Olympus EM1 which budget telephoto zoom

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Grumps1974

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I am looking at buying a telephoto zoom for my EM1. I should start by saying that this will get only very occasional use so I am not looking to spend large amounts of money. I already have to 40-150 pro which is a fantastic lens but I would like something with extra reach for those odd occasions when the 40-150 is not man enough. I have an adaptor so I can use both 4/3 and m 4/3 lenses.

I have been researching the 70-300 Zuiko and the 75-300 Zuiko but the reviews on these suggest they are both soft at 300mm. Viewing photos taken with these lenses on Flickr taken at this focal range seem to support these reviews. As this is the focal range I will use this lens for this is it makes me wonder if there are other lenses I should consider. Or can owners/users of either of these lenses demonstrate that these reviews are overly critical and that these lenses can be sharp at 300mm?

I would add that the lenses would be used for birding and other wildlife.

Any advice will be grateful received.
 
Not got it i use the 100-400, i have read you need to knock it back to about 275mm,the other one is the Panasonic 100-300,again some say knock it back to about 275mm
 
The Panasonic version is supposedly a little sharper but in reality a £200 budget won't get you anything better - you need to spring for a Panasonic 100-400 if you want a sharp long zoom (I have one, it's a great lens).
 
Nawty said:
The Panasonic version is supposedly a little sharper but in reality a £200 budget won't get you anything better - you need to spring for a Panasonic 100-400 if you want a sharp long zoom (I have one, it's a great lens).
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I agree with this, I was just having a look at the Panny Leica offerings at that focal length. The budget is very limiting but I know this can't be helped.
 
I had 3 copies of the Panasonic 100-300 before I found a decent one, still better at 250 than 300 though.
 
I've had the Panasonic 45-200 MkI, the Panasonic 100-300 MkI and now have the Olympus m4/3 75-300 MkII. For the money, the Olympus is the best available option I think.

I also have the Panasonic 100-400 but this is significantly more expensive and is also far less portable than the Oly 75-300 II.
 
Thanks for all the comments - they seem to reinforce everything I have read in my research so far.

I have heard some good things about the Panny 100-400 but it would not represent value for money for the rare occasions I would use it and I will pass on that lens.

Has no one tried the 4/3rd 70-300 which seems to get similar reviews for IQ and sharpness to the 75-300 MkII and is quite a bit cheaper?
 
Best value would be to buy the 1.4X convertor, gives you extra reach with your 40-150 pro with just 1stop of light penalty, i.e. F4 instead of F2.8, PS tried 4/3 lenses myself and found them slow to focus, especially at the long ends.
 
magicaxeman said:
Best value would be to buy the 1.4X convertor, gives you extra reach with your 40-150 pro with just 1stop of light penalty, i.e. F4 instead of F2.8, PS tried 4/3 lenses myself and found them slow to focus, especially at the long ends.
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I have thought about that but it still only gives me the equivalent of 210mm. Some way short of 300 and when you take in the crop factor of the lens this is actually 180mm less reach than a 300 lens offers.

Given all this advice it seems that there is no good solution to my dilemma. The best option would seem to be a m4/3 75-100 and keep below 275mm.
 
Just to muddy the waters. Does anyone have experience of using EF to M4/3 adapters? I could attach my Canon 70-300L to the EM1. Lenses don't come much sharper than this one. It would give me the extra reach and the better adapters have electronic connections allowing AF, aperture control and IS.

It is also the cheapest alternative!
 
Grumps1974 said:
I have thought about that but it still only gives me the equivalent of 210mm. Some way short of 300 and when you take in the crop factor of the lens this is actually 180mm less reach than a 300 lens offers.

Given all this advice it seems that there is no good solution to my dilemma. The best option would seem to be a m4/3 75-100 and keep below 275mm.
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Well there is one, but you won't like it, thats the Olympus 300mm F4, yes I know far to expensive but it does do the job superbly.
I often used the 40-150 pro + 1.4x and cropped as I found it still gave me a better quality image than using a 75-300 or similar.
 
