My son (7 years old) is really into photography. I bought him this lens. Not only does he love it, but I use it to teach him about things like background compression, depth of field, etc. Oh, and I would challenge anyone to find a lens at that price point that performs better optically - I was SHOCKED by how good the images look. Great video, Robin.
Thanks Jason, for that price, the image quality really is impressive! Your son is so lucky to have you share the joy of photography with him at such young age!
It appears that the Panasonic 14-140 performs better, has stabilization and is also even lighter. But for a beginner, the Olympus is very much sufficient, a bit cheaper than the Pana and I personally like its design much better. As a beginner, it gave me awesome results and boosted my joy and motivation to pursue the journey of photography.
When I purchased the Olympus 40-150 Pro lens, I sold my copy of the Plastic Fantastic 40-150 F4-5.6 R. It wasn't long before I realized that at time when I want to have a light kit, I didn't want to carry the pro lens, so I ended up buying another 40-150 F4-5.6 R lens. It really is a gem, and I've found it is also very good for close-up shots of flowers and insects. And at a budget price, it's well worth having for when you need it. My development as a photographer made a huge leap when I purchased a M10 along with the two kit lenses, and I still consider the M10 Mark II two lens kit to be a great buy for someone starting out in photography.
Thanks Stephen for sharing your experience, and I agree with you, the E-M10 series cameras and the twin kit (14-42mm and 40-150mm) are perfect for newcomers!
I bought this lens with my OM-D EM-5 Mkiii, and used it constantly until I could afford to upgrade to a Pro. Now it’s on my new OM-D EM10 Mk 4, and it seems to work even better, apart from being so nice and light. Easily fits into my handbag too, so can take it with me to events where I’m afraid to take a more expensive and bigger camera. I used it with the EM-5iii to take images of a choir, inside a venue. There was enough light so didn’t need to use the flash, and that alone amazed me!
Thanks for sharing your experience and use of the 40-150mm R. One thing I regretted not saying is that the 40-150mm R works well for stage and event shooting too, which you have mentioned similarly to the choir!
I consider myself to be an advanced amateur. I’m retired and on a budget as well. I have a Canon 5D Mk iv with some L series lenses. I recently ( in retirement) picked up an OM-D E-M1 original with just over 9,000 shutter activations. It came with a 14-42 mm kit lens. I was given a Lumix 20 mm f1.7 and just bought a 60 mm macro as well as the 40-150 mm zoom. This will all fit in a bag a quarter of the size of my canon gear bag. The combined total cost for all of this gear is under $900 CDN. So far I’ve been very impressed with the Olympus optics and the performance of the 16 megapixel sensor. Not to mention the amazing technology of this 9 year old camera. The first camera that I ever purchased for myself was the original OM-1 film camera with the 50 mm f1.8 kit lens as well as the 105 mm and 28 mm primes. This new set up reminds me of the feel I got when shooting with the film camera, and that’s a good thing. My on going dilemma is whether I should sell the Canon gear and purchase an E-M1 Mk iii to get the benefit of the many updates and the Starry Sky AF feature. At the moment the Canon seems to be collecting dust. That makes for a very expensive dust collector. I’ve been considering getting the Viltrox adapter to add my canon lenses to the mix. Has anyone got experience using these adaptors. This could be a great option. I should add that my interest is still photography not video.
I got this lens in a kit with the EM01ii and the 14-42 EZ when I moved over to MFT to save weight when travelling 5 years ago. Just love how the whole kit easily fit into carry on along with everything else I wanted on long haul. It's stayed with me through moving up to EM5ii then EM1iii. I still have the EM10ii for everyday walks and the 14-42 & 40-150 "mini kit" is great for general walkabout photography with little weight and a small budget. Respect to Olympus for this amazing lens at the price point. look out for kit-spit or used bargains. Only downside is the plastic mount but hey - it's a budget lens.
Robin, thanks for the reminder. I got sucked into the "gotta have the 45/1.8" club without appreciating these fine kit lenses that I already have. I will be sure to get out and give this lens another shot once the temperature goes above, or at least approaches, freezing, here in the upper midwest USA.
