This is going to be a rave, five star review of a product, so let me get my complaints about the vendor out of the way up front. Amazon offered this through an outfit I never heard of before, Electronics Basket LLC, at 22.6% off list, which at the time I bought it was the only discount price I could find for this lens. The day after I got it, they started offering it from Sunset Electronics at 25% off, but such is life. The really annoying part is the packaging I received it in: only an unlabeled white box with no instructions and no guarantee card. The lens was wrapped in transparent blue plastic pressure tape, which might have been original from Olympus, I don't know. In any case, I have no guarantee on a lens that obviously has very complex construction! Fortunately, it operates flawlessly and it has more than lived up to my expectations.
I've been into M4/3 now for 11 months, with an E-M5 for 10 months (started with a Panasonic G3), and before getting this 12-50mm Olympus M.ZUIKO, I had acquired nine M4/3 lenses, so wound up with some redundancy and could sell off a couple without losing functionality, and here I am, getting more redundancy with this 12-50mm -- although not quite. There's really nothing else quite like this lens in the M4/3 arsenal and it is by far the most versatile lens I have. I have the incredibly fine Lumix 14-45mm but I'm often in a situation where I need to go wider and I knew this from the start, and so also bought the very flary 7-14mm Lumix, which I mostly use just for the 2mm below 14mm. Amazingly, I didn't even realize the M.ZUIKO 12-50mm existed until a few weeks ago, and I was blown away by the description of all its functionality, and so had to have it!
First IQ (image quality). From reading reviews, I was prepared to have second rate sharpness, compared to my Lumix 14-45. Well, maybe the 12-50mm is, but the 14-45mm is so exceptional, there's room to be really quite pleased with the IQ of the 12-50mm across its entire zoom range, in spite of the fact that it doesn't quite measure up to the 14-45mm. I'm a pixel peeper and I can see the difference between this lens and the 14-45 but for normal viewing, its more than acceptable. And that extra 2mm at the wide end is really quite spectacular, something I always knew from my SLR days and lots of experience between 24mm and 28mm FF lenses. Those extra 2mm are perhaps the main draw this lens had for me: it really makes a dramatic difference, and now my 7-14mm Lumix will very seldom be used. (The extra 5mm on the other end doesn't make much difference.)
Then there was the macro setting at 43mm. I'm a big macro fan and always have been, sporting 1:1 fixed focal lengths since 1990, and I have both the Lumix 45mm macro (which I never use and should sell) and the Olympus 60mm, which I use all the time and is one of my favorite lenses. Well, let me tell you: I was shocked by the quality of the 12-50mm in its 43mm macro setting! It is extremely sharp in that range, and it is so convenient to put the lens into that mode that I'm wondering how much this lens is going to cut into my use of the Olympus 60mm! I hardly ever use it to get all the way down to 1:1 anyhow and haven't yet found myself limited by the 0.72 magnification of the 12-50mm@43mm and have achieved some stunning results.
But remember, this lens came with no documentation! It took me a while of fiddling around with it before I figured out how to get it into its macro mode. First, it takes two hands, so it either has to be on a tripod or hanging around my neck with a strap. You have to press in a button on the side of the lens labeled MACRO, while at the same time, pushing the zoom ring forward two click stops. That's it. Now you're shooting in the lens's macro range at 43mm. This is less convenient than using my Olympus 60mm, which has a continuous focus range from 0.62ft to infinity. The macro range of the Olympus 12-50 is 0.66 to only 1.6 ft, which is a rather narrow range.
The last thing that really caught my eye once I discovered this lens is that it is splash and dust proof! I live in a rainy climate and until I got this lens, the only M4/3 lens I owned that had this feature was my 60mm macro. Hardly any M4/3 lenses have this feature! Apparently to get it, you have to have a lens with an internal zoom feature, a lens that maintains a fixed physical length at all zoom settings. I guess this was quite common with my Nikon SLR/DLSR lenses, because I remember using my zoom lenses for hours at a time in driving rain on my hikes without any damage to either body or lens. What's with M4/3? They should get with the program. Finally I have a KIT lens that delivers the splash-proof goods! I'm telling you, this is really a relief, because I actually LIKE to go out in the rain taking pictures, because I love the lighting and the tiny raindrops in macro shots.
One feature that the 12-50mm has that is not of interest to me is its zoom-by-wire (electronic). I played with this feature a little and it is very smooth, but probably of interest only to those interested in making movies, which hasn't interested me since I was a teenager about a century ago. The zoom ring has three positions. The middle position is for the zoom-by-wire. The inner-most position provides manual zooming -- without of course changing the length of the lens -- so sweet!
