First test
OM System M.Zuiko ED 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS Pro PRICE: £1300 This macro lens from OM System is a world first, offering 2x life-size magnification with autofocus. We take a closer look
EXPLORE.OMSYSTEM.COM
It’s compact for a telephoto, weighing 453g and measuring just over 13cm; adding the supplied bayonet-fit hood adds another 5cm. I tested the lens on an OM-1 and the pair are well-balanced in the hand. If you want the support of a tripod or, more likely, a monopod, you’ll have to use the camera’s fitting as there’s no lens foot available from OM System. Third-party options are available, or if you own the M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/2.8 zoom, you can borrow the mount from there. It fits and locks securely, but without the orientation click-stops. Autofocus can be limited to three distance ranges: the full range of infinity to 25cm, 25-50cm and an S Macro setting for the 2:1 magnification at 22.4cm minimum focus. In S Macro, the lens front is approximately 7cm from the subject compared with 9cm at 25cm. In both cases, the lens hood can cause shadows – something to watch for. Autofocus with the OM-1 is excellent; very quiet, smooth and accurate. Shooting general scenes, AF delivers a fine performance, but switch to macro and it can rack back and forth a little, which is typical of such lenses. That said, it’s more sure- footed than some full-frame macros I’ve used. If you need manual focus, pull back the barrel and you get the full range down to 25cm in a quarter rotation. The downside is that manual focus is very twitchy when in close, and oddly, although the lens shows 22.4cm and 2x magnification, you don’t get the S Macro setting until you click the switch. There are two views on this style of manual focus switchover. One, it’s quick and means you can engage manual focus without taking the
TESTED BY WILL CHEUNG
MOST MACRO LENSES are short telephotos that allow a good working distance from the subject. However, there are occasions when you can’t physically get close enough, or need a longer focal length to photograph easily spooked subjects. Enter the M.Zuiko ED 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS Pro, which joins the 30mm and 60mm already in the OM System. The ED 90mm f/3.5 is an autofocus lens and the first in any system that also gives 2x life-size magnification. Alongside the 2x crop factor of Micro Four Thirds, this is an equivalent 180mm lens in 35mm format giving an effective 4x magnification. SPECS › Price £1300 › Mount Micro Four Thirds › In the box Lens, front and rear caps › Construction 18 elements in 13 groups › Special glass Two SED, four ED, one HR and one Super HR elements › Diaphragm Seven blades › Aperture range F/3.5-22 › Filter size 62mm › Coating ZERO (Zuiko Extra-low Reflection Optical) multi-coating, fluorine coat on front element › Minimum focus 25cm, 22.4cm (S Macro) › Maximum magnification 1x, 2x in S Macro (2x and 4x equivalent in 35mm) › Focus limiter Yes, 25-50cm, 25cm to infinity, S Macro › IS Up 7EV (five-axis Sync IS), up to 6EV (lens IS) › Weather sealing IP53 weather sealing › Other features Focus stacking compatible › Teleconverter compatibility Yes, with MC-14 giving 1.4x magnification and 2.83x in S Macro, and MC-20 giving 2x
TAKE NOTE! These pictures of a Bulgarian note (almost identical in size to a £5 note) were taken with the OM-1 looking straight down, on a Manfrotto Befree GT XPro tripod, with the shutter released using a 12 second timer. All shots were taken from the same distance. These images were taken at f/11, though all f/stops were used, and at 100% magnification. Processing was done in Lightroom with some contrast and clarity added to taste. No complaints with the lens on its own or the 1.4x converter shots. The 2x is good too – the shot at f/16 looked better – but it lacks the biting definition of the other two, though careful processing will help.
TEST CHART
F/5.6
F/5.6
90mm on its own
90mm with 1.4x MC-14
90mm with 2x MC-20
F/11
F/11
camera down from the eye. On the other hand, I managed several times to de-clutch the AF when taking the lens out of the bag and didn’t notice until I pushed the shutter button. Personally, I’d like a simple click lock on the focus barrel to stop unintentional use. Optically, the lens is seriously impressive, notably at wide apertures. At f/3.5, sharpness, contrast and the rendering of detail were very good across the frame – so good that stopping down to f/4 and f/5.6 only improved matters marginally. I’d say f/5.6 sees this lens at its very best. If I was shooting for critical quality, I wouldn’t stop down any further than f/11 – as diffraction kicks in. The optic is compatible with the 1.4x and 2x OM teleconverters. Fit the 2x converter and you have a 180mm f/7.1 lens with a minimum 22.4cm focus. I tried it with both converters and those shots are shown here. The quality achieved is good, but the 1.4x is superior to the 2x. The 1.4x worked fine at the wider lens apertures, but the 2x needed stopping down to f/16 for decent quality. PN
Verdict A remarkable lens with huge potential, more so when paired with a camera that has focus stacking – it worked really well on the OM-1. Plus, the ability to give a 2:1 magnification with AF and without any extra accessories is an impressive feat. Yes, it’s certainly not cheap, but in the context of the opportunities it offers, it’s great value. PROS Image quality, AF, weatherproofing, manual focus clutch quick to use, hood supplied, effective IS, teleconverter compatibility CONS Manual focus clutch too easy to move, no tripod fitting as standard
F/22
F/22
The 90mm lens was tested on an OM System OM-1. The camera was fixed to a Gitzo carbon tripod with Arca-Swiss ball head, with the shutter released using the 12 second self-timer. Raws were then processed through Adobe Lightroom and checked on- screen. I used my custom test chart, and for these the lens was around 3m away.
magnification and 4x in S Macro › Dimensions (dxl) 69.8x136mm › Weight 453g › Contact explore.omsystem.com
RANGE OPTIONS For the headline 2:1 magnification, you need to be on the S Macro setting, where you get AF down to 22.4cm with the lens front about 7cm from the subject
36 Photography News | Issue 107
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