Olympus M. Zuiko Digital 17mm f/2.8 Lens - Black - for Micro Four Thirds System - Refurbished by Olympus

2017-03-07T19:00:00

A favorite among my lenses. Fast enough for my use and ultra compact that it is actually almost permanently attached to my E-PL5.

erik

Originally posted at

2017-02-02T19:00:00

First off, I do not give products 5-Star ratings. This lens, I do. I recently purchased an older EM5 so I could learn the Olympus system, anticipating buying a Mark II down the road a bit. I purchased an Olympus 14-42mm Four Thirds lens, the M43 40-150mm lens and the 17mm f2.8 pancake lens. This review is for the latter. This is my first pancake lens by any maker for any of my camera systems. It is also the fastest focusing lens of the 12 lenses in my camera case. Touch the screen and it is almost instantly focused and ready to go. It moves so quickly that the camera focuses and snaps the photo before my brain even registers that I've touched the screen. VERY sharp images from this lens. I've adapted several film lenses from various makers to this EM5 but at the end of the experiments, this pancake lens goes back onto the EM5. This is my new walk around lens until I can afford the 12-100mm f4 PRO later this Spring. Photographs made from this lens are sharp and highly detailed. While this lens is among the least expensive lenses in the Olympus M43 line-up, I think it has to be one of the sharpest out there. This lens is so light that I can toss it into the air, drink a Coke, toss the bottle in the trash and reach out and catch the lens on its way back down. Light, but very solidly built. It looks like a tough cookie. If you are looking for a slightly wide "normal" lens, then this prime lens may be the one you are looking for.

Michael

Originally posted at

2016-02-16T19:00:00

i love this lens for the fact that its 17mm and I have used it in the city and shot some sunsets with it. I prefer the 1.8 but this is a really decent lens fo the price you pay for it. Its small pancake look streamlines the camera a little bit and make it more portable which is a plus. You need this lens in your kit. I only real drawback is when you add a UV filter on it, it sticks out a little. that is just cosmetic.

Paul

Originally posted at

2016-01-20T19:00:00

One of my favorite lenses because of the sharpness and size. Love it on PL/7, PM2, and PM1 to carry in a jacket pocket. 34mm a great general purpose focal length. I find f/2.8 very bright for these cameras for daylight shooting and some night work. Bright enough with 3-axis IBIS because I can hand hold to shutter speeds as slow as 1.6 seconds or better because the cameras are so compact and light. Allows me to use ISO 200 most of the time for noise free, detailed images. Terrific value.

harvey

Originally posted at

2015-09-04T20:00:00

I got this lens with my E-PL3, and it is fantastic for landscapes. The f 2.8 is obviously slower than the much more expensive 17mm f 1.8, but for landscapes you don't shoot at f 1.8 at all-- you use higher f-stops of course! The sharpness may not be as good as the f 1.8 version, but it is quite good. The lens is horrible for video, as it is quite loud and hunts.

Dana

Originally posted at

2015-07-13T20:00:00

I use this along with an OMD EM5 as my travel kit. Because the lens is so small I find the camera and lens combo fits in my jacket pocket, and even barely squeezes into my cargo shorts. It's convenient to go without a bag when traveling. I've been spoiled by this combo so I don't think I can ever go back to using a dslr when traveling. The focal length is great for stuff like markets and museums, I find it's wide enough to use indoors, and focuses close enough to take pictures of exotic wares in markets. Stopped down it's also great for use as a street photography lens.

Michael

Originally posted at

2015-05-19T20:00:00

I travel a lot and having this lens in my em5 camera is the sweetest thing its compact and taking a very nice and sharp images i use this lens a lot on street photograpy, having this on my camera doesnt get a lot of attention with the people my camera looks like normal camera not like dslr that bulky and heavy,I highly recommend this lens to all olympus camera users

Quincy L.