What else? Everyone talks about the "dark" f/6.3 wide aperture at maximum zoom. I'm simply not interested in this "limitation." Most of my photography is landscape work when I'm on a tripod, or if I'm doing macro work, I use the Metz 15 MS-1 macro flash at f/16. So the f/6.3 was actually welcome by me, because it enables the lens to be quite small: no bigger than the tiny Olympus 60mm macro lens.
Any negatives? Well, I've noticed moderate flare, which is surprising, because I've found Olympus M.ZUIKO lenses highly resistant to flare. And of course, being Olympus, it doesn't come with a lens hood. The flare isn't horribly offensive like the purple flare on the Lumix 7-14mm, and so I just have to be a little careful until I get the lens hood.
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This Item  OM SYSTEM OLYMPUS M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZ Lens, for Micro Four Thirds Cameras (Black) |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $158.00 | $447.95 | -10% $399.99 Typical: $445.99 | $999.99 | $899.99 | $299.99 |
| Delivery | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Feb 13 | Get it as soon as Saturday, Feb 10 | Get it as soon as Saturday, Feb 10 | Get it as soon as Monday, Feb 12 | Get it as soon as Saturday, Feb 10 | Get it as soon as Saturday, Feb 10 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Picture quality | ||||||
| Image stabilization | ||||||
| Auto focus | ||||||
| Quality of material | ||||||
| Sold By | TONY'S Camera Shop | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com |
| lens type | Wide Angle | Telephoto | Telephoto | Telephoto | Telephoto | Standard |
| compatible mountings | Micro Four Thirds | Micro Four Thirds | Micro Four Thirds | Micro Four Thirds | Micro Four Thirds | Micro Four Thirds |
| lens design | Zoom | Zoom | Prime | Zoom | Zoom | Zoom |
| focus type | Stepper motor | Micromotor | Auto Focus | — | Automatic Only, Manual Only | Stepper motor |
| minimum focal length | 12 millimeters | 45 millimeters | 60 millimeters | 12 millimeters | 40 millimeters | 14 millimeters |
| max focal length | 50 millimeters | 175 millimeters | 60 millimeters | 200 millimeters | — | 42 millimeters |
| fixed focal length | 50 millimeters | 175 millimeters | 60 millimeters | 200 millimeters | 150 millimeters | 42 millimeters |
Reviews with images
A for functionality, C for IQ/Aperture
When this lens was first released, it kind of took a pounding from review sites, due to its optical limitations. While these critiques were certainly justified, I think it important to weigh these concerns with the usability that this lens provides for the casual user.OpticsIn my personal usage, I find the optics of this lens to be acceptable. At 12mm, optics are not bad. Right from 3.5 the lens is reasonably sharp, and only sharpens up a little on stopping down. This lens will not compare to the Oly 12mm prime, and as well it should not. In my personal opinion, I find the Oly 14-42 sharper at 14mm than this lens is at 12mm, which you can argue as a fault if you wish, but the fact remains that the 14-42 simply does not go to 12mm, so this comparison is relatively moot.At 50mm, this lens is sub-par at best. I personally do not use the 50mm setting unless I feel I have to, to get a shot that otherwise I could not. For me this is the weakest point of the lens, and almost makes the extended range of the lens pointless. But I tend to shoot wider in general, so this doesn't bother me as much as it might some others. And it's there if you need it.At the 43mm macro setting, optics are actually quite decent. Showing macro pics made with this lens to friends and family has yielded exclamations over the incredible sharpness. While any photographer worth his/her salt knows this to be only because certain people don't know any better, I think it's also a point for the lens in that it can produce images of high enough quality as to impress the casual viewer. Is it a bummer that your aperture starts at f6 when in macro mode? Yes, BUT often macro photogs are stopping down to at least f6 anyway, if not f8 or even f11. And it doesn't really get any sharper stopping down from f6, so it's nice that you're getting the best of the lens at its max aperture for that setting.Other things like chromatic aberration and distortion are present, and I find the CA to be on the high side but nothing you can't fix in post. Perhaps you shouldn't have to fix things like that in post, but I think the manufacturing of m43 lenses in general is relying more on in-camera and post fixes, so you will often find these issues in much more expensive models that have very little of the capability of this lens. For me the distortion is acceptable.UsabilityHere is where the lens shines, and what pushes this 2.5-3-star lens into 4-star territory. First of all, the range. Where else can you get the range of this lens in the m43 selection (NOT including the 43 lens selection, as I am well aware of the excellent 12-60)? Nowhere. There is no equal to this lens in terms of focal range. None. This is a big deal for the