I was watching an Oly 40/f2 pancake lens on ebay recently. Thought about bidding, but wondered if I'd really have a use for it. Decided not to bid, but continued to watch. It ended up selling for just over $600 USD. Is this price an anomaly, or is it what this lens actually goes for? Just wondering...

The 40/2 isn't one of the cheaper Oly lenses. I'd think that $600 isn't too unusual for a copy in good condition. It is a nice lens and quite small.

Sounds about right to me, based on research I did when I was considering purchasing one.

Yeah... that sounds about right. Especially if you have found one for sale in good condition. Not many of these little gems were made to begin with.

It definitely is one of the better OM primes. Plus the benefit of the pancake size put it in the price range indicated.

As far as performance, I would rate it up there with the top performers 50mm f1.2, 90mm f2.0, and a notch better than the 24mm f2.8.

It has a great cross section of competences, which make it my favourite all round lens. Good adaptor ergonomics, nice bokeh, sharp enough, tiny and light, smooth manual focus, good close-up performance, not much light fall-off wide open, f2, and best of all, 40mm - the most natural of all focal lengths. Sometimes it just feels like you can shoot anything with it and get a great result.

Thanks for confirming, everyone. Gotta admit, I was kind of surprised when I saw the final price. Looks like an oldie but goodie.

you can get the Contax 45 pancake for much less, 1/4 or less I use mine for a body cap, and the photos it takes aren't bad either

Interesting, but for the how does it compare to the Voightlander? Especially since the Voightlander is $380 new.

600 $ is way way too much! They can be found over here for less than say 250 $.

kosmoskatten wrote:
600 $ is way way too much! They can be found over here for less than say 250 $.


$250? If you don't mind keeping an eye out for me, let me know when one comes available The seller of this particular lens was in Denmark. Here's a link to the actual item:

Oly 40/2 Pancake Lens Listing

Yep, if anyone sees one for $250, let me know, as well

I'd suggest that you only spend that much on it if, like Brainiac, you absolutely love 40mm (and want a single prime lens solution).

Olympus have cheaper 50mm alternatives. Sure, the 50/1.2 and 1.4 are noticably bigger (and at least a stop faster!), but the Olympus 50/1.8 is a lovely little lens. It's really not that much bigger than the pancake, and it's 1/2 stop faster too. You can pick up one of those for peanuts and spend the other $500+ on other less glamorous lenses.

A Zu 24mm f/2 goes for about $600 for heaven's sake. You did the right thing in sitting back to watch the bidding IMHO. Just because a couple of collectors are willing to out-bid each other for a rare lens, does not mean it is the best inclusion in an active photograher's kit.

That pancake is cute... but there's no way I'd pay more for it than I did for my Zu 50/1.2. Think about it

Stu Warner wrote:
I'd suggest that you only spend that much on it if, like Brainiac, you absolutely love 40mm (and want a single prime lens solution).

Olympus have cheaper 50mm alternatives. Sure, the 50/1.2 and 1.4 are noticably bigger (and at least a stop faster!), but the Olympus 50/1.8 is a lovely little lens. It's really not that much bigger than the pancake, and it's 1/2 stop faster too. You can pick up one of those for peanuts and spend the other $500+ on other less glamorous lenses.

A Zu 24mm f/2 goes for about $600 for heaven's sake. You did the right thing in sitting back to watch the bidding IMHO. Just because a couple of collectors are willing to out-bid each other for a rare lens, does not mean it is the best inclusion in an active photograher's kit.

That pancake is cute... but there's no way I'd pay more for it than I did for my Zu 50/1.2. Think about it

I see from your post that you own or have used the OM 50mm f1.2 and OM 50mm f1.8. Both are very nice lenses.

Just curious.... have you owned or used the Olympus OM 40mm f2.0 ?

You know the Pentax-M 40/2.8 isn't that bad at less than $200. I haven't used mine that much to pass a good judgment on it, but so far it's been a good low light lens and controls the flares pretty well, too. Also didn't see any noticeable CAs wide open. I say about the same IQ as my Nikkor 50/1.2 at f2.

Yes, the Oly pancake is a great lens, but it is only worth as much as you want to pay for it. I would much rather pay half that for a Cosina or other pancake, and spend the rest on hookers and drugs (kidding, kidding).

Hell, buy a cheaper lens, and a plane ticket to actually go somewhere and take pictures.

ISO1600 wrote:

Hell, buy a cheaper lens, and a plane ticket to actually go somewhere and take pictures.

+1 I think I've posted this link before. If size and budget matter - check it out:

http://galactinus.net/vilva/retro/eos350d_industar50.html

I picked up my last Oly 40 for £160. And my last Oly 24 f2 for £150.