Originally posted at

2015-04-05T20:00:00

When I put together my first m4/3 kit, I was hunting for a decent pancake prime to keep the size down. I ended up with an E-PL1, and found a great deal on this 17mm f/2.8. I kept hearing about how the lens was soft, and how the equivalent of 17mm on a kit lens (at about f/3.5) was about as good if not better. I disagree. It's hard to describe, but all my shots with the 17mm f/2.8 have a sweeping cinematic quality to them, that a kit lens at the same 17mm setting did not have. The colors have always been great, and makes up for what may not be the sharpest lens, edge to edge. Yes, the edges can get a bit fringy, but a good photographer also adapts to their equipment. Framing is key to get the most out of this lens. Know it's flaws, and it will reward you. This lens fails the modern science test (putting it on a test rig), but absolutely shines in the field. It keeps your kit compact, and lets you shoot discretely. Also, I always thought I was a 50mm equivalent type of person. The 17mm gives you a 34mm view, and I do like that quite a bit more. f/2.8 may be slow compared to the f/1.8, but the size is much smaller, and on a wider lens, larger depth-of-field is more desirable. With IBIS improving rapidly in newer bodies, I think the 17mm f/2.8 will find its way in many more photography kits in the future.

Hank

Originally posted at

2015-03-24T20:00:00

Bought this lens a few years ago and it stays on my camera all the time! Really like how sharp it is, and how quickly it focuses. It also gives a surprising bokeh for a 2.8 lens!

jake

Originally posted at

2013-07-01T20:00:00

I have this lens for a week now and i love it, it surely compact and light. Picture quality is superb nice to take street photography even landscape, if your looking for a really compact lens i recommend this one.

Quincy L.

Originally posted at

2012-12-31T19:00:00

I was forced to buy my E-P3 with a kit lens since it was not sold as body only, so I choose the E-P3 and 17 2.8. This is a tiny and flat lens, hence the term "pancake." Hot dang, it's a fine little optic: perfect walkaround angle of view and easy to slip in a pocket or messenger bag. I've shot a lot of images and the color, contrast and sharpness are excellent. But, it's not perfect: you can invoke a little chromatic aberration if you shoot tree branches against a blown out sky or strong backlight. Normally you'd never notice CA in most images and it is easy to edit out. And, yes, it is a little softer around the edges wide open (as all lenses are). But it basically gets it right: subjects are sharp and pleasantly rendered. One point few mention is this Olympus has a smooth as silk manual focus ring and attractive cosmetics. I didn't pay any attention to these things until I bought a Panasonic 14mm 2.5 and found its manual focus sticky. There are a couple gotchas. Sadly, this lens lacks a dedicated hood. Eventually I found a metal Leica style screw-in hood and I tossed the lens cap. Although AF works okay, it is slow and a little noisy, certainly much slower and louder than my Panasonic 14mm 2.5. And, yes, I use the 17 2.8 with the VF-1 optical finder and what a great combo! The finder is a joy to use compared to an EVF or LCD so life is now good!

Peter

Originally posted at

2012-11-23T19:00:00

While this isn't the sharpest of lenses, it is certainly a solid performer. Couple that with small size and fast aperture, this is a great lens for street and night shots. We use this for travel alongside a longer and slower zoom. It's easy to carry and a great choice for travel.

Doug

Originally posted at

2012-02-25T19:00:00

If I could have given this lens 3 1/2 stars, I would have. It does have some things going for it: useful focal length good bokeh pretty sharp in the center But it also has some things going against it: horrendous CA (this cannot be overstated) beyond the center, sharpness is not good 2.8 is okay, but when there's a 20mm 1.7 running around, one has to wonder why this lens isn't faster also, m43 bodies correct for distortion, but natively the distortion of this lens is quite high All in all, it's a fun lens to use with a very useful focal length, good bokeh, and a pretty sharp center. Just don't expect miracles, as the CA is some of the worst of any lens I've ever used (and that's a lot), and the across frame sharpness is fairly weak as compared to the center.

zwag

Originally posted at

2011-07-13T20:00:00

Sharp a stop down, fast AF, nice lens for general use.

Capt M.

Originally posted at

2011-06-28T20:00:00

Small, well made, fast amd sharp. I am amazed at the colors from this lens, reminds me of some higher end german ones. I love using this lens, particularly with the VF-1. It has a high quality build, focuses fast, is very sharp at f4 to 5.6, and respectable wide open. A perfect lens to carry on the camera when you want to go minimalist, great for walking around a city or town.

CaptMatt

Originally posted at