Hello Robin. I have had this lens for over a year now. I hardly ever did wildlife photography before. This was truly a game changer for me. Its portability, image quality is truly exceptional at this price. This lens has opened up a field of activity that was previously unknown to me!
Wow!!! This very same lens is supposed to land on my doorstep within an hour or two! I got it shipped for 300 bucks and I can't wait to try it out. What a coincidence! 😸
I love the 75-300mm lens. My goto lens for birding and wildlife. It's a super-value and the images come out very nicely. And it's very light and compact.
Had it, it was fine , but it creeped all the time when I hanged it on the Peak Design Capture. The 100-400 was definitely sharper, but you needed to crop to see the difference. The 300 is a whole different league. Seriously, it's a magic lens. If you have any doubts and you like birding - go for the 300. It's miles ahead of the other two. Then I recently bought the 150-400. The optical quality is around 95% of the 300 and it is heavier and bigger, but with flexibility of zoom. I love it, but for most people I suggest the 300. The 150-400 has a design flaw with the bayonet, it's very soft and scratches easily, so mount the camera on the lens and not vise versa.
Thanks for the review. I was looking for this lens and at that time the camera store I go to were out of stock, so I ended up getting the Oly 100-400. I am still considering getting the 75-300 just for its weight. It would be good to use with my EM5 m2 with the 17 1.8, 14-42 ez and the 75 1.8. Weather sealing would be good, but those three lenses are'nt weather sealed so not such a big deal. Having a light kit walking the streets in nice weather is a treat. Once again thank you for the work you put into making these videos. 📸
The Olympus 100-400mm is a better lens overall - longer reach, built in stabilization, weather-sealed, teleconverter compatible, etc. However there is just something so fun using such a small lens yet getting a 300mm reach, with very decent results!
I just got the Oly 100-400, already owned the 75-300. I wouldn't sell one over the other. The 400mm reach is awesome, but handheld you will really start to "feel it" after 10mins in. Good to build triceps muscles. Using the 75-300 almost felt weightless. Indoor events I'd go with 75-300 for the reach. The 100-400 will attract too much attention as well.
3 місяці тому+2
Great budget lens, I'm waiting for cashback promo and will certainly get one too. Unfortunately used gear market is rather poor here in Poland - prices are usually high and availability is low. Thanks for review, cheers!
OMG - yesterday I had a terrific day of shooting landscapes with this lens on my EM1 iii. Even focused on objects many hundreds of meters away it is so sharp, while on close in objects it has good bokeh. I was skeptical that a slow, inexpensive, ridiculous zoom ratio lens could be so good, but no longer!
You get so much out of such a compact, lightweight lens, right? The versatility, and massive zoom can reach so far away, giving you a lot of flexibility when it comes to composition. And the lens is quite sharp too.
I bought it this summer because I went to a safari in Kenya, and my budget was low. I think for someone like me that don't do many wildlife photos is really enough. Sure other lenses are better but this one is light and reliable. Great video as always!
Great review Robin. The joy and enthusiasm you bring to your videos is infectious. Question, how did you record your camera viewfinder footage? (When it's focusing on the subject)
I have used this lens for many years on my GH4, 5 and 6. Works very well. Not a great lens but good enough. Once you feel how light it is it is hard to consider the 100-400.
This lens is my go to telephoto for long hikes, even though I own the 100-400mm. Prior to the E-M1X I found that I pretty much needed to use a tripod with this lens to get the very sharp images it is capable of. The improvement of IBIS on the E-M1X and OM-1 have made it a new lens for me. Now I get very sharp results hand holding in any decent light. It is one of the best bargains in photography at current prices -- especially when you consider that the original version 1 sold for around $800 US when it first came out!
Nice one, Robin! I have been interested in this lens for a while, so your video came at the perfect time. I've had thr Panasonic 200mm f2.8 which was an incredible lens in terms of optical quality, but it became heavy to use. Something like this 75-300 looks like it wouls of course be much lighter, and not lose out too much on quality either. I may have to give it a try!
8/12/24 Enjoyed the color sharpness of the bird shots, nice closeup shots. i also enjoyed how you were able to capture what was going on in the view finder, was wonder if you could show how you did that the camera setup and steps needed to do so.
This is a great lens. I own this, and I agree for the price, it's a great lens. The one thing I wish it had is IS. Sometimes I wish the lens was more stable with my EM5.
Thanks for reviewing this lens. I have had mine for a while and haven't used it a whole lot. Am planning on going to a wildlife sanctuary with a friend, where they can use the larger 150-500mm sigma and I'll use the Oly 75-300.
