Thanks for the great review. I'll be buying this lens in about 2 weeks... Can't wait! I've pretty much switched to Panasonic and have only one Canon 70D left...
I loooove it! My favorite Vlog and educational video making lens. Its not too far or too close with range. Depth of field is solid but I wish it were 1.4 at least. I know, abit greedy lol. Great lens though.
Fantastic review. You are so well spoken, understood and have put a fantastic, informative review of the Panasonic Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 together. I am very impressed with both your review and the lens. I have just purchased a new Voigtlander 42.5mm F/0.95 manual focus lens and a S/H Pentax SMC 50mm F/1.2 lens and am very impressed with them. Both lenses are built solid and pumps out exceptional image quality. I may need a good auto focus quality lens in my MFT kit and will go for this Panasonic Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 lens later. I mainly focus manually but with the great improvements in autofocus lenses of this quality temps me more and more to purchase one. I definitely feel that if a good AF lens helps as a tool to improve the ease of ones craft, a auto focus is worth it. Thanks for sharing this fantastic quality review. Tony Subscribed & Thumbs up!!
Sure it's expensive but if you are a professional you can easily justify paying that much to have one of the nicest lens of the system. I had the chance to play with one in a store in Japan and the built quality alone makes you feel you are holding some sort of Holy Grale.
No it does not. A crop sensor crops part of the image of a 35mm camera. mFT takes a quarter of the image in a 4:3 ratio, the DOF stays the same . If I take a photo on OM-2n with my 35mm F2 then I grab my OM-D a 35mm lens will crop a quarter of that image. I want the same image I have to play about to capture that image including the DOF - distance to subject/focus distance, focal length, aperture
Great review I had been debating all week about buying this lens. But this one did it for me. I purchased this lens earlier today and I'm in love!!!! What more could you ask for fast focusing image stabilized super fast prime!! A real gem! Keep up the great work!
I love your reviews Darren but I can't rightly judge the optics of your examples in compressed 1080p. Can you upload some of these reviews in 4K? Either way, I really appreciate your insight!
Very good presentation - however the David Thorpe offering of the same product is a balanced offer with 10 out of 10 quality must be one of the best ever RU-vid reports. It is concise and meaningful far more focused on the subject.
Funny thing is, at the time of that game we literally thought that both Brady's career and the Pat's season were over, who knew after that disaster in KC - a game which has been referenced a few thousand times since - that we'd be in the Superbowl... Certainly not me...
Congrats !!!! yes Patriots !!!! loss in Kansas did not matter :) - nice review - great videos and pics - you got me sold - seems super sharp and bokeh just very nice - I see the lens on Ebay for around $1000 - I do have two GX7s and EM1 and EM5 and GM1 so invested big in M43 - yes the Oly 45 F1.8 is a great value - but I also like my 25mm F1.7 Pany also - So If I can get a copy for $1000 I will be satisfied - hope I can trust getting a good copy from Hong Kong or Japan
How does it stack up against all other FF f/1.4 or f/1.8, or Fuji's 56 f/1.2 The Leica's bokeh rendering has to be extraordinary to charge this high price.
but its worth the price when you compare with other lenses at the same price this lens is a beast its f1.2 and has power O.I.S autofocus ect and its the best lens for shooting video cinematic things and portraits :)
A f ew years ago, I purchase this lens and a G9 specifically for how great it is for photos of the ocean/ shoreline compared to others. Now I am on the hunt for a similar wide or wide zoom. Maybe the 12mm or 10-25? That blue-green water color rendering that i don't know how to describe is amazing.
