Olympus 12-40 F/2.8 and the Zen Underwater DP 170 n85 port

I have decided to sell my Sony A77 & NEX7 kits and go all in with the Oly E-M1 and Nauticam housing. I feel the E-M1 will fill all of my topside and UW photo needs.

My plan is to use the Oly 12-40 PRO, the 60 macro and I already have the 9-18 currently in use on a PEN E-PM1. I'm hoping the Zen DP 170 n85ii will work not only for the aforementioned lenses, but the Oly 7-14mm PRO when it comes out next year. Anyone given any serious thoughts towards this "new" lens? That would be perfect if it would work on the Zen 170 port...

Regards

Kent

If the Olympus 7-14mm F/2.8 PRO lens has the same excellent quality as the 12-40mm pro I think you will see a bunch of E-M1 users wanting one.

Hi Phil,

Great post on the Oly 12-40mm lens!

I am a beginner and am now using an EPM1 in Oly Housing with a 14-42 kit lens and a +7 Diapoter. I have an EM1 with a 12-40mm F2.8 pro lens and a 60mm Macro lens. Great camera and lens! I am considering buying a Nauticam housing to use this system underwater. Originally planned to use the 12-50mm lens with the specific Nauticam port. However, this post really aroused my interest in using the 12-40mm in the Zen port instead.

Before making my decision, really want to now how the max magnification of the 12-40mm lens compare with the 14-42 kit lens plus a +7 diapoter. To me, the 14-42 kit lens plus the +7 diaporter is more than enough for my need in shooting macro. If the 12-40mm come close to this combo, I will have no hesitation to go for the 12-40 in the zen dome port.

Thanks

Some more pics with this combo (12-40 behin ZEN170II):

P8140504-20 by paratom511, on Flickr

P8160157-44 by paratom511, on Flickr

P8200528-107 by paratom511, on Flickr

My full review on this lens and port is now posted in the new issue of http://www.uwpmag.com this is a free PDF download until the next issue posts.

DP-170-N85-II is the new version (the one I have) and has an additional 30mm of extension on top of the original. So a total of 60mm of extension, plus the ID of the port body is 77mm allowing the larger diameter lenses such as the Olympus 12-40 or the Sony 10-18 to be used. The DP-170-N85 II is compatible with:

Panasonic 7-14mm f/4

Olympus m.Zuiko 9-18mm f/4-5.6

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8

Olympus m.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8

Sony 10-18mm f/4 E-mount

Hi Phil,

Thanks for the very informative post reference the zen dome. I have the Nauticam 7" dome which I'm hoping to utilise after a change to the EM-1. From your list on compatible lenses for the ZEN dome above, do you know if those same lenses are suitable to use behind the Nauticam dome as well?

John

The short answer is yes, the Nauticam port chart recommends the 7" acrylic for the Olympus 12-40mm and the Sony 10-18mm, the other lenses show the 6" Nauticam port but should work well in the 7" port. They also just released a new port adapter and extension for the Nauticam 180mm optical glass port for these lenses. I still would recommend the ZEN DP 170n85II port for anyone wishing to go with optical glass.

The short answer is yes, the Nauticam port chart recommends the 7" acrylic for the Olympus 12-40mm and the Sony 10-18mm, the other lenses show the 6" Nauticam port but should work well in the 7" port. They also just released a new port adapter and extension for the Nauticam 180mm optical glass port for these lenses. I still would recommend the ZEN DP 170n85II port for anyone wishing to go with optical glass.

Excellant.

Can the oly 12-40 been used in any ports for the Oly housings? I have Pt-ep05l. Any ideas??

Kevindale222

I don't think you would be able to use the 12-40mm in the pt housings, the problem is the diameter of the lens is too wide to fit the housing. There would be no way one of the Olympus focus rings would fit unless they design something new.

another 12-40 shots, Nauticam EM-1 with 6" dome port

Lembeh soft coral 2 by Wisnu Purwanto Family, on Flickr

Lembeh soft coral 5 by Wisnu Purwanto Family, on Flickr

We're back from a month in Palau and Truk.

Barbara shot with the EM-1 and 12-40mm.

The quality of her images seems better than mine with the NEX-7 and 10-18mm Sony lens.

I like the versatility of the em-1 and 12-40 as well.

And since we had to buy another camera (another thread discusses this issue), I may swap for another housing.

I have recently read a lot of notes about the 12-40 not being a good lens for underwater.

I think it's great.

I am personally a big fan of the 12-40 in the zen dome, it seems very versatile and very good quality.

We're back from a month in Palau and Truk.

Barbara shot with the EM-1 and 12-40mm.

The quality of her images seems better than mine with the NEX-7 and 10-18mm Sony lens.

I like the versatility of the em-1 and 12-40 as well.

And since we had to buy another camera (another thread discusses this issue), I may swap for another housing.

 

I have recently read a lot of notes about the 12-40 not being a good lens for underwater.

I think it's great.

TedJ, have you got any examples of these photos? A Flickr link? I would be interested to have a look :-)

I agree that if you can afford this combination it is outstanding for both above and below water shooting. If I had to pick just one lens for an assignment that included both over and under shots this would be the lens. Quite sharp and a very wide range of coverage. You can read my review in the current issue of uwpmag.com, this is a free PDF download until 1Nov 14. Images include both ends of the zoom range.

one more

TedJ, have you got any examples of these photos? A Flickr link? I would be interested to have a look :-)

Barbara is editing right now and we're just about to head back down to Florida. We should have a link to our zenfolio gallery in about two weeks.

Can anyone tell me what the balance is like with the nauticam acrylic dome equivalent?

I am just wondering if I need to add any weight anywhere to make it as easy as possible to use in the water. I am unsure about this as I have never used a large dome in the water before and I picked one up for a very reasonable price.

The rig balances with the dome facing upwards. It is somewhat a nuisance but Barbara got used to it.

She ditched the longer arms that she used to use with the INON z240 strobes and does not have any flotation on the short arms.

She hasn't gotten finished with the thousands of images we took while in Palau and Truk, but I'll put up a link shortly.

After viewing many of the raw images, it is clear to me that the EM-1 and 12-40mm lens is superior both in quality and versatility to my Sony NEX-7 rig,

although it is not quite fair to compare a 12-40mm lens to a 10-18mm lens, regardless of the quality of the lens. I'm looking forward to the new Olympus very wide pro lens, which may get me to switch to the Oly EM-1.

Ted, many thanks for the reply, I thought that would be the answer.

Do you think adding some weight to the bottom of the dome would help it? I'm just trying to think of a way to make it more user friendly in the water

I'm planning to get in a pool soon to test it all out and want to take with me some options to try