Olympus M.Zuiko 75mm f/1.8 lens nears retail
posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 1:15 PM EDT
Olympus Corp. has today made official a lens whose development was first revealed back in February, alongside the announcement of the Olympus E-M5 camera body.
The Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 prime lens offers a 35mm-equivalent focal length of 150mm on a Micro Four Thirds camera body, with a bright f/1.8 aperture. It's pretty compact given the specifications, at 2.7 inches (69 mm) long, with a diameter of 2.5 inches (64 mm), and weighs 10.8 ounces (305 g).
The optical design includes a nine-bladed aperture, and 10 elements in nine groups, of which there are three ED (Extra-low Dispersion) and two HR (High Refractive index) elements. The M.Zuiko 75mm is MSC (Movie & Still Compatible) branded for quieter autofocus operation, and focusing is possible to as close as 33 inches (84 cm), and the maximum magnification is 0.1x, for a minimum field size of 130 x 173mm. Filters are accepted courtesy of 58mm threads.
Available this summer, the Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 is priced at around US$900, and ships with plastic front and rear caps. A lens hood and a metal lens cap are available as optional extras.
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The Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 lens pairs nicely with the company's retro-styled OM-D E-M5 camera body. Photo provided by Olympus Corp. |
Press Release
Olympus Introduces A New Bright F1.8 Micro Four Thirds® Lens Perfect For Portraits And Challenging Lighting Conditions
New M.ZUIKO DIGITAL™ ED 75mm f1.8 High-Grade Portrait Lens Enhances the Power, Performance and Versatility of Olympus OM-D and PEN® Compact System Cameras
CENTER VALLEY, Pa., May 24, 2012 – Today, Olympus adds to the Micro Four Thirds family of lenses with the release of the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 High-Grade Portrait Lens (150mm equivalent), a high-speed, single-focal-length telephoto lens that is optimized for studio, stage, indoor sports and portrait photography, encased in a high-quality, compact, stunning metal body.
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No lens hood is included with the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8, but a metal hood is available as an optional extra, as is a metal lens cap. Photo provided by Olympus Corp. |
The M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8’s nine-blade circular aperture unit delivers beautiful defocused backgrounds, while the high-quality optical design keeps the subject in sharp focus. This is due to an advanced optical design that incorporates 10 lens elements in nine groups that make extensive use of special glass materials, including three ED (Extra-low Dispersion) elements to optimally correct aberrations. Each lens element is polished to an ultra-high level of working precision, only possible with the progressive techniques developed by Olympus master craftsmen, and carefully assembled to ensure maximum accuracy and reliability. Olympus’s exclusive ZERO (ZUIKO Extra-low Reflection Optical Coating) lens coatings are applied to the elements to reduce reflectance to a level that is half that of conventional coatings.
With a total length of just 2.7 inches, the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 is surprisingly small and maximizes the performance and portability of the Olympus PEN and OM-D compact system cameras. A textured metallic outer finish exudes quality and sophistication, while the large 50mm diameter glass front lens conveys a sense of power and performance.
Ideal for capturing brilliant still images and high-definition (HD) videos, the lens employs Olympus's proven MSC (Movie & Still Compatible) autofocusing mechanism featuring an inner focus system to drive this single-focal-length lens for fast and quiet focusing. A precision-touch metallic focus ring provides easy manual focusing.
The optional LH-61F Lens Hood and the LC-61 Lens Cap metallic lens accessories are designed exclusively for the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8. The LH-61F Lens Hood attaches with an outer friction knob system that allows attachment or removal even when the lens cap is attached.
U.S. Pricing and Availability
The Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f1.8 High-Grade Portrait Lens will be available in summer 2012.
Estimated Street Price: $899.99.
For a complete list of specifications, visit the Olympus website:
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/product.asp?product=1622&page=specs
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