Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

tzhang4284
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

Hi all,

New to micro 4/3. I bought a om-1 to use as a lighter weight wildlife photography camera. I also bought a used 300mm f4 on eBay at a good price however it was a bit too good to be true (lots of scratches on front element but image quality does look good) so going to most likely send it back.

I do have the opportunity of locally buying a Panasonic 200mm f2.8 with the 1.4x tc. Would be curious to see if anyone can share how well it works on the om-1. Is the lack of sync is a real issue or no? Any other issues? Mainly using it for casual bird photography around where I live and some trips to the zoo.

I’ve browsed a lot of old threads but would be curious on recent views with the om-1.

Thanks for any thoughts!

Oct 13, 2023 at 08:23 PM

robert_in_ca
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

I had the 200mm 2.8 with the E-M1X and it’s a great lens. Lack of dual synch was only an issue shooting really slow shutter speeds of 1/80 or less.

I don’t have the lens anymore as I shoot with the 150-400mm 4.5TC on my OM-1. There’s no reason to believe the 200mm wouldn’t work incredibly well on the OM-1, even without dual synch.

Oct 13, 2023 at 09:27 PM

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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

I use the PL200mm with the OM1 and it works extremely well with or without TC's. Of course it misses out on some of the features an OM lens would have such as focus stacking and pro capture low along with the 50fps max burst rate. I tend to use IBIS for the bare lens and with the 1.4 TC, only using lens OIS for the 2.0 TC or when recording video.

Oct 14, 2023 at 12:36 AM

molson
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

https://www.sulasula.com/en/panasonic-leica-200mm-2-8-o-i-s-my-experiences/

Oct 14, 2023 at 07:09 PM

Frogfish
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

tzhang4284 wrote:
Hi all,

New to micro 4/3. I bought a om-1 to use as a lighter weight wildlife photography camera. I also bought a used 300mm f4 on eBay at a good price however it was a bit too good to be true (lots of scratches on front element but image quality does look good) so going to most likely send it back.

I do have the opportunity of locally buying a Panasonic 200mm f2.8 with the 1.4x tc. Would be curious to see if anyone can share how well it works on the om-1. Is the lack of sync is a real...Show more →

I don't even have an OM kit yet (in the works, it's coming) but I've spent hundreds of hours reviewing the systems and lenses and by using the 300/4 on the OM-1 it is going to give you a number of advantages over the Pana 200. Sync IS, FPS and esp. Pro-Capture for bird photography (one of the reasons I'm buying into the OM system). Birds are almost always about reach, reach, reach.

However for zoos you generally want more flexibility otherwise your compositions will be compromised. Therefore maybe you should consider the Oly 100-400. Yes it's slower and doesn't sync IS (neither does the 200mm) but if you can't properly compose your images then a faster lens isn't going to be of much use. And it's easier to use a tripod in a zoo environment.

Usually scratches on the front element won't be a major issue (added flare perhaps) but since you got it at a good price I'd hang on to it for all of the benefits it gives on the OM-1.

Oct 15, 2023 at 12:42 AM

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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

Frogfish wrote:
I don't even have an OM kit yet (in the works, it's coming) but I've spent hundreds of hours reviewing the systems and lenses and by using the 300/4 on the OM-1 it is going to give you a number of advantages over the Pana 200. Sync IS, FPS and esp. Pro-Capture for bird photography (one of the reasons I'm buying into the OM system). Birds are almost always about reach, reach, reach.

However for zoos you generally want more flexibility otherwise your compositions will be compromised. Therefore maybe you should consider the Oly 100-400. Yes it's slower and doesn't sync...Show more →

Just want to point out that with the OM1 procapture SH1 and SH2 (using CAF) is available for non Olympus/OM lenses.

Oct 16, 2023 at 07:58 PM

tzhang4284
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

Thanks for all the input - I ended up finding another copy of the 300mm f4 so will give that a try - hopefully this one is more clean than the last I got.

If this doesn't work out, will probably give the 200mm f2.8 a try then. It does seem like there is some gap in features from mixing and matching.

Oct 17, 2023 at 01:05 PM

pingflood
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

I shot the 200 (couldn't resist it at EUR 1599 including the 1.4x, brand new) along with the 150-400 on a trip recently and they are both--as expected--spectacular performers. The 200 obviously will give you a bit shorter DOF and more light gathering but for all practical purposes they produce equivalent output. Here's a shot with the 200 (at 2.8) on OM-1:

Puffin by Christer Medin, on Flickr

Sep 10, 2024 at 07:16 AM

lbloom
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Panasonic 200mm on om-1? How well does it work?

I have both the 200/2.8 and 300/4. Both have gobs of resolution and pair very well with their native TCs.

If you primarily need the reach and don't see the need for a 400-eq. field of view, get the 300/4. It looks very good even with the 2x TC, considering. I agree that front element scratches are mostly unlikely to hurt your images, esp. if you can agree to a large discount.

Using them naked and assuming I'm not biasing for wanting their respective focal lengths, I like the 200/2.8 more. Relatively compact (although dense), satisfyingly fast, and the rendering is gorgeous. I always feel vaguely like I cheated and got away with it when I take it out -- it seems like I used a premium super-tele each time I review an image, yet the thing fits in a small Domke mounted on camera. I have dragged mine around the world despite the relative heft.

Sep 13, 2024 at 03:44 PM


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