Sometimes, good things come in small packages — is the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II one of those good things? The lens is a tiny 2.2 inches long, but you’d be surprised at what the Micro Four Thirds optic is able to pack into that small size.
As one of several co-branded Panasonic Leica lenses for the Micro Four Thirds system, the 25mm f1.4 II is impressively affordable. The question is, does it deliver the right balance between technical greatness and character for that price?
Table of Contents
The Big Picture
The Panasonic 25mm f1.4 II is a tiny lens with big personality. The lens uses a metal barrel with Leica-style lettering, plus dust and weather-sealing. The small lens is decently fast with focusing on moving subjects. And, woah, does this lens have some personality on a sunny day. The lens captures some lovely flare, plus the colors are really nice, too.
But there are two main things that keep me from giving the 25mm f1.4 II a five-star rating. The first is the chromatic aberration. It’s fairly significant and difficult to edit out. The second is the soap bubble bokeh. I don’t mind this as much as I do the purple fringing, but I know many photographers might be bothered by it.
I’m giving the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II four out of five stars.
Pros
- Compact design
- Metal, weather-sealed build
- Sharp, but not too sharp
- Beautiful flare and colors
- Decent autofocus speed
- Reasonably priced
Cons
- Significant chromatic aberration
- Soap bubble bokeh
Gear Used
I tested the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II with the Panasonic G9 II. Both the camera and lens were a temporary loan from Panasonic for review purposes.
Innovations
The Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II is a compact, bright prime lens. The small size and metal weather-sealed build mixed with the sharp image quality is what this lens has going for it. There’s no earth-shattering tech hiding inside; but instead, it’s the mix of quality and portability.
Ergonomics
Smaller than a can of soda, the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II only takes up a 2.2-inch spot in a camera bag. The metal barrel adds a bit of weight, but at about half a pound, this is one optic that I could wear all day long.
The small size of the lens means there’s really no tour to give here. There’s a manual focus ring on the lens, and that’s it. There are no other controls on the lens, though it does take on the classic Leica lettering and look.
The lens accepts small 46mm circular filters at the front. It does not ship with a hood.
Build Quality
The Leica in the name isn’t just for decoration. The lens has a metallic barrel, which gives it a nice feeling in the hands. Some pieces, though, feel a bit more lightweight.
The lens is sealed against dust and moisture. I gave the lens a good splash and didn’t experience any adverse effects. I didn’t spot any dust or debris on the sensor after testing the weather-sealing either.
Focusing
I tested this lens on the Panasonic G9 II, which is Panasonic’s best Micro Four Thirds body so far. But, the camera body itself has some autofocus struggles that have made lens test a bit challenging. The shorter focal length on the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.7 II, however, helps boost performance a bit. I was able to readily take portraits with this nifty fifty equivalent, including portraits of an active dog.
With action, the lens does drop a few frames. Photographing a dog running straight towards the camera, for example, the focus locked onto the tail instead of the face several times. But as this lens did a bit better than others that I tested with the G9 II, I believe the autofocus motors in the lens are up to most tasks.
Ease of Use
The Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.7 II is a mount-and-shoot lens. Photographers won’t need a user manual to get started with this lens, as there’s just one control on the barrel itself. I would have loved to have a dedicated aperture dial, but the design really couldn’t be simpler.
The lens lacks image stabilization. The in-body systems on most Micro Four Thirds bodies are sufficient for this focal length without a second system in the lens. But it’s not as equipped for tripod-free long exposures as pairings with stabilization in both the optic and the camera.
Image Quality
The Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.7 may be small, but it’s a little spitfire full of lovely character. Directed toward the sun, this lens creates dreamy goodness, with soft lens flares and arcs of color. The optic also finds that sweet spot between sharp and too sharp. Sadly, though, there’s a lot of purple fringing in high-contrast areas with this lens.
Bokeh
The crop factor makes this lens equivalent to a 50mm f2.8. There are plenty of opportunities to create soft backgrounds here. Yes, there are brighter options out there but don’t hate on the Micro Four Thirds system. Getting in close to the subject creates some nice drama.
Points of light are rendered circular at the center, but cat-eye towards the edges. While the bokeh is nice, the lens does render some soap bubble texture to those bokeh balls.
Color Rendition
Panasonic sits towards the top in my book for color, and this 25mm lens works well with Panasonic’s color profiles. I was able to get nice dramatic contrasting colors, or softer tones by switching color profiles. The lens didn’t skew the colors too far.
However, the lens doesn’t do enough to minimize chromatic aberration. Purple fringing is a significant issue around high-contrast subjects, which you can see in the tree branches on the image below. That’s a real shame because the lens flare coming from this lens is lovely.
Lens Character
Direct this lens towards the sun and prepare for some magic. The Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II creates soft, hazy sun flares. Occasionally, I could also get arcs of light across the frame, even when the sun wasn’t directly in the image. There’s a lot of fun potential working with flare here.
Outside of that lens flare, the remaining character is going to come from those colors. There’s little vignetting, and as a 50mm equivalent, lines are kept pretty straight.
Sharpness
This lens hits that sweet spot — it’s sharp but not to the point where every single pore is rendered. Subjects were sharp both at the center and when placed towards the edge as well.
Extra Image Samples
From day one, The Phoblographer has been huge on transparency with our audience. Nothing from this review is sponsored. Further, lots of folks will post reviews and show lots of editing in the photos. The problem then becomes that anyone and everyone can do the same thing. They’re not showing what the lens can do. So we have a section in our Extra Image Samples area to show edited and unedited photos. From this, you can make a decision for yourself.
Unedited
Edited
Who Should Buy It?
Micro Four Thirds shooters who want a compact, durable, bright aperture nifty fifty will love the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II. It’s a spitfire of a lens with a compact build but lots of character in the lens flares and colors.
But, there is some significant purple fringing to contend with that’s going to prevent some photographers from picking up this lens. If soap bubble bokeh is a pet peeve of yours, you’ll also want to stay away from this one.
Tech Specs
LensRentals lists the following tech specs for the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 II:
- Angle of View: 47°
- Aperture Blades: 7, Rounded
- Aspherical Elements: 2
- Autofocus: Autofocus
- Brand: Panasonic
- Diameter: 2.5”
- Filter Size: 46.0mm
- Focal Length: 25.0-25.0
- Groups/Elements: 7/9
- Hood Included: No
- Image Stabilization: No
- Item Type: Lens
- Length: 2.2”
- Lens Type: Normal Range
- Max Aperture: 1.4
- Maximum Magnification: 0.11x
- Minimum Aperture: 16.0
- Minimum Focusing Distance: 0.9feet
- Mount: Micro 4/3rds
- Ultra High-Refractive Index Elements: 1
- Weight: 0.5 lb.
The Phoblographer may receive affiliate compensation for products purchased using links in this blog posted.