@@stradbam I am not a pro, but it is fantastic. It is my only lens. Use it primarily for taking pictures of my products and to document things that I build. My wife likes to take ocean shore photos and it's the only combination that I found that can really show the variety of blue green colors that exist in a wave breaking over a rock. I know that sounds a bit silly but it was a big deal for us. The olympus lens is a little bit sharper if you are pixel peeping, but to me the images of plants all look like plastic, vs the 42.5 nokticon really look alive. A lot of my photos are at the end of the day, so in the winter I am really using the large aperture. Almost entirely Use it in aperture priority mode and let the camera do the rest of the exposure control. The jpg images are so good that I don't spend any time on photo editing at all, other than some cropping to size for the web store and compress the images to load faster. Saves me a lot of time. I am sure a real pro can do better with the raw files but I can't. The only weakness in the system is auto focus during videos. It's weak compared to everything else. That is the big improvement in the G9 II. There is one of my beginner videos on yt under my name. It was our first attempt, son was hand holding on a windy day. Just proved that for our goal, need to buy a lapel microphone. The camera and lens can do much more than I know how to do. I am from the film era, and really like having the controls on the lens, so much so that I won't buy a lens without it. Just so easy and natural and no need to goof around with the touch screen. My wife likes to use the touch screen, I use the view finder.
@@stradbam If your goal is to use it to mount it on a tripod and make videos as the primary task, then either the 10-25 or sister zoom would be better. The reason is that with the zoom, it's really easy to adjust the composition on the spot vs with the prime, I have to move the tripod or crop post processing and I don't have the computing power to do that.
@@harryniedecken5321 It sounds like you very much recommend this combo. I was a bit worried that the G9 even with a 1.2 lens like this would have troubles with noise/blurryness handheld photography in low-light situations. How do you think it performs in those cases? :-)
@@stradbam The stabilization really makes a difference in what can be done hand held. I use it all of the time wide open or sometimes closed down as much as f/4 but only occasionally more. The products that I build are electronics inside of black plastic cases, and the combination really brings out the micro texture of it, which is really what makes them look pro vs consumer. Kind of a black on black pro audio look. As far as really low light use, it can take pictures outside that I can't physically see at night. Grain does pick up some you let the auto iso go really high, so I have it set to not go higher than some number ( can't remember) and let the stabilization do its thing. Some even modest, soft lighting can really help fill shadows, so don't dismiss the value of it, but I don't own a flash. This will sound really terrible to a real photographer, but I just use a tool battery powered light for fill if really needed, and it does help fill and smooth out shadows. The camera has a white balance button to fix odd lighting. If I were going to use it for indoor weddings, I would buy a small light with good color rendering and smooth output, just because a wedding photo can't be done again in the future. That portrait lens is designed to be a little further away than what you are used to with a cell phone camera, so it is a change and takes some experimentation. What I really like is that I can usb connect it directly to my computer without having to deal with cloud services. A lot more business privacy vs invasive Apple and Google. It works with windows and I am using Linux mint. Not sure about Apple but probably. Don't need to pull the card, direct transfer / auto updates the computer file with no fuss. Very fast. I mostly did just pure hand held, but a few years ago I was in a pretty bad accident so I am not that stable. I now do more leaning against things, like a ladder or wall but still hand held. It's a me problem, not the camera. Not a big deal, just trying to be honest about it. I use the wide aperture to control depth of field. For instance, a common photo for me is the product and some batteries right next to my car. Using the wide aperture, I can blur out the cars and houses across the street ( for their privacy) and not have to post process crop. Or if I want them in the photo, just stop down a little.
I'll assume it's just the video, but it looks ever so slightly soft... friend just ordered this lens so I'll be able to play with it for sure. hard to compete with the sharpness and overall value of the oly 45mm f1.8. are you planning on reviewing the new 8-18mm lens?
Hi. I have a GH5 and I think I´ll buy a Panasonic Leica DG Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 ASPH. POWER O.I.S. but my friend says that it works best with a metabones because of the crop factor. what do you think ?
You very right in all aspects of this lens and like you said for a price and that's the question? Would you spend £1000 for this lens to put on a micro 4/3 camera for a wedding? If you do that you're very bold .
that is such an odd comment. I don't shot photography to make money. I simply want good lenses. This is a very good lens. I'd buy it for that reason alone, regardless of whether I make a penny/pence or not on this lens.
