The Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1

wjlapier said:
I've tried my Leica 14-50 on a GH2 with the Panasonic AF adapter and it works but it racks back and forth before locking focus. It's best to use it on the L1 though. BTW, mine was brand new when I bought it and it has maybe 50 shots on it. I bought it for the lens but never really got around to using it since I was so heavily invested in Sony.
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Yes I agree it can be slow.

But oddly I found that this lens works better and faster on Olympus M4/3 cameras (with adapter) for some reason rather than on Panasonic M4/3s. In fact when I mounted it on one of my Pany M4/3s (I think it was a Panasonic GF1) it did not register an image at all. This seems to be lens specific though as I also have a Panasonic - Leica 25mm f1.4 D which I have successfully used with the same adapter on the same Panasonic GF1 camera and found it functioned more or less perfectly. Odd.

From memory I think I tried the Panasonic 14-50mm on the Panasonic GX7 after I bought this more recently (as well as my Panasonic GF1) and got the same error - while, however I found that the same lens / adapter works perfectly on my Olympus OM D EM 5. So well in fact I took this specific combo on a holiday to Bali with me as my main lens and camera outfit (though I also shot pretty extensively with the Olympus 75mm f1.8 when more reach was called for) and it all functioned perfectly.

Bali Sunset Jimbaran Bay by Life in Shadows, on Flickr
 
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kshapero said:
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(Belated response) :)


I love this lens. And in fact I lusted for it from the moment I first saw an article / review about it in a camera magazine (I suppose that must have been around 2007 or something like that). At the time I had recently bought a Panasonic L1. A considerable time later - a few years ago, I was chatting with a camera guy in a store I sometimes frequented and mentioned my interest in this lens. He disappeared into a back room for a few moments and came out with one in his hand. It had just been traded. "Do you mean this one?" he asked. Luckily it had with it an Olympus AF adapter for 4/3 to m4/3 so I bought it instantly. It was a case of pure kismet and great timing. I still use it on my M4/3 kit and is one reason why I have never sold all my m4/3 kit.
 
I purchased an L1 with the Leica 14-50 2.8/3.5 zoom back in 2008. I sold it a couple of years later to move into the m4/3 system, but I always missed that camera and especially the lens. So, early last year, after a long, long time of looking, I came across one that was new, in the box and I got it. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed shooting the camera and how great the images were. I was in Roswell, New Mexico last month and I brought several cameras with me, but the vast majority of photos I shot were with the L1. I recently bought a Sigma 10-20 zoom for the camera. The one lens I would really like to get is the Leica 25 1.4 . Maybe one day.

The L1 is the last big camera I own. I now shoot mostly small, fixed lens, compact cameras.
 
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