Panasonic LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm / F3.5-5.6 ASPH. / POWER O.I.S. - Samples & Verdict
Lens Reviews - (Micro-)Four-Thirds
Article Index
Introduction
Analysis
Samples & Verdict

Page 3 of 3

Sample Images & Verdict

Click on a thumbnail to view the original file (opens in a separate window). Please note that the originals are FULL SIZE samples (=several megabytes) thus requiring a significant amount of bandwidth so please take care of the limited resources here.

Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 35.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/800s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 42.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/1250s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 14.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/1250s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 21.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/2000s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 14.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/400s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 14.0mm
Aperture: f/3.5
Exposure 1/2000s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 42.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/640s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 27.0mm
Aperture: f/5.2
Exposure 1/1250s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 14.0mm
Aperture: f/5.0
Exposure 1/1000s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 42.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/640s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 14.0mm
Aperture: f/4.0
Exposure 1/80s
Make Panasonic
Model DMC-GX1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 42.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/800s

And two more video examples

Verdict

The Panasonic Lumix G X Vario PZ 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 ASPH Power O.I.S. is a surprisingly compact albeit not superb kit zoom lens as some might have hoped from its "X" designation. The delivered resolution is decent across the image field and the focal length. The lens suffers from a relatively high degree of lateral CAs - despite two "extra low dispersion" lenses - which is mainly a problem for Olympus users whereas the auto-correction can cope with this issue on Panasonic cameras.
Distortions are well-controlled and not relevant for most use-cases. Unfortunately this doesn't apply to vignetting which is visible throughout the zoom range at fully open aperture. That said it's not really an issue anymore from f/8 onward.
The optical image stabilizer is a useful feature for hand-held photography and an effective gain of about "2-3 f-stops" seems realistic from what we have seen during actual use.

The AF performance of the lens is excellent. The combination of zoom lever and the inner focusing system is certainly helpful with respect to minimizing shake during movie recording - this was one design objective of this lens. We had no real issues with the "zoom-by-wire" approach but your mileage may vary here, of course, so better check this prior of a potential purchase.

We enjoyed to use the Panasonic lens - in fact we still do! Size- and weight-wise it is hard to beat so if you are looking for an ultra-compact standard zoom solution - well ... this is it. The price is also alright considering the whole package.

Optical Quality: to
Mechanical Quality:
Price/Performance:
      
   What does this mean ?

Disclosure: When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network and Google Adsense.