Lance Guilin My man that means your loaded with money just to pay that price which is a good thing don't get me wrong. I am poorer so I can't really afford that price in less I can make that money back if you get my drift.
OLY PANA know how to balance on the optical quality and volume. But some lens price is unacceptable Even if I know they are good. I have a 45 F1.8, its image quality and the prices awesome.
Hi Darren, just realised you haven't got a review of 42.5/1.7 :-) I am thinking of buying it. Nocticron was too big and heavy for me and Olympus 45 didn't excite me. Do you have any plans of looking at this one? Thanks
Honestly, not to cop out, I could live with either - really. But if I HAD to choose, probably the M43, lesser weight, easier to carry around, faster focus...
Hi, for hobbyists like me this is a holy grail lens :-), thanks for reviewing it. Just curious were you able to test this on OMD body ? DXO lab tests show 18um of CA (which is not out of line when compared to FF same league lenses such as Zeiss etc.) on E-M1. I am guessing it must be fairly easy to remove the kind of CA which happens on E-M1 ?
hello, I come from China, this is a very good review, I like your presentation. I like shooting my dog running outdoor, so I consider to buy Panasonic X35-100, can you evaluate this lens?
Hey Darran, thanks for the review! Quick question for you. Does this lens make a notable amount of noise while focusing? I tried one with my GH4 and it seemed to make some very unpleasant noises. (OIS off) I'd almost describe it as grindy/motor sound. For a lens in this price range i would figure it should be pretty smooth. My cheap 45-200 lens is nearly silent. (although much slower) If you're able to shed any light on this, it'd help me out a lot. Thanks!
Hi Darren, how did you come by this? I've been googling "open to the fall" and wayne leinen and not coming up with much. I wanted to get hold of the score for it (and the music itself too).
The Oly 45mm is such an epic little lens, love that piece of glass! The Pany is in another league, but that doesn't mean it'll necessarily take better photos.
The Notcticron is definitely sharper. Test results back that up. It is the sharpest MFT lens. The 75mm is a really nice lens and close in sharpness. A bit less useful than the 42.5mm Nocticron--which I use often. My favorite lens by far.
Thankyou Darren for your reply. It would be interesting to know if Wayne does not publish. Would he maybe like to sell me some recordings. Sorry for being a bit dim lol. What does pm mean. I would also like to ask you. Now you have tested the Panasonic. And Olympus 1.2 . Which one would you consider to have the most pop. Looking at both your reviews. The Panasonic seems to pop more. Though utube does not give the best example. I love portrait work. And mostly use Nikon full frame with 85mm f1.4. but have got some very nice results with omd-m1. And 12x40 f2.8. and 45mm f1.8. I want to purchase a f1.2 . But have held off because of the Nikon. But like you. I love some of the very sharp results you can get with Olympus set up.
Sorry, but you can't give a lens that isn't weather-sealed a 9.5/10 for build quality. That's totally unacceptable at this price point I know you reviewed this back in 2014, but now that Olympus has released its 45mm f1.2 that IS weather sealed for less money than this, it should be considered a major knock on this lens.
Deeply irritating lens. I would never go so small on sensor size as m4/3, so this lens is out of the question. Meanwhile, at around the time this lens came out, so did the Fuji 56mm f/1.2, for my system. I was rejoicing at the huge aperture and sharpness wide-open magically combined with good bokeh; a combo that used to be impossible. One of those few lenses of such quality and reputation, you can just enjoy handling the lens; not even taking pics. ....Until I saw the 42.5's bokeh and sharpness. This lens is some kind of black magic. Not only sharper but practically STF bokeh. I can't dump on the 56mm, but there's no point taking it out to admire any longer. Having said all that, the 42.5mm does have a LoCa problem, which for pro purposes is a problem as it's hard to fix in post and there's no in-camera autofix.
Agreed - I recently changed the format of the reviews based on this consistent feedback... The newer reviews are shorter and information isn't repeated nearly as often. Thanks for the feedback.