I could not agree more about the value and versatility of this bargain lens. It performs far beyond what its price would suggest. Although I have many much more expensive prime lenses, some of my best shots have been taken with this wonderful little telephoto gem. Great video as always Robin. :-)
Excellent, sensible video as always. I actually prefer the moderate DoF of the 40-150 -- that still retains some "feel" of the background -- to the often excessive blurring from a wide-open lens. Point very well made re. the often false maxim of one's legs being "the best zoom lens", esp. when the subject is wildlife/birds, or an unsuspecting stranger going about their day. Love this light, cheap, discreet, versatile lens + e-m10ii combo as a complete amateur; not missing the shots anymore that I would rue when carrying a clunky DSLR.
This was my first MFT Olympus lens, and i did have a nice time with it, and still do, Robin, thanks for your video, as always you are clear and concise.
I got my 40-150 non R ( i don't know the diffrence ) back in 2011 as my 2nd Lens ( the 20mm panasonic is my 3rd ) for the E-PL1. I still use this lens often, Recently on the beach and took some great shots with it. Sure you have to work with the limitations of the Lens, but limitations encourage creativity. Thanks for this vlog, my 7yo is also getting in to photography, and this helps me guide her in to making photo's
I love these beginners videos. Not that I need the help but to remind me of what’s simple in my bag. I have used this lens for decades. First on my e-510 in the 4/3 version. I feel the lenses over 100mm give you the best bokeh. The compression and the lower aperture give great results. This was an excellent video for the folks. Nice job on this Robin. Now get some budget OM lenses and get that manual freak on.
Thanks for the kind words! I just want to highlight the fact that there are budget friendly lenses and we don't have to have the greatest and most expensive gear to get the best results. 40-150mm R is the perfect example.
I recently bought an EM-10 markII with the 14-42 kit lens, and got a used 40-150mm on ebay for peanuts, in excellent condition. It is such a great lens, I really enjoy using it, and the EM10 markII as well.
Hi Robin.Yes i still have my Oly 40-150R but admit not using it after i bought the Oly 14-150ii which is weather resistant and bigger range at the wide angle side.I did how ever used the Oly 40-150R a lot before that and really enjoyed the experience and must admit foto' were good enough.
The 14-150mm is a fantastic lens for sure, but the 40-150mm R is so much cheaper, and sometimes here in Malaysia you get it bundled for free with some camera purchases!
This was so helpful! Thank you. I would love more videos on beginning photography, with example photographs. Loved your recent street photography video. Your photographs are great!
I bought the 40-150 "plastic fantastic" for $99 in 2015, before I even bought my OM-D E-M 10 Mark II in 2016. While it has its limitations, for $99 (or even the full price of $199/$149), in good light, the lens punches well above its weight. It is easy to use, and small, easy to carry. I used to travel a lot for business. I could carry my 10.2, the 14-42 and 40-150, along with a 25/1.8, in my computer bag and shoot just about anything! Love this lens - but I love the 40-150/2.8 more.
Thank you for all your videos Robin! I am new to photography. I was looking for a new hobby and was thinking about photography for a couple or years now. Thanks to you I managed to take the step (as before I new next to 0 about the cameras) Now waiting for a delivery of E-M 5 Mk II and this objective. Both secondhand, but objective never used. Thanks again!
That lens constantly punches above it's weight. I can a used one at a photography shop here in Tokyo for less than ¥5,000 (about 45 US dollars). Some of my best photos were taken with this lens. I now have other lenses like the 60mm macro and the 45 1.8 and yesterday I bought my first Pro lens - the 12 - 40 2.8, but I'm gonna keep on using this lens because it just delivers.
Agreed! it's a really nice little lens. I used it for portraits as well as lunar photos. However, I sold mine a few months ago and bought a Lumix 14-140mm instead, as it offers a similarly nice image quality plus can be used for wide angle shots as well as zoom, not to mention superb image stabilization. It is a lot more expensive however.
This is the second Olympus lens I bought. I was not sure what to get for my second lens after the basic 14 to 42 mm kit lens. Then I saw this lens for $100 and took a chance on it. I am glad I did. The results are amazingly good for the price or even not for the price. For my purposes, there is no need to get the pro version.
Hey Robin! By coincidence I just came back from a mountain trip. I used the same 40-150 lens a lot and it easily has 90%+ the capability of a PRO lens! I started using it on closer subjects too, and I'm starting to think that wide angle lenses (
I'm sorry Number Six, but have you ever used a PRO Lens? I owned the 40-150 R and doesn't like it. Especially the LOCA performance is very poor. It simply drove me crazy. The key benefits of a PRO lens from Olympus are outstanding optical characteristics, faster apertures and offcourse weather sealing to it's maximum. The 40-150 R is okay for it's price, but it's not nearly 90%+ to a PRO Lens.
