Laserguy's reviews

Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 ASPH LUMIX G

Optically, this lens is like Mary Poppins: Practically perfect in every way. It's razor-sharp wide open (sharpenss is almost always limited by focus accuracy and camera handling) and has nice, smooth bokeh. The 40 mm focal length is just about perfect for a day-to-day lens, especially indoors. It shows little to no signs of flare or glare (with an aftermarket hood). I've shot straight into lights 5+ stops past being blown out, and never observed a flare. Fundamentally, I love the lens because I never need to worry that the lens will let me down optically.

It's also tiny, which makes it exceedingly easy to carry.

The focus isn't all that brisk, and it's not exactly silent. The focus-by-wire system (common to all mFT lenses) makes manual focus less pleasant than it might be.

Build quality is adequate, no more.

Without a hood, the front element is very exposed, and given is propensity to be pocket-carried, this is a little unnerving.

This is not a cheap lens by any stretch of the imagination. However, twice its purchase price would be insufficient to part it from me.