No pro line...because they were ALL pro lenses. You can't beat them. I absolutely love your content. Thank you so much

Do you realise what you've done man! I gave up film in the 1990s and was happy up with my digital gear. Then I found your KZfaq channel and was reminded of all the gear I'd owned in the 1970s. Long story short, I've bought 14 film cameras and 20 lenses in the last year or so and I'm finding it difficult to stop.... My wife frowns when she catches me watching your channel and knows there will be another parcel arriving soon :-). As far as Olympus goes, I have the OM1n, OM2n and OM10 plus 50mm f/1.4, 28mm f/2.8 and 135mm f/3.5, with the 50mm f/1.4 being my favourite. I do shoot film but also adapt most of the lenses to my Canon R6 as well. Best eBay auction bargain - FED 5 with Industar 61 & case for £28!

For me the F3.5 really stands out due to its fantastic micro-contrast, impressive colors and pack-leading sharpness. Even boring subjects are coming to live in an often unexpected manner. It is very sad that the Olympus photography business didn't make it successfully enough in the digital era so that it had to be sold. A true loss.

I really like your calm and balanced presentation style. I’ve have followed you for some years now and I am enjoying most of your output. Blessings from Denmark. ❤❤❤

I love the Olymus Zuiko lenses and have 10 of them I enjoy using

The images you have shown from that 55mm f1.2 Zuiko lens look magical, so special in colour and feel.

Wow what a comprehensive review, so chilled and laid back. Brilliant.

Damn. Gotta get me one of those sweet 50mm from Olympus. Thanks you for yet another informational entertaining video, man. Keep going!

Hi Nigel. Thx a lot for this passionated video ! I do love this format taking a line of lenses of the same brand to explain and show the differences. And you don t only speak but show a lot of images examples and this is great. Big thx for this. If you could do the same for other brands Nikon, canon, Minolta, Pentax… it would be great.

Loved this video so much. I have a late model black nose 50 1.4 Mc and absolutely love it it’s my favorite lens of all time. Very interesting comparison!

I have just bought my first Zuiko 50mm f1.8 silver nose. I now have a number of 50(ish) mm lenses and the OM Zuiko is just beautiful to use. The focus ring is incredible to use, and the clarity of images is great. I'm really enjoying it. I really enjoy your videos and photos, great stuff.

What a nice collection and all in very good shape! I used the 3.5 macro in the 1990s for product documentation and now with MFT adapter for all purpose, from 1:1 macro to infinity. This works well due to the floating element construction.

Great video. So thorough and well delivered as always. I have the 1.4 for my OM2 - it’s great to have that aperture in a small package. Especially today with so few high speed films around - I find myself using it a lot. I’m tempted by the 55mm 1.2 - it’s a great looking character lens but I’m out off by the thoriated glass. I believe some were made without it, that said, but will probably just end up sticking with the 1.4.

Your love for the subject shines through. I have two OM-1’s, a chrome and a black. Both have a 50 1.8 and I also have a 135 Zuiko. I’ve had them since they were new. I was working as a news photographer when they came out and I love a small camera body and they were my first new camera purchases. Not sure how I ended up with two 50 1.8 lenses though. I had a wide at one time but that one is lost to time. Still shooting digital for clients but starting to play with film again and my treasured OM-1’s.

