The Best Zoom Lenses for the OM SYSTEM OM-1 Under $2,000

There are fewer more satisfying things in the photography world than setting your OM SYSTEM OM-1 to Pro Capture mode, pointing it at birds, and seeing the magic it documents. Indeed, some of the best lenses for the system happen to be zooms. Even better, they’re all smaller than their full-frame counterparts. If you happen to be out in the field, they’re going to stand up to the elements very well, too. We dove into our Reviews Index to find which zooms pair well with the OM SYSTEM OM-1 (we’ve tested most of the greatest made). Here are the best zoom lenses for the OM SYSTEM OM-1 under $2,000.

The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear we’ve fully reviewed. If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

How We Selected the Best Zoom Lenses for the OM System OM-1

Here’s some insight into how we selected the best zoom lenses for the OM SYSTEM OM-1:

• Our Editorial Policies don’t allow us to speak about products we haven’t tried. Lucky for you, The Phoblographer has done the most real-world reviews of lenses on the web! All the product and sample images were shot by this. And while this piece is done in part of a sponsorship with OM SYSTEM, they’re well aware of our hardened, transparent stances on things.
• When considering the best zoom lenses for the OM SYSTEM OM-1, know that if it says “PRO” in the name, it’s their highest-end option. Luckily, they’re not out of the budget of most people into photography.
• Zuiko is the name OM SYSTEM (and Olympus before them) chose for their lens lineup. It means “Light of the Gods.” Just a cool bit of history we thought you should know!
• The best zoom lenses for the OM System OM-1 in this list have weather resistance. Notice how we’re not saying “weather sealing.” Barely any products out there are weather sealed, but instead they’re resistant to the weather. If you’re picking up a PRO lens, know it’s boasting weather resistance. Also, know this doesn’t only help with durability, but it keeps your camera’s sensor pretty clean. As it is, OM SYSTEM has great vibration technology that keeps dust off the sensor as best it can. The OM1 also has a very good IP durability rating, and so do these lenses.
• This is the Micro Four Thirds system. So, when you’re considering the focal lengths, you have to multiply them by two. This means a 14mm lens is actually 28mm in traditional photography speak. It makes for excellent photography of wildlife and for getting more of a subject in focus.
• The OM SYSTEM OM-1 is a fantastic camera that’s insanely capable and has only gotten better with firmware updates. Overall, the system’s zoom lenses are what photographers mostly purchase.
• The zoom lenses for the OM SYSTEM OM-1 we have listed in this roundup can be used with any Micro Four Thirds camera from Olympus and OM System.
• For some extra fun, dive into this camera’s computational photography settings.

M.Zuiko 12-100mm f4 PRO

What to Like

• Fairly compact
• Feels nice in the hand
• Clutch for manual focus
• Sharp
• Nice colors
• Fast autofocus capabilities
• Image stabilization that works with the sensor
• With the OMD EM1 Mk II, it’s almost impossible to get a blurry shot from camera shake.

What We Thought

In our review, we said:

“Now that we’re talking about autofocus just a bit, what I really like about the Olympus 12-100mm f4 PRO is just how closely it can focus when zoomed in. It guarantees a lot of great bokeh and you never have to stop down to begin with. Additionally, the lens is really speedy.”

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M.Zuiko 40-150mm f4 PRO

What to Like

• Very light and compact
• Mostly metal build
• IP53 rated dust and water protection
• Simple to use
• Sharp images with little barrel distortion
• Flare is full of character

What We Thought

In our review, we said:

“The OM SYSTEM 40-150mm f4 PRO is a compact yet tough telephoto zoom lens for Micro Four Thirds. It lacks the manual focus pull-back clutch of the similar f2.8 lens. An f4 on Micro Four Thirds isn’t very bright, pushing up the ISO more and delivering less background blur. But, this lens has some pretty fun flare and, despite being more affordable, is still sharp.”

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M.Zuiko 40-150mm f2.8 PRO

What to Like

• Excellent build quality
• Very sharp wide open
• You get an 80-300mm f2.8 lens in the size of a standard 24-70mm f2.8 from other manufacturers
• The retractable lens hood is very convenient, but if you want to use the lens without the hood you essentially need to remove it.

What We Thought

In our review, we said:

“The M.ZUIKO 40-150mm f2.8 PRO exhibits exceptional image quality that is sharp, contrasty, and detailed: enough to give any Micro Four Thirds user exactly what they want. In some events, like shooting portraits, it’s easy to say it can be too sharp. Of any Olympus lens we’ve tested, this one has given us the best results, understandably too for the price point!”

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M.Zuiko 12-40mm f2.8 PRO

What to Like

• Weather-resistant design
• Sharp image quality
• Good colors
• Small and lightweight
• Overall a good price
• At the longer end, it delivers nice bokeh
• Fast autofocus performance and good tracking on the OM System OM1
• Comes bundled with the camera at a very good price

What We Thought

In our review, we said:

“The colors from the OM SYSTEM 12-40mm f2.8 PRO II are nothing to argue about. They’re very nice. Overexpose by a stop and you’ll get beautiful muted colors that are so popular with film photographers. Expose perfectly according to a light meter, and the colors will just pop out at you. Seriously, you can’t go wrong with this lens’ colors.”

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M.Zuiko 100-400mm f5-6.3 IS PRO

What to Like

• Superb image quality
• Excellent overall build quality
• Remarkable color rendition
• Image stabilization makes this lens easy to handhold.
• IPX1 weather sealing means this lens will face Mother Nature head-on
• It can be used with the MC-14 and MC-20 teleconverters to give a maximum focal length of 1120mm and 1600mm.
• In great light, this lens focuses at a rapid speed, and it’s quiet.
• Compatible with focus stacking modes in certain Olympus cameras
• It’s fairly priced at $1,499

What We Thought

In our review, we said:

“Telephoto lenses, at the best of times, can be a challenge to use. Super telephoto zooms can be even harder to get under control, especially at the long end due to the very narrow viewing angle they produce and just how much vibration is amplified at such long focal lengths. However, I have to say, the image stabilization in the Olympus 100-400mm f5-6.3 IS is excellent, and it does make this lens easy to handhold, even at 800mm equivalent lengths.”

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This piece is presented in partnership with OM SYSTEM. We’ve independently and ethically reviewed all the products in this post already without sponsorship. And we worked with them to recommend a few key gems to you.