the Panasonic Leica 45mm f2.8 was considered a fairly compact lens, but it now dwarfs the newer Olympus model. I’ve pictured them side-by-side below, and yes, I know I’ve left the transparent blue wrappings on the Olympus lens as requested by the supplier. It’s also worth noting that the performance of the two lenses can decrease on Lumix cameras because Panasonic’s DFD AF technology is not compatible with Olympus lenses.