Camera Lenses

Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50mm f/2.0 Macro Lens Features

One of the brightest Zuiko Digital lenses is this large aperture medium-telephoto macro lens. It is equivalent to 100mm on a 35 mm camera, good for maximum image magnification of 0.52x (equivalent to 1x life-size on a 35mm camera).

ED lens greatly reduce chromatic aberrations to provide the high image quality with high-resolution and good contrast.

In combination with the EX-25 Extension Tube, it can focus approx. 1x (equivalent to 2x on a 35mm camera).

User Reviews about Olympus 50mm f 2.0 Telephoto Macro ED Lens for E1 - E300 & E500 Digital SLR Cameras

Here are my initial impressions:
Photos with the 50mm f/2.0 lense are incredibly sharp. The contrast is amazing. It goes to show you that the lense (glass) is more important to achieving quality photos than the camera itself. I have an Olympus E520 and the kit lenses were just not cutting it, especially when taking natural light photos. Digital cameras require more light for low noise photos, and unless you are outdoors, the best way to provide it is with a bright lense. As others have commented, the bokeh is awesome. You almost always need to backup from your subject to frame it properly, and most of the time this is not a factor in taking quality photos, but in cramped quarters you may not get the entire subject in the frame. My first 35mm camera had a 50mm prime lense, and distancing myself from the subject quickly became second nature. It will again. I did notice that every once in a while the lense would hunt quite a bit before focusing, and on one ocassion the lense extended to the end of its travel (missed its focus) and repeated the focus procedure before finding the sweet spot. Most of the time it worked flawlessly. This lense is a great value. It has turned my camera into a better performer, and I feel like a better photographer. -- Bright and sharp

I got this lens after seeing online reviews. What can I say, I am very pleased with the results and versatility of this lens. I also have 14-54 f2.8-3.5. I used to take that zoom lens as my walk around lens but nowadays I am using 50mm f2 most of the time, except for wide angle shots.

What do I like most from the lens
1. It is F2, so good control over DOF
2. Well built
3. 50mm, good focal length for portrait shots.
4. Excellent bokeh (quality of out of focus area).
5. Good macro performance(though I expected more).
5. Better MTF(so more sharp images) than canon L grade lenses.

Cons, which I can live with
1. Since it is made for macro, it can hunt for focus some time.
2. Little noisy motor(very minor problem for me).

-- Why do I stick with Zuiko family...This is the reason.

What a wonderful lens! Tack sharp even wide open, even across the frame. Fairly fast, at f/2. 1:2 macro. It's simply a wonderful piece of kit. The price looks high, but for a lens with this kind of quality it's actually a steal.

One thing that I wanted to add is that this lens works fine on a PEN body, once you have the requisite Micro 4/3 to 4/3 adapter.

That may seem like an odd thing to do, but unfortunately M4/3 has quite a few gaps in its lineup, none more glaring to me than the lack of a native, fast portrait prime. It's true that the system's sole macro lens (the Panasonic 45mm f/2.8) has the right focal length for the job, but the "Leica" branding makes it an obscenely expensive proposition. It's also a full stop slower than the Olympus 50mm; is it really worth twice the cost?

I find it hard to justify. The Olympus 50mm here works great on my E-P2, albeit with slow autofocus that can hunt in low light. For "action" shots, you'd best use manual focus, but if your subject isn't moving too quickly the AF will probably be able to do the job.

Of course, you also need an adapter (such as the Panasonic Mount Adapter) which adds to the sticker price a bit, but once you have it more 4/3 options open up to you as well.

Is this an ideal solution? Not really. But given the options available and their prices, I think it's a darn good choice. Maybe some day the M4/3 lens lineup will fill out a bit and I can get a native equivalent to this lens at a sane price, but until then, I'm pretty satisfied. -- The missing Micro 4/3 portrait prime

From the time I got my E-510, I've read reviews of four-thirds system lenses. I wanted to select the right one to compliment my kit lens. Amazon.com's reviews of this lens were very helpful in my selection. I'm thrilled with the macro capabilities. Now I'm anxious to take portrait shots in the studio and on location. -- Two Years of Searching

This lens is great. I use this lens to photograph latent prints and the results are wonderful! I have also used this lens to photograph tiny wildflowers and insects. Love this lens! -- wonderful lens