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Gede Agung ᠌ photo
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117 Review
82 Karma

Review on πŸ“· Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO 12-32mm Silver Lens - International Version (No Warranty): Micro Four Thirds Interchangeable Lens with MEGA OIS for High-Quality Photography by Gede Agung ᠌

Revainrating 3 out of 5

Not everything is so bad, but there are disadvantages.

Due to the large distortions, it is very difficult to photograph people with it. The lens is plastic. Only a bayonet mount and a superimposed corrugated ring for changing the focal length are metal. Made in China. After a year and a half of use, the focal length change ring fell off. It was kept on some kind of putty (something like a sealant in consistency). Underneath is the plastic body of the lens itself. I sealed the hole in the lens body with tape, which previously covered the ring, and continue to use it. The lens did not drop, did not hit. Sometimes he carried it in his pocket (along with the carcass), but most often he was in his bag. I got it complete with a carcass (GM1 was not sold separately). I wouldn’t buy this lens voluntarily (unless it’s very cheap, for experiments) - I would prefer a 20 or 25 mm fix.

Pros
  • Compact, lightweight lens (GM1 body + lens fits into a large pocket). Convenient range of focal lengths. Quite sharp in good lighting conditions. A small minimum focusing distance (about 15 cm at all focal lengths) - you can shoot easy macro. I didn't notice any chromatic aberrations.
Cons
  • Very large geometric distortions. You have to bring it into working condition in order to start shooting (in this case, the lens expands, approximately doubling in length). Large optical distortion at the edges of the frame, especially at minimum focal lengths. Not a very successful design of the zoom ring (more details in the comments). No manual focus ring. Dark for the room. Normal shots are obtained only during the day on the street.