@@KrapfenK Maybe I'm exaggerating, 90% is a little high re aperture. But the snowy mountain in the sun, deep blue sky, deep shadows, was only a little off being as super sharp as the 12-40 PRO (at 150mm f/8). I hate CA too, and get it on this mountain all the time, but this lens was very tame indeed. Disclaimer, I still need to look at the RAW files and will post any CA problems in them or in other applications.
@@KrapfenK OK I checked my RAW files and shot more photos with sharp edges, patterns, and lines against bright backgrounds at f/8 or less -- ISO 200 -- and short, medium and long zoom. CA is minimal to nonexistent at print size, sharpness very good at 100% and even 200%. Pixel peeping RAW files, all I can find is a few pixels thick, greenish tint along lower-contrast and more bluish along the outside of the higher-contrast edges. You can see it as you zoom into where you can see noise. That might be CA and/or noise. But all-in-all, a very usable long zoom lens with consistently good IQ for $100.
Thanks Robin 👍 Invested in an E-M10 MKIII at Christmas after 35 years out of the photography loop when it comes to a dedicated camera, and your video's have been an invaluable source of help and information. I got the standard 14-42 kit lens, but also the 45mm F1.8 for just £1 in a crazy offer from Olympus and a great deal on this 40 - 150mm from Amazon too, so I'm now well set up but very much still learning and enjoying working through many of your old and new videos. Keep it up - I'll be sure to buy you a coffee or 2 🙂
Thanks Red for the coffee and I am so glad you got the E-M10 Mark III with some lenses, that is a fantastic setup! Glad that you are discovering the joy of photography again after all this time, keep the shutter clicking.
I am no beginner but this lens is fantastic and I am not ashamed to admit that I use it a lot and with great results. Would love to have the pro but at this moment I can’t afford it.
Same here Plato. The kit I always carry in my car for unanticipated shooting opportunities has three lenses including the 40-150. I'm never disappointed. Especially for the price, there is no reason not to have this lens in your arsenal.
This is related to the Jan 30 Live stream with Rob Trek and others. I have taken your suggestion and will try shooting with the 9mm BCL on the E-P1. The camera has a low shutter count but appears to have an IS issue but it has no impact on any of the shots I have taken with it (mostly 25mm or 17 mm so easily hand held even without ibis). I truly enjoy your shutter therapy sessions. Thanks.
When I first started with photography, this lens sure made a valuable addition to my EM-10 III and 14-42 EZ kit when I got to buying a first additional lens. In terms of value for money, it's hard to beat this lens.
Indeed it’s a nice lens specially when it used to be really cheap during Olympus era. OM System raised its price a bit. However this lens still a great buy for M4/3 system.
This was my first lens, I had it even before purchasing the body. When I tried my buddy's, it attracted me to get into m43 and interchangeable system. Before that, I was on the Fuji X100 and thought that's all I need. Well, the more I tried longer focal length, the more I enjoy it. Considering a longer lens than 150mm now.
1/26/22 Hi Robin, I have both the 14-42 mm R kit lens and the 40-150 mm R and consider my photos of Pro Quality on how much I want to spend on lenses for my Olympus OM-D cameras. Nobody has judged my photos and asked if I used Pro lenses, but on the contents of my photos. the title should be for this video...is Perfect for all photographers on a budget.
I have the Oly 40-150mm f/4-5.6R, and it is truly one of the best lens bargains in photography. That said, I also have the Panasonic 45-175mm f/4-5.6 and much prefer it to the Oly lens -- primarily because it is better optically (not that the Olympus lens is a slouch). I am amazed at the fine detail rendering of the Pany lens. In addition, it is the about the same size and weight as the Oly lens, but has internal zoom -- it does not extend when zooming. It offers a greater focal range, and has a motorized zoom for video that is lever operated (although I'm mostly a still photographer). The only negative is that it is double the price of the Olympus lens, but I believe it is worth it. When I want to minimize my kit weight and still get great focal range, I simply grab my Olympus 12-50mm f/3.5-6.3 lens and my Pany 45-175mm f/4-5.6, and I have a FF equivalent range of 24mm to 350mm, with motorized zoom capability, and Macro capability (the Oly lens), and great optical quality with a total lens weight of less than 15 oz.!
Hi Robin, Very informative video - thanks! I am quite an amateur in photography. This may be a dumb question but when you took the shots, did you take them on manual or auto? I have an Olympus OMD.
