Personal View site logo
Leicasonic 14-50mm f2.8-3.5 - Can it "talk" with the GH2?
  • Does this lens connect up with GH2 functions or is there an adapter that provides communication?

    Thanks! - not yet able to find this out net searching.

  • 6 Replies sorted by
  • Either the Panasonic or Olympus Four-Thirds adapter will provide full communication with the GH2.

    http://www.four-thirds.org/

  • You must use the Panasonic or Olympus adapter. It communicates fine but focus is slow.

  • Also even cheaper chinese adapters exist with all contacts, you can searchm I posted topic about them.

  • Dynamite! Thanks!!!

  • I used that lens for a few month but sold it again for the following reasons: The autofocus was very slow with the Olympus MMF2 adapter. Manual focus was difficult with my sample of the lens, and it was a as-new sample. I had difficulties nailing the focus and ended up rack-focusing but was never satisfied. I own the Panasonic 20, 14-140 and 100-300 which all focus beautifully despite focus by wire. The Leica was much much worse. Another minus of the Leica is the noise image stabilizer. The camera mic will pick it up and even an external mic will if it is in close proximity. My impression was also that the wide angle distortion was not corrected through the adapter leasing to significant distortion, much more than in the 14-140 Pana lens. Bottom line of my two cents: wait for the 2.8/12-35 even if it costs more, you will end up selling the Leica zoom again.

  • The Leicasonic is one of my favorite lenses, but it has its flaws and doesn't suit everyone. In addition to its typically slow legacy Four Thirds focus-hunting, it breathes noticeably while focusing. This alone makes it unsuitable for any type of follow-focus.

    Where the Leicasonic is in a class by itself is its uncanny video OIS performance. Unlike the relatively subtle OIS on Panny's M4/3 zooms, you can actually feel the Leicasonic stabilizing the arc of your pan. It's like dragging a knife through a pot of honey and it's stutter-free and drop-dead steady. This lens combined with a compact monopod can produce results that would normally require a tripod.

    As for lens distortion, one of the distinctions of Leica glass is that Panasonic is not allowed to do any in-camera corrections on its optics. This makes the Leicasonic highly desirable for my purposes, as I do not like the clinically sharp look of Panasonic's digitally-corrected lenses, such as the 20mm f1.7.