I got one for my first safari and used it on my E-M5. Loved it, but yes, F6.7 was limiting :-) Got me started on animal photography though. 100-400 didn't exist thenI upgraded to the 40-150 F2.8 PRO with MC14 1.4x teleconvertor which were a great combo with significantly better contrast and lower F numbers, at least up to ~210mm. I liked to use it on a monopod. Got great results and stopped using the 75-300mm entirely. I later sold it for not much :-( That, though was in a sense a stopgap as I really wanted the then upcoming 300 F4 PRO. It took a long time to arrive, even after pre-orders. When the 300 was close I stopped using the monopod as with Sync IS they 300 was going to be properly handholdable. The 300mm, when it arrived, instantly became my favourite lens. It still is. The 300, which is fantastic, showed just how good the 40-150 is, better even than I thought when I first used it. I still use that combo all the time. In normal use on real subjects, I really cannot tell which lens I used. But, it was the 75-300 II that got me started.
Definitely, a PRO grade lens is going to be far superior than a budget, non pro 75-300mm lens. The 300mm PRO is a technological marvel, Olympus was very proud of that achievement! It was incredibly sharp!
Great lens the balance with the OM1 is great compared to full frame the combination is so light to carry around. Love using mine great for wild life and surfers.
Thanks again Robin. I have the 70-300 and I love it. My only complaint is I wish it had a lock similar to the OM 100-400. I find the lens fairly easily slides out while I'm walking around. You're sounding a bit croaky. Semoga cepat sembuh! I'll buy you a coffee to help get you through 😁
Thanks for this great video Robin. You are right; adding the 3 items on your wishlist would surely push the cost up. Then it would no longer be a budget lens :)
Lovely images and a well rounded review Robin, thanks for making the video. I never owned or tried the Olympus 75-300mm lens but I have owned for a time the Panasonic 100-300mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and no matter how hard I try I can't see the Olympus being worth considering over Panasonic unless size is an absolute must (and you are not saving all that much weight or length still). Even if one does not want weather sealing the first version of the Panasonic lens can be found reasonably affordable while maintaining a lot of the benefits over Olympus. I think autofocus motor and performance against the Olympus MSC (premium/none-Pro) lenses is the same with Panasonic lenses and I doubt there's a noticeable difference to chose the 75-300 over 100-300 if you have a Olympus camera. (It would be noticeable only if you have a Panasonic DFD based camera where staying with Panasonic lenses makes a difference in autofocus performance). F 6.7 Vs f 5.6 can be a big difference in countries with dark/er winters where every extra bit of light can give you either shutter speed fast enough that won't ruin the picture if the subject is moving or lower ISO for more editing headroom, larger prints, more cropping or better JPEGs. From my own experience the Olympus/OM IBIS, as good as it is, will start falling in it's efficiency when you go past 200mm (400mm FX equivalent). For weather sealing the cheapest telephoto lenses one can have are the Panasonic 45-200mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and Panasonic 100-300mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and OM doesn't offer anything cheaper then the 40-150mm f 4 PRO (not very telephoto and no TC support) or 100-400mm f 5-6.3 unless one will accept the IQ impact at 200mm with Olympus 12-200mm f 3.5-6.3 OM still has quite a few gaps in their lens lineup that can/should he covered either with new lenses or upgraded design of the older lenses. It's a bit surprising that the company that focuses so much on outdoor lifestyle they lack an affordable telephoto weather sealed lens.
I have tried both the Panasonic 100-300mm and Olympus 75-300mm II, and I must say the Olympus 75-300mm II fits Olympus OM-D cameras better. It handles better (being smaller and lighter), the AF is better and somehow the image quality is also noticeably better than Panasonic. Tables can quickly turn if you use a Panasonic body instead. However the differences (AF speed, image quality, etc) are so small, they are negligible in my books, both are great lenses.
I am delighted to use this telephoto lens attached to the EM5 camera for bird photography and video for my UA-cam content. Thanks for the video, Robin. A big LIKE from Singapore.
This was my original camera + lens set-up after watching Robin’s original video with the 75-300mm in the same bird park from 2020! It’s a terrific beginners’ birding lens. Unparalleled reach for the cost and size. My only mistake was buying it brand new! Curiously, the original version of this lens was slightly brighter, but I believe also heavier.
Hi Robin, 75mm-300mm is a nice focal length and would be great for Portraits and Macro. I love the very accurate eye detection on those Birds, is spot on. Beautiful Bird Park and it's nice to be out in Nature. Thanks for sharing Robin. 😊
I don't think 75-300mm is good for portraits and macro. For people I shoot with 45mm, and for macro, you need more magnification, which 75-300mm does not provide.
