Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 300 mm F4.0 PRO Lens, Telephoto Zoom, Suitable for All MFT Cameras (Olympus OM-D & PEN Models, Panasonic G Series), Black

Product Information

Using Olympus Sync-IS technology you get 5 stops of image stabilization, meaning you can shoot stills and video at 1200mm handheld!

Given that MFT lenses have a smaller sensor with a 2x crop factor, the focal length of any mounted lens is inherently doubled. As you can see in the photos throughout this review, out-of-focus backgrounds are smooth and not distracting, with round out-of-focus highlights.

Each of these options has a narrower maximum aperture and slower autofocus than the Olympus 300mm f/4. For good measure, I did a simple autofocus test with the OM-1 to see how long it took to focus from the minimum focusing distance to a distant wall. It’s a distraction and unhelpful given that the point of a lens review (in my mind) is to help us appreciate the value of the lens, not sensor size.

Of course you can in theory build a small sensor with photo-diodes same size like one in FF sensor, and then noise will be well controlled, but resolution of the sensor will be badly affected.IS PRO is so sharp and high performing it feels like it is over 300mm, simply because the increased sharpness allows more cropping compared to the Olympus 100-300mm f/4-5. When I am using my Pentax K-3 III I can switch for extra crop of my photos, and this is exact simulation of smaller sensor be used – the noise is at exact same level, but resolution of final image is smaller, because the photo-diodes are exactly the same in size, but less of them producing the image. However, taking the Olympus 300mm f/4 as an example, the difference in magnified reach between the two lenses is a staggering 360mm (the MC-14 turning it into an 840mm equivalent, the MC-20 a 1200mm equivalent). And about this ‘light gathering’ nonsense – square centimeter of a sensor behind an optical instrument will ALWAYS gather same amount of light, no matter how big the sensor is. The lens packs a powerful punch in a small package, with a full-frame equivalent focal length of 600mm.

This helps limit any autofocus hunting behavior; I found it especially helpful when photographing subjects at close range.

The close focus leads to so many different looks than when I shot full frame Nikon, but it also changed what I shoot. The stabilization is most effective when paired with Olympus bodies, where synchronized image stabilization will give you up to 6 stops stabilization. I ended up missing some photos because of this – by the time I figured out why my autofocus wasn’t working, the opportune moment had passed!