walk-around photog who is not interested in selling their prints or being particularly serious with their work. As a travel photography lens, there simply is no equal. And it's not just the range that's important here. There are two other things that make this lens a necessity in the bag of the walk-around travel/enthusiast photog.One is the weather sealing. You can get this lens and the E-M5 (or the new E-M1, or the Panasonic GH3), and have a fully weather sealed package for travel/basically everything. For 80% of situations, short of needing longer telephoto for birding/animal photography, this lens will be your go-to. And when you put it on a weather sealed camera, you really don't have to worry about anything either. I simply cannot overstate the advantage such a thing provides.Two is the macro feature. Not only does the lens seem to perform at its best at the 43mm macro setting (certainly up for debate, just my opinion based on my experience), but the fact that it even has this setting at all sets it apart from every other lens in the kit/walk-around lens category. It is a wonderful boon to have a feature such as this in a lens with this range, and allows for a lens that really is the 'total package' for the general photographer.So the sheer usability of this lens cannot be overstated.Build quality of my copy is good, though not necessarily fantastic. The zoom ring isn't the smoothest, and feels a little 'grindy' on turning, but I've read others stating the same, so I think this is just the way it's built, which doesn't really bother me. The fact that the lens doesn't have a clear 'hard stop' at either end of the zoom range can be disconcerting, but once you get used to it, it's easy to notice by feel where the zoom stops at either end. The movement of the zoom ring for macro/power zoom modes (I've not used the power zoom on it) works quite well, and it's nice to be able to just snap it in to 43mm f6 macro quickly and easily whenever you see a macro target.The size of the lens is really not an issue. Even though it's bigger than other kit lenses, and doesn't have a 'collapseable' mode, it really is relatively small and extremely lightweight.As far as the price goes, I think it's high at $500. Even though this lens does *everything*, with the optical shortcomings, along with the rather slow aperture at the long end, I don't think it quite warrants that kind of price tag. Were it a 5.6 at the long end, and had slightly better performance there, I'd feel a little better about it. I personally bought the lens used, and couldn't be happier with the price I paid ($260 w/shipping). I think new, the lens would be much better priced at around $400 (or even $349), and it may go down to this price eventually. My suggestion though is to find a used one, as most people just read reviews and get rid of the lens before they even have the time to come to love it.In conclusion, I don't really have a hesitation placing a 4-star rating on this lens. If I could give it a more detailed rating, I might end up with a 3.75, as the optics and aperture definitely hold it back. That said, the sheer usability, again, cannot be overstated, and if I had to rate the lens on usability, it would easily be a 5, if not a 6.As long as you don't expect miracles from this lens, know what you're getting into when you buy it, and honestly give it a shot, I think you'll find its merits outweigh its shortcomings.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2013
Optics
In my personal usage, I find the optics of this lens to be acceptable. At 12mm, optics are not bad. Right from 3.5 the lens is reasonably sharp, and only sharpens up a little on stopping down. This lens will not compare to the Oly 12mm prime, and as well it should not. In my personal opinion, I find the Oly 14-42 sharper at 14mm than this lens is at 12mm, which you can argue as a fault if you wish, but the fact remains that the 14-42 simply does not go to 12mm, so this comparison is relatively moot.
At 50mm, this lens is sub-par at best. I personally do not use the 50mm setting unless I feel I have to, to get a shot that otherwise I could not. For me this is the weakest point of the lens, and almost makes the extended range of the lens pointless. But I tend to shoot wider in general, so this doesn't bother me as much as it might some others. And it's there if you need it.
At the 43mm macro setting, optics are actually quite decent. Showing macro pics made with this lens to friends and family has yielded exclamations over the incredible sharpness. While any photographer worth his/her salt knows this to be only because certain people don't know any better, I think it's also a point for the lens in that it can produce images of high enough quality as to impress the casual viewer. Is it a bummer that your aperture starts at f6 when in macro mode? Yes, BUT often macro photogs are stopping down to at least f6 anyway, if not f8 or even f11. And it doesn't really get any sharper stopping down from f6, so it's nice that you're getting the best of the lens at its max aperture for that setting.