@@robinwong 45mm lens is great for Portraits as is 50mm and from 75-300mm is also a good choice. Your right about Macro, but you can still use 300mm for Marco, it's not the ideal Focal length but can still be used in an emergency 😂. The 105mm is great for Macro. Thanks Robin ☺️
Oh yes I like this one too. It is fine when combined with 12-100/4 or 12-50/3.5-6.3. Works well on EM5III. On EPL-6 even with added EVF it was a bit cumbersome and without that EVF usability is crippled a lot. So I would only suggest it to owners of EVF capable bodies like EM10/EM5/EM1 and PEN-F lines. The only strange thing is that it is actually larger than my APS-C Pentax HD DA 55-300mm f/4,5-6,3 ED PLM WR RE which is also a bit faster. Image quality is about the same, of course 20Mpix M4/3 has a bit finer resolution than 24Mpix APS-C, but still.. OM should prepare some 50-300/5-6.3 with weather sealing. That would be even better since 75mm start is sometimes a bit too long. :D And one sad part is, that lens is supplied without lens hood. Bought one plastic reversible and sure it helps with contrast and flares when shooting into light sources direction.
It looks like an incredible lens that can use all the power from the mft sensor. Unfortunetly here in Brazil, those lenses are hard to find and very expensive. My only way to deal with this, was to find an old Nikon P600, wich for bird photography works wonders for me! Unfortunetly, it doesnt have all that mft sensor quality, but its cheap tho.
Yeah I understand the availability of lenses, whether new or in used market varies depending on where you are. If you can find one in good price, it is an excellent value lens.
Hi Robin I have this lens and I’m disappointed with my version, it’s not very sharp at any length on my OM5, likely it’s a manufacturing variation but I’ve decide to go with the 40-150 with 1.4 teleconverter and it’s a great combo
@@BennyLindroth I’ve got the 40 -150 F2.8 pro which will take the teleconverter, the kit version variable aperture version does not take Olympus teleconverters. I’ve got the 1.4 tele. The 75-300 is version 2
Flaws are very minor for the price. Recently moved from Sony APSC to OM1 Mkii and this lens is roughly on par with Sony 70-350 G Ito image quality. Also on the OM1 image stabilization isn’t a problem. Would love an update per Robin’s suggestions but I am happy with this version. I was considering 100-400 but am satisfied with this much smaller and lighter lens. If the 100-400 was a faster lens I would reevaluate.
I started with this lens and the size is great for travel but when doing photo walks for birds in Japan I missed the extra reach of my 100-400 and at low end missed a wider angle for landscape. Cant they make a lightweight weather sealed 14-400 lens 😅.
This lens surprised me. I bought it very cheap with fungus inside, and guess what, it still easily compares to my Leica 100-400 on the G9 II. Maybe it's even sharper a bit at 300mm. My copy is sharper at 300mm than at 75-200 range. I'm still experimenting with stopping it down a bit to make it sharper on the wide end, but on the long end it's very very good wide open, better than my panasonic 100-300mm II.
I remember you bought the Panasonic 100-300mm about half year ago so you have two super telephoto zoom lens of roughly the same focal range for M43 now.😊
Wow, the size is attractive indeed. At 1:23 there're few trees on the left side, shaded with almost no sunshine. If a bird is perched on those shaded branch, I wonder will this lens be bright enough at 300mm. Any idea?
I agree with some of your thoughts for improvements but it shouldn't be at the expense of portability. For example adding IS seems to me unnecessary as the IBIS of the OM1 is so good. It could do with better sealing however. The zoom tube works like a pump and and can draw dust inside. Mine has a dust speck on the inside of the front element which does not seem to affect quality though it could cause flare. Most of the 2nd hand versions have internal dust so it's not just me.
I'm thinking of switching from Sony APS-C to OM-1 II but confused on a lens. Size & weight are major considerations, but I can get them from the specs. What I can't get are autofocus performance and image quality. So should I buy 75-300mm II, Zuiko 100-400mm, Lumix 100-300mm II, or Leica 100-400mm II? Any thoughts/suggestions welcome.
So far, did you find any issues with my images (you can see from the ISO they were not in bright conditions either)? I thought F6.7 was perfectly fine, considering the small size ands far reach.
Im not very pleased with the Panasonic 100-300mm version 1 lens. It focus hunts like crazy, whether im using the gx85 or em1 mark i. Im tempted to try the olympus to see if the focus performance is better. Even with dual IS on Panasonic, i get more sharp pictures with the em1 mark 1. I wonder though if i would struggle less pairing it with my G9 and em1 mark 2.
I was always tempted to buy this lens, but will probably by the teleconverter MC-20 to my 140-150 Pro lens. Nothing can beat it's weight though... Tough decision... What would you do Robin? Thanks for the interesting review and great pics (as usually)
I also have the 40-150 f/2.8 PRO and decided to get the MC-20 teleconverter when I was looking for a super telephoto. On the used market, MC-20 and the 75-300 II lens are about the same price.