A 55mm f1.2 is best for both eyes open photography (eye to the camera and eye outside the camera both open at the same time). You see the world with essentially the same magnification on an OM1 or OM2 through both eyes and with a brighter image (ok, same with the 50mm f1.2) than the other 50mm lenses. OM1 & OM2 have a viewfinder magnification of 0.92. (1 - (0.92 * 50)/50)100% = -8.0% (1 - (0.92 * 55)/50)100% = +1.2% OM2s has a viewfinder magnification of 0.86. (1 - (0.86 * 50)/50)100% = -14.0% (1 - (0.86 * 55)/50)100% = -5.4% OM3 & OM4 have a viewfinder magnification of 0.84. (1 - (0.84 * 50)/50)100% = -16.0% (1 - (0.84 * 55)/50)100% = -7.6% A brighter screen can decrease the maybe two stop loss in image brightness, lens vs reality, on OM1s and OM2s at the expense of introducing a metering difference off the screen. Get a brighter 2-13 screen from an OM3 or OM4 or find a Beattie screen and install that in place of the original viewfinder screen. Note that for the 2-13 you would have to shave off some of the screen's grab-tab to install it as it will otherwise not fit in the screen's frame. Think that other manufacturers made their fastest glass as 55mm or 58mm partially for this reason, to better allow both eyes open photography, a nice-to-have about which few noticed or cared. Thinking too that between wanting to put data outside the screen and Nikon touting eyepoint advantages especially for eyeglass wearers with their F3hp the whole idea (not popular in the first place) lost its luster in favor of lower viewfinder magnifications and heading back to 50mm for fast glass. If something is wrong then please correct me. What am I saying...this is the internet of course someone will correct me.

Very interesting video, as always. And very nice images too!... Thanks.

I really like Olympus primes too :) I have the 28mm f3.5, 50mm f1.8, 50mm Macro f3.5, 200mm f4, and soon I will have a 300mm f4.5. Super excited to get the 300mm :) I am going to be using it for astro photography. Every lense I have came with fungus, but I learn how to clean them and now their all perfect again.

5 beauties in the olympus with a cup of tea included! Grettings!

So many lenses to choose from! I just realised this morning that you have been filming Zenography for 6 years! I wonder how many lenses have passed through your hands in that time, and how many actually got the "Zenography Seal of Approval"? Another great video and more lenses to think about. Thank you.

I just got my OM-1 yesterday, what a nice surprise. Thank you sir!

Great info. Your watch sounds beautiful 😊

Incredibly thorough

The Olympus 50mm f1.8 is really something. Your are on spot with your analysis - it is as sharp and colourfull as the lens itself :-)

you have such a soothing voice, you should do audio book readings. Lovely analysis!

I lucked out hardcore; my girlfriend was gifted an old OM4 from a the wife of a former professional photographer. Came with a 50mm f1.4 and a 28mm f2.8, in AMAZING shape. His OM4 seems to have had some modifications done to the internals to fix the battery drain issue that a lot of users reported with the camera. Great video!! Loved all the info!

Une nouvelle superbe vidéo pour les amoureux des objectifs vintages , olympus zuiko une référence en terme de qualité optique et mécanique.thank you for this very nice review.

Really enjoying your comparisons, as I delve into my growing collection of legacy glass. It would help all viewers immensely if you had TC markers for each of the lenses you mention. 👍

Great videos and very informative - thanks

Had a 50mm f1.4 on my OM4 back when I shot a lot of Kodachrome 24 and 64 for picture library stock. Competent performer, sharp with good contrast, but not quite in the same league as Zeiss 50mm offerings for Rollei and Contax cameras that I subsequently moved to.

The 1.8 is a corker. I just got one on an OM20 body and am getting an adapter to go on my new (i.e. old) Sony A7 body. Very portable and stopped down just one stop it gives lovely colour and centre sharpness with that old-school Olympus nostalgic character. I'll be getting some more Olympus lenses..

Really enjoyed that overview, thank you! I just purchased and OM-1n with a 50 f/1.8 a few months back and am nearing the end of my first roll. Out of curiosity, what watch are you wearing in this video?

I recently picked up a 50mm f1.2 Zuiko for $60 Canadian Dollars!!! One of my best finds! It’s amazing! I attach it to my Om1 and fujfilm xt3!! My dream lens!

8:00 The Zuiko 50mm f/1.8 has one difference from the others. A plastic aperture ring! The numbers are more deeply engraved in it so I wouldn't complain. I had never felt such a quality sense on a lens before I got one new with a little OM-10, which was cheap and had a near silent shutter. I wish I still had it.

