Preview based on a pre-production Lumix G X Vario PZ 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 ASPH Power OIS
running firmware version 0.0
Until now, anyone looking at the lenses being made for the new breed of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras could be forgiven for believing they're just slightly downscaled versions of conventional SLR optics. This isn't actually true, of course - ILC lenses are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and incorporating video-friendly features such as fast, silent internal focusing and stepless aperture control. But from the outside, nothing much has changed; they're all cylinders with zoom and focus rings. Until now.
Panasonic's Lumix G X Vario PZ 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 ASPH Power OIS is, however you look at it, a strikingly different prospect. Because while its specs may suggest just another kit zoom, even a passing glance shows it's something rather different. In reality it's a tiny, collapsible optically-stabilised zoom that's barely larger than the popular Lumix G 20mm F1.7 ASPH pancake prime when retracted. Panasonic has achieved this remarkable downsizing by discarding the mechanically-coupled zoom ring mechanism and the conventional manual focus ring, and replacing both with levers that operate motors inside the lens barrel. This allows the whole lens mechanism to be collapsed, much as it would be in a compact camera's lens. Like the co-announced Lumix G X Vario PZ 45-175mm F3.5-5.6 ASPH Power OIS telephoto, the lens is a power zoom.
Crucially, given the Lumix G series 'hybrid' stills/video philosophy, the inclusion of power zoom also enables smooth zooming during movie recording, something that's not easy when using a lens with a conventional rotary zoom ring. This ties-in with the lens's 'HD' tag, which designates that the lens's aperture and focus systems are optimized for movie use.
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