Panasonic announces Lumix G Vario 7-14mm.F4.0 ASPH lens

Micro Four Thirds ultra wide-angle zoom lens

3 March 2009 19:22 GMT / By Verity Burns

Panasonic has unveiled the Lumix G Vario 7-14mm.F4.0 ASPH, a new interchangeable ultra wide-angle zoom lens.

Despite its zoom range of 7-14mm (35mm camera equivalent of
14-28mm), the new lens is still compact and lightweight for
casual on-the-go use, and with its 114-degree angle of view, users will be able to get more of what they're trying to snap in to the picture.

The lens owes its compact size to the combination of 16 lens elements into 12 groups, including two aspherical lenses and four ED lenses.

Panasonic claims this will make image resolution high from
corner-to-corner - even at the wide-angle setting.

It also features F4.0 brightness over the entire zoom range due to its large-diameter glass moulded lens elements.

When mounted on the new DMC-GH1 Lumix G Micro System camera, the lens will be able to take advantage of the advanced contrast AF system, which includes features like face recognition.

With a lens hood designed to withstand even strong sunshine, the lens also features multi-coated lens elements to reduce ghosting and flare.

No pricing or availability information has been released as yet, but we'll get it to you when we have it.