The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

Tell Me More About 14-140

wjlapier

Member
OK, so I bought this lens because I wanted more zoom reach that the 14-45 and didn't want to add the 45-200 to my kit. Other than 10X zoom, what else does this lens do to justify it's cost ( BTW--BING cashback--<$700! )? I'm curious to know how good is the AF in AFC mode capturing action--I'd be using this on a GF1.

I use my D700 and 70-300 AFS VR for shooting my kids in sports outdoors. Can the GF1/14-140 combo keep up with the D700 combo I mentioned?

Regarding video: I'd also like to use the GF1/14-140 combo for sports. Can the AF keep up with soccer, softball, LL, XC and Track?

Thanx--Bill
 

Tullio

New member
This seems to be a wonderful lens from everything I've seen from it. However, I do ask the same question. Is the price justifiable? I've always had a hard time justifying spending thousands of dollars on lenses (maybe it's because I simply don't have that kind of money to spare). The question I always ask myself is, is any particular $900 lens at least 3x better than a $300 lens? The answer I come up with most often is "no". I co-worker of mine used to be a nikonian. At one point he bought a $1200 lens (can't remember which model at the moment) and was disappointed with the results. He expected something spectacular for the price. In summary, I think there is a point where cost/performance is not balanced. Real cheap lenses (and I'm not talking about those good old manual lenses going for peanuts on eBay but the new AF budget lenses) will tend to have a more mediocre performance but that does not necessarily imply that real expensive lenses are flawless.
 

slau

New member
I was 'lucky' that I did not have to justify buying the 14-140 as it came as the kit lens with my GH1 :).

As I don't have a GF1, my experience is only based on G1/GH1, and I still shoot and own almost all the Canon super teles + Canon pro bodies. I have played a bit with my friend's GF1 and the AF of GF1 is not significantly inferior to G1/GH1, if there is any.

You probably can tell that I am pretty critical on AF, and I would say that the AF of the Panasonic 10X zoom lens is not that bad, as long as the ambient light is half decent. Your personal tracking technique is important as if you lose the AF lock, it takes a bit longer to regain the AF lock , RELATIVELY. I cannot tell you if the lens is worth the extra cash or not. Only you can tell as our monetary value are probably different.

I mainly bought the GH1 for video and as a 'casual' shooting system. The video is pretty good as long as you have some solid support. I have shot rodeo shortly after I bought the GH1 kit. The results are quite impressive. Based on this, I would say that the AF should be good enough for kiddy sports as long as the game is played outdoor during the day (i.e. no night game). I do suggest you shoot with only 720/60P until you know the camera a bit more before going to shoot 1080P. I find that DVXuser.com provides the best help on the video side of GH1.

If you like, you can check my Youtube rodeo video here to check for the AF tracking:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ooj7eNf3y6o

Or, vimeo for better video quality:
http://vimeo.com/6529087
 
Last edited:

mark1958

Member
I got this lens used and locally the other day. My first impressions that the optics are quite good. I agree AF is good with decent light. Although I cannot say for sure, seems like my 14-45 does better in lower light in terms of autofocus. The IS works well and overall pleased so far. It is quite a bit heavier than the 14-45 and i can probably add up but i suspect as heavy as the 14-45 and 45-200 together. Not having to change lenses is a real plus. I am torn at this point in terms of selling my 14-45 and 45-200 since the later is relatively inexpensive and the former is great for a real light walk around lens.
 

wjlapier

Member
Thank you for the feedback. I did buy the lens before I posted my questions about the AF speed. Price was great!

I am impressed with the build and image quality. Very compact for a 10X zoom lens. OIS works very well. This lens replaced my 14-45 and I've decided not to buy the 45-200. For the price I paid I'm happy with it :thumbup:

I may have to have my kids go outside and run around so I can test the AF. No outdoor sports as of now for me to shoot.
 

LizaWitz

New member
The price for this lens is a custom linear actuator to do the auto-focus so that the act of autofocusing is done silently enough not to be picked up by the internal mics on the GH1. IT is an HD lens and that's a good bit of what you're paying for.

So, if you're not shooting video or using the internal mics, it may be that the optical characterisitics are not sufficient for you to justify it.

For me, I'm thinking of a three lens setup- 20mm, 7-14mm and 14-140mm. I think getting a 14-45 and a 45-200 would be a bit much in cost and weight.
 

simonclivehughes

Active member
Lisa,

Just remember that the 7-14mm, although excellent, has no filter thread, so it is challenging for video usage unless you have an external method of mounting NDs etc. I use the Oly 9-18mm instead.

Also, in reality, the 14-45mm and 45-200mm are quite lightweight.

Cheers,
 
Top