If you have the 40-150mm PRO, makes more sense to just get a tele converter - you still get full weather-sealing, and the 40-150m lens is no doubt a superior lens over the 75-300mm lens, in terms of image quality, build and also weather-sealing!
Lumix makes a beautiful tiny 15mm 1.7 Wonderful saturation and contrast. (Aperture Ring) Maybe you need the extra 0.3 and willing to put up with bigger and heavier. And $$$
@@robinwongAgreed, I have the plastic fantastic, the 14-150, and the 75-300, my aging eyes can't tell much of a difference between the three at similar focal lengths.
I own both 75-300 II and 40-150 R 4-5.6 and took time to compare image quality. It seems the 40-150 R is sharper, especially in close range. It is great for portraits at 40 mm. Contrast is clearly better with the 40-150 and that gives so much pop to the images. And of course it is way lighter. The 40-150 R plastic is a great lens, as sharp and saturated as my Leica 12-60 (on the 40-60 mm range). In the end, I travel with the 40-150 and only use the 75-300 on specific shootings.
PANA lumix 100-300mm they have f4-f5.6, that lens having a not bad sharpness as well. so why OM system creating something very similar to pana? and the market is quite small. i think pana lumix should take away the OIS and make it a smaller lens since they already got the G9ii have a powerful IBIS.
Hello Robin. I have had this lens for over a year now. I hardly ever did wildlife photography before. This was truly a game changer for me. Its portability, image quality is truly exceptional at this price. This lens has opened up a field of activity that was previously unknown to me!
Go out and grab some nice shots!
this is one of the great lens that keeps me in m43 system, light weight, affordable pricing, great result. really love this lens
Yeap, this is what Micro Four Thirds should be. Not crazy huge, heavy and expensive.
Wow!!! This very same lens is supposed to land on my doorstep within an hour or two! I got it shipped for 300 bucks and I can't wait to try it out. What a coincidence!
😸
Hope you enjoy the lens
I got this lens earlier this week from the OM system reconditioned sale in France, it's in perfect condition. Loving it so far paired with my OM-5.
Great that you have the lens!
I love the 75-300mm lens. My goto lens for birding and wildlife. It's a super-value and the images come out very nicely. And it's very light and compact.
I whole-heartedly agree with your assessment. This was the second lens I bought when I moved to the M43 system.
The 75-300 is an engineering marvel. I started out with one and hate I sold it because it's so travel friendly and is incredibly sharp for $300 used.
Go find one in the used market!
Had it, it was fine , but it creeped all the time when I hanged it on the Peak Design Capture. The 100-400 was definitely sharper, but you needed to crop to see the difference. The 300 is a whole different league. Seriously, it's a magic lens. If you have any doubts and you like birding - go for the 300. It's miles ahead of the other two. Then I recently bought the 150-400. The optical quality is around 95% of the 300 and it is heavier and bigger, but with flexibility of zoom. I love it, but for most people I suggest the 300. The 150-400 has a design flaw with the bayonet, it's very soft and scratches easily, so mount the camera on the lens and not vise versa.
Love my 75-300, especially in some light
It is an amazing lens
Thanks for the review. I was looking for this lens and at that time the camera store I go to were out of stock, so I ended up getting the Oly 100-400. I am still considering getting the 75-300 just for its weight. It would be good to use with my EM5 m2 with the 17 1.8, 14-42 ez and the 75 1.8. Weather sealing would be good, but those three lenses are'nt weather sealed so not such a big deal. Having a light kit walking the streets in nice weather is a treat. Once again thank you for the work you put into making these videos. 📸
The Olympus 100-400mm is a better lens overall - longer reach, built in stabilization, weather-sealed, teleconverter compatible, etc. However there is just something so fun using such a small lens yet getting a 300mm reach, with very decent results!
I just got the Oly 100-400, already owned the 75-300. I wouldn't sell one over the other. The 400mm reach is awesome, but handheld you will really start to "feel it" after 10mins in. Good to build triceps muscles. Using the 75-300 almost felt weightless. Indoor events I'd go with 75-300 for the reach. The 100-400 will attract too much attention as well.
Great budget lens, I'm waiting for cashback promo and will certainly get one too. Unfortunately used gear market is rather poor here in Poland - prices are usually high and availability is low. Thanks for review, cheers!
Yeah if it is no rush just wait for some promo, wise to save a bit there
OMG - yesterday I had a terrific day of shooting landscapes with this lens on my EM1 iii. Even focused on objects many hundreds of meters away it is so sharp, while on close in objects it has good bokeh. I was skeptical that a slow, inexpensive, ridiculous zoom ratio lens could be so good, but no longer!