Other things like chromatic aberration and distortion are present, and I find the CA to be on the high side but nothing you can't fix in post. Perhaps you shouldn't have to fix things like that in post, but I think the manufacturing of m43 lenses in general is relying more on in-camera and post fixes, so you will often find these issues in much more expensive models that have very little of the capability of this lens. For me the distortion is acceptable.
Usability
Here is where the lens shines, and what pushes this 2.5-3-star lens into 4-star territory. First of all, the range. Where else can you get the range of this lens in the m43 selection (NOT including the 43 lens selection, as I am well aware of the excellent 12-60)? Nowhere. There is no equal to this lens in terms of focal range. None. This is a big deal for the walk-around photog who is not interested in selling their prints or being particularly serious with their work. As a travel photography lens, there simply is no equal. And it's not just the range that's important here. There are two other things that make this lens a necessity in the bag of the walk-around travel/enthusiast photog.
One is the weather sealing. You can get this lens and the E-M5 (or the new E-M1, or the Panasonic GH3), and have a fully weather sealed package for travel/basically everything. For 80% of situations, short of needing longer telephoto for birding/animal photography, this lens will be your go-to. And when you put it on a weather sealed camera, you really don't have to worry about anything either. I simply cannot overstate the advantage such a thing provides.
Two is the macro feature. Not only does the lens seem to perform at its best at the 43mm macro setting (certainly up for debate, just my opinion based on my experience), but the fact that it even has this setting at all sets it apart from every other lens in the kit/walk-around lens category. It is a wonderful boon to have a feature such as this in a lens with this range, and allows for a lens that really is the 'total package' for the general photographer.
So the sheer usability of this lens cannot be overstated.
Build quality of my copy is good, though not necessarily fantastic. The zoom ring isn't the smoothest, and feels a little 'grindy' on turning, but I've read others stating the same, so I think this is just the way it's built, which doesn't really bother me. The fact that the lens doesn't have a clear 'hard stop' at either end of the zoom range can be disconcerting, but once you get used to it, it's easy to notice by feel where the zoom stops at either end. The movement of the zoom ring for macro/power zoom modes (I've not used the power zoom on it) works quite well, and it's nice to be able to just snap it in to 43mm f6 macro quickly and easily whenever you see a macro target.
The size of the lens is really not an issue. Even though it's bigger than other kit lenses, and doesn't have a 'collapseable' mode, it really is relatively small and extremely lightweight.
As far as the price goes, I think it's high at $500. Even though this lens does *everything*, with the optical shortcomings, along with the rather slow aperture at the long end, I don't think it quite warrants that kind of price tag. Were it a 5.6 at the long end, and had slightly better performance there, I'd feel a little better about it. I personally bought the lens used, and couldn't be happier with the price I paid ($260 w/shipping). I think new, the lens would be much better priced at around $400 (or even $349), and it may go down to this price eventually. My suggestion though is to find a used one, as most people just read reviews and get rid of the lens before they even have the time to come to love it.
In conclusion, I don't really have a hesitation placing a 4-star rating on this lens. If I could give it a more detailed rating, I might end up with a 3.75, as the optics and aperture definitely hold it back. That said, the sheer usability, again, cannot be overstated, and if I had to rate the lens on usability, it would easily be a 5, if not a 6.
As long as you don't expect miracles from this lens, know what you're getting into when you buy it, and honestly give it a shot, I think you'll find its merits outweigh its shortcomings.
*: BlackStyle: 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZVerified Purchase
A for functionality, C for IQ/Aperture
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2013
When this lens was first released, it kind of took a pounding from review sites, due to its optical limitations. While these critiques were certainly justified, I think it important to weigh these concerns with the usability that this lens provides for the casual user.Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2013
Optics
In my personal usage, I find the optics of this lens to be acceptable. At 12mm, optics are not bad. Right from 3.5 the lens is reasonably sharp, and only sharpens up a little on stopping down. This lens will not compare to the Oly 12mm prime, and as well it should not. In my personal opinion, I find the Oly 14-42 sharper at 14mm than this lens is at 12mm, which you can argue as a fault if you wish, but the fact remains that the 14-42 simply does not go to 12mm, so this comparison is relatively moot.
At 50mm, this lens is sub-par at best. I personally do not use the 50mm setting unless I feel I have to, to get a shot that otherwise I could not. For me this is the weakest point of the lens, and almost makes the extended range of the lens pointless. But I tend to shoot wider in general, so this doesn't bother me as much as it might some others. And it's there if you need it.
