Some additional thoughts:
I just wanted to mention a few things that didn’t seem to fit well in the other sections of the review.
1. This lens is the absolute ultimate night street lens and coupled with the Olympus E-M5 is the ultimate street combo. I was able to shoot handheld with this lens and my E-M5 from dusk to deep night, and never once did I push the ISO above 800. Most of the time, I was shooting at ISO 200 or 400. This is just remarkable to me. Between the outstanding in-body IS on the E-M5 and the crazy large aperture on the Nokton, you just have a low-light machine.
2. I really like the tonality and rendering this lens gives on portrait subjects. Skin tones are lovely and the look of the images is pretty special to my eye.
Conclusion
Pros
- Surprisingly sharp wide open, both on near and far subjects.
- Blisteringly sharp stopped down across the entire frame.
- Extremely large aperture allows for subject isolation in a moderate wide angle and extreme low-light performance.
- Beautiful drawing style and excellent bokeh up close.
- Built like an absolute tank with wonderful mechanics.
- Price is actually rather reasonable given the performance and speed.
- Wonderful color and contrast.
Cons
- Purple fringing and longitudinal chromatic aberration can be problematic at wide apertures.
- Field curvature at infinity focus is severe and requires active compensation by the photographer.
- All manual lens with no camera communication, which means stop down metering and manual focus at all times.
- Big and heavy for a Micro 4/3 lens.
Overall, I was absolutely blown away by the performance of this lens. I was not expecting anywhere near the performance it provides at f/0.95, and the resolution it delivers stopped down is equally stunning. It handles extremely well, draws beautifully and provides Micro 4/3 shooters with the ability to isolate their subject with a wider lens. If you like environmental portraiture and shoot Micro 4/3, this lens is an absolute must for your kit. While it has its flaws, they never overshadowed the positives in my eye. I’ve never been a huge fan of the 35mm focal length, but I absolutely loved shooting with this lens, and was very sad to part with my review sample. Very highly recommended.
Sample Images
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