I think the Panasonic 100-400 and 300mm f/4 are the only two really convincing very long lenses for m4/3. All the other myriad of 70-xxx are decent enough but all a little slow in the AF department and none that I know of are at their best at full extension. If it's genuinely occasional stuff though and you don't need fast AF, either the Olympus 75-300 or Panasonic 100-300 do a decent enough job and don't take up too much room or ruin your bank account too much.

Wild card option would be to go for a manual focus SLR 300mm f/4.5 lens. There are quite a few decent options. I've had Olympus OM and Nikon variants and both were decent though obviously a little less straight forward to use. I'm sure there was someone on here getting superb results with an old Tokina 300mm 2.8 as well.
 
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After giving some consideration to all the comments on here (sincere thanks to everyone who took the time and trouble to contribute) I have reached the conclusion that no M4/3 lens that falls in my budget will be good enough. If I bought one I suspect I would be disappointed and end up selling it.

So I am now looking into an EF to M4/3 adaptor coupled with my Canon 70-300L. Amazon seem to have a wide range available. I will ignore the cheap end of the range but a couple just over £100 offer AF, Aperture control and retain the lens IS capability. A few years ago I used Canon EF lenses on the Canon M1 body via an adaptor and this worked really well. The only thing I had to remember was to hold the lens and not the body to avoid putting too much strain on the camera lens mount.
 
I've heard the Oly 75-300 mkII is sharper than the Pany 100-300 mk1, the mkII Panasonic might be better but a lot pricier. The Oly 75-300 mkII can be got for 300 new on HDEW
 
I had the Panny 100-300mm and Olympus 75-300mm, the Panny was sharper at the long end and was pretty decent tbh, maybe I just got a good copy? The main problem with these lenses for me is how slow they are to focus, the hunt A LOT at the long end at anything other than bright light. This was on the EM5-II though, I’d got rid of them before I bought the EM1 so don’t know if AF is any better with this combo.
 
I'm interested in buying one of the 100/75 - 300 lenses for birds, and general outdoor use. The slightly brighter aperture on the Panasonic makes it more attractive but the Oly can be got cheaper, I don't need blindingly sharp, just more reach than I have atm - the Oly 40-150 kit lens and an old MF 200mm. If the 200-270mm range is sharp that would be more than enough for my needs. People are buying them as soon as they turn up on the likes of MPB though, both the Pana mk1 and the Olympus mkII, they had one of each only the other day and already gone.

I was trying to sell my em5 + the 40-150 to fund one but nobody seems interested atm. It is kinda nice having a second camera though, but I find I only really use one if I head out to shoot.
 
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I've used the olly 75-300 mk II and both the panny 100-300 lenses and the panny wins for me. Currently I am using the panny 100-300 mk 2 as it has weatherproofing which is good to have plus the wider aperture over the Olly.
 
Ajophotog said:
I've used the olly 75-300 mk II and both the panny 100-300 lenses and the panny wins for me. Currently I am using the panny 100-300 mk 2 as it has weatherproofing which is good to have plus the wider aperture over the Olly.
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Thanks Alby

I have now ruled out all M4/3 lenses until I can afford a 100-400. In the meantime I am exploring the suitability/performance of a Commlite EF to M4/3 adapter. Currently on sale for £146 on Amazon. This will allow me full AF, aperture control, lens IS and record full Exif between my EM1 body and my Canon 70-300L. At this price it is significantly cheaper than any M4/3 telephoto zoom lens and will allow me to use all my Canon lenses with the EM1 body.
 
Grumps1974 said:
Thanks Alby

I have now ruled out all M4/3 lenses until I can afford a 100-400. In the meantime I am exploring the suitability/performance of a Commlite EF to M4/3 adapter. Currently on sale for £146 on Amazon. This will allow me full AF, aperture control, lens IS and record full Exif between my EM1 body and my Canon 70-300L. At this price it is significantly cheaper than any M4/3 telephoto zoom lens and will allow me to use all my Canon lenses with the EM1 body.
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Sounds like a plan if you have the lenses already, l did use the older commilte adapter with just the aperture function with my mp-e 65 and it worked pretty well.
 
Decision made. Going to buy an EF to M4/3 adapter and see if my Canon 70-300L provides the results I want. This is by far the cheapest option, let's hope it is a good choice.

Sincere thanks to everyone who contributed.
 
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Looking forward to seeing the results Martin it you decide to share. ;)
 
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