Micro 4/3 Blown AWAY by new 40-150 f2.8 PRO

I've owned a lot of expensive glass in my day including probably 7 or 8 "L" lenses from Canon on my old 5D Mk II. (Which of course likely says FAR more about my credit card balance than it does about my skills as a photographer. We all know that owning great lenses no more makes you a great photographer than owning a stethoscope makes you a doctor! LOL!)

I've owned the 70-200 F2.8L (and F4L) as well as the 24-70 F2.8L, 85mm f1.2L and others.

IMHO the SINGLE MOST awe-inspiring lens I ever owned was the Canon 135mm F2L. I have missed THAT lens since the day I sold all my Canon full-frame gear.

BUT... without doing any testing, my initial "off the cuff" impression of the Olympus 40-150 f2.8 Pro is that this is the first lens I've seen that instantly takes my breath away in the same fashion as my old 135mm f2.0L from several years back. STUNNING!

I can't wait to put this lens out in the field but OH MY WORD I must confess I'm impressed!!!
 
Ask and you shall receive.

Let me set the stage: I was racing out the door to a grand daughter's birthday party when the UPS truck drove up: Signature required. I signed for the package, threw it in the car and headed for the party. Arriving there I dragged my E-M1 AND the unopened box inside and quickly tore open the box and installed the 40-150. I grabbed 8 or 10 shots handheld over the next 5 minutes. All were at ISO 320 and f2.8. Shutter was between 1/15 and 1/25 second. Two images were at 95mm and the middle one was at full 150. Obviously are FAR from tack-sharp under those circumstances- but the color, bokeh and separation were all amazing. Moreover there is a "presence" that reminds me so much of that old Canon 135 f2L I loved so much. These are unprocessed jpegs straight out of the camera. I'm smitten and can't wait to play with this lens in a more serious way... along with the 1.4x MC-14 which was not on the lens at this time. No time for proper WB, etc.: Just grab and shoot.

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Stop writing stuff like this...i still miss my 135L. Out of curiosity, have you ever used the 75/1.8? That seems like a more similar lens to the 135 in a lot of ways
 
Yes... I own the 75 f1.8 and I enjoy it; razor sharp and yes- it more closely parallels the 135L in terms of focal length and speed. That said... for grab-shots 2 minutes out of the box under adverse lighting and all- I thought the 40-150 just killed it. There is a "feeling" (for lack of a better word) that just instantly reminded me of that beloved old 135L the moment I saw the first result. That first image was LITERALLY the 1st image I took with the lens, and the other two were like the 5th and 6th images. All were literally taken within about 2 minutes of opening the box and attaching the lens. I'm going to fall asleep a very happy guy tonight.
 
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