You get so much out of such a compact, lightweight lens, right? The versatility, and massive zoom can reach so far away, giving you a lot of flexibility when it comes to composition. And the lens is quite sharp too.
I bought it this summer because I went to a safari in Kenya, and my budget was low. I think for someone like me that don't do many wildlife photos is really enough. Sure other lenses are better but this one is light and reliable. Great video as always!
Great review Robin. The joy and enthusiasm you bring to your videos is infectious. Question, how did you record your camera viewfinder footage? (When it's focusing on the subject)
I enjoyed this video very much. Thank you Robin
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video
Hi Robin,
Really like you way of presenting!
Many thanks for your great reviews!
Thanks, appreciate that.
Hi Robin. Let`s do this !
Wow…some wonderful photos, plus always enjoy your energy! You did something similar a while ago with the Pan 100-300 and some great photos there too!
Thanks. I have sold off the Panasonic 100-300mm lens, I don't need it any more.
I have used this lens for many years on my GH4, 5 and 6. Works very well. Not a great lens but good enough. Once you feel how light it is it is hard to consider the 100-400.
I bought this lens when I purchased my OM-D E-M5 iii in 2021. I haven't seen any issues.
The 75-300mm II is a great performer for the budget price.
Love this video. Made me feel happy.
Aweesome
Thanks! I like all of your content but am primarily interested in m4/3.
Thanks so much! Appreciate the support
I love the 75-300 too. Feels good to hear you say nice things about the OM-1.
I have been saying nice things about Olympus/OM System perhaps more than anyone ever had since years ago.
This lens is my go to telephoto for long hikes, even though I own the 100-400mm. Prior to the E-M1X I found that I pretty much needed to use a tripod with this lens to get the very sharp images it is capable of. The improvement of IBIS on the E-M1X and OM-1 have made it a new lens for me. Now I get very sharp results hand holding in any decent light. It is one of the best bargains in photography at current prices -- especially when you consider that the original version 1 sold for around $800 US when it first came out!
Thanks robin …I got one from Amazon for £150. Amazing lens love it
That was a fantastic deal!
Nice one, Robin! I have been interested in this lens for a while, so your video came at the perfect time. I've had thr Panasonic 200mm f2.8 which was an incredible lens in terms of optical quality, but it became heavy to use. Something like this 75-300 looks like it wouls of course be much lighter, and not lose out too much on quality either. I may have to give it a try!
The Panasonic 200mm will be superior optically, no doubt. But the 75-300mm is more versatile and convenient to bring around.
8/12/24 Enjoyed the color sharpness of the bird shots, nice closeup shots. i also enjoyed how you were able to capture what was going on in the view finder, was wonder if you could show how you did that the camera setup and steps needed to do so.
I used an external HDMI capture device, which I have shown many times in my previous videos.
This is a great lens. I own this, and I agree for the price, it's a great lens. The one thing I wish it had is IS. Sometimes I wish the lens was more stable with my EM5.
I have this lens on my em5 and use an aftermarket grip which really helps with handling
@@angp7641 I have the Fotodiox grip for it.
Thanks for reviewing this lens. I have had mine for a while and haven't used it a whole lot. Am planning on going to a wildlife sanctuary with a friend, where they can use the larger 150-500mm sigma and I'll use the Oly 75-300.
I am sure you will enjoy the lens.
I got one for my first safari and used it on my E-M5. Loved it, but yes, F6.7 was limiting :-) Got me started on animal photography though. 100-400 didn't exist thenI upgraded to the 40-150 F2.8 PRO with MC14 1.4x teleconvertor which were a great combo with significantly better contrast and lower F numbers, at least up to ~210mm. I liked to use it on a monopod. Got great results and stopped using the 75-300mm entirely. I later sold it for not much :-( That, though was in a sense a stopgap as I really wanted the then upcoming 300 F4 PRO. It took a long time to arrive, even after pre-orders. When the 300 was close I stopped using the monopod as with Sync IS they 300 was going to be properly handholdable. The 300mm, when it arrived, instantly became my favourite lens. It still is. The 300, which is fantastic, showed just how good the 40-150 is, better even than I thought when I first used it. I still use that combo all the time. In normal use on real subjects, I really cannot tell which lens I used. But, it was the 75-300 II that got me started.
Definitely, a PRO grade lens is going to be far superior than a budget, non pro 75-300mm lens. The 300mm PRO is a technological marvel, Olympus was very proud of that achievement! It was incredibly sharp!
Great lens the balance with the OM1 is great compared to full frame the combination is so light to carry around. Love using mine great for wild life and surfers.
