The Micro Four Thirds (MFT) system was introduced in 2008, so there are already quite a few discontinued lenses. Most of these lenses were not really discontinued, but replaced by „Mark II“ versions, which feature some improvements such as weather sealing. However, the optical construction is often largely unchanged. These lenses can therefore offer great opportunities on the used gear market.
This page provides an overview of the discontinued Micro Four Thirds lenses. These are mostly autofocus lenses, but selected manual focus lenses may also be included. Manual focus lenses are marked by an asterisk (*), purely mechanical lenses with no digital coupling to the camera by a double asterisk (**). The current Micro Four Thirds lineup is listed separately.
For every lens, the following major characteristics are given:
- Focal length.
- Maximum aperture. It has a strong influence on the lighting conditions under which the lens can be used, and how shallow the depth of field can be. Fast lenses also tend to be much bigger, heavier, and more expensive. Green labels indicate fast lenses (> f/2), red labels indicate slow lenses (< f/4).
- Filter size. It serves as a representative of the length, diameter and weight of the lens, which are important features for a system which was designed to be compact and portable. Green labels indicate compact lenses (filter size < 60 mm), red labels indicate big lenses (> 70 mm).
- Minimum focus distance (MFD). It has a major influence on the magnification that can be achieved, as well as the depth of field.
- Another important point is of course the price, but it is different in every market and currency. Instead, plenty of links to independent reviews are provided to help you find the best lens for your needs.
1 Prime lenses
Lenses with a fixed focal length.
1.1 Fisheye lenses
Ultra wide angle lenses with characteristic distortions.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| **Olympus | Body Cap Lens | 9 mm | 8 | Fisheye | n/a | 0.20 m | PZ |
1.2 Wide angle lenses
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| **Kowa | Prominar MFT | 8.5 mm | 2.8 | 86 mm | 0.20 m | PZ | |
| **Kowa | Prominar MFT | 12 mm | 1.8 | 72 mm | 0.20 m | PZ | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G | 14 mm | 2.5 | 46 mm | 0.18 m | LT, PZ | |
| **Olympus | Body Cap Lens | 15 mm | 8 | n/a | 0.30 m | PZ | |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 17 mm | 2.8 | 37 mm | 0.20 m | LT, PZ |
1.3 Standard lenses
Lenses with a focal length around the image sensor diagonal of 22 mm and a natural perspective.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Sigma | 19 mm | 2.8 | EX DN | 46 mm | 0.20 m | LT, TP | |
| Sigma | Art | 19 mm | 2.8 | DN | 46 mm | 0.20 m | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G | 20 mm | 1.7 | 46 mm | 0.20 m | LT, PZ | |
| **Voigtländer | Nokton | 25 mm | 0.95 | 52 mm | 0.17 m | LT, ML, PZ | |
| Panasonic | Leica DG Summilux | 25 mm | 1.4 | 46 mm | 0.30 m | CL, LT, ML, PZ | |
| **Kowa | Prominar MFT | 25 mm | 1.8 | 55 mm | 0.25 m | PZ |
1.4 Telephoto lenses
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Sigma | 30 mm | 2.8 | EX DN | 46 mm | 0.30 m | LT, TP | |
| Sigma | Art | 30 mm | 2.8 | DN | 46 mm | 0.30 m | |
| Sigma | Art | 60 mm | 2.8 | DN | 46 mm | 0.50 m | LT |
| *Tokina | Reflex | 300 mm | 6.3 | 55 mm | 0.80 m | TP |
1.5 Macro lenses
Lenses with a small minimum focus distance and a high magnification.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews |
2 Zoom lenses
Lenses with a variable focal length.
2.1 Wide angle zoom lenses
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 9-18 mm | 4-5.6 | 52 mm | 0.25 m | PZ, TP |
2.2 Standard zoom lenses
Zoom range from moderate wide angle to short telephoto.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Panasonic | Lumix G X Vario | 12-35 mm | 2.8 | 58 mm | 0.25 m | LT, ML, OL, TP | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G X Vario | 12-35 mm | 2.8 | II | 58 mm | 0.25 m | |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 12-40 mm | 2.8 | PRO | 62 mm | 0.20 m | LT, ML, OL, TP |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 12-50 mm | 3.5-6.3 | EZ | 52 mm | 0.20 m | LT, PZ |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 14-42 mm | 3.5-5.6 | 40.5 mm | 0.25 m | LT, PZ | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 14-42 mm | 3.5-5.6 | 52 mm | 0.30 m | PZ | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 14-42 mm | 3.5-5.6 | II | 46 mm | 0.20-0.30 m | PZ |
2.3 Superzoom lenses
Like standard zooms, but with an approximately 10x zoom range.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 14-140 mm | 3.5-5.6 | 58 mm | 0.30 m | ML | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 14-140 mm | 4-5.8 | 62 mm | 0.50 m | PZ | |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 14-150 mm | 4-5.6 | 58 mm | 0.50 m | PZ |
2.4 Telephoto zoom lenses
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews | ||||
| Panasonic | Lumix G X Vario | 35-100 mm | 2.8 | 58 mm | 0.85 m | LT, ML, OL, TP | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G X Vario | 35-100 mm | 2.8 | II | 58 mm | 0.85 m | |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 40-150 mm | 4-5.6 | 58 mm | 0.90 m | PZ | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 45-200 mm | 4-5.6 | 52 mm | 1.00 m | PZ | |
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 45-200 mm | 4-5.6 | II | 52 mm | 1.00 m | |
| Olympus | M.Zuiko | 75-300 mm | 4.8-6.7 | 58 mm | 0.90 m | ||
| Panasonic | Lumix G Vario | 100-300 mm | 4-5.6 | 67 mm | 1.50 m | PZ, TP | |
| Panasonic | Leica DG Vario-Elmar | 100-400 mm | 4-6.3 | 72 mm | 1.30 m | CL, LT, ML, OL |
3 Teleconverters
Teleconverters extend the focal length of matching macro and telephoto lenses by a certain factor.
| Lens | Filter ⌀ | MFD | Reviews |
References
The linked reviews are by Amateur Photographer (AP), CameraLabs (CL), DPReview (DP), LensTip (LT), OpticalLimits (OL), The Phoblographer (TP), and others. LensTip and OpticalLimits focus on laboratory testing, the others on real-world photography.