If you’re an Olympus user looking for a prime lens with a field of view broadly similar to our eyes field of vision, you’re already spoiled for choice. Olympus, now OM System, already has some excellent options. Although, if you’re looking for something small, light, and inexpensive, there’s a new choice to consider. Sitting nicely in between the focal range and maximum apertures of the existing lens line-up is the all new OM System M.Zuiko 20mm F1.4 Pro lens.
Key features of the OM System 20mm lens:
- High res with superb optical performance
- 11 elements in 10 group lenses
- Unique angle of view with bokeh
- Shooting magnification 0.11x (40mm equivalent)
- Weather-sealed design with IPX1
- High speed and precision AF
If you’re more used to seeing lens focal length listed in 35mm (full frame) format, then this 20mm lens is essentially a 40mm lens when it comes to the field of view. One thing that doesn’t change is the aperture. Also, with a wide-open maximum aperture of f/1.4, this lens is going to be great when the light gets low.
You could argue that Olympus already has an great low light lens in the 17mm and 25mm f/1.2 Pro lenses. Although this new lens is slower by 1/3rd stop at f/1.4, that reduction in aperture has allowed Olympus to make the new 20mm lens noticeably more streamlined.
An adventure-ready lens
What sort of photography can the Olympus 20mm lens be used for? Well, remember that this is a 40mm in full frame terms. The first thing that springs to mind is street and nature photography. This lens is fast-focusing, has excellent feathered bokeh, and is neither too wide nor too close. It’s also small, light, and discrete. These are all qualities that street photographers will enjoy.
For the same reasons, the Olympus 20mm lens will no doubt find its way to many travel photographers as well. Like all lenses in the M.Zuiko Pro range, it’s dust proof, splash proof ,and freeze proof to -10°C (that’s a chilly 14°F). This means you can take the lens to almost any climate and be confident that it will perform.
When I said small, I wasn’t kidding. It’s just 62mm tall (slightly less the 2.5 inches) and about the same across. It’s 247g (or 8.7 ounces) and has a filter thread of 58mm.
Optimal focal length
My personal use of prime lenses is mainly for video. I already own the M.Zuiko 25mm f/1.2 Pro Lens and I still find it necessary to carry a 20mm lens. There’s been plenty of times when the 25mm has been just a bit too long and the 17mm lens just a bit too wide. Therefore, the 20mm lens could well be the perfect lens for me.
At the start of this article, I referred to lenses having a field of view roughly the same as our eyes field of vision. Traditionally, that role has been gifted to 50mm lenses — possibly more for convenience than accuracy. The reality is, there is no one focal length that perfectly matches the human eye. Although, the Olympus 20mm lens certainly offers a unique option to consider, given its shooting magnification equivalent to 40mm.
Different name, same great quality
This is the first Olympus product to be branded with the new company name, OM System. Look closely and you’ll notice the words OM System around the barrel. The name may have changed but everything else is the usual high quality I’ve come to expect from Olympus.