In large part due to this channel I am very much enjoy using my growing collection of vintage lenses, most of them Olympus lenses. It has come to the point where if a camera manufacturer came out with a full frame mirrorless camera without auto focus I would probably buy it. Lol unlikely to happen I suppose. I enjoy doing my own focusing and I find it easier to manually focus a vintage lens than a modern digital lens.

I have three copies of the 55 1.2 & two copies of the 50 1.2 Personally, I prefer the 55, for its greater character. The 50 has smoother, creamier out of focus areas. The differences are not huge, but are there. So it does depend upon what an individual values in the rendering, I just happen to like the more unusual effects some lenses give.

preface: wonderful overview and I liked the sample images a lot! so the comment about not having a pro-line is _mostly_ true, but the super telephotos did in fact kind of stand apart in the literature. the 180/2, 250/2 and 350/2.8 all had several special designs, and more than anything a completely separate aesthetic design and as far as I can tell a special order status. Real special lenses, they look like Canon lenses! Re 50s, I've owned them all, multiple examples of most, including the 55. The 1.8 and 1.4 are not my favorites, the 55/1.2 is good, 50/1.2 is fantastic, but the two macros are the best IMO. Oh small note, the 50/2.0 is bigger than the 55/1.2. the 50mm f2.0 auto-macro is in my pantheon with the Leica Summilux 50/1.4 ASPH and Pentax 67 105mm f2.4 Takumar. And of course, the 2.0 macro at 90mm from the OM series. The 50 and the 90 were the undisputed kings of their class (so, non-specialty macros) until the Zeiss makro-planars IMO. Though the OM 50/2.0 is tiny in comparison to the Zeiss (which I own on F mount) and nicer in its rendering to my personal taste.

I have the 1.4, but I use it as a video lens for filming with a digital camera. It is simply amazing. I think I need to pay 10x more to get a better video lens. The color and smoothness are natural and magical.

Another stunning review comparison. I have been very pleased with the Om Zuiko lenses I have used with the exception being the chrome nose 50mm f1.4. Its a bit too soft and low contrast wide open for my liking. The Canon FD 50mm 1.4 is quite a bit nicer to my eyes.

Again a lovely video, hope you make a 35mm edition as well.

what camera was used for these images? that sony on the table?

Does the 55mm lens have intermediate aperture click like f1.4 or f1.7 between f1.2 and f2.0? Contemplating to buy a 55mm thoriated version. Thanks for your informative videos💐

Another informative video. Love my 50mm 1.4, great colours, using it on my Sony, but heavy in weight.

Getting a OM10 next Friday...will need a 50mm this vid helps ...cheers and thanks

Next up, the 50mm f2 macro and the 40mm f2 pancake? Really enjoyed the comparison and I think it's nice that you got another copy of the 55mm and reviewed it again. Same thing happened when I picked up the newest version of the 1.4 lens. The silver nose version was much softer and not as well behaved. Ever since I got the f2 macro it sits on the shelf though.

I don't have any Vintage OM lenses for my E-M1 mk ii. Yet ......... I do have 2 on their way to me though : Zuiko Auto-T 75-150mm f4.0 & Zuiko Auto-T 300mm f4.5. So now you can guarantee it will be persisting down for a couple of weeks 🌧.

Just getting into the Zuiko lenses and this was an enjoyable watch thank you. I found myself wondering what make of watch you are wearing in this video. Looks like an Omega.

Very cool. Btw how much (if at all) post processing do you do on the images you show?

On the 50/1.8, I remember the multicoated version marked "made in Japan" (with that capitalization) was claimed by some Zuiko lovers to be the best. It's the only version I have and I can't compare it with others, so I really can't say through experience, but it might be worth looking for that specifically if you want one. It's one of the best 50s I've ever used (if not quite as good as the 50/3.5).

I bought an Om-1 MD 35mm that came with a 50mm 1:1,8. I was wondering what lens you would recommend?