I agree, the small compact size and light weight nature of the lens made it such a joy to use.
Thank you Robin .😊👍🏼👌🏼
Cheers
Thanks again Robin. I have the 70-300 and I love it. My only complaint is I wish it had a lock similar to the OM 100-400. I find the lens fairly easily slides out while I'm walking around.
You're sounding a bit croaky. Semoga cepat sembuh! I'll buy you a coffee to help get you through 😁
Thanks for the coffee, but I am fine though!
Thanks for this great video Robin. You are right; adding the 3 items on your wishlist would surely push the cost up. Then it would no longer be a budget lens :)
Thanks, my pleasure to make the video and share.
Lovely images and a well rounded review Robin, thanks for making the video. I never owned or tried the Olympus 75-300mm lens but I have owned for a time the Panasonic 100-300mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and no matter how hard I try I can't see the Olympus being worth considering over Panasonic unless size is an absolute must (and you are not saving all that much weight or length still). Even if one does not want weather sealing the first version of the Panasonic lens can be found reasonably affordable while maintaining a lot of the benefits over Olympus. I think autofocus motor and performance against the Olympus MSC (premium/none-Pro) lenses is the same with Panasonic lenses and I doubt there's a noticeable difference to chose the 75-300 over 100-300 if you have a Olympus camera. (It would be noticeable only if you have a Panasonic DFD based camera where staying with Panasonic lenses makes a difference in autofocus performance). F 6.7 Vs f 5.6 can be a big difference in countries with dark/er winters where every extra bit of light can give you either shutter speed fast enough that won't ruin the picture if the subject is moving or lower ISO for more editing headroom, larger prints, more cropping or better JPEGs. From my own experience the Olympus/OM IBIS, as good as it is, will start falling in it's efficiency when you go past 200mm (400mm FX equivalent). For weather sealing the cheapest telephoto lenses one can have are the Panasonic 45-200mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and Panasonic 100-300mm f 4-5.6 Mark II and OM doesn't offer anything cheaper then the 40-150mm f 4 PRO (not very telephoto and no TC support) or 100-400mm f 5-6.3 unless one will accept the IQ impact at 200mm with Olympus 12-200mm f 3.5-6.3
OM still has quite a few gaps in their lens lineup that can/should he covered either with new lenses or upgraded design of the older lenses. It's a bit surprising that the company that focuses so much on outdoor lifestyle they lack an affordable telephoto weather sealed lens.
I have tried both the Panasonic 100-300mm and Olympus 75-300mm II, and I must say the Olympus 75-300mm II fits Olympus OM-D cameras better. It handles better (being smaller and lighter), the AF is better and somehow the image quality is also noticeably better than Panasonic. Tables can quickly turn if you use a Panasonic body instead. However the differences (AF speed, image quality, etc) are so small, they are negligible in my books, both are great lenses.
I am delighted to use this telephoto lens attached to the EM5 camera for bird photography and video for my UA-cam content. Thanks for the video, Robin. A big LIKE from Singapore.
This was my original camera + lens set-up after watching Robin’s original video with the 75-300mm in the same bird park from 2020! It’s a terrific beginners’ birding lens. Unparalleled reach for the cost and size. My only mistake was buying it brand new! Curiously, the original version of this lens was slightly brighter, but I believe also heavier.
The 75-300mm Mark I has the exact same optical formula and aperture opening of F4.8-6.7, the only difference is better coating in the Mark II version.
@@robinwong Hmm, then I must be thinking of another kens. I know some of the Zuiko (4/3) lenses were brighter than their later M. Zuiko counterparts.
I have this lens. Longest focul length softness is easily removed by DxO PureRaw software. So I love this lens for bird shooting.
Softness cannot be removed. Artificial sharpness is still artificial.
I was just looking into this. 75-300 seems optimal in reach size price quality/sharpness.
It is a great lens and it punches abvove its weight
Hi Robin, 75mm-300mm is a nice focal length and would be great for Portraits and Macro. I love the very accurate eye detection on those Birds, is spot on. Beautiful Bird Park and it's nice to be out in Nature. Thanks for sharing Robin. 😊
I don't think 75-300mm is good for portraits and macro. For people I shoot with 45mm, and for macro, you need more magnification, which 75-300mm does not provide.
@@robinwong 45mm lens is great for Portraits as is 50mm and from 75-300mm is also a good choice. Your right about Macro, but you can still use 300mm for Marco, it's not the ideal Focal length but can still be used in an emergency 😂. The 105mm is great for Macro. Thanks Robin ☺️
Oh yes I like this one too. It is fine when combined with 12-100/4 or 12-50/3.5-6.3. Works well on EM5III. On EPL-6 even with added EVF it was a bit cumbersome and without that EVF usability is crippled a lot. So I would only suggest it to owners of EVF capable bodies like EM10/EM5/EM1 and PEN-F lines.
