Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 12‑200mm F3.5‑6.3: the full Review

Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED review.In the photo, everything is about balance and any strength can become a weakness. And vice versa. Often criticized (a little wrongly) for its “small” Micro 4/3 sensor, Olympus takes advantage of these reduced dimensions to offer unique optics, prohibited for large sensors of the full format type (24 x 36 mm) from Sony, Canon and other Nikon. The latest offshoot of Olympus is a Swiss army knife zoom, the M. Zuiko Digital ED 12-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3. An optic that offers an optical range from 24 mm to 400 mm (35 mm equivalent). A zoom ratio of x16.6 which allows you to shoot landscapes as well as details. All with a nice macro potential and a featherweight of 455 grams.

Construction and opening

Designed around plastic barrels, the M. Zuiko Digital ED 12-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3 is lighter, but does not offer the “premium” metal feel of the 12 -100 mm F / 4 Pro. However, Olympus guarantees the optics as “tropicalized” and has selected high-end plastics for their resistance. Which is no doubt not pure infantry, the Olympus housings and optics being recognized for their robustness.

Who says zoom, says concessions: for a x16.6 zoom to remain light and not too expensive, you have to cut corners. The first element on which an optician can play is obviously the opening: opening at f / 3.5 at wide angle, this travel zoom is really not very bright at the end of the stroke – f / 6.3 – which means that you have to climb quickly in ISO to maintain the sharpness in this 400 mm equivalent. If this is perfectly acceptable taking into account the balance of the optics, it should however be specified that the closing of the diaphragm slides quickly: we reach f / 5.0 at 30 mm (eq. 60 mm) and f / 5.6 at 45 mm (eq. 90 mm).

But its main shortcoming, in our opinion, is the drop in optical quality from 100 mm (equivalent 200 mm). Which starts his interest not compared to his big brother the 12-100 mm f / 4 PRO (read below).

Good at wide angle, this lens suffers at the end of zoom

In wide angle, the M. Zuiko Digital ED 12-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3 offers very good results. Supported by the mechanical stabilization of the OM-D EM1X, OM-D E-M1 Mark II and Pen E-P5 with which we tested it, its aperture of f / 3.5 makes it possible to shoot in all situations at 12 mm – equivalent 24 mm. Once you start to zoom in, the brightness goes down … and so does the quality.

Up to 100 mm (200 mm eq.), This is maintained in the center, degrading at the edges. After this limit, the sharpness drops seriously. And digital noise increases drastically: animal uses are reduced to motionless or slow subjects, and to daylight scenes.

Given the sum of the constraints (weight, price, etc.), Olympus did a good job. The problem is that Olympus has already done a great job with another lens: the M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100mm f / 4 IS PRO.

Suitable for small boxes

The quality of the grip of a device is a question of balance and the 110 grams less of this 12-200 mm gives it the advantage compared to its big brother the Zuiko Pro 12-100 mm f / 4 . Not only in terms of general portability (it’s always that much less in the bag), but also in terms of balance, especially with small cases.

If the delta of a hundred grams has little impact if we couple it with a large case such as the OM-D E-M1X which weighs 990 g, it makes during the difference on a smaller case like the Olympus Pen E-P5. As long as the latter is equipped with a small grip (here a Gariz XS-CHEP5), everything remains balanced enough to be manageable. Not bad for a duo at 922 g (case, battery, SD card, optics and sun visor).

With the Pen E-P5 we are, in our opinion, at the maximum weight limit that a case of such a format supports: below the 450 g of our Pen E-P5, the combo will be clearly unbalanced with the 380 g (with battery) of Pen E-PL9.

Facing the Olympus 12-100mm f / 4 –

The worst enemy of this 12-200 mm is, as we said, its big brother the 12-100 mm f / 4, a zoom belonging to the upper range “Zuiko Pro”. A little heavier, 30% more expensive and less zooming, the 12-100 mm f / 4 hurts our super zoom very badly. On the one hand, the weight difference is not huge, but above all the Zuiko Pro 12-100 mm is brighter – and with constant aperture – while its optical quality is better. Much better even: at all focal ranges, the Zuiko Pro 12-100mm f / 4 largely dominates our 12-200mm. The argument of the power of zoom is certainly to the advantage of the latter, but the image quality of the 12-100 f / 4 is so good that the cropping is also good (with a loss of definition, but no dive).–

With the weight, for the smallest cases, the main strong point of the 12-200 mm against 12-100 mm f / 4 PRO is therefore its price: 300 euros cheaper, or 899 euros. But if you have the budget for the 12-100mm f / 4 Pro, go for it, it’s a good cut above. The other enemy of the 12-200 is another Olympus lens, the ED 14-150mm 1 / 4.0-5.6 II, even lighter (300g), 350 euros cheaper and brighter at 150mm.