I don't know is there more versions of Zuiko 50mm f1,4 (other than silver nose version), but mine (black nose) is slightly soft wide open. So soft that my 50mm f1,8 is much sharper at f1,8. However, as expected, stopped down to f2 increases sharpness dramatically...

I just bought the Olympus 55mm f1.2 and it is the most radioactive lens I have so far at 3385 CPM, SN 117492. However, I read and then tested that Plexiglass blocks Alpha particles. I tried 1 inch of the stuff and it knocked 3385 coming off the front lens, down to 540 CPM. The 55 is very sharp, IF you can find the in-focus area. You will need a well controlled environment and a tripod. Plastic is easy to handle. This is in no way a snapshot lens. I will be using a tripod most of the time. At f1.2 it is a job to find the "In Focus" area of the subject. This is what makes any f1.2 lens a fun challenge to use. I found it is best to use a fast shutter speed with a high ASA setting. At this point I like both the Olympus OM-System G.Zuiko Auto-S 55mm f1.2 1974 Radioactive 3389 CPM, but I like the Canon FL 55mm f1.2 Fluorite Lens 1968 color better at this point. Jim

What 35mm colour films you use when trying out the zuiko lenses or do you use a digital body camera.

Olympus is my favorite. My collection at this point is: Olympus OM-System G.Zuiko Auto-S 55mm f1.2 1974 Radioactive 3389 CPM (BEST f1.2 ever) Olympus OM-System Zuiko MC Auto-S 50mm f1.4 Black Nose Radioactive 460 CPM (also Great) Olympus OM-System H.Zuiko Auto-W 24mm f2.8 MF However, it is winter and that is when I buy lenses.

You should do a video on the TechArt Manual lens Autofocus Adapter its great with OM glass.

Great recommendations as always! Also interested in the (vintage?) watch you’re wearing too!

Hi! Quick question: do you store your lenses with their diaphragm closed (f16 or above) or wide open? I can't seem to close the diaphragm on the Olympus 50mm I just bought and I don't see any manual/auto function or safety pin. Thank you

quite wonderful sample images and collection. I would like to ask what 35mm do you recommend when I've already owned the 50mm?

anyone can help me and say what mount is de 55mm 1.2 to search the converter to use it in my sony 7siii? thanks!

Have you ever shot with the 90mm f2 ? I haveone and have never seen it in tour reviews that i am aware of.

have a 50mm, 28mm and a 75mm - 150mm, love me some OM lenses

24:57 200! Повезло так повезло. Поздравляю. А 50/1.2 кайфовый

Several years ago I used to go to all the charity stores thrift shops whatever you want to call them in my town in the Pacific Northwest with my wife to search for old cameras and lenses all the time. While visiting one of the shops one day there were several cameras and some lenses in the case so I asked to look at those. Among the group there of mostly 10 or $20 cameras and lenses there were two Olympus lenses. Both 50mm in near mint condition one was the kit lens 50mm 1.8 and the other was 50mm 1.2 and the price on each of those was $15. As you might imagine I got pretty excited. I knew the 1.2 lens was very valuable but I really didn't have any idea I just thought wow that's an awful good deal. When I got home I did a search to find what they were selling for and I was pretty shocked. So i cleaned it up a little put an adapter on my Canon DSLR did some test shots put it on eBay and resold it. I had about 300 or so cameras and lenses at the time so it had to go. In all my years of vintage camera equipment hunting it was one of my greatest finds. So this was a few years back so it sold for a little less than the price that you mentioned in your video. Thank you so much for sharing these reviews of these old lenses I really enjoy them.

I have a f1.8 version on my OM-1. When viewing through the view finder however there seems to be vignetting. Granted this lens was very inexpensive and not purchased through a dealer. Any ideas? Thanks.

is there a way to mount Takumar and other m42 lenses to Olympus body?