Hello Robin, can you then tell us how to use it on image where everything in composition is far away? For example skyline details (roofs or distant buildings) 0.5-5km? I was not able to bring sufficient information to the image: it is unsharp, blurry and very dim. Actually I had a problem to even find a place where i was focusing.
As this is aimed at beginners, when mentioning the backgropund blur you should have shown how far away you needed to be to frame the shote the same. The same goes for the background compression. "Use Your Legs"/"Zoom With Your Feet" is a useless input from someone - see your points a bove for 2 good reasons and add in perspective into the argument.
My OMD-Mark iii cannot detect my kit lens. Not sure how much it's going to cost me to repair. Another option is to just buy a new lens. I don't really know about camera things much. I want to know, can I attach this lens to my camera?
I always suspected that 75mm f1.8 was a great street photography lens especially as you can take pictures from quite a distance. Never tried it myself though … Maybe same goes for the superb 45 f1.8
I have both 45mm and 75mm. They are magical on all the Olympus camera I have, from EM1 to EPL1. Both lenses are sharp and lovely at wild opened. I am also getting the 40-150mm F4-5.6 R for less than 100 CAD. The 14-42 and 40-150 with EPL1 is a surprisingly capable system in bright environment.
@Robin great video, as always!!! @san-chil, I'm thinking about getting the Oly 75mm f/1.8. All the reviews say it is the absolute monarch of the Olympus primes. But at a gazillion $US, I think I'll use my trusty plastic fantastic 40-150 set to 75mm to see if I would really use the framing of the 75mm enough to justify the cost. And that's just one more advantage of a zoom. You won't get the IQ or bokeh of an f/1.8 prime, but for no extra cost you can preview that focal length to see if it suits you.
Hi, after watching your video I went to test the lens with the OM-1 and I was not happy at all, lots of attempts and failures in the autofocus, is there any parameter for the OM-1 to use this lens?
I normally won't recommend the 14-150mm immediately as it does cost quite a bit, but 40-150mm R is a different story, for such a small price, it brings a lot of benefits!
Lol, you make a case for a more natural perspective at the longer focal length... Yet you strike a silly pose with matching facial expression which is perfectly accentuated by the wide-angle perspective. 😂
I think we are exaggerating quite a bit with those prime focal lengths being right in peoples faces. That said I don’t enjoy using zoom lenses for my street photography
I have E620 and use 14-42mm and 40-150mm also 70-300mm lens and think of buying a Olympus OM M10 Mark iv would my lenses work on the new Olympus M10 Mark iv
Yes, but you need an adapter, because the focal point will be behind the sensor. Mirrorless lets the sensor be closer to the front of the camera. There are two on B&H; one is $31 and the other is $80.
Hy robin thank u so much for this video is really help me a lot C's now I'm looking for a new lens for my Olympus epl9 so is this Len's can use on camera Olympus epl9 ?? Looking forward for who's out there knows the answer 🤗
If Olympus had put a metal lens mount on their kit lenses instead of plastic, I honestly wouldn't be looking to purchase the newly announced 40-150 f/4 and the 12-45 f/4 Pro zooms. If I thought these kit lenses could be retrofitted with metal lens mounts, I'd do so and save my money given these lenses (at least the ones I own/use) are very sharp across the board. Sure they aren't weather sealed but given their price, they can easily be replaced if needed. For my hiking/travel kit I use a pair of Em1mk2's and carry the amazingly compact and sharp 9-18, 14-42 II and 40-150 kit zooms in a ThinkTank TurnStyle 20 sling bag. With these lenses I've made gorgeous 13x17 full frame images that are sharp all the way to the edges. These lenses may not be designated "Pro" but their image quality says otherwise. The one caveat to be aware of is don't put a cheap filter on the front of these lenses. Spend the money for something like the B+W XS-Pro filter series (not the F-pro's). Yes, the XS-Pro filters are more expensive, but well worth it and I know from first hand experience after having used the F-Pro series and had mediocre IQ especially at the edges.
Hey Robin. I have to disagree. IMHO, beginners should stick to wide to normal primes. Zooming doesn't create the necessary awareness of image framing that a photographer should develop early. It's all about the photographer's perspective, the value of which to image-making is lost when the beginner can simply change the angle of view by turning the lens barrel. The beginner should be forced to confront framing and re-framing as a physical act to reinforce its importance.