At the 43mm macro setting, optics are actually quite decent. Showing macro pics made with this lens to friends and family has yielded exclamations over the incredible sharpness. While any photographer worth his/her salt knows this to be only because certain people don't know any better, I think it's also a point for the lens in that it can produce images of high enough quality as to impress the casual viewer. Is it a bummer that your aperture starts at f6 when in macro mode? Yes, BUT often macro photogs are stopping down to at least f6 anyway, if not f8 or even f11. And it doesn't really get any sharper stopping down from f6, so it's nice that you're getting the best of the lens at its max aperture for that setting.
Other things like chromatic aberration and distortion are present, and I find the CA to be on the high side but nothing you can't fix in post. Perhaps you shouldn't have to fix things like that in post, but I think the manufacturing of m43 lenses in general is relying more on in-camera and post fixes, so you will often find these issues in much more expensive models that have very little of the capability of this lens. For me the distortion is acceptable.
Usability
Here is where the lens shines, and what pushes this 2.5-3-star lens into 4-star territory. First of all, the range. Where else can you get the range of this lens in the m43 selection (NOT including the 43 lens selection, as I am well aware of the excellent 12-60)? Nowhere. There is no equal to this lens in terms of focal range. None. This is a big deal for the walk-around photog who is not interested in selling their prints or being particularly serious with their work. As a travel photography lens, there simply is no equal. And it's not just the range that's important here. There are two other things that make this lens a necessity in the bag of the walk-around travel/enthusiast photog.
One is the weather sealing. You can get this lens and the E-M5 (or the new E-M1, or the Panasonic GH3), and have a fully weather sealed package for travel/basically everything. For 80% of situations, short of needing longer telephoto for birding/animal photography, this lens will be your go-to. And when you put it on a weather sealed camera, you really don't have to worry about anything either. I simply cannot overstate the advantage such a thing provides.
Two is the macro feature. Not only does the lens seem to perform at its best at the 43mm macro setting (certainly up for debate, just my opinion based on my experience), but the fact that it even has this setting at all sets it apart from every other lens in the kit/walk-around lens category. It is a wonderful boon to have a feature such as this in a lens with this range, and allows for a lens that really is the 'total package' for the general photographer.
So the sheer usability of this lens cannot be overstated.
Build quality of my copy is good, though not necessarily fantastic. The zoom ring isn't the smoothest, and feels a little 'grindy' on turning, but I've read others stating the same, so I think this is just the way it's built, which doesn't really bother me. The fact that the lens doesn't have a clear 'hard stop' at either end of the zoom range can be disconcerting, but once you get used to it, it's easy to notice by feel where the zoom stops at either end. The movement of the zoom ring for macro/power zoom modes (I've not used the power zoom on it) works quite well, and it's nice to be able to just snap it in to 43mm f6 macro quickly and easily whenever you see a macro target.
The size of the lens is really not an issue. Even though it's bigger than other kit lenses, and doesn't have a 'collapseable' mode, it really is relatively small and extremely lightweight.
As far as the price goes, I think it's high at $500. Even though this lens does *everything*, with the optical shortcomings, along with the rather slow aperture at the long end, I don't think it quite warrants that kind of price tag. Were it a 5.6 at the long end, and had slightly better performance there, I'd feel a little better about it. I personally bought the lens used, and couldn't be happier with the price I paid ($260 w/shipping). I think new, the lens would be much better priced at around $400 (or even $349), and it may go down to this price eventually. My suggestion though is to find a used one, as most people just read reviews and get rid of the lens before they even have the time to come to love it.
In conclusion, I don't really have a hesitation placing a 4-star rating on this lens. If I could give it a more detailed rating, I might end up with a 3.75, as the optics and aperture definitely hold it back. That said, the sheer usability, again, cannot be overstated, and if I had to rate the lens on usability, it would easily be a 5, if not a 6.
As long as you don't expect miracles from this lens, know what you're getting into when you buy it, and honestly give it a shot, I think you'll find its merits outweigh its shortcomings.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2016
*: BlackStyle: 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZVerified Purchase
Top reviews from other countries
R Prevost
Good product for its money.
Reviewed in Canada on October 6, 2019*: BlackStyle: 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZVerified Purchase
Paul Latour
Superbe produit
Reviewed in Canada on August 26, 2019*: BlackStyle: 12-50mm F3.5-6.3 EZVerified Purchase
Paul Latour
Reviewed in Canada on August 26, 2019
Images in this review