I have the 50mm 1.4 that I use with a Canon camera. It is soft at times but can be sharper if stopped down. It does have great bokeh wide open. However I shoot macro and feel this isn’t quite the lens for me yet. It has advantages that the Canon 100mm doesn’t have but I tend to use the Canon lens most of the time. I’m not thinking of moving away from Canon and Olympus is an option but I’m not quite ready to buy the Olympus 90mm yet. Which one of these would you recommend instead? And are they all manual only even with an Olympus camera? Thanks

The one you left out of this presentation is the wonderful, but rare and expensive, 50mm f/2 macro.

Hi. Only the first versions of the 55mm f/1.2 (those with the silver filter ring) had thoriated lenses. Later version of this lens (black filter ring) don't (I measured mine and tests negative).

You missed the 50mm f/2 macro! It's from the same cohort of exotic late Zuikos as the the "exquisitely engineered" 100mm f/2, as you called it. As such, I will likely never own one myself, but I'd love to get a close look at one from your perspective as a fellow Zuiko fan.

A very interesting video as always. For many years the silver nose 50/1.4 was my only lens on my OM-1 during Uni and after. To be honest, my copy wasn't very good, and I eventually got fed up with repairs on my various Olympus equipment.

Could you tell me which machine you used to test these lenses? If there were more cameras, please let us know!! Thanks :)

You still need to test the "king" of the 50mm Zuikos, the 50mm f2 Macro ;-)

Olympus 50mm 1.8 Zuiko MC Auto-S Lens question. In the US most lens just say Japan but your lens says Made in Japan. Is there an acutal difference in the lenses or does it just depend on where it was sold? Thanks!!

To my opinion, the Olympus film cameras' problem is their mount tirage meaning that you can only use Leica R, dunno-which-other-one and Zuiko lenses on it without loosing infinity. This makes them less attractive in choosing a lens. I have a Canon AE1-Program and a OM-1n bodies that both work great but no lenses to mount on top, yet. I'm more interested in keeping the Canon since I can mount more lenses on it. What do you think?

Did you shot this episode on a fuji? Looks very fuji-esque, great videos as always!

Can you make a video like this, but with Pentax lenses, please!?! :-)

What to you think abot the Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 ????

Nice content, but try to keep the mic away from you watch as it was picking the the ticking sound quite well.

I was doing fine untill you flashed the front element of that beautiful 55 1.2. I'm a big fan of "slow" vintage macro lenses. A nikkor 55 3.5 lives on my Fuji

The OM 40 which is plastic fantastic... they put 2 layers of paint on top plate a sort of bronze one then black over that to mimic brassing eventually... these are pricey for what they are too methinks.....

How about the Olympus zukio 50 mm 1.4

25:48 Media Offline!

lenses can have faults. Mid eighties, I tipped up my cash to buy a Zuiko 24 shift - it took six weeks to be delivered. I took it home and ran a roll of film thro, dev'd & printed - there was a soft spot size of a 10p piece! The lens got swapped in three days. Why six weeks to deliver and three days to swap? Grump. That Zuiko 24 is still in my bag, converted to nikon f.

Thank you very much . Around 40 years ago , I bought used Olympus . OM 1 + 50mm f.1.8　8,000 Yen. OM 1 New + 50mm f.1.4　15,000 Yen . OM 28mm f.3.5　6,000 Yen . OM 135mm f.3.5　3,000 Yen . OM 100mm f.2　15,000 Yen. OM 50mm f.1.8 is superb . But 50mm f.1.8 and 135mm f.3.5 , I couldn’t find them in my room . But those must be existing . I love those film loading type cameras . But I couldn’t buy films for them anymore . Simply , from my monetary reason . I have been deeply sorry to them . I love Olympus blue , and red , of them colors . Apr. 10th 2024 Wed. 07:21 am from Yokohama City Japan

What’s your favourite 50 vintage

11:41 классная картинка

Who writes this stuff?

14:55 мой 1.4 очень лягкий и был разачарован сразу после покупки

Love your videos, but please don't wear your watch it's distracting as hell while your voice is very soothing and pleasant.

There’s a reason my nickname is “Zuikoholic”

I keep ending up watching your videos only to have my ears assaulted by the intro sound. 😭