Design

The 35-100mm uses substantially the same premium construction every bit the 12-35mm F2.8. The rear segment of the barrel between the zoom band and the mount is fabricated of metal, every bit is the manual focus band with its finely-milled ridged grip. The slim safety seal that encircles the mount is the sole external clue to the lens's dust- and splash-proof design. Zoom and focus are both entirely internal, so the lens e'er stays the same length at every setting.

Both the zoom and manual focus rings are smoothen in operation, but while the zoom is mechanically coupled, the focus ring is electronic. However such 'focus-by-wire' systems take improved immeasurably over recent years, and Micro Four Thirds bodies from both Panasonic and Olympus offer a manual focus 'feel' that'south a pretty skilful facsimile of a traditional mechanically-coupled lens.

On the camera

The 35-100mm isn't a large lens by any means, only it notwithstanding contrives to look beefy on most Micro Four Thirds bodies. Information technology's certainly best-balanced on SLR-like bodies such as the DMC-G5, DMC-GH3 or Olympus OM-D E-M5, and similar all lenses benefits from the extra stability of being shot using an heart-level viewfinder. Information technology yet handles reasonably acceptably on the 'rangefinder-way' DMC-GX1 or the Olympus PEN E-P3, but with these small bodies information technology's likely to benefit from the use of an add-on EVF.

Size compared

The 35-100mm F2.8 is so pocket-sized that it'southward barely bigger than its 12-35mm F2.viii fiddling brother. Indeed when the latter is zoomed to 35mm, only a couple of millimetres separates them in length. Compared to a total-frame seventy-200mm F2.8 it'southward admittedly tiny, and a fraction of the weight; simply the trade-off is that the smaller lens can't provide anywhere near the aforementioned degree of bailiwick isolation and background blur.

Lens body elements

The 35-100mm uses the all-electronic Micro Four Thirds mount, meaning information technology will work on Olympus's PEN and OM-D cameras, as well equally on Panasonic Lumix G bodies.

In this view you can meet the slim rubber seal that surrounds the mount, and helps protect against dust and water getting into the body at this relatively vulnerable point.
The filter thread is 58mm, and does non rotate on autofocusing, which should please filter users.

Next to it is the bayonet mount for the petal-blazon lens hood (meet below).
The zoom ring is a generous 37mm broad, and rotates approximately 60 degrees clockwise from 35mm to 100mm.

Olympus users may wish to deport in mind, though, that (as usual) this is the opposite direction of rotation compared to their M.Zuiko Digital zooms.
The finely-ridged manual focus ring is 10mm wide, and unusually is made of metal. Like most Micro 4 Thirds lenses transmission focusing is 'past wire', and geared such that rapid rotation of the band changes focus distance rapidly, while ho-hum rotation can be used for fine focusing.

Panasonic's implementation works especially well, but it does hateful that there'due south no distance calibration on the lens.
Thankfully the 35-100mm has a physical OIS switch; many recent Panasonic lenses have devolved this part to a menu setting on the camera.

For users of Olympus cameras, this allows relatively easy switching between optical and in-body IS systems. On the OM-D E-M5 we'd recommend using the in-body system, due to its ability to correct for rotation around the lens axis.
The 35-100mm comes with a deep, cylindrical bayonet-mountain hood, that reverses for storage. Y'all tin just about operate the zoom band when the hood is reversed, but the focus ring is entirely blocked.