Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 41
 Excellent mid-range zoom lens January 16, 2007
John L. Hemingway (Macomb, IL USA)
50 out of 55 found this review helpful
Photographers from novice to entry-level pro will appreciate the quality of 14-54mm. It fills the need for a fast, sharp, and adaptable digital lens at a reasonable price. Though its focal length (28-108mm optical equivalent) isn't suited for shooting in confined spaces (look at the 11-22mm Zuiko for that) or for pulling in distant wildlife or sports action (maybe the 50-200mm Zuiko would be better), the 14-54mm is close to ideal for the image making most of us do most of the time. It's almost always on my E-500 and if I can take only one lens with me, this is the one.
The 14-54mm's color rendition is outstanding and it's generally very sharp from center to edge. Not surprisingly, it performs best in the middle apertures (say, f/5.6 to f/11) with no noticeable fall off at either end of its focal range. There is some very, very slight softness when zoomed fully out or in, in which case it's probably best not to shoot wide open or closed down (boost the ISO a touch instead) -- a general rule of thumb, anyway. Nothing here would stop me from buying the lens again in an instant.
The f/2.8-3.5 aperture range allows reasonable control over depth of field, e.g., to soften backgrounds when shooting portraits. The lens is fairly light and compact, with a good feel on the camera, at least on my E-500. (And contrary to another reviewer's comment, as long as you put the lens hood on properly, it won't block the lens at any focal length.) Note that if you stack filters (e.g., a UV and a polarizer) you're likely to get some very modest vignetting, which may also occur at full wide if you use a single filter with a thicker frame. This happens with almost all wider angle lenses (and can easily be addressed using standard image editing software).
Good lenses do make a difference. The 14-54mm is a good lens, and not just because of the price. As a modestly serious amateur photographer, I've had it for several months now, have shot a couple of thousand images -- some as tests and some for keeps -- and have no complaints about the 14-54mm at all.
Nice piece of glass! Glad I bought it! April 19, 2006
Big Mo (Boston, MA USA)
20 out of 21 found this review helpful
I bought this lens for my Olympus E500 and sold the kit lens on Ebay. So far I have not regrets. Like many of you who are reading these reviews, I wondered how much difference this lens would make over the 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. I can tell you from my experience that the extra stop helps alot for those photos taken inside with less then optimal light (such as the lighting in your average household). I also noticed an improvement in photos I have taken on a dark overcast winter day in downtown Boston. Not that these photos are not possible with the kit lens, the 14-54mm lens just seems to requires less effort. Bright, sunny situations have not made that much of a difference but just about anything looks good on a bright sunny day. Also, you can focus within inches of a subject which is great for the occasional macro photo. The focal distance indicator on the lens barrel has come in handy a couple of times. Especially in darker situations where the autofocus might have trouble and no flash is allowed.
Best standard zoom around February 1, 2005
Danijel Turina (Croatia)
27 out of 30 found this review helpful
I've been using it on my E1 for a while, and it proved to be an excellent lens. Sure, my Minolta MD 35-70mm f/3.5 (Leica Vario-Elmar) beats it in bokeh and image beauty, and any 50m Planar will beat it in absolute sharpness, but this one has almost the bokeh of a Minolta, and almost the sharpness of a prime; it's reasonably fast for a zoom and has the best range of focal lengths one can reasonably hope for (28-108mm equivalent). It's good for everything, although not absolutely perfect for any particular thing. That makes it the standard zoom of choice.
Flaws: cyan fringing (chromatic aberations) on the wide end, particularly on the edges and wide open. Vignetting on the long end. Target-shaped bokeh, especially visible when shooting macro. That's about it. Oh yes, very resistent to flare, the coating is excellent.
On the surface, same as factory lens, but dig deeper February 12, 2007
HMMWV (santa clara, CA USA)
19 out of 21 found this review helpful
You can not evaluate the lens by just the numbers - yes, it is nearly identical to the factory lens, but it is a much faster lens and made in Japan, not China. Additionally it has a unique focus system that requires very little lens movement to go from 3 feet to infinity - this translates into RAPID focus - faster than the factory lens as well. It also features the mounting lugs and 62mm (as opposed to 58) filter threads to accept the ring flash as well as the twin flash accessories, so if you have expanded beyond the FL-50 - you DON'T want the factory lens any more. Taken together, this is the lens 70-80% of my shooting was done with. I am sold on the E300 and bought 3 backs cheap after they were obsoleted - I also bought 3 lenses, the 14-54, the 50mm macro, and the 50-200mm - each lens is on its own back eliminating the risk of contamination completely while giving me redundancy when I am away.
After knowing you are going to take a picture, you narrow down to 2 questions as to which one.
1 - you don't know much except you have a picture to take - use the 14-54
2 - you know it's going to be about 50mm and you want maximum detail or have poor lighting, or have a macro shot - then pick the 50 mm prime lens
3 - it's a long distance shot - take the 50-200, add the teleconverter if needed.
Simple!
And for flash - long distances get the FL-50 - shorter get the ring or twin flash to even the lighting out. Forgot your flash? pop up the built in one!
Great Lense!!! January 5, 2008
B. Dostal (Detroit, USA)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Excellent lens from Olympus! I was Nikon fan for the last 20 years and when I sold my trustworthy N8008 film camera I started to look at Nikon and Canon digital SLR. The result of my research - for the price, quality and features, Olympus Evolt 510 beats everybody else with one arm tied behind its back. You have to go with high grade lens like this Olympus 14-54 to get the full effect. This lens is very sharp, bright and lack any distortion like no other. It cost more than standard lenses but as everything else in life, you get what you paid for. Strongly recommend to anyone with average or above skill.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 41
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