The only strange thing is that it is actually larger than my APS-C Pentax HD DA 55-300mm f/4,5-6,3 ED PLM WR RE which is also a bit faster. Image quality is about the same, of course 20Mpix M4/3 has a bit finer resolution than 24Mpix APS-C, but still..
OM should prepare some 50-300/5-6.3 with weather sealing. That would be even better since 75mm start is sometimes a bit too long. :D
And one sad part is, that lens is supplied without lens hood. Bought one plastic reversible and sure it helps with contrast and flares when shooting into light sources direction.
Well, I shot the whole session without using the EVF, as I needed to rely on the external HDMI capture device. So yes, it is doable without EVF!
@@robinwong It is, just when you try to find plane on sky or bird on tree at 300mm only using LCD.. then EVF wins easily :D
It looks like an incredible lens that can use all the power from the mft sensor. Unfortunetly here in Brazil, those lenses are hard to find and very expensive. My only way to deal with this, was to find an old Nikon P600, wich for bird photography works wonders for me! Unfortunetly, it doesnt have all that mft sensor quality, but its cheap tho.
Yeah I understand the availability of lenses, whether new or in used market varies depending on where you are. If you can find one in good price, it is an excellent value lens.
Hoping to get one for my EM10 MK3 and hoping for some good results.
Go get one!
Hi Robin I have this lens and I’m disappointed with my version, it’s not very sharp at any length on my OM5, likely it’s a manufacturing variation but I’ve decide to go with the 40-150 with 1.4 teleconverter and it’s a great combo
PRO grade lens will always be superior
Thank you. I have the small 40-150 as well. Which converter di you use? ANd did you use the mk2 of the 75-300 or mk1?
@@BennyLindroth I’ve got the 40 -150 F2.8 pro which will take the teleconverter, the kit version variable aperture version does not take Olympus teleconverters. I’ve got the 1.4 tele. The 75-300 is version 2
Flaws are very minor for the price. Recently moved from Sony APSC to OM1 Mkii and this lens is roughly on par with Sony 70-350 G Ito image quality. Also on the OM1 image stabilization isn’t a problem. Would love an update per Robin’s suggestions but I am happy with this version. I was considering 100-400 but am satisfied with this much smaller and lighter lens. If the 100-400 was a faster lens I would reevaluate.
The 100-400mm adds weather-sealing and extra 100mm reach, which can be a lot depending on what you are doing. Also, it is tele-converter compatible.
I started with this lens and the size is great for travel but when doing photo walks for birds in Japan I missed the extra reach of my 100-400 and at low end missed a wider angle for landscape. Cant they make a lightweight weather sealed 14-400 lens 😅.
Sure, while we are at that why not make a 6-80000mm lens.
This lens surprised me. I bought it very cheap with fungus inside, and guess what, it still easily compares to my Leica 100-400 on the G9 II. Maybe it's even sharper a bit at 300mm. My copy is sharper at 300mm than at 75-200 range. I'm still experimenting with stopping it down a bit to make it sharper on the wide end, but on the long end it's very very good wide open, better than my panasonic 100-300mm II.
I agree with you, the 75-300mm II is sharper than 100-300mm II, but if I say this, Panasonic fans will come to me with nuclear bombs.
@@robinwong 😆😆😆
I remember you bought the Panasonic 100-300mm about half year ago so you have two super telephoto zoom lens of roughly the same focal range for M43 now.😊
I sold off the Panasonic. Did not need it anymore, I bought it for one job only.
Excellent lens with range. I wish it was faster for low light event shooting.
If it was faster, then it would have been bigger, heavier and more expensive.
Wow, the size is attractive indeed. At 1:23 there're few trees on the left side, shaded with almost no sunshine. If a bird is perched on those shaded branch, I wonder will this lens be bright enough at 300mm. Any idea?
I never experienced any issues with AF on the lens
Thank you :)
Cheers
Thanks
Thanks so much!
I agree with some of your thoughts for improvements but it shouldn't be at the expense of portability. For example adding IS seems to me unnecessary as the IBIS of the OM1 is so good. It could do with better sealing however. The zoom tube works like a pump and and can draw dust inside. Mine has a dust speck on the inside of the front element which does not seem to affect quality though it could cause flare. Most of the 2nd hand versions have internal dust so it's not just me.
Just send in the lens for service if there is dust in the front element. Should be easily cleaned.
Thanks! Can u compare this lens to 40-150 from olympus ? :)
OM is currently having what seems to be a crazy sale. Is it just me or does this spark some degree of concern among others as well?
