Review on 📷 Panasonic LUMIX Professional 8-18mm Camera Lens: G LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT Review & Specs by Brian Cooper

Panasonic GH5 users need this lens. It's slightly larger than the stock Panasonic Leica 12-60mm, but this lens is no less practical. This is my favorite lens for all stabilized work. The front element doesn't pop out when zooming, which means I don't have to adjust the gimbal balance whether it's 8mm or 18mm. An added bonus for videographers and landscape photographers is the non-protruding front face which allows for 67mm filters - THIS IS HUGE! The lens itself is well built, with sleek zoom rings, and it's parfocal too! Panasonic definitely took the time to get it right and surpass their own 7-14mm. So what are the downsides? In my opinion there are two. The aperture isn't a constant f/2.8, but the loss of light transitions smoothly as you zoom in rather than in sharp 1/3 stop clicks. Second, when used with IBIS in Panasonic bodies (I've used it on the G85 and GH5) there can sometimes be distorted distortion (or a "jelly-like" appearance) in the outer corners of the image. Apparently this has been fixed in the latest firmware release for the GH5, but I have yet to confirm if this is actually an improvement or not. But those are picky negatives. Overall this lens is excellent, with excellent build quality and sharp image reproduction. I highly recommend this lens.