The Zeiss 45 can jamb the 5D mirror. It is a stop darker, and 45mm, not 40. Once I got the Oly I saw no reason to keep the Zeiss.

brainiac wrote:
I picked up my last Oly 40 for £160. And my last Oly 24 f2 for £150.

The Zeiss 45 can jamb the 5D mirror. It is a stop darker, and 45mm, not 40. Once I got the Oly I saw no reason to keep the Zeiss.

I would do the same, myself, but you have to admit that you are very lucky to find the Oly at that price.

a year or two ago, it wasn't hard to get an Oly 40 for $350 or less at KEH. Now they're never in stock anywhere but ebay for retarded prices. This is why i don't even bother looking at this lens as an option anymore, just like the infamous Oly 18/3.5.....

the Cosina 40mm F4 Ultron II alphabet soup (later model) is a very fine lens, just a little bit larger/heavier than this Olympus classic. I would choose it in a heartbeat over the Oly (for the prices they're pulling), but the cheapie Pentax SMC 40 is a nifty alternate that commonly hovers around $100.

I have owned/shot 6 different pancakes in SLR mount, and i think the Cosina/Voigtlander 40/2 SLII is probably the best performing value buy in today's market. A big plus is the CPU chip for use on a D700.... mmmmm delicious! I love pancakes!

while i'm ranting about 'cakes (haha), i'll suggest you search the forum for pancake info, as there have been NUMEROUS threads about this lens, the CV Ultron, and the Zeiss (which generally "fouls" the mirror of a 5D).

ISO1600 wrote:...Hell, buy a cheaper lens, and a plane ticket to actually go somewhere and take pictures.

Already have the plane ticket...Tetons in two weeks. The little pancake just happened to pique my curiosity, that's all. But thanks for the tip.

pascal03 wrote:

I see from your post that you own or have used the OM 50mm f1.2 and OM 50mm f1.8. Both are very nice lenses.

Correct. Still own both, and use regularly on Canon digital and OM1 (film). Am very happy with both, but particulalry wih the 1.2, obviously. Hence, I do not see the point in paying current RIDICULOUS prices for a slightly smaller but slower pancake. To be quite honest, neither of these 50s are too large and heavy for me to consdier leaving them at home. If you are mounting the pancake on a 5D, then the combination is quite clearly not going to fit in your pocket. With this in mind, I see no real-world meaningful distinction in size/weight of the camera package when you use any of the small fast primes available in this focal range. If you accept this reasoning, the 40/2 is just one of many alternatives, and should not command it's current price except for novelty reasons

Just curious.... have you owned or used the Olympus OM 40mm f2.0 ?

No. That is the whole point of my post Pascal. I see no need to own one, when I am already so well covered at 50mm with a 1.8 (gift), 1.2, and 2.8 macro. The 40/2 is too rare and expensive for me to consider chasing after it just for the sake of comparison to the 50s. Are you trying to suggest that wide open at f/2 it performs 500USD better than all of the 50/1.8 or 1.4 alternatives (by any manufacturer) stopped down to f/2? Or for the same current price, is it better than any of the more commonly available f/1.2 legacy lenses stopped town to f/2 with an extra one and a half stops available for when you want them? Because those are the questions that current buyers have to ask themselves.

I don't want to dimish the artistry in Brainiac's example images, but for optical performance alone, I don't see anything that justifies 600 USD when there are alternatives that appear to be:
1) equally good but cheaper, and having at least half a stop in reserve if you want it
2) same price, but much faster lenses at a very close focal length.
YMMV.

Just to be clear, my objection is not to the lens, but to the RIDICULOUS PRICE for what is at the end of the day still just an f/2 standard lens. In my opinion, if it was not a pancake (read "oddity/curiosity/novelty") lens, it would not warrant this price range.

I got one for cheap in the US...under $300. Looks previously unused/mint with box + pouch. But you'd have to be willing to hunt for one. It is relatively rare and normally goes for about $400-$450 for a typical copy...perhaps for the last year or so. I saw the $600 copy and I think it is a fluke, but momentary demand does crazy things to the alternative market.

I have just bought a Zuiko pancake f/2.0 40mm on ebay for € 326,-- (about USD 450,--).
It will go to my address in Berlin, where I will go at the end of September. Looked fine on those ebay photos, so I hope it will be as good as it looks.

I think I paid about 400 for mine about 2 years ago....

Definitely check out the Voigtlander Ultron SL II. Less than $400 brand new, still f/2, brilliant hood design. While it might not display every esoteric rendering characteristic of the Oly, it has its own very agreeable style.