I'm thinking of switching from Sony APS-C to OM-1 II but confused on a lens. Size & weight are major considerations, but I can get them from the specs. What I can't get are autofocus performance and image quality. So should I buy 75-300mm II, Zuiko 100-400mm, Lumix 100-300mm II, or Leica 100-400mm II? Any thoughts/suggestions welcome.
I will pick the pana 100-400 II. Like how it look, Len's I.S. is what you can trust with no doubt.
Image quality they are all great, AF should be no issue either, just make sure you update all firmwares (both body and lens)
The lens certainly delivers sharp photos, but I find aperture 6.7 an imposition.
faster lens= bigger size. a bigger bag, plus a deeper pocket😂
@@danielchill3240 I've paid less with cashback for a Canon EF 70-300mm 4.0-5.6 IS II USM than the Olympus lens costs.
So far, did you find any issues with my images (you can see from the ISO they were not in bright conditions either)? I thought F6.7 was perfectly fine, considering the small size ands far reach.
@@robinwong Your photo editing is always great 👍🏻
@@robinwong Your photo editing is always great 👍🏻
Im not very pleased with the Panasonic 100-300mm version 1 lens. It focus hunts like crazy, whether im using the gx85 or em1 mark i. Im tempted to try the olympus to see if the focus performance is better. Even with dual IS on Panasonic, i get more sharp pictures with the em1 mark 1. I wonder though if i would struggle less pairing it with my G9 and em1 mark 2.
People often under-estimated the 5-Axis IS on Olympus bodies.
@@robinwong it's like a dream for me, being able to handheld up to almost a sec with the em1m2 and 1/4 of a sec with the em1.
My friend have this lens. He shoot airforce aeroplane. But really disappointed because no firmware update for this lens😭
Will it work well with Lumix g9?
I was always tempted to buy this lens, but will probably by the teleconverter MC-20 to my 140-150 Pro lens. Nothing can beat it's weight though... Tough decision... What would you do Robin? Thanks for the interesting review and great pics (as usually)
I also have the 40-150 f/2.8 PRO and decided to get the MC-20 teleconverter when I was looking for a super telephoto. On the used market, MC-20 and the 75-300 II lens are about the same price.
If you have the 40-150mm PRO, makes more sense to just get a tele converter - you still get full weather-sealing, and the 40-150m lens is no doubt a superior lens over the 75-300mm lens, in terms of image quality, build and also weather-sealing!
Hi! why do you use FLK function???
It was on by default.
Hi Robin, how do you think the lens would have coped on the em1-2?
Check out my older video on the lens, I tested it on E-M1 Mark II.
Wonder the difference with older zd 70-300 model?
😟❓
The 70-300mm is a DSLR Four Thirds lens, and the 75-300mm is a Micro Four Thirds lens.
Hi Robin
“Made in Japan” as someone else commented. 25mm 1.8 also “Made In Japan.”
I believe those are the only (2) budget lenses from Japan.
Why does it matter where the lens was made? No one ever complained about their iPhone or Samsung phones being made in China.
When will Lumix make a 15mm f1.4?
Lumix makes a beautiful tiny 15mm 1.7 Wonderful saturation and contrast. (Aperture Ring)
Maybe you need the extra 0.3 and willing to put up with bigger and heavier. And $$$
Interesting, at 150mm how does it compare to the 40-150 plastic fantastic? I've been looking at this lens for ages.
They are about the same.
@@robinwongAgreed, I have the plastic fantastic, the 14-150, and the 75-300, my aging eyes can't tell much of a difference between the three at similar focal lengths.
I own both 75-300 II and 40-150 R 4-5.6 and took time to compare image quality. It seems the 40-150 R is sharper, especially in close range. It is great for portraits at 40 mm. Contrast is clearly better with the 40-150 and that gives so much pop to the images. And of course it is way lighter. The 40-150 R plastic is a great lens, as sharp and saturated as my Leica 12-60 (on the 40-60 mm range). In the end, I travel with the 40-150 and only use the 75-300 on specific shootings.
V2 is weather sealed
It 100% is not.
PANA lumix 100-300mm they have f4-f5.6, that lens having a not bad sharpness as well. so why OM system creating something very similar to pana? and the market is quite small. i think pana lumix should take away the OIS and make it a smaller lens since they already got the G9ii have a powerful IBIS.
is this a good lens for shooting the moon?
You need longer reach
I've taken some moon shots, they're decent, but not terrific.
💯❤❤❤❤❤💯
Cheers
Great lens but my copy has sometime focus inaccuracy... It's a real problem, am I alone ?
From the hundreds of comments so far, seems like you are alone. Why not send in for service? That should solve the problem.