Jhagee Anast. Exaktar 54mm f/3.5

A good deal at the price. This is a replacement for the standard Oly lens on the micro-4/3s cameras, basically the same range but faster. It's bigger(faster), only downside besides that is that the autofocus isn't fast. This seems to be a case with all of these older 4/3s lenses adapted to micro 4/3s cameras. But is as fast and it's much cheaper than current offerings with the same speed. Image quality seems to be quite good, might have some fall off at the edges wide open, but acceptable. Item showed a little use but was in great condition with no scratches or dents and works smoothly.

A heavy-duty chonk of a lens that gets the job done. It's a heavy lens, and it's a little long after you add in the required 4/3 to M4T adapter, but the speed and heavy-duty construction make the size and weight acceptable. The only true competitor is the newer Olympus 12-40mm f:/2.8, which is only 2 oz lighter, 1 stop faster, and costs 3x as much. My first thought after picking it up was that it's a chonk of a lens. When combined with the 4/3-M4T active adapter it weighs over a full pound, so those with noodle-arms should invest in a really nice, supportive camera strap. it might not sound like a lot, but after toting it around for five or six hours, it's noticeable. The little plastic 14-42mm kit lens feels like a feather, by comparison. Performance when attached to a M4T camera is a mixed bag. As far as I know, the only M4T body that can run this lens as fast as a 4/3 body is the Olympus E-M1 and even then, focusing in dark situations is spotty. WIth a different body that's incapable of contrast-detect autofocus, the indoor perfomance might be frustrating. On the positive side, the heavy-duty construction and weather sealing means I don't have to worry if I'm outside when the weather turns bad. I'm not prone to babying my gear, so this is a very good thing to me. The zoom range is ideal for day trips when you're not sure where you're going and just want to bring along one multi-purpose lens. 14mm will get most of a room in-frame, and 54mm is a good length for portraits on a M4T body. The Olympus 18-180mm will reach further, but I don't often need that sort of zoom and the 14-54's extra 4mm at the wide end is unexpectedly useful. Optically, this lens is fine. Not quite as sharp or as fast as a prime lens but the difference, especially when stopped down by a stop or two, is small enough that 90% of the time, it's good enough. In short, IF you don't mind the size and weight, and IF you don't mind focus-by-wire, this might be a good choice for you. Read full review

Very good quality at a good price. Excellent image quality. Larger than MFT lenses but not excesive. Convenient focus range. 18 mm at the low end is longer than today's standard, i.e. 12mm on MFT. I like this limitation as it prevents face distrortion,l egg heads, when placed in the corner of the frame. Great for chasing kids around but not for fast action. AF needs phase detection (I have an OMD-EM1). Works OK but not as fast as native MFT lenses like 12-40/2.8. All in all, it's a good buy.