Now it is easy to get close enough to birds for photography. This lens has incredible pulling power. 

hopefully OM will forget, for all the excellent unbiased reviews you've done out your own pocket, at least a long term loan.

Great information and a realistic appraisal. If I was 30 years younger and spent more time at the gym I'd have one but the weight alone puts me off at my age. I had no idea that the 150-400 was lighter in terms of weight. I still think the 300f4 I use with the extenders, while not versatile like a zoom, is the best combination of reach, image quality and weight.

Mike, This is a bit of topic but I just wanted to share this with you. The first time my son and I tried shooting birds in flight, it was a disaster. Trying to keep the birds in frame with the 300mm F4 + 1.4 proved to be very difficult. We ended up getting a hot shoe rifle scope rail make for our OM1 that has ZERO play and mounted a small 1x red dot finder scope on it. Now tracking birds in flight is Childs play. So so so easy. We never loose the bird anymore and most of the time its very near to center frame. This is a complete game changer for tracking birds in flight!!!

Thanks, Mike, for taking the time to review the 150-600 lens. Your conclusions are about the same as mine, regarding the differences between the 100-400 and the 150-600. I've never been able to try the 150-400 pro lens so I was especially interested in your opinions there. I LOVE my 150-600, mainly for the extra reach. A bird image shot at 400mm on the 100-400 and cropped to a 600mm equivalent, there is no question that the uncropped image shot at 600mm is superior. I don't mind the weight of the lens... it's simply the cost of having more reach and relatively good aperture for low light needs. A few days ago I shot a dusk shot of owls using 1/30 sec at 25600 iso - HAND-held and it turned out wonderfully (with support from DxO PureRaw). I wouldn't trade this lens, and the OM-1, for any other combination on today's market. Thanks again for a great review.

Nice to have a speedy repair, I sent my 150-400 back for metal shards behind the rear element. I bought a fuji 150-600 as a toy in the meantime. I shouldnt have, because the repair was quick and the fuji really is a toy (tiny aperture).

Great video Mike. I really enjoyed that video. I loaned this lens for my new OM 1 mkii recently, and really enjoyed the range. I'm about to go on safari in Botswana, and was on the fence whether to buy it. My default lens is the Panasonic leica 100-400mm, and it works well. The only issue I have with the this new OM lens is the WEIGHT. It's just too heavy for my liking, and goes against the whole micro four thirds idea that hardware should be lighter. Plus it's large, it's not as simple to pack into a rucksack. It's a great lens, but i prefer my PL 100-400mm compactness. Like you, if one comes along on the 2nd hand market, I'll be tempted.

Hello Mike, does this lens work with pro capture since it is not a pro lens? Do you know of any "affordable" long range zoom lens that will work with pro capture?

Great review Great review Mike, thank you very much. When they released this lens I must confess that I was very sceptical about it (Sigma, meh) but your review changed my opinion about it. If I wasn't saving money for the 150-400 I would definitely buy this one.

I have tested 2 copies of this lens for a month and found them both rather soft at 600 fully open, only getting really sharp at f11. Good to have the reach but imo the quality does not reflect the price. But like you if I find one going cheap I might be tempted!

Loved the last statement. 😂

Thanks for the honest and balanced review. I didn't think I would buy one of these because of the weight, but I can't afford the 150-400, so I've owned mine for about 6 weeks now and I am pleased with both the quality and the extra reach, often enabling less of a crop. It is not quite as sharp or optically pleasing as the F300 Pro, which I also own, but with modern post-processing this is not really a problem.

Another nice relaxed and unbiased appraisal.

Just want to say thank you for making this channel. It feels the information being given is very personal and we're both talking out in the field

Thanks for the review! Your review convinced me that this is the best m43 wildlife lens overall. Not only in terms of value. As for the zooming. I have handled it once for a few minutes and I find push-pull zooming at smooth setting more convenient.

Thanks for taking the time to compile this review Mike. Very informative 👍

Thanks for the review. It is a very impressive lens, 1200mm reach with a stabilizer is just a dream.

Thank you very much, Mike.

Great video! Superb information and many nice bird photos! Greetings from a Swedish youtuber! 🇸🇪

Great review Mike. With the 150 to 400 mm f 4.5 I set the base at 300 that gives a very good image stepped up to 400 is the equivalent of putting a 1.4 converter on the 300 mil F4. With no chance of cropping. Again drop in the internal converter the image deteriorate even further but it is okay for record shots. It’s okay manufacturers claiming these high magnifications but I stick around for 300mm then you are able to crop so at worst you end up in the same place as if you had taking it at 400 mm. I own both are 150 to 400 mm F 4.5 or also the 300 mm also the 40 mm to 150mm 2.8. I know the white lens has less restrictions but it is nowhere near as sharp and crisp as the 300 mm. Plus you are losing a stop of light. Thanks for another excellent talking point.

Ask OMS if they can let you borrow the lens for another month next spring when the Great Crested Grebes will be displaying.