Panasonic LUMIX G VARIO 7-14 mm F4.0 ASPH - Revisited

Sixteen months ago I wrote about my favorite ultra-wide zoom lens, the Panasonic Lumix G Vario 7-14 mm F4.0 ASPH; I was surprised how popular the page became, it is among the top three most read in my blog!


There was even one reader who informed me she bought the same lens because of my rant ;)

Her last comment...

"Hi, finally I got myself landed with Panasonic 7-14 wide lens. It is indeed a great lens! Just want to say thank you very much for your review and the sample images you posted in your blog [ and also answering my questions earlier ]. I really appreciate it :) " - Fiziskandarz.

I went and look at her blog and what do you know, she already started using her new ultra-wide for some cool shots! 


I like this one :)

Ultra-wide lens can provide a unique view of your capture, that view can be challenging though; new owner of this lens usually fall into the trap of trying to include too much subject matter in their shot.

Don't! Instead try to GET CLOSER and you will discover a whole new way of looking at your shots!

 I moved close to these snappy tourists at this art gallery, Champs-Élysées, Paris.

Africans hogging tiny replicas of the Eiffel Tower under the real colossal structure. 

Ultra-wide allowed you to capture scenes you never believe possible, again; move closer to your subject... stop worrying how wide the lens is ;)

Because of the ultra-wide coverage, a building shot can leave lots of empty space  in the foreground; here I filled the composition with people sitting around the fountain outside the Louvre.

With ultra-wide, compositions can become interesting when you can get a nice long line or lines to lead the eye from the corner of the frame into the shot! This sweeping study of a little art lover admiring a panoramic Monet at Musée de l'Orangerie, Paris; is perfect for the expansive coverage of this lens.

The Lumix 7-14 belongs to the family of Rectilinear ultra-wide lenses.

In photography, a rectilinear lens is a photographic lens that yields images where straight features, such as the walls of buildings, appear with straight lines, as opposed to being curved. In other words, it is a lens with little or no barrel or pincushion distortion.

At particularly wide angles, however, the rectilinear perspective will cause objects to appear increasingly stretched and enlarged as they near the edge of the frame. These types of lenses are often used to create forced perspective effects.

The vast majority of video and still cameras use lenses that produce nearly rectilinear images. A popular alternative type of lens is a fisheye lens which produces a distinctly curvilinear, wide-angled result.   - Wikipedia

This is what happened when you tilt your ultra-wide to get more coverage :)

One for the album... BUT the giant masterpiece  is out of proportion!

After a quick manipulation in Photoshop to straighten the painting.

Ultra-wide lens possesses ultra deep depth-of-field, even when shot at relatively large aperture setting.

A good ultra-wide like my Lumix 7-14 is also sharp, this is a 100% crop of the seafood display shot taken at Denfert Rochereau, Paris.
Look at the price of those prawns! At 93 Euro a Kg, work out to NZ$148.00 (375.00 Ringgit) a Kilo!  How much do the Parisians earn?  ;)

Shooting downwards with my ultra-wide at 7mm and by using the diagonal as a composition tool, I create a different perspective of man and dog making a living on the most expensive pavement ( Champs-Élysées) in the world.

Famous Last Words...
It go without saying that I love my Lumix 7-14 ultra-wide zoom, I cannot imagine going on a trip without this ultra versatile lens!


Believe you me, if you only going to buy ONE lens for your M4/3 camera; make this